Oscilloscope For a Beginner

[bobhowe]

Hi as per title and what make or type ? traditional bench CRT type or modern LCD hand held type and what book is recommended on how to use one kind regards Bob

[Diabolical Artificer]

Depends what your working on. An old Farnell, Scopex, Hameg or similar analogue scope for general audio/LF work will do, also doesn't matter if you blow it up so much. For logic/digital non repetitive waveforms & RF maybe a modern Rigol or similar will do. Problem with some more complex vintage scopes is they are hard to fix or may have obsolete parts inside.

For "how to" there's several good videos on Youtube.

Andy.

[Radio Wrangler]

It's possible to begin with quite a complex scope if you have someone to guide you, to show you which controls you don't need and how to park them so they don't interfere with basic operation. It takes self control to not be intimidated by a panel stuffed to bursting with knobs and buttons, but sometimes they turn up for sale cheaper than the more basic sort.

This year I decided that my scope collection had got too big and I gave away (free!) two 100MHz Tektronix portables in good working order. There are bargains and even freebies out there if you look around. Amateur radio rallies are good hunting grounds. Towards the end, stall holders are daunted by the prospect of lugging large instruments back to their vans and prices can fall dramatically!

There are more people looking for non-intimidating instruments than for high performance jobs.

If you can get the right guidance, you can manage something with a panel stuffed to bursting point with knobs and buttons, and it may well save you money.

David

[lesmw0sec]

Just restored an old Tektronix 545A for a friend. A joy to work on and a needle-sharp trace, unlike some of the modern fuzzy displays. You need a lot of space to house one of those though!

[Boulevardier]

Originally Posted by lesmw0sec

Just restored an old Tektronix 545A for a friend. You need a lot of space to house one of those though!

You also need to have quite a lot of muscle and cardiovascular fitness to exploit its claim to be portable...

Mike

[lesmw0sec]

Originally Posted by Boulevardier

You also need to have quite a lot of muscle and cardiovascular fitness to exploit its claim to be portable...

Mike

Nah - that is a baby compared to a R&S Polyskop I'm currently working on. So heavy as to be impossible to lift on to the bench un-aided!

[David Simpson]

Bob, your profile says you are interested in Valve Radios. So - a decent HAMEG( I use a 203 & a 605) is just the ticket. There is a strong Geordie representation on this Forum. As David says - someone local to mentor you on 'scope usage - is a good road to follow. Also, a decent set of leads/probes will be needed. Try & snaffle/scrounge a decent 2nd hand HP or TEK x10 probe.
But hey - for very basic work - a good old wee CT52 is lightweight & handy to use. A decent old CT436 is super, but heavy.

Regards, David

[Craig Sawyers]

Originally Posted by lesmw0sec

Just restored an old Tektronix 545A for a friend. A joy to work on and a needle-sharp trace, unlike some of the modern fuzzy displays. You need a lot of space to house one of those though!

At least it doubles up as a room heater in the Winter

The 545A was my first Tektronix scope. Still have it.

Craig

[Craig Sawyers]

I'm fairly certain I have a Tektronix 2215 in functional condition in the lockup that the OP would be welcome to.

Like this https://w140.com/tekwiki/wiki/2215

It would need to find its way from Oxfordshire to Sunderland. Oscilloscopes with CRT's are a breakage waiting to happen if posted. Anyone heading in that direction?

Craig

[Ted Kendall]

+1 for Hameg - something like a 205, perhaps - easy to use, tough and reliable. An analogue 'scope feels more transparent, somehow - I've found the processing delay annoying on the digital 'scopes I've tried.

[Radio Wrangler]

That sounded like a free offer from Craig and the 22xx series from Tektronix are good relatively modern portable scopes, quite light and not overly complicated. Enough functionality and low intimidation factor.

The Hameg scopes are well made and quite approachable, but they are a bit sought after by people wanting something which doesn't look overpowering, so they can be a bit more expensive than something more comprehensive. Hameg are German, and part of Rohde & Schwarz, the big German competitor to Hewlett-Packard and Tektronix.

As David Simpson said a couple of posts ago, you'll need a x10 scope probe to scale down the voltage presented to the scope itself. As you're going to go prodding around in valve gear, you'll want a good quality probe. Avoid ones with a x1/x10 switch these not only have limited performance, but if you slip with the switch when working on valve gear, it can destroy the input amplifier of your scope.

David

[Craig Sawyers]

Correct David - that would be a free offer to the OP. And it would help declutter the lockup to boot.

