EEVblog 1378 - NEW Uni-T UT61E+ Multimeter - Still bang-per-buck king?

[@EEVblog]

Something is happening with the price is this meter, it's jumping around like a jackrabbit. I have a screen capture of USD$88, but now it's USD$73 at 50% off. Maybe they know my video is coming... :->

[@m.zohaibusman1298]

Wait, they're changing the prices on their original website?

[@EEVblog]

@@m.zohaibusman1298 I'm using their official Aliexpress store as the reference. When I shot this video it was USD$88 at something like a 30% discount sale price.

[@redtex]

The influencer brought order to the market.

[@conodigrom]

Dave, you should put a content advisory at the start of the video. When I heard you being actually happy with a continuity, with a uni-t nonetheless, i spilled coffee all over my desk and fell from my chair!

[@ahmedalshalchi]

One thing you should know that Chinese don't sell by the value of the product at all and they only know to sell RAW MATERIAL + LABOR and that's it !!...

[@johnyoungquist6540]

The lack of input protection resistor indicates these folks know how to use PTC protection devices.. Any resistor value big enough to limit any sort of current would limit the current needed to trigger the PTC devices. It would increase their trigger voltage, increase their trigger time or prevent them from working at all. PTCs often have enough resistance to limit peak current and increase resistance very quickly under overload conditions. A downstream clamp device like a diode, zener, or TVS will have a large peak transient current rating that will hang on for a few milliseconds until the PTC device limits current. I have used PTCs for 40 years in applications like this. Like any component you have to fully understand them to use them properly. The fact that the protection system in both meters differ indicates to me that they re-evaluated the design to make improvements. I notice more PTCs in the new meter which would not go in without cost justification. No doubt they were trying to meet some sort of test requirements and probably did. I'll bet the engineers at UNI-T that design meters for a living under extreme cost constraints don't appreciate your criticism when you really don't understand their design in detail or their test criteria. Let's not criticize a $50 meter by comparing it to a $500 one. I have a wide range of instruments from HP lab instruments that cost thousands to Harbor Freight meters that cost $2. There are plenty of applications where the $2 meter is perfectly adequate and sometimes superior. I admire these low cost instruments for their convenience and the value they offer for the money. These folks face incredible challenges to provide extraordinary instrumentation to the hobbyist for less than a set of HP meter leads. I respect them for taking on that challenge and succeeding I don't know how they do it for the money.

[@rael5469]

"I don't know how they do it for the money." Slave labor in China. That's how they undercut American workers.

[@smartchip]

An absolute pleasure to read your critique, done with real brevity and succinctly, From likely an fellow techie, Engineer, sparky etc, very impressive on the english, I toff my hat to you sir, Thank you for taking the time to reply and advancing the conversation,

[@bozoc2572]

@johnyoungquist654 What meter would you recommend for around $100?

[@KeepOnTesting]

When I reviewed the *UT61E+* 3 months ago I was blown away by the quality and overall bang for buck. It's not a CHEAP-O persay but it's very hard to do much better at this price point with these features...Great job UNI-T!

[@TheGrantourismo]

CEM and OWON meters are much better in this price range.

[@kitecattestecke2303]

@@TheGrantourismo ? What no ! Proof which model do you mean

[@electronicengineer]

@@TheGrantourismo Really? Would you please be so kind as to share your knowledge with us in the form of a Model Number and accompanying pricing of these CEM and OWON DMMs that are "much better in this price range"? Inquiring minds would like to know! Thank you in advance. Fred

[@danuber5558]

@@TheGrantourismo OWON is chinese BS

[@michaelcosta7235]

@@TheGrantourismo will assume by your lack of expounding that you are just full of it.

[@LifeofanElectronicEngineer]

Love how you cracked open the fuse to check - this is one thing you'll never see on normal channels reviewing multi-meters

[@muppetpaster]

Oh yes you do

[@unclejohn5012]

@@muppetpaster Link me to one of these videos.

