HP3478A Bench DMM... Good for a beginner starting out?

[schmitt trigger]

South Texas.

Back in the 1970s, some of the most advanced high-power thyristor circuits were French designs.
The French had developed many advanced circuitry for use on their high speed trains.

 

[Mikebits]

One of the major worries for private individuals is Through Life Costs (TLCs). If the second-hand hp multimeter went wrong it would cost a lot to have it fixed. If a new handheld multimeter went wrong it would be guaranteed for a year and possibly five and, ultimately, it would not break the bank to buy a new one.

I am just gonna have to flat out disagree with you Spec, and strongly disagree I do.

First of all, were talking HP here, your TLC worry is low unfounded as the likely hood of failure is low and thus financial risk is low. Even tho this is more meter than the original poster needs, as I mentioned, he will grow into it, and if the person learns quickly as LG has, he will be wishing for such a meter sometime down the road, sooner than one might think. As this meter does everything he needs for the moment, he has got that base covered along with the confidence that his/her measurement is most likely very accurate. Further, with the ever growing popularity of interfacing to sensor technology, the 2W,4W feature will prove invaluable.
And just to re-iterate as this is where I feel most strongly about, the OP will grow into the meter, and if he passes it up now, he may regret it as good deals are hard to find, especially when you need it.
To further support my argument concerning the TLC, I present photo below as exhibit A. These two instruments are owned by me, used almost daily and are something on the order of 30 years old, and when compared to my more modern instruments one might swear I was lying that they have not been calibrated in over 30 years. As always, I respect your opinion and as you do make very valid points, I think the price versus risk ratio on this meter makes the purchase of the meter a good idea, and besides, even if the OP loses interest and no longer wants the meter, he will have no problem at all selling this meter, and maybe just maybe all the while make a small profit. Well, I spoke my piece, and as mentioned, I highly respect your opinion, and I hope I have made some good points as well.

 

[spec]

South Texas.

Back in the 1970s, some of the most advanced high-power thyristor circuits were French designs.
The French had developed many advanced circuitry for use on their high speed trains.

The French were one of the leaders in Europe in the early days of automobiles and aviation, but everybody had a shock when the Wright brothers came over from Dayton Ohio and demonstrated the controlability of their flyers at the Paris air show.

spec
(feel like putting S Tex in your ID window on the left)

 

[spec]

I am just gonna have to flat out disagree with you Spec, and strongly disagree I do.

First of all, were talking HP here, your TLC worry is low unfounded as the likely hood of failure is low and thus financial risk is low. Even tho this is more meter than the original poster needs, as I mentioned, he will grow into it, and if the person learns quickly as LG has, he will be wishing for such a meter sometime down the road, sooner than one might think. As this meter does everything he needs for the moment, he has got that base covered along with the confidence that his/her measurement is most likely very accurate. Further, with the ever growing popularity of interfacing to sensor technology, the 2W,4W feature will prove invaluable.
And just to re-iterate as this is where I feel most strongly about, the OP will grow into the meter, and if he passes it up now, he may regret it as good deals are hard to find, especially when you need it.
To further support my argument concerning the TLC, I present photo below as exhibit A. These two instruments are owned by me, used almost daily and are something on the order of 30 years old, and when compared to my more modern instruments one might swear I was lying that they have not been calibrated in over 30 years. As always, I respect your opinion and as you do make very valid points, I think the price versus risk ratio on this meter makes the purchase of the meter a good idea, and besides, even if the OP loses interest and no longer wants the meter, he will have no problem at all selling this meter, and maybe just maybe all the while make a small profit. Well, I spoke my piece, and as mentioned, I highly respect your opinion, and I hope I have made some good points as well.

View attachment 99464

Hy Mike,

Good points about the hp MM. Like I sad to Bounty, though, you are hardly just starting out in electronics, and I did say the the hp is a good instrument. Also, I suspect that if your professional instruments went wrong you could fix them. We all have our ways of working and if the OP particularly wanted to go that route, the hp would be a good choice. I would find the four terminal resistance facility particularly useful for measuring low value resistors.

Thanks for your words about my views, but my way of working/designing is just one of many, and provided they are constructive/informed, comments are always appreciated.

spec

 

[Mikebits]

Wow, I need to start re-reading my messages before posting, I have a lot of typos and grammar errors in my last post.

 

[spec]

Wow, I need to start re-reading my messages before posting, I have a lot of typos and grammar errors in my last post.

Who is counting- your message is perfectly clear and well put.

spec