Scope opinions ??

hey guys,

when i was training in fás few years ago we had picoscope, i found it a great bit of kit but its so expensive, i work in a dealer during the day so have ODIS but do a bit at home by night so id rarely use a scope but id still like one for easier / faster fault finding.. can anyone recommend any ? hantek ect ??

What is your price range? Also, what type of PicoScope were you using? Obviously saying you had a PicoScope is a bit like saying you had a Volkswagen

There's a vast range of oscilloscopes, from dedicated devices (I'm priviledged to have access to a Tektronix Mixed Domain DSO at work - circa £2,500) to Pico type 'interfaces' that attach to your computer.

If you like the form factor of Pico devices, howsabout the Pico 2204A? A 2-channel device, 10Mz, should be quick enough to see if a LIN sensor is transmitting or checking the duty/dwell factor of injectors etc. Lots of functionality for not a lot of money.

From RS Components Browse through the others and you may find something affordable.

Are you specifically after a PC Software based scope? If not then it is well worth considering one of the "proper" entry level scopes. I've got a Rigol DS1054Z which is a 4 channel 50MHz scope and is very popular amongst EE hobbyists. The DS1054Z is easily hacked to be the same as the DS1104Z (100MHz) which is done via the firmware and this is what I have done with mine. It really is a nice bit of kit for not a lot of money in the scope world and any captured data can be saved and downloaded to a PC for analysis using PC software. Price point is around 300 GBP so only the same sort of cost as one of the original HEX-USB+CAN cables.

These are a couple of my videos showing it in action which will give you a basic idea of what they are like:-


Single channel in use:



All 4 channels in use:

I suppose that I'd rather a kit to use with my lap top .. And slso 2 Chanel would do but I'd like to have the option of scoping drive CAN if I had to ect .. 200-300 I hoped I could find something

OK, in that case I think I would probably be inclined to give the lower end PicoScope models a miss due to their limited specs and performance. If I was going to buy a USB scope I would probably take a punt on one of the 6000BE series Hanteks. There are a number of them in the range starting at the cheapest 20MHz model (the 6022BE @ ~50 GBP) going all the way up to the most expensive 200MHz model (the 6212BE @ ~250 GBP). They do seem to get mixed reviews but at the end of the day you get what you pay for and if you look at equivalent PicoScope models you will be paying anything from ~600 GBP upwards.

Like you, my original intention was to get a PC based scope for portability and ease of use but after many weeks of research I finally decided to bin the idea of a PC scope and to just get a decent hobbyist bench scope instead. While I have no hands-on experience of using a PC based scope, I do feel that going for a bench scope over a PC based one was probably one of the best decisions I have made.

The following EEVblog video is quite a few years old now but some of the the points are still relevant today, so just something to keep in the mind when choosing a PC based scope:-


And if you're interested in part 1 of that video which is just a general digital storage oscilloscope tutorial, you can find it HERE.

Ha, we got Shaun a Rigol scope as well. I think he's also got a USB one, but I'm not sure which.

AutoDitex do a couple of cheap entry level car scopes. They also do probes - like the Pico ones but far cheaper. Not as good as Pico by any stretch but for the money...

Hunt for a used automotive picoscope. You will regret buying any others.

Ive got a non-automotive pico (2 channel) and a Hantek DSO-3064 kit V (4 Channel).

The pico software is far easier to use and but at over 5 times the price of the hantek I couldnt justify the price.
The other thing is the hantek uses a seperate power supply (Pico uses USB)
Ive not found anything the hantek cant do compared the pico yet it sometimes take a fraction longer.

If your using the scope day in and out (or want the pressure sender/ NVH kit)- then the pico would be your choice
For me where it gets used once a week as a general scope the hantek does just fine.

thanks everyone for the inputs..

Hi....I am always of the opinion that no PC based scope is a match for a proper a bench based scope for general use. Note how I highlighted those words.
If you have a specific need that a PC based scope fulfills, then a PC based scope will become the best choice for you.
Some of those needs might be unlimited memory depth, high resolution, or more channels.
If I was after a PC based scope, then Pico are one the major established players, so is a good place to start.

I think owning a scope now in a shop is a waste of time/money & with the sample rates available in the newer controllers and multi-meters seem to find stuff pretty fast even with MIN/MAX.

If I was going to buy a scope it would be bench top stand alone unit, with a PC interface and with the ability to analyze a CAN with recording broadcast features and filters & a decoder!

https://forums.ross-tech.com/showth...-you-should-have-a-baseline-understanding-of-!


http://teledynelecroy.com/

Jack@European_Parts said:

http://www.consulab.com/ca/en/sectors/AST/electricalElectronics/uSCOPE/

Click to expand...

Jack, have you had use of these phone size scopes?

I've seen a few Chinese units on ebay and Ali etc... and didn't really know if they were of use? I suppose they could be when out in the field for quick testing and their size and own power source does make them appealing. They seem like high school / beginner hobbyist equipment. Anybody tried them?

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/132739774286?

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/113189129862?

As another option, how about a Saleac logic analyser? I notice they offer half price discounts...

https://blog.saleae.com/saleae-discounts/

I have used a few of the pocket scopes in the field and the ones from China, surprisingly easy to navigate and worked okay for testing avionic's on ramp ups and some alarm CAN addressable stuff I assisted with & when in end a meter found the stuff too, but comparing on bench with lab units, not too far off at all.

Biggest issue I found was the test leads were more of the problem with attenuation or inadequate strain relief but when I swapped to gold or made stuff up, was indeed very nice in end.

Always corrosion, resonance, humidity, improper shield/heat or rodent FOD it seems in the end!

https://www.ebay.com/itm/2-4-TFT-Po...270392?hash=item214842fcb8:g:4A8AAOSwfzdbowzH


Guys should consider building a scope to learn more about function & with kits like this as an example above for cheap money.

I've got a DS203 and IMHO for the price it isn't too bad.... scoped out the G28 and G40 on my TDI PD for giggles and it worked good enough. I think a lab scope is still a useful tool to have, but I don't see it as a daily use tool in a shop, more of a sanity checker. Example:

Some VW engine was flagging codes for the G28 engine speed sensor. Sensors swapped out, wiring inspected over and over, ECM swapped, same code. Could drive the car maybe 10 miles before it would flag, other times fire the engine up and it MIL in seconds.

Got the guy to do a sanity check and scope out the G28... and there as a weak pulse in it. Some FOD in the crank case had dinged a tooth on the ring, thus that one pulse was weaker than the others. He found a tiny metal chunk in the oil pan, may of been overcast on the engine block that cracked free, but he wasn't sure.