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  • #1

    Multi-meter suggestions

    Namaste',

    I'm wondering if any of you electrical guru's could recommend a good valued multi-meter to use for my free energy generator research (based on Dan Quale's lenzless design)...
    Is there a good quality multi-meter that can be found for under $300?

    Any expertise you can provide would be most appreciated!

    Thank you for your consideration.

    ~ Golden Mean (aka ~ Will)

    ~ Golden Mean

    If you're interested in healthy living, please check out my site on aquaponics... www.opensourceaquaponics.com
    I also have various videos on the new paradigm unfolding on My YouTube Channel


    "Giving with ANY expectation isn't giving... it's bartering."
    Tags: None
  • #2
    I have two digital multimeters at present: a Tenma and a Fluke (73 or 75; I don't have it in front of me to verify). The Tenma has more functions (Hz & C) but the Fluke is of better quality. The Tenma at the time I bought it was almost half the price of an equivalent Fluke meter and was around $180 USD. If you shop around you should be able to get a good DMM for under $200 USD. Both meters read voltage and current accurately (at least they match each other) but spend the money for good quality leads as the "cheapies" some meters come with will throw sensitive measurements off just because of the lead resistance.

    For the kind of electrical work most people here are doing, I recommend you take $100 to $150 USD and shop Ebay for a good used oscilloscope. I bought mine for just over $100 and it is invaluable for "seeing" what is going on inside the circuits I've been building. DMM's average the readings in their own way and the peaks and valleys of the voltage you're reading are lost in translation. This is where an O-scope is invaluable. Like the DMM's, make sure you get good leads for it and be careful to avoid overloading the voltage ratings for the input channels.

    If you shop diligently, you should be able to come up with both a DMM and O-scope for $300-$400.

    Comment

    • #3
      Everwise gives good advice. Primarily you want to pick something that fits your needs. If all you are measuring is voltage and amperage a good fluke meter sounds like an excellent idea. But it never hurts to get something that will allow for a little room to grow.

      I brought this scope/meter here:

      http://cgi.ebay.com/Uni-T-UT81B-SCOPEMETER-MULTIMETER-OSCILLOSCOPE-ut-81B_W0QQitemZ270345802767QQcmdZViewItemQQptZLH_Def aultDomain_0?hash=item270345802767&_trksid=p3286.c 0.m14&_trkparms=72%3A1205|66%3A2|65%3A12|39%3A1|24 0%3A1318|301%3A1|293%3A1|294%3A50


      It does everything I need except for inductances. The scope is easy to use and adjust too.

      Regards
      "Once you've come to the conclusion that what what you know already is all you need to know, then you have a degree in disinterest." - John Dobson

      Comment

      • #4
        Depends what you will be measuring, but IMO you should get something that isn't too exspensive. The high voltage spikes of my bedini chargers have ruined two of my meteres each costing over $100. My most reliable meter has been one that is at least 12 yrs old and probably only cost about $40. Mind you I've never owned a fluke or anything so maybe they would hold up better.

        Cheers,
        You can view my vids here

        http://www.youtube.com/SJohnM81

        Comment

        • #5
          Thank you very much!

          This is what I was hoping to see.

          Thanks again.

          Peace,
          ~ Will (aka ~ Golden Mean)
          ~ Golden Mean

          If you're interested in healthy living, please check out my site on aquaponics... www.opensourceaquaponics.com
          I also have various videos on the new paradigm unfolding on My YouTube Channel


          "Giving with ANY expectation isn't giving... it's bartering."

          Comment

          • #6
            suggestion..

            get yourself 7 of the harbor frieght $3.99 deals..... They are great for monitoring voltage and the batteries last a VERY long time in them. You will also want an analog meters for measuring pulse voltage, but you may already know that...

            I always use my cheap meters before reaching for my good one.....
            See my experiments here...
            http://www.youtube.com/marthale7

            You do not have to prove something for it to be true. However, you do have to prove something for others to believe it true.

            Comment

            • #7
              Originally posted by theremart View Post
              get yourself 7 of the harbor frieght $3.99 deals..... They are great for monitoring voltage and the batteries last a VERY long time in them. You will also want an analog meters for measuring pulse voltage, but you may already know that...

              I always use my cheap meters before reaching for my good one.....
              Good advice. Where did you find the harbor freight deals at $3.99 ?
              Thanks.
              ~ Golden Mean
              ~ Golden Mean

              If you're interested in healthy living, please check out my site on aquaponics... www.opensourceaquaponics.com
              I also have various videos on the new paradigm unfolding on My YouTube Channel


              "Giving with ANY expectation isn't giving... it's bartering."

              Comment

              • #8
                I was looking around today for a meter that would measure inductance and stumbled on this for $55.


                MS8222H 1000V 10A Professional LCR Meter with Temperature and Frequency checker

                not sure if I'll pick it up but its the least expensive I've found with decent features.

                Comment

                • #9
                  Originally posted by Golden Mean View Post
                  Good advice. Where did you find the harbor freight deals at $3.99 ?
                  Thanks.
                  ~ Golden Mean
                  Found 'em and ordered a few. That was a good idea Theremart as I tend to fry electronics or blow fuses relatively easily as it is!
                  ~ Golden Mean

                  If you're interested in healthy living, please check out my site on aquaponics... www.opensourceaquaponics.com
                  I also have various videos on the new paradigm unfolding on My YouTube Channel


                  "Giving with ANY expectation isn't giving... it's bartering."

                  Comment

                  • #10
                    If you do want to get into the hi-end scopes and such I've found the universities swap shop sells older high end equipment for peanuts and many times the old analog units are much more usefull than the new digital variations if they have them.

                    This probably only applies if you live within the US but its worth a shot, one of my friends got a fairly complex scope & precision variable power supply combo for $10 out of the swap shop several years ago, well worth it me thinks.

                    (and yes I do 2nd the harbor freight DMMs of which I own 3)

                    Good Luck

                    Comment

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