Another cheap scope: $18, shipped! (FNIRSI DSO152)

[@jorgensigvardsson9749]

Adrian, just wanted to let you know that your videos have inspired me to learn electronics again. I started some 15 years ago, but then I got children and family responsibilities. Now the children have grown up, and I have spare time. I've committed to learn electronics again, and I'm awaiting a shipment of analog and digital components to get going. Many thanks for your videos! You make electronics look fun, easy and approachable. Keep up the good work!

[@wesley00042]

Andre LaMothe has a great electronics video series on Udemy for under $20.

[@cannabiscomet4410]

Dear Adrian, I really appreciate you taking the time to test equipment and repair tools on your channel. I’ve made a couple of purchases based on what I’ve seen here over the years sincerest thanks.

[@LeftoverBeefcake]

Yep, I bought the Pinecil soldering iron thanks to the review of it on this channel, and that definitely was a worthy purchase, it's a great little iron.

[@geofflamon9348]

ya also got LCR meter after seeing adrian using his. Keep up the good work!!

[@annieworroll4373]

Same. I didn't get the exact one he reviewed, but that Hantek video got them a purchase. I went with the 70mhz version, if I had a decent desktop unit for higher frequencies I might have gotten the one he reviewed but this is my only scope and is likely to be for quite a while. Works pretty well.

[@spookytoes1333]

Absolutely awesome. Not just for testing the cheap scope, but to see your methodical diagnostic technique. Bravo.

[@DeadCat-42]

I grew up very poor so I'm thrifty, I have a budget in my head that I balance each days costs, food transportation entertainment etc. So do I pack a sandwich?make my coffee at home , go out to eat, order door dash? Buy a cheap Scope? I literally skipped lunch and bought this scope. I wasn't hungry that day, so I have one. I'm working on old Atari ST's power supplies so this does most of what I need and I can blow it up(I'm not that skilled lol) and learn what not to do with it..

[@yarghhargh9345]

sounds exhausting

[@sandrinowitschM]

​@@yarghhargh9345being poor usually is. That's why it sucks. And when you grow up like that you'll never really shake the mindset. Believe me, being frugal is no fun when you don't have a choice.

[@TheKetsa]

@@yarghhargh9345 it's a useful skill.

[@hayleyxyz]

If you want a cheap scope I'd get a decent and cheap USB one. Unless you really need full portability/no laptop, then you'll always get more bang for your buck.

[@DeadCat-42]

@hayleyxyz unfortunately they have to be so close that the heat from the solder reworking destroyed the plastic lense.

[@ShALLaX]

This was an excellent video. You walked through an entire diagnosis and repair without patronising your viewers. You've earned a subscriber.

[@tinkerman-q]

First time I enjoy a real world usage, uncut, of an oscilloscope for repairs. Congratulations, this is real good content. I own another oscilloscope from the same brand and have been quite pleased with it, but I'd really like to see you put it to the test. It's a dual channel 20MHz and 500MSPS,.with built-in function generator. It's the FNIRSI-DPOX180H

[@broganmcintyre8594]

I've purchased a few items from that brand on AliExpress. So far I've been only blown away by the quality for the price. The last thing I purchased was the FNB58. Very impressed.

[@leokimvideo]

Rare to see someone on this site who isn't flogging sponsored rubbish, and along the way we actually learn stuff. Again rare on this broken site

[@jimsteele9261]

Back in the Elder Days, when I was building my homebrew z80, I didn't have a scope either... To test the clock, I clipped a lead to the signal and tuned in the 4mHz on my shortwave radio.

[@shadroid]

I have a z80. What did you need a scope for? ps, xenix lives!

[@jimsteele9261]

@@shadroid Well, as I mentioned, I was building it. from schematics in Kilobaud and Byte magazines. Nothing like that is ever without mistakes, and a lot of the components were salvaged from dead boards. I just wanted to see if the clock was oscillating. (it was) . Anyway I was able to borrow our backup scope from work - a Tek 453 when I really needed it for testing.

[@asherael]

That's WILD

[@KarenLopez-in5ih]

Same here..

[@WowplayerMe]

This video has much more value than just a simple review of a cheap oscilloscope. In just under an hour, this is a master class on C64 troubleshooting.

[@Johnny99993]

My VIC 20 is getting jealous now.