[@alaspooryorick9946]

Wicked! Sure it's whatever for most people, but the transistor gain test is really useful for stuff I do with old germaniums for particular music stuff. Pretty keen!

[@electronicengineer]

Same here. I Beta match long pair stages in most of the audio amplifiers that I work on and I also think that the built-in HFE/Beta measurement capability is quite useful in a DMM, with the caveat that the measurement is relatively accurate/repeatable, if only for gain matching between cascaded stages. Fred

[@petersage5157]

Now an analog EE picking up a DMM with a hFE position on the range switch, the first thing he should ask is if the manual mentions the base current for the transistor test. I'm sure it isn't mentioned for the cheap dinky meters that Clive and I have, but for this one it's probably on a page that Dave flipped past in this video. I think Dave might be forgetting that a lot of people still use bipolar transistors in the linear region, and the manufacturing process still spits out transistors within any given batch with hFE all over the shop. For someone whose bread and butter is radio transmitter and audio amplifier repair, a dedicated hFE position on the DMM range switch might be a valuable feature. We know of a certain Canadian KZbinr who has posted a video on building your own hFE tester and, while he has never explicitly stated this, most likely sorts through bulk transistor purchases and bins them by hFE.

[@RobertBolanos]

I agree with you Peter that eh HFE is a good feature to have especially if you want to match the HFE. I disagree with Jone's comment about the HFE.

[@truthful3777]

I agree with you...I repair audio amps and I match my transistor with HFE values. Checking diode test with Fluke 189 is not good enough me...

[@hwingerrr5680]

@@truthful3777 a component tester with clip leads is more versatile than the testers that have fixed slits that require the transistor leads to be reformed for testing.

[@blaze1461]

@@hwingerrr5680 I usually use breadboard as an adapter. WFM

[@emmettturner9452]

It’s a pet peeve of mine to see AAA where AA would be more appropriate, which would include just about everything that takes FOUR AAA batteries. I get the impression that AAA batteries must be free in China.

[@beefchicken]

I have a thing that was obviously designed for AA batteries, and the mould was modified after the fact to downsize it to AAA. Here in Canada, AAA cost 50% more than AA, and obviously don’t run as long. It’s infuriating.

[@emmettturner9452]

@@beefchicken Exactly! Ever see those freebie LED flashlights with a battery holder inside to adapt AAA C-cell? ;)

[@ElmerFuddGun]

@@beefchicken - Yep. AAA are fine for small things that don't use much power but for a DMM that is using >9mA they just aren't going to last long at 8 hours/day. But I guess AAA is at least better than using a 9V.

[@eDoc2020]

@@beefchicken AAAs are more expensive? That sucks, here in the US they're the same price as AAs and that's bad by itself since you only get half the capacity at best.

[@Mingjie_Li]

@@beefchicken In China, AA and AAA are at the same price. AA is much better for a DMM, I guess someone will soon replace it with a LiPo.

[@TedSchoenling]

Dave, there are tons of us analog audio circuit hobbyist out here who do indeed measure transistor gain for our pedals.. That said we have better tools than a multimeter for that but we do do that

[@sopalen]

Nope we do not, we want Vbe NOT hFE (Eurorack). hFE does nothing to us, it's the Base Emitter voltage we want to know (Vbe). aka transistor matching done right.

[@MucaroBoricua]

@@sopalen, you don't know what you are talking about. Go check your text books again.

[@sopalen]

@@MucaroBoricua do not need that, i'm designing vco's and filters hfe is useless, vbe is what i need, exponential converter and stuff like that. Hfe is easy, vbe not so much. I do not see the point with hfe unless you need an exact q point.

[@sopalen]

I'm guessing that's what you are doing right mjau ;)

[@Beavis26NZ]

Just got the 61D+ version, which only has a 6000 count range on it, but it has a temperature feature and the NCV function seems to work a lot better than the 61E+ for some reason. Build quality is surprisingly good as well.

