Re: Best 100MHz analogue oscilloscope?
Philips made a lot of nice 'scopes.
The PM3267 has traditional knobs and buttons, but not the crispest CRT.
Later ones had the pushbutton+LCD interface, but really sharp CRTs.
Later still moved from brown to white cases, and there was a move to buttons+rotary encoders, with the on-screen text replacing the LCD. Some of these were badged Fluke. Some models were 4 channel, some went to 200MHz, and some were "CombiScopes". I have a PM3380A, which is a 2 channel, 100MHz analogue/digital unit, and love it. The worst thing I can find to complain about it is the slightly noisy fan.
I also have a PM3295, which is a 350MHz beast. There was a later A model that went to 400MHz. Obviously aimed at the Tek 2465 models. Personally, I prefer the Philips. It has a nicer user interface (buttons with status LEDs built in and little backlit LCD displays above the rotaries, so you don't have to rely on the on-screen text) and a much sharper CRT (21kV acceleration voltage!).
I have the use of many Tek 'scopes at work, including some quite posh ones, like the 2465B, but I genuinely prefer the Philips equivalents. I've never had a custom part fail in a Philips before, but we've had several Tek modules go bad over the years.
Philips use similar inline filters to Tek, so expect them to let go in the usual way. I wouldn't ignore one that's done its work though - I don't imagine the deposits left behind are very nice (happy for someone to set me straight on that - I wasn't great at chemistry!).
I've spent over a decade - on and off - trying to restore a HP1740A. Still not quite there. A donor machine helped a lot, but I keep running out of enthusiasm to finish it. The trouble is, once done, it will be bigger than my other 'scopes, and no more capable. I agree that it's much easier to work on than the Tek equivalent, and being fanless is an important benefit. In fact, that's why my "daily driver" is still - after 30+ years - a Telequipment DM63. If I need more bandwidth, I'll use the PM3295. If I need storage, I'll use the Rigol DS1054 (which is now 100MHz, though quite a bit more in practice if you measure it). But the added bandwidth comes with all sorts of complications if you want to use probes, as alluded to above...
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