New scope time

[JS]

The time has come for me to retire the old analog oscilloscope and enter the DSO world. Hope to purchase a new unit within a few months. I am seeing many new brands out there, especially the imports. The imports seem to have great features for the price. The low end Tektronix scopes are also in the ball park. Regarding the imports, how reliable are they and is service documentation and parts readily available. Any comments appreciated. Thanks J.S.

[fripster]

hi there,

If you can read dutch: The elektuur magazine just did a test of 20+ DSO's . Its ready for download for a moderate fee (about 2$) at www.elektuur.nl

just my two cents..

Da fripster

<small>[ February 25, 2006, 01:22 AM: Message edited by: fripster ]</small>

[Robert Reed]

JS
I puchased a new Protek scope 6 years ago. This scope is made in Korea under ridgid ISO standards.The first thing I did upon purchase was to give it a thorough routine test. I was amazed at the results--Sweep times were within 1% of labled times. Vertical attenuator was within 1% of labeled values. All other functions (trigger sensitivity, position stability, delay sweep, etc.) were better than specced. Unit came with manual and complete schematics along with calibration procedure. As far as parts availability goes-don't know as I havent even opened up the case yet (exept early on--engineers curiosity). Doesn't look to have the mechanical integrity of a Tektronix,but all in all I am quite satified with the scope.

[Dean Huster]

Although I'm biased because I'm a former Tektronix employee, I also have a lot of insight into how they build their equipment. I think that you'll find that the low-end Tek DSOs will outperform many "better speced" imports. Usually, a quick look at the sampling rate will tell the tale. Even low-end Tek DSOs have a 2GS/s rate single-shot while many imports get their "high" rates from repetitive sampling, so you have to separate the wheat from the chaff. Makes a big difference when looking at step transitions. The "lowly" Tek TDS220 has some amazing performance and when equipped with the printer and communications module, it becomes a very powerful tool when combined with a computer and Tek's software.

Dean

[Engineer1138]

I've used and liked the low end Tek TDS2xx scopes, but I'm saving my pennies for an Agilent DSO3 series scope. Same price, but has a color display. IME, can't go wrong with either hp or Tek.