[@aquinamedia4508]

I recently got the UT161D of which is the European version (i think) of UT61D+, really good quality stuff. Like it way better than my Fluke 175 at work, what stands out seems to be the fuse being 1000 Volt on the 161D though.

[@FISHERMAN33RUS]

Waiting for uni-t vs aneng comparison. Thanks.

[@gino.avanzini]

Would love to watch a comparison with Aneng AN870. I had forgotten about this youtube bug

[@St0RM33]

which bug?

[@gino.avanzini]

@@St0RM33 This video was unlisted a few hours before release. Dave added the unlisted video to his multimeter review playlist. If you opened that playlist you could watch the video even though it wasnt publicly released. Dave posted it on twitter, take a look

[@St0RM33]

@@gino.avanzini ohh ok thanks

[@liquicitizendirk2147]

A review about the AM870 would be awesome, I like seeing the cheap stuff being reviewed, especially if it ends up being suprisingly good for the price.

[@pratap3369]

Aneng AN870 ?

[@stevenspmd]

@@pratap3369 Exactly. As long your aware of any limitations and safety fixes .. cheap electronics is the hobbyist's bread and butter

[@pratap3369]

@@stevenspmd yup,I got one and it is pretty decent for its price.

[@sanour3]

Dave Please make a Aneng AN 870 review. It will be awesome.

[@Sentinel-1]

Completely agree and support this call. Would be nice if Dave will review this 20000 counts cheapy meter.

[@gamerpaddy]

did i read 30000counts on that chipset datasheet? tehres a eeprom? time for some modding! this could be the next ut210e

[@yushenwang2103]

But the bar graph was designed for 22000 counts, it may lead to issue if modified to 30000 counts as UT61e is likely to select range based on bar graph (raw) ADC

[@GrafElko]

I have the UT61E and it´s fine for me. As long as it would work or there is not a significant better multimeter at the same price range, I will not replace it. thx for the comparison :)

[@flymypg]

Would love a shoot-out of all 5-digit meters with the 121GW as the reference, and all others rated relative to it, perhaps with radar plots to make the key differences more visible.

[@mati865]

AN870 owner here, my unit had screen cover not glued correctly (there was a glue but not heated enough) but heat gun was enough to make it rock solid. Plastic on the probes isn't great but I've seen worse, NCV isn't great either but it does find wiring inside European concrete walls. So far pretty happy with it given 28 USD price (free shipping).

[@stevenspmd]

Picked up a Fluke 8050A (4.5 digit meter) for $110 delivered CDN works great except needed new fuses. Bloody things aren't the easiest to get or cheap. Had to educate myself on fuses too .. never knew the sand got turned into glass to prevent any kaboom :-) good to know.

[@frederickevans4113]

I have a Fluke 79 series III which I bought new back in the late '90s (probably about 23 years ago as I am typing this). I used that thing doing hobby electronics (checking diodes, capacitors, etc.), working on automobiles (engine electrical, stereo upgrades, hunting phantom drains, etc.), and all the way up to commercial office building 480 volt 3-phase electrical systems. Over the decades, I've gotten the leads wrapped up in a car engine's distributor rotor and it has had a few falls. I bought new leads. It has, over the last couple of years, started to fall apart. When the mode buttons below the display fell out and the display itself started losing segments, I decided it was time. It still works, and when the body is pinched in the right spot, the display shows all its segments. Keeping it, at least for now. My lovely wife found an eBay listing for a 179 (successor to the 79-III) for half the new retail price. She offered them about $20 less than the list price and they accepted. It arrived with a blown 11A fuse for the 10A current range. I got a pair of new fuses from Amazon in under a week. Works just fine now. I'll probably have this one for a couple of decades too. Although I no longer work in Property Management, I do have a friend who has an HVAC company and he sometimes calls me for help, especially when his regular assistants are indisposed. I'll still have the occasional brush with 460 to 480 volt commercial building systems, though not as often as I once did. Fluke meters aren't cheap to buy (new). But, if they can put up with what I put mine through and still last roughly two decades, then it is money well spent.

