4 channel scope recommendations ?

[tzok]

I remember those HP scopes from school, but for today's standards 54602B really isn't impressive. It is only 20 MSa/s, and for most time is working in time equivalent sampling. Its effective bandwidth for real time sampling is about 5 MHz, and has almost no memory (just 4 kPts). The entry level modern scope, like Rigol DS1054Z (1 GSa/s, 12 MPts), really beats it in all categories. Other worth of interest is the Siglent SDS1104X-E (1 GSa/s, 14 MPts). Both have a very nice feature, of simulation a phosphor tube scope (fading afterglow effect of rare traces).

[terriblefire]

I'd take any old school HP scope over the Rigols/Siglents of this world.

Samples/sec is not what i'm after in a scope. Neither is memory depth.

Good frontend, HPIB and a service manual is more important to me.

I dont want the cheap flimsey crap chinese stuff. Horrible things.

EDIT: This is just personal preference for me but i also cannot stand how light modern scopes are.. I want a scope that wont move if i trip over on a probe for example. Personally like my scopes about 15Kg and bolted to the desk. But all of this is personal taste and i guess not everyone has the room for a tank.

[tzok]

If you want to observe just repetitive analog signals, then time equivalent sampling is ok, but if you want to catch a glitch in a digital signal, that occurs once in a few thousands (or more) cycles, then deep memory, and high real time sampling are crucial things to have. This old HP is just "deaf" for such spikes and glitches.

Remember that Siglent is the biggest OEM oscilloscope manufacturer in the world. They make oscilloscopes for such elite brands like Teledyne LeCroy. This really is not a "Chinese crap".

[terriblefire]

My HP1660CS finds the glitches just fine.. Its 500Mhz timing.

Siglent to me is really bad. I've seen their products and i will never touch them with a bargepole. The fact that high end manufacturers use their cheap crap is a poor reflection on them rather than a good reflection on siglent.

The fact is you can get much better keysight kit thats a few years older and much better quality for the same price as a Siglent/Rigol. For most retro use this is a better trade...

I've got a siglent signal generator and its bloody awful. The UI looks like it was written by a drunk russian and to get a stable signal you need to mod it with a TCXO.

EDIT: Finding glitches faster than 200Mhz was not a stated requirement of the original post.

[Aeberbach]

I like my Siglent SDS-1104X-E, but I do wish it would not move when I push on the power switch. The second hand market in Australia is not what it is in UK or USA and good capable vintage scopes are just not that common on the 2nd hand market.

[exxos]

Just saw this...

[exxos]

These things are confusing

https://www.siglent.eu/oscilloscopes/sds1000cfl-series

So

Siglent SDS1074CFL 70MHz Four channel oscilloscope

I assume that is 70MHz across all 4 channels ( 17.5Mhz each?!) not per channel ?!


Siglent SDS1104X-U 100MHz Four channel oscilloscope

AS its cheaper and only one chip as Dave says, assume thats 25MHz per channel ?!

[terriblefire]

The hand cut bits of shielding tape "stuck" to the relays on the front end of those scopes makes my skin crawl.

[exxos]

The hand cut bits of shielding tape "stuck" to the relays on the front end of those scopes makes my skin crawl.

Yep, but AFAIK you can't use shielding like that anyway, it has to be wrapped around whatever your shielding else it doesn't work. I tried to shield magnets years ago doing the same dumb thing, it doesn't do anything.

[terriblefire]

Yep, but AFAIK you can't use shielding like that anyway, it has to be wrapped around whatever your shielding else it doesn't work. I tried to shield magnets years ago doing the same dumb thing, it doesn't do anything.

Exactly.. they'll just fall off eventually and short things out.