Oscilloscope opinions?

Frank Koenig

Sophomore
Mar 7, 2011
187
0
16
Palo Alto, CA USA
www.dunmovin.com
http://www.tek.com/oscilloscope/mso-dpo3000

vs

http://www.home.agilent.com/agilent/product.jspx?nid=-33573.0.00&cc=US&lc=eng

vs

anything else in this range I should be looking at.

I know there are a few of you out there who use this kind of gear and I'd really appreciate any observations, especially on ease of use and suitability as a complete replacement for an analog 'scope. I'm well aware of the virtues of these boxes as digital storage 'scopes, and any observations in that use would be great as well.

Some background: After a number of years of so called retirement I've got myself involved in the development of a little electronic audio product, which needs to remain nameless for the time being (I know that sounds pretentious but them's the rules). But it's a fine excuse to buy a new 'scope.

I bought my first and current digital 'scope (HP 54520A) in the mid '90s and, while useful, it never really worked as a replacement for an analog 'scope. The UI is cumbersome, the control response REALLY slow, and it doesn't see things like a little oscillation riding on top of a sine wave very well.

My hope is that Tek, Agilent and, perhaps, others have fixed these problems by now and I'll be very happy with a highly portable one-box instrument. (Funny how digital vs analog has many of the same usability issues whether we're talking about a 'scope, a mixing desk, or the panel in an airplane.)

Thanks.

--Frank
 
Re: Oscilloscope opinions?

While I haven't used either of the models in question, I've used the Tek TPS-2000 quite a bit, and have been very happy with it. This was for mostly troubleshooting of digital buses and some minor powerline quality measurements on dimmers. Control response and UI are every bit as responsive as the ancient analog 'scopes I've used in the past. As I've used the 54520A a couple of times, I can assure you that the modern digital 'scopes are much, much better.
 
Re: Oscilloscope opinions?

The new Agilent 2000 and 3000 series are cleaning up the middle market. Tek is not competitive at the moment. The Agilents are very fast with huge waveform update rates. There are some detailed reviews over at www.eevblog.com that you might find interesting.