[@EngineeringVignettes]

I like the Fluke meters too. Have an 8840 and a 8842. Benchtops of course.

[@markshaw2207]

Threaded insert on the back is for a magnet. Used a lot in the field for affixing to electrical cabinet doors.

[@englishrupe01]

Right, but only an EE tech hobbyist or electrician would know that. Oh wait.....

[@HamedAdefuwa]

Lol Dave's reaction about the hfe was hilarious.

[@ashevillemusictools]

Yep and shows he doesn't understand the audio market, their love of this meter and how they grade GE transistors.

[@arsenicjones9125]

@@ashevillemusictools it’s doubtful that this meter is all that accurate and HFE w/o leakage info in a GE audio circuit is pretty useless

[@m.zohaibusman1298]

Yooo, ur the guy I've been getting ads about

[@sergsimakovich1444]

my reaction was 100% same :)

[@ashevillemusictools]

@@arsenicjones9125 fair enough. Maybe they put it in knowing people wanted it but didn't do good enough. Plenty of half baked not fully properly implemented features in this meter as Dave's review clearly shows.

[@AubreyKeck]

Love my 61E. Its in constant use and always dependable.

[@juancarlossandoval5628]

Got this meter,, malfunction on its 2nd month,, shorted lest leads shows 2 ohms,, so I do the IPA bath. Now open leads show 6meg, diode test and buzzer are also affected,, shorted test leads shows 38 ohms,, ncv beeps non stop,, never abuse the meter,,, just sitting on my desk no batt leaks, leads are ok. Tested the front end, no issues,, it seems cal just drifted so soon.

[@EEVblog]

Yikes!

[@BruceNitroxpro]

@@EEVblog , Exactly... it is Chinese junk, with no repair and no replacement either.

[@treadmillrepair754]

Continuity Beep of my Fluke 27 fail after 40 years of total abuse. All the meters are the same. Hehehehehe.

[@BruceNitroxpro]

@@treadmillrepair754 , HORRID! ONLY 40 years! Ha ha ha ha! Good one!

[@RandomHacks]

Funny I ordered this 2 days ago, was looking for a good review and here it is. I also have the Aneng AM870 it is ok but not great, very slow range switching, not much input protection as far as I remember and NCV is equally useless.

[@redtails]

know your userbase. multimeters are used to test continuity (why does my thing not work?), resistance (I can't read color values), and voltage (is it 5v or 3v3?) most often. Beyond that, mA current (real diagnostics), mains voltage, and _maybe_ capacitance.

[@eDoc2020]

I get what you're saying. But don't forget diode test mode, very useful to see if diodes and transistors are shorted, open, or likely functional. For a pocket multimeter that's all you need. Analog multimeters are also good here, I don't know why everyone only talks about digital meters. But on the other hand I can also see the utility of a meter with more features and more accuracy. My thought is to have a basic meter (or several) for everyday work and a more advanced meter kept at the bench if you need a bit more.

[@garethjones7182]

I measure transistor gain (matching pairs of AC128s etc.), thought everyone did!

[@tl1024]

I know this is a dumb one, but I always go straight to meter leads with "alligator clamps" support, and I use the probe holders to keep my alligator clamps when I'm not using them. It's a option you would never know you missed until it's not there. But, I usually upgrade the leads instantly on any meter I buy anyway, and support for alligator clamps is a must in my line of work. Good leads & alligator clamps is a must (at least the good leads part). Many people dont understand just how good it is to have a decent set of meter leads.

[@eDoc2020]

As somebody who's had a few el-cheapo meters I certainly understand how frustrating bad probes can be. Regarding built-in alligators that would be nice but I just use regular probes with a pair of alligator to alligator cables. Integral alligators would be better (nothing to short for example) but since most of my meters don't have probe holders I'd be worried about misplacing them.