[@jeffreyyoung4104]

As a test gear junkie, I have to say that, that $18 scope would have been a very welcome addition to my test bench as a kid, and it would remain on my bench even with my Tektronix scopes, today! The only problem with it, is the low bandwidth, but for the majority of my work, I suspect it would be an easy to use troubleshooting tool. But, the fact it isn't connected to a computer to display the information, makes it faster and with a true scope display, is icing on the cake!

[@betafoofoo270]

I'm not really that skilled in electronics but I found your diagnostic approach fascinating and you put it across in such an easy way to follow. I could follow what you were saying and understand the logic of your approach. You would be a great instructor Adrian. That oscilloscope is obviously basic but it was so refreshing to see somebody of your skill level not simply dismiss it out of hand in favour of something more expensive; you definitely showed, that if you know what you are doing, how it could be used effectively within its ability. Great video.

[@gasgas2689]

It was wonderful to see how the inside of a Commodore 64 works. I was a computer shop manager in the mid 1980s and sold lots of them. They were an excellent machine, and knocked spots of the carppy Sinclair Spectrums which didn't last more than 3 months. Atari were also very well made, as of course was the BBC Model B.

[@jamesraymond1158]

Fascinating. Adrian is really talented and he speaks well, too.

[@reiisthebestgirl]

I got one of these to quickly check analog sensor outputs for automotive use. Got one with BNC adapter and hooked it up to test leads that cost almost as much as the whole scope alone. It is quirky and quite janky to use, but if you know what you are doing it does give good enough readings for anything that isn't data bus. Of course you need to stay away from high voltage stuff too. I have computer based scope, but that is really cumbersome to setup to get a quick read or two and for those situations this is just golden! I wouldn't get this as my first and definitely as only scope, but for 2nd quick deploy option this is very much worth it. I have used mine approx. 7 months almost weekly basis and it has held up just fine.

[@Agnarian]

You are the Bob Ross of computer repair!

[@shimarlie1]

He looks more like Richard Dreyfuss to me.

[@RetroDawn]

Totally! With the looks of Richard Dreyfuss.

[@Eng_Simoes]

However, there are mistakes.

[@TheRepeatloader]

I never thought of this before-- but if you solder a piece of Solder Wick to a wire and attach that wire to ground, its great for clipping your alligator clip onto (just a real tiny piece and you can pull it into the rubber of the clip to protect it from short) and the Hanmatek brand is fair for a low price table scope incase anyone is looking.

[@edwardfletcher7790]

That's a great old hack from the TV repair days 👍

[@tonyunderwood9678]

I bought a 2-channel version of this little scope a year or so ago after a recommendation by an associate. Yeah, not the fastest thing in the world but I didn't need lightning speed since it would see only audio waveforms. As such, it's perfect for servicing stereo gear. And, it's convenient since it can be perched right beside the work instead of higher up on the bench where you have to keep looking away to see a waveform on the bench scope. Now that said, the bench scope is still the go-to piece if I'm looking at RF or other hi-freq stuff, but for troubleshooting audio this dinky little scope is well worth the few bucks it cost me. By the way, nice video. I've not even Seen a Commie 64 in the wild for a couple of decades but who knows... 🙂

[@cdh79]

thanks, I just ordered the new model (DSO510) and while waiting for it to arrive, I decided to look up some videos and came across this one. I grew up with a C128, so I loved that you were working on the C64. The DSO510 can go to 10MHz and 48MS and cost me about 30 Euro with an adapter and proper probe, so while I know "you get what you pay for", I'm looking forward to it, as I don't own any oscilloscope yet, and it hopefully should be able to handle my basic requirements.

[@uni-byte]

Down in the $30 price range there is the Zeeweii 154Pro that will do an honest 18Mhz. It would certainly be fine for working on retro computers. I did a review on it (as well as the DSO152 and 2 others) on my channel (video 0106). The 154Pro was hands down the best of them in many ways. The $30 version comes with a real probe too.

[@andymouse]

I remember that review, mainly because I bought one just because of the looks and price and I'm realy glad I did as it's an awesome little guy ! nice to have around !! Cheers Mr byte

[@uni-byte]

@@andymouse Cheers Mr. Mouse.

[@TRONMAGNUM2099]

On sale for 22 bucks now shipped!

[@uni-byte]

@@TRONMAGNUM2099 If I did not have one already I'd be tripping over myself to get in on that deal. IS that the one with the battery and probe?

[@apollolux]

Amazon is showing Zeeweii 154Pro 18MHz for $42 right now, and 1MHz for $33, with free delivery from China. I assume the prices y'all are talking about are on AliExpress?