But it would need transport for sure.

Craig

[paulsherwin]

Others have hinted at this, but while old professional and lab scopes can be had for nothing or next to nothing, they are extremely heavy and take up a lot of bench space. This is true even of relatively modern solid state scopes from the 80s like the 2215, never mind the hernia-inducing scopes from the valve era.

[bobhowe]

Originally Posted by Craig Sawyers

Correct David - that would be a free offer to the OP. And it would help declutter the lockup to boot.

But it would need transport for sure.

Craig

Hi Craig thanks for the kind offer Will try in the Equipment Transport section if anyone can help kind regards Bob

[bobhowe]

Originally Posted by Radio Wrangler

That sounded like a free offer from Craig and the 22xx series from Tektronix are good relatively modern portable scopes, quite light and not overly complicated. Enough functionality and low intimidation factor.

The Hameg scopes are well made and quite approachable, but they are a bit sought after by people wanting something which doesn't look overpowering, so they can be a bit more expensive than something more comprehensive. Hameg are German, and part of Rohde & Schwarz, the big German competitor to Hewlett-Packard and Tektronix.

As David Simpson said a couple of posts ago, you'll need a x10 scope probe to scale down the voltage presented to the scope itself. As you're going to go prodding around in valve gear, you'll want a good quality probe. Avoid ones with a x1/x10 switch these not only have limited performance, but if you slip with the switch when working on valve gear, it can destroy the input amplifier of your scope.

David

Hi David thanks about the advise about the probes and I would be using it on Valve Gear kind regards Bob

[Craig Sawyers]

The 2215 is only 6.1kg (without probe pouch and cover), which is not too bad. At with a 2mV/div sensitivity at 50MHz makes it a really useful scope.

FWIW most Hameg scopes with CRT's seem to weigh more than the 2215. The 205 mentioned above is 8kg.

The 545A is 30kg before a vertical plugin. It contains 74 valves, is fan cooled, and with a plugin consumes 500W. Maximum bandwidth 30MHz. A classic era thing of beauty, but definitely not a beginner oscilloscope.

I honestly cannot recall if my 2215 has the cover and/or probe pouch - I'd have to look in the lockup.

Craig

[Craig Sawyers]

Originally Posted by bobhowe

Hi Craig thanks for the kind offer Will try in the Equipment Transport section if anyone can help kind regards Bob

I also have a parts unit, and a defunct but repairable pre-regulator board that you would also be welcome to.

Craig

[Graham G3ZVT]

My Tek 453 which was famously designed to be compact enough to fit under an airline seat is still to bulky to have a place on my bench (desk), so it, and the RF sig gen live and get used under the desk.

Incidentally, much is made of having good quality probes, but I use cheap Chinese X1/x10 switchable probes that cost £5 delivered from Ebay

[Sideband]

I bought a TEK TDS210 for £150 to replace my ageing and now unreliable Philips scope. 60Mhz bandwidth, far better than the Philips, very light and takes up only a quarter of the space the Philips did and for audio and video work, it does everything I need it to. There are functions that a beginner wouldn't use but they can be 'parked' without upsetting the basic functions. Ordinarily these would have been in the £800 - £1000 mark....possibly more. Look around on eBay and the likes. There are some real bargains to be had and you can pick up a really good scope cheaply. Many are from ex-service workshops that have closed down and what was once out-of-reach for an enthusiast is now far more obtainable.

Once you get used to a digital storage scope, they are invaluable for examining waveforms in detail...not so much for radio work but for TV and digital work.

[bobhowe]

Originally Posted by Radio Wrangler

That sounded like a free offer from Craig and the 22xx series from Tektronix are good relatively modern portable scopes, quite light and not overly complicated. Enough functionality and low intimidation factor.

The Hameg scopes are well made and quite approachable, but they are a bit sought after by people wanting something which doesn't look overpowering, so they can be a bit more expensive than something more comprehensive. Hameg are German, and part of Rohde & Schwarz, the big German competitor to Hewlett-Packard and Tektronix.

As David Simpson said a couple of posts ago, you'll need a x10 scope probe to scale down the voltage presented to the scope itself. As you're going to go prodding around in valve gear, you'll want a good quality probe. Avoid ones with a x1/x10 switch these not only have limited performance, but if you slip with the switch when working on valve gear, it can destroy the input amplifier of your scope.

David

Hi David thanks about the advise about the probes and I would be using it on Valve Gear kind regards Bob