[@m.zohaibusman1298]

My 10$ UNI-T meter has a really good NCV mode tho, works flawlessly. Im honestly shocked that this one failed

[@peterthefoxx]

Sometimes feels like every uni-t model is made by a different company. Btw which model was that 10$ one?

[@barbudoru]

I have the UT-210E clamp meter (not 10$ tho) and the NCV is very sensitive. I like to amuse people by showing them how my cat charges its lazors when you pet it - NCV goes wild.

[@m.zohaibusman1298]

@@peterthefoxx ikr Mine is UT33d+

[@m.zohaibusman1298]

@@peterthefoxx I just realized that my multimeter is about 20$ in US. My wholesale market is really cheap damn... I got a brand new one for 6$. Feels good

[@peterthefoxx]

@@m.zohaibusman1298 Thanks!

[@OneBiOzZ]

i worry about the rubber on that range switch degrading due to hand oils and high pressure

[@dhphuckts]

The 61E+'s NCV function seems useless and its backlight isn't very bright. I recently shared a video review of the Habotest HT118A multimeter (about 23 USD), although it only displays 6000 counts and the input protection is not equal to Uni-T E61+, the voltage measurement is quite accurate, functional NCV is very sensitive, can detect electric field at a distance of about 5cm, accurately detect Line wire from about 3cm. The screen has a very bright backlight, the display is large and clear.

[@malgailany]

The best improvement in my opinion is the AC+DC volts measurement that is found only in the high-end DMMs. I wanted to see how good it is. Not sure why you skipped that feature?

[@dedamarsovac]

For me, working with DC/AC inverters, that would be quite an interesting feature. Those things have a quite specific input current waveform, where only the AC+DC measurement can explain the input fuse current rating and ohmic losses

[@mirosawlewandowski7865]

Absolutely no competition at this price! It sets new trends in the construction of meters for service and electronics hobbyists.

[@likemarksee]

I think we had a few of these UT61(?) at work, but i don’t use them personally as i find them annoying slow.

[@heronguarezi6501]

I have a UT60C and already measured 1400V. I am not sure what accuracy I got, but it measured and did not complained. Caught on camera to

[@tomcardale5596]

The main thing that needed improving about the UT61E was the input protection. Everything else about it was a perfectly competent meter.

[@qlum]

Own an Aneng an870 myself, fine for my uses, just don't expect the ncv to actually be a useful feature on that one.

[@WooShell]

NCV isn't a useful feature on any meter. Complete waste of space.

[@mdfyui8000]

If only new meters would stop stacking the ohms/diode/beeper functions together. Definitely a peeve with the little Sanwa pocket, along with the 3 to 4 seconds it takes to boot.

[@smeezekitty]

Continuity really needs to be on its on setting

[@eDoc2020]

I'm fine with the continuity being shared as long as everything is still direct on the dial. What I mean is resistance and continuity can be active at the same time. Have a resistance display but when the reading gets below whatever threshold turn on the buzzer. My Radio Shack Micronta 22-193 manages this. While its resistance readout obviously takes a moment to settle the continuity beep still is able to work instantly.

[@gilbertexcoffon]

Thanks for the video. I bought the 61E+. In your video you don't talk about the sokett accessory for measuring components. With mine it is impossible to plant a component in the 2 small rectangular holes provided for this purpose. absence of contact "clamps" inside. Have you noticed this defect ???

[@funcool8884]

Its stupid china marketing.

[@excitedbox5705]

I think Aneng is still the most bang for buck. Their new 9002 has Bluetooth and data retention for $22 but sadly only 6k counts but I think there is 1 with 10k. Their Q1 is still only $27 though. Their Bench meter is $70 has bluetooth, a radio, Alarm clock 19k counts and better precision than this one. I saw something about multi function calibration as well but the description didn't mention it.