[@beatlessteve1010]

Sir, you belong to the 'Digital/Analog/ASCII Fundamentals Brotherhood of Troubleshooting and Love" The bad Capacitor is the ..culprit for a noisy supply which damaged the CPU...in my experience shorts usually show as ground unless the outpost are floating and being drive high. AWESOME video thanks !❤❤💯

[@L1Q]

thank you so much for this showcase and explanation. it's invaluable for a novice. this is my first scope purachase ever, bigger ones were scary buy at tight budget so I went for it even knowing it would be of limited functionality. I had to go through the entire documentation booklet to learn the basics. now I know know what kind of projects it wold be most useful for.

[@eddie2480671]

Thank you for this video, I bought this for myself from Amazon with the adapter and regular probe. You showed me how it works, and since you think it's worth it, then I feel better about buying it.

[@dividion8102]

I enjoyed the video. Always good to see an old Commodore getting back into the action. And I think for future use, you'd be better off extending the red wire rather than the black, so you won't have to drag the Y-split around so much when you go to probe things.

[@leblancexplores]

Thank you so much for this comparison. I’ve never owned an oscilloscope but these are really approachable.

Hi Adrian. A leaky (DC conductive) electrolytic capacitor may have a good ESR. ESR is the series résistance (a quality factor measured in AC). A leaky capacitor develops a DC parallel resistance. So two unrelated resistances (up to a point, of course). Thanks for the video.

[@strummergr]

I have a previous version of this fine little display, permanently connected to my audio amp load, so that I can see clipping levels when I measure output power. It's convenient because it's good not to have my measuring system connected in any way to signal or power ground. That may well be a short if a speaker output comes from (e.g,) a class D or some other amp config which results in neither connection being ground. I've blown up more than one amp IC after having forgotten not to make that connection! Worth its price and absolutely suitable for this purpose! Thanks for a great video promoting this great little scope!

[@murpheyslaw]

for anyone interested in using a proper oscilloscope probe the adapter is mcx male to bnc female

[@tedsteppe255]

I also ordered a ZEEWEII DSO1511G from China. And it was worth every penny! Does a great job in T/Sing.

[@TerryLawrence001]

Thee videos bring me back to my early days of computing. I had access to a Commodore warranty depot and got hold of many "Binned" VIC20s and C64s. I used am AM radio to listen for signs of life to do a quick triag on my haul of rejected units. Just bring the AM pocket radio near the clock circuit and the harmonics will make noise in the speaker that sounds cool and shows some signs of life. I use the test on all sorts of calculators and mini games.

[@Chaos89P]

Will that AM test work on any more modern devices?

[@TerryLawrence001]

@@Chaos89P Most digital devices will show up as some kind of interference in the AM band. Cheap pocket AM radios with the manual tuner will pick it up.

[@Chaos89P]

@@TerryLawrence001 Got an AM/FM radio or two in my house. Maybe I should try with my phone as a starting point?

[@TerryLawrence001]

@@Chaos89P Explore away. :-) you will be surprised how many things make the radio buzz and pop.

[@TerryLawrence001]

@@Chaos89P Even the static spark from carpet static when you touch a door knob will be heard.

[@LambdaTechnology]

I just purchased the DSO-152 for about 35$, but it came with an upgraded (and useful) hook probe with a bunch of adapters (having the upgraded probe justified the cost for me). I have to say, for the job I'm using this for, it really is very handy. I'm working down at the TTL logic level and this thing just works. It's not perfect, but it does its job and pretty decently at that. I watched about 3 review videos on this little guy after I'd purchased it and I have to say, your video is the best review by miles! Easy to follow, the format is fantastic, and I really like the way you implement your screen splits. Many other content creators could learn a thing or two from you. Subscribed and following! Keep up the awesome work, and thanks for the time, effort, and great explanations you put into this video. (I REALLY liked the explanation of validation of the video signal...there was so much information packed into that bit; anyone would benefit from watching this!)

[@k4qdex]

i learned so much in this single video. incredible

[@jandjrandr]

I'm sure lots of people are screaming NO not an $18 scope, you can't test a C64 with that! Still, it has its merits for some use cases where it can be useful. Especially with analog audio, radio and TV signals that are often in the lower frequencies. So if you want to test the AC/DC power input and A/V signal output stages this scope is perfectly fine. Anything in between and yeah you really need something better.

[@agentmith]

I got a DSO150 a few years ago to use almost exclusively with testing and figuring out eurorack signals. It’s been pretty handy, and works fine. I’d like to get a nicer one one day, but kind of want an analog one or is latency not an issue with nicer digital scopes?

[@c1ph3rpunk]

It’d work for things like guitar pedals, especially AC signal side at those lower freqs, the ones in the MHz range.

[@Spongman]

a few $ more will get you a DSO154Pro which goes up to 18MHz, has proper probe, and a built-in signal generator.

[@agentmith]

@@Spongman at the time this was the best available. What I would like is an improvement on how fast the screen updates, which had put me off from using a digital oscilloscope in general honestly.

[@HamzaThy]

One of the best review videos I have ever seen!! Thank you so much Adrian ☺️

[@Internationalmanofmysteries]

Commodore 64 video with the bro vibing to the sid tunes at the end. Definitely a good way to start the day! 😊

[@Runco990]

That tiny scope is better with audio. Yes, it's amazing what we can get today in tiny technology. My first TUBE oscilloscope was a Hewlett Packard 122A. A glorious 500KHZ bandwidth and weighed a TON. We live in amazing AND scary times. You pick!

[@paulspencer153]

Hi When you first use the little oscilloscope you are suppose to calibrate it using the 1K square wave. There is a factory reset above the power charging red/green led. I found once it was reset and calibrated it was really accurate up to 200K using my signal generator Great video on repairing old computers

[@chrissavage5966]

I know I'm getting old when I remember I still have a home-made logic probe from 40 years ago that I built into a small pen. Invaluable bit of kit.

[@notyoung]

The right tool for the job is ideal, but a good fixer can make use of almost anything when needed. I deal with some mobile and backup/standby AC power sources where I'm mostly interested in low voltage DC and 120 volts AC so I have the great-grandfather of that 'scope - the DSO138 - which was about $20 for the semi-kit. Semi-kit = SMD chips & display socket mounted on the board and the switches and the probe connector were to be installed. The DSO138 runs on 9 volts so I have a 5 volt to 9 volt boost converter that plugs into a 5000mAh VAAS power bank which can run it for hours. A battery powered 'scope means there are no hassles of trying to isolate a line-powered scope so I can check AC waveforms. I've even included pictures of the 'scope screen in my evaluations of various DC=>AC power inverters from 40 to 2000 watts. I can say that some of the better pure sine wave inverters deliver a cleaner AC waveform than our local power co-op. And that some of the cheapest inverters just deliver a PWM square wave. I also have a dual channel Tektronix 2247 "solid state" 'scope - everything but the CRT itself - which I found on the local Craig's List a few years ago for $100 so I have 'scope capabilities up to 100MHz.

[@ouch1011]

I used to work as an automotive tech and specialized in diagnostic work. I honestly don’t know how some “mechanics” do accurate diagnostic work without an oscilloscope. I suspect that they aren’t doing accurate diagnostics and just guessing based off of prior experience, trouble codes or automotive forums. I used my DSO for everything from intermittent bad starters and fuel pumps, failed diodes in alternators, glitches in high speed sensors (like crankshaft position sensors), network diagnostics, and even compression waveform analysis to check cam/ignition timing and pinpoint the cause of mechanical misfires without having to disassemble anything (except for a spark plug). I have a similar tiny oscope like this that I used for parking lot diagnostics. Seriously an absolutely invaluable tool for working on electronics, or even mechanical systems with the appropriate transducers/sensors. It’s awesome that scopes are getting this cheap, but I’d say this one is too slow for a lot of uses. It will work for extremely basic stuff, but even on this old, slow computer, there are many signals that are too fast for it to capture, and many more that it can’t capture with any reasonable resolution. I’d also say the 40V limit is probably not ideal, because if accidentally probed something connected to mains, it would probably be dangerous, but as you said, this is better than nothing.

[@Tinkerwizzah]

If you don't mind...what do you do now that you're not an automotive tech anymore?

[@andymouse]

Your only a kid ?

[@deang5622]

We don't talk about scopes being slow. That is not the correct lexicon. We talk about _scope bandwidth_ .

[@NoSpam1891]

An adapter lets you use a regular x1/x10 scope probe and this has a button for x10 so no mental arithmetic.

[@gasgas2689]

Automotive techs plug their $4500 diagnostic machine in and do what it says. Change the part, charge the customer $500. That doesn't fix the fault, the garage won't refund the $500 because the part is now used and they can't return it. So they change another part. Charge the customer $450. Then another fault occurs, obviously the customer won't go back to that garage so they go to another one. "It can be fixed for $1000 Sir." Customer says I'll leave you the keys, walk home and I'll post you the registration document. A month later the customer discovers that the last fault was a $50 sensor. The customer meanwhile has bought a 40 year old Mercedes with no computers. That customer was me.

[@JoeCdaYT]

On that particular board you can put both axial and radial caps. There are foot prints for them. On the scopes I got a Hantek to work on my car and it worked out to let me know that when I was not able to start the car I had a failed sensor on the crank. It does help to have something very portable.

[@Mr25thfret]

This was an awesome video. You covered so many side topics, it made it even more valuable. Thanks!

[@tombeauchamp806]

I got a $2 something scope from temu that came with the standard probe jack. for $2 i was blown away that it even worked. definitely worth the money lol

[@jameshanna5865]

I just bought my scope from Amazon. It was $36.00 and came with the adapter and a 1x / 10x BNC probe. Been happy with it so far. It beats lugging my full size Techtronics around.

[@frugalprepper]

That Harbor Freight test probe is working pretty good!

[@baronvonschnellenstein2811]

Thanks Adrian for demonstrating the use of that "budget" oscilloscope and showing that you _can_ - with limitations, of course - fix a C64 with it. It was a fair and objective test and shows that if you have a DMM and are on a very tight budget and/or _very_ infrequently going to need a CRO, it will do a job. Thanks too for the other recommendations there (the Zoyi might be a better choice for ppl with no DMM and no CRO and will be infrequent users of such tools) - I might just get hold of the Hantek device for when I want to quickly check a signal without having to drag out my old skool 19" CRO :joy:

[@barrybogart5436]

The Zoyi is a killer deal. Go for the 703 and not the 702. (Or wait for a '704'!)

[@FreedomToRoam86]

Will I ever try this? Nope. But is it really extremely cool to see how it is done? OH YEAH!!! Great vid, glad to see a little more about how this kind of troubleshooting is done!

[@MarianoLu]

This looks like a great scope for the (car) shop. The size and specs (200khz) looks right for car troubleshooting. I can see how it can help to fix some old retro computers but not being able to check the clock (1Mhz) limits the usefulness. But the price point is good (less than a cheap multimeter) and In a pinch you can make a TTL clock divider if you’re on a tight budget. But I will recommend saving some extra lunch money and getting one that can do the whole thing

[@Peter-rt3tu]

Had the same impression. For just another lunch you can get something with a few 10 Msp/s and a few MHz bandwidth that gets you further, like the DSO Pro, DSO154Pro or things like this

[@ouch1011]

Former mechanic here. This scope would work ok for a lot of stuff on cars but the speed limitation means that you wouldn’t have the _resolution_ needed for some of the higher speed sensors or actuators (like crankshaft position sensors or CAN network). Also, not having any storage function would be a major limitation. Most automotive diagnostics is waiting for problems to happen and essentially catching glitches. I’ve done that with a standard oscilloscope before and it is much more difficult without a DSO.

[@keithkneeland6849]

@@ouch1011Current mechanic here, agree on everything you said!

[@Tom-ru9ds]

if you are just looking to verify the requency ...to check the clock is simple enough. I use a cheap crystal oscillator and a TTL decade counter (74LS390) / but by that time, the next more expensive DSO might be in budget. (put the computer's 1MHz clock into the 390 and the 390 will divide by 100, check the frequency against 10KHz - well within the 200 KHz of (this) DSO )... it won't give "dirty" signal indications that I use my analog scope for, but can do the frequency calculation for these lower clock speeds.

[@FranksRetroLab]

Great video. The eraser you used on the edge connectors was the same type we used when I was learning typing to erase mistakes. Thanks again for the video. Love the C64 repairs.

[@dkeithtag]

Just discovered your channel. A man after my own heart ❤.

[@Dukefazon]

I got a huge chuckle when you said you can see border and text just by looking at the scope, it feels like when in The Matrix the operators were looking at the Matrix code and they said they only see blondes and brunettes or something :D 44:20 it looks like the device is reacting to your voice in this part :D

[@Blazer02LS]

Sort of looks like a version of the UScope that a lot of us use to look at bus data in auto repair. Real handy to tell if you have an actual signal at the correct levels to help diagnose failures. There is a LOT of aftermarket support for that unit though, from cases to add-ons.

[@Snowsea-gs4wu]

Love this “toy testing” adventures Adrian! Thanks for the video!

[@suzakule]

ERROR! ERROR! the 12 volt regulator is a LM7812 for positive 12v ( you said 6812, this is incorrect :/ ) and the counterpart for negative 12v LM7912. I have used these parts many times. so I caught the error right away! :P

[@sammas7440]

"For the price of lunch", you can buy the better oscope. Great video. This is my first time on your channel. The C64 was nostalgic. My first home computers were the C64 and C128 I purchased used back in around 1986 and around 1989/1990, I splurged for the Amiga 500.

[@benjefferies7123]

You are to computers and all things digital what "Mend it Mark" is to analogue electronics. Excellent stuff.

[@LeinaDZiur]

I got a very similar one (same brand, model FNIRSI-138 pro) and I love it because I don't reeeeally know how to use it so if I end up ruining it somehow, it's less of a loss. Thank you for covering it!

[@littlegoobie]

like me with my multimeter. basic functions and a very important tool for those who understand more... ive used one my entire life for about 3 general tests.

[@tstephens128]

sweet, seeing the C64 brings back memories. Use to write my own code to make images on the screen. Those old computers are basically the stone chisel of todays computers, still fun to see people getting joy out of them!

[@trooperj9152]

Appreciate the perspective, ended up getting the budget $45 (154pro) 18mhz oscilloscope as was thinking 200khz would be too low for my vintage PCs. I'm a newbie to electronics repair so couldnt justify spending more than what I need. Likely not going to use an $80-300 scope enought to justify its cost. Thanks for thinking of us casual hobbists!

[@ChairmanMeow1]

Gotta start somewhere!

[@treeoflifeenterprises]

thanks for the run down on the mini oscilloscope. you've highlit the main problem with these devices including cheap multimeters, the cost of replacement probes is significant cost of the whole device. It would be nice if they standardised on a particular size, and used silicon leads insulation which lasts so much longer than the usual plastic used. still great little item. just have to wait for the 2 or 4mhz rated version now :-)

[@garylcamp]

Very nice review and troubleshooting tutorial. I might add that you can use this cheap scope for a dedicated monitor of signals on equipment. $18 for a super read out meter is dirt cheap, better than a digital read out meter at nearly the same price.

[@vincentpinckard2243]

Ive used that same pocket oscilloscope to set the amplifier gains on my car audio amp and it work perfectly for that job!

[@jdub48]

I was wondering how well it would work for that! Thanks for the comment and info!

[@michaelc1966]

You had me at "costs less than lunch." :) TY For the info, watching the rest of it now.

[@rubenmejia942]

This was an AMAZING review video. I don't do electronics repair regularly, but I am tempted to buy one of those suckers.

[@RetroJack]

I got one of these with the BNC adapter and 10x probe about 6 months ago and it's been great for the basic stuff I use it for.

[@RyanSmith-pf7ci]

Love checking the manual AFTER using it!

[@JamesMack-lt1ux]

Very informative and interesting will be watching more of your videos and thank you for making them available keep up the great work

[@imranahmad2733]

There's never been a better time than in the last 7 years for test equipment, test equipment was so expensive pre mid 2000s, and having the knowledge to use them was another thing till the internet came about, before that you either a mentor, library or college, now you can watch a how to video or follow a guide on the internet to get you primed on how to use the equipment and repair equipment.

[@gbresaleking]

So cool how you can tell whats on screen by reading the signal out

[@waltschannel7465]

Finrisi has a DSO with one of those transistor/component testers AND a signal generator for $45! The main drawbacks are bandwidth (500KHz ) and the fact that you can't use the scope to measure the output of the sig gen.

[@restfulplace3273]

Just found this channel. Happy times. I’m really needing some understanding of when & how to use oscilloscopes. At moment I just want to test a 12v to 240v inverter.

[@ve2zzz]

Use a X10 scope probe.... Measuring 240 volt signals will toast many scope inputs. A X10 probe will attenuate 10 times input voltages to much safer values.

[@wayneswonderarium]

FWIW Elenco Snap circuits are a great intro to electronics!

[@waltertoki1]

I am a retired senior and had a HealthKit scope when I was in high school. So I just ordered this $18 scope to check out my old radios.

[@cranegantry868]

I've used all kinds of oscilloscopes for digital repair. For fast work a logic probe and pulser (2 items) is fast and reliable and in MANY cases better than an oscilloscope. A pulser exercises the gate, the logic probe shows that the gate is capable of working. A pulser can exercise a pin on any chip and it is easy to see if the interior of some massive chip is working by viewing outputs. Also, you can leave a pulser (I have several) in circuit with memory mode on and wait for pulses to occur if there's anything intermittent. I have 4 oscilloscopes. 3 pulsers, 3 logic probes.

[@1stage]

Another easy "hot chip" test (lacking a thermal imager or the touch approach) is to turn a can of canned air upside down and spray the refrigerant on the circuitry to create a frost. Excessively warm components will thaw the frost very quickly. Note that the refrigerant contains a bittering agent (to keep folks from huffing the contents), so wash your hands after using to avoid getting the bitter taste in your mouth, etc. This is also a great way to rapidly cool hot glue so you can continue working, or cool off a skin burn from a soldering iron, heat gun, or got glue.

[@pengiswe]

It looks like the board is prepared to also take non-axial capacitors, since it looks like there is a negative pad just beside the positive that should be possible to use for much nicer capacitor mounting

[@cuevob]

I like the real world approach to instrument review.

[@treadmillrepair754]

One good option is the Owon HDS-242S for Us$140 dollars.

[@texastyrannyresponseteam794]

Somewhere along the line i've accumulated around 115 oscilloscopes... from old mainframe scopes with crazy plugins to fancy new digital scopes.. from Analog Tek scopes to Rhode & Schwartz digital.. from handhelds to rack mount... i've enjoyed having them and collecting them.. but.. it's time to let them go.. i've been selling them off here and there.. you still can't beat a good analog scope.. crisp CRT.. easy manual controls.. something like this is great for a quick down and dirty "is the signal there and does it look right" without needing do drag it to the bench or drag the bench to it.. i have a couple of the earlier ones that were assembled form ebay kits.. think i'll get one of these and keep it in the console of my truck..

[@antonnym214]

You are an excellent troubleshooter! I enjoy your videos. All good wishes.

[@jasejj]

What knackers this for me is that I was able to buy a better competitor to this from Ali for $40, which is able to resolve much higher frequencies - I was diagnosing a Plus/4 a couple of weeks back and it was correctly reading the clock at 1.77MHz (OK it's actually 1.76 for a PAL machine but close enough!). It takes standard BNC and has AV out as well which is handy.

[@Breakfast_of_Champions]

It's called Adrian's Digital Junkyard for a reason😋

[@goupigoupi6953]

During the pandemic I built an oscilloscope from a $23 kit at Amazon, very satisfying experience (because it worked).

[@gillbates999]

"It's really small" - yeah, I expected something much larger to come out of that box. Thanks for the review though!

[@googleboy7]

The company I worked for would often upgrade their equipment. They would give away the older stuff, and also "broken gear". I have around ten grand of perfectly functional equipment, like Tektronix and Lambda, etc. But after forty years of designing, building, and testing PC boards, I seldom use it. I think a great test tool is an IR camera. It will show problems as a function of heat signature. Thanks for your reviews.

[@ebayscopeman]

Adrian, never use an eraser on gold contacts. HP had an entire article on this in one of Bench Briefs. It causes failure of the gold plating as you will erode it to the underlying nickle plating. I am sure that the C64 is not plated even close to HP's standards. I'd use Caig Gold wipes or regular Caig DeOxit with a lint free cloth.

[@vjcodec]

The product is a real legit product? Wow Usually those kind of things are scammy in nature! They should really be happy with such a honest and great review! :)

[@Wormetti]

Love how cheap working test equipment is today.

[@ChessIsJustAGame]

In the late 1970's, I made my own "logic probe" using LED's, resistors and other cheap parts. I couldn't afford a logic probe at the time. Since then, I've used much test equipment over my 44 year tech career and bought that tiny scope to carry in my laptop bag. I can see levels, frequency and wave shape. Don't need much more to determine if something is alive. Checking power rails, etc. Very portable, if I can't figure out what's wrong with it, then I go fetch a higher end instrument.

[@Smakheed]

What a brilliant idea, "Can a cheapo Chinese pocket Oscilloscope be as useful as a $100000 lab one?", and to test it I'll try to fix an antique. Adrian, you really do explain things well.

[@jeromekaidor7254]

I have the Hantek. A marvelous piece of equipment. Literally an electronics lab in a somewhat clunky box. I have far fancier scopes, but the Hantek is what I usually wind up using. BTW, real probes *are* available for your little DSO.

[@davidstevens3355]

First video I have seen of yours, very good thank you. And I guess as the oscilloscope isn’t mains earth referenced then safer to use for beginners as less chance of blowing up a desktop scope.

[@jjock3239]

Excellent video for learning how to troubleshoot a dead computer with a minimum of equipment.

[@typxxilps]

this is a review that deserves the word review even though it is not mentioned in the title. I have one, but one for my phone / tablet / laptop and the app from martin loren called hscope and finally got a LOTO oscilloscope after a Hantek what so ever over specced like hell, same for the hantek I have had before and finally sold all just to get the LOTO which is working quite well. Not the best setup compared to an integrated Osci, but I get the best display this way, a tablet, a phone or Laptop - each far better than the cheap displays on chinese overspecced toys. great video and repair explaning a lot of details how to work around

[@BloodAsp]

I've 100% been eyeballing these. I don't do very complicated electronics, and have definitely been curius if these would skate me by without having to break out a Benjamin.

[@Eversor86]

My dad got it for like 25 Dollars, shipped, but with a adapter to BNC, and a proper BNC probe, that alone was being sold for like 20. For just main AC, low frequency stuff, its a really good deal.

[@dru6809]

Mr Black - You might consider doing a quick second channel teardown of that $18 scope. Just hacking a device like that for other uses could also be interesting.

[@bewilderbeestie]

Yeah, it's got a built-in battery, adequate screen, and a decent CPU all integrated together; if it's reprogrammable it'd make a nice UI head-end for a project. I'd be really interested to see inside. If the USB-C data pins are wired up that'd be awesome. If there are spare GPIOs, that'd be even more awesome. I see that FNIRSI make a bunch of different devices, including a hybrid oscilloscope/component tester/signal generator that looks _really_ useful, and a even more cut-down oscilloscope that looks like the same thing as this in a kit-case. I might need to do some browsing.

[@bewilderbeestie]

I found a teardown --- it's based around a CH32F103 ARM-M3 chip, with 20kB RAM / 64kB flash, which is well understood, and there's a SWD header on the board, meaning it should be reflashable. I didn't see an SPI flash chip. The teardown didn't look at the back of the board, so I don't know if there's a video controller there or if the CPU is doing it all. No idea about GPIOs, either, but it's certainly worth investigating.

[@tonysofla]

@@bewilderbeestie WCH makes some CH32 where the two ADC can be interleaved, they should had used that, as I don't see F103 supporting it.

[@duroxkilo]

kind of amazing the level of troubleshooting w/ that literal toy... fantastic outcome! i'm not in the hobby of old school computers but i'd definitely use a variable power source to power up those awesome machines, even just a 'little light bulb current limiter' to limit/monitor the current drawn in the first minutes... ------------------- w/ devices so old it may help the capacitors to slowly bring up the input voltages on the initial power-up... 1000uF is a relatively large capacitance for 12-15V, it may need a while to rebuild the oxide layer after years of no usage. the initial leakage current of the larger caps may damage other sensible components. (the ESR and temp of the old cap indicated to me that it was trying to reform in an accelerated manner. a dried out cap would show a larger ESR w/ a tendency to become an open circuit)

[@fatroberto3012]

Cheap little scopes like that are handy for diagnosing FPGA designs if you include a switchable slower test clock that the scope can handle. It can be much quicker to probe real output signals than use the built in test tools.

[@brianv2871]

So i have one of these also, got it the same time Adrian got his. I also have the zoyi zt703s that he did a review on, plus a regular full sized bench scope (older one, not a fancy rigol or anything). I wouldn't recommend this as your only scope, as Adrian mentioned, it's only slightly better than a logic probe... However i do really like it.. it is incredibly small (like a really small cheap digital camera) and so it's great to just quickly grab and hook up to test something. I've used it a few times now to just check signals on things because it's so small and convenient to grab.. Again, can't be your only scope, but can be good for quick testing or where you have limited space (maybe want to test something in place, without moving to your workbench). if you have the cash, and only want one portable oscilloscope, the zoyi is a better option (it's not as small as this, but it's more useful)

[@tony359]

thanks for showing the cheap scope - it's nice but indeed it might be worth saving up a bit for the "less cheap" ones :)

[@MichielBeijen]

Thanks for your video! I just bought the Hantek