[@elkingmohamed1993]

Hello, Would you mind taking a minute to answer my question? I am writing to you to seek your advice on the purchase of a multimeter for measuring small values on the order of millivolts and microamps. I am considering two models: the UT61B+ with a 6000 display count and the UT61E+ with a 22000 display count. I understand that the display count refers to the maximum number of digits that can be displayed on the multimeter's screen. However, I am still unsure of the practical difference between the two models. Would you be able to provide me with some guidance? Thank you for your time and consideration.

[@Broken_Yugo]

My decision was the AN870 is better bang for buck, getting up around 100USD one may as well make the jump to the BM235 or something else with proper safety features.

[@JulianoMesquita-zy8ex]

I LIKE YOUR VIDEO. BUT HOW DO I CALIBRATE THE UT61E+, I HEARD THAT IT IS THROUGH THE MANUFACTURER'S SOFTWARE. DO YOU HAVE THIS SOFTWARE?

[@johnwest7993]

I just checked, and it's now $100 US on Amazon.

[@jon123423]

I would go for uni-t ut139E.

[@sonic2000gr]

Probably the price will go down soon. I think it's a nice meter. Not very fond of the new red knob in there. But the bigger display and the change from the 9V battery is very nice. I have the original UT61E also and would consider buying this as a second (well, maybe... 5th) meter.

[@AndrewCislak]

I'd love you to compare with the ANENG AM870!

[@nortonis3565]

Hello my good man, nice video. I can see it gone 2 years. I am on a look for a new meter, what would you say now is the most bang for the bucks ?

[@Tibbon]

As someone with many 70s analog music units, transistor testing is useful for me!

[@AlexTaradov]

hFE is a throwback to Mastech.

[@EEVblog]

It was big in the 70' and early 80's

[@MiniLuv-1984]

Aneng comp - Yes please! Also tell us about the optical usb - what's it actually capable of - can it be set up as slow sample rate data logger?

[@jaro6985]

Yes you can use the USB to datalog the current display reading.

[@chrisbailey4759]

Absolutely perplexed why they wasted a function position with the Hfe test, and what's the point of the non contact voltage detect if it doesn't work properly, I was all set to buy one for back up purposes, Thanks for the review and thanks for saving me some money 👍

[@crackwitz]

since the UT61e (yes, not the + one) rose in price ($60) compared to several years ago (~$45 in 2017), I'm wondering what's out there for around $50... I like fast continuity and the serial output.

[@borayurt66]

hFE might come in handy if it works properly. I have an old Beckman Industrial DM27xl from the late 80's (early 90's?) which I bought as my first DMM. It has hFE, and it actually does a much better job (realistic measure) than the Atmega based component tester thingies floating around in the Chinese markets. I still use it and when I need to choose a couple of transistors out of a 100 pack with matching gains, it is my "go to" instrument. Yes, a temperature function is clearly missing from this new UNI-T meter, but I would rather have it as not "instead of", but together with hFE. Nice review as always, checked the internet, it has become available in Chinese sellers, but not made it yet to the local distributor here in Istanbul. For the price, I totally agree, there is NOTHING in this meter that can justify the difference, and I am sure they will quickly discontinue the old model and the only "budget" 22000 count UNI-T will no longer be in the 60USD range, shame...

[@elmariachi5133]

Thanks for your insights. I hate it, when people like Dave here, make bolt claims, like 'no one needs hfe anymore', without any explanation.. I usually repair retro computers and of course there occassionally are some analog parts in there, was not sure if I could need this.

[@borayurt66]

@@elmariachi5133 We share the same passion for retro computers then.

[@585585MC]

Damn, thato 61 is a quite old revision (or a Chinese version)! Purchased a 61E in 2020, I have 3 MOVs, 2 PTC and resistors.

[@zukjeff]

Speed of continuity and continuity lead voltage is a MUST for meter comparisons. more of my circuits are now below 3.3 volts. testing components power the whole DUT when the lead voltage is 5 to 7 volts like the fluke !

[@tomcruiser2407]

Great comparison, although I didn't understand everything because I speak Swiss German, I still understood a lot haha. And yes, it's a shame that the temperature measurement was omitted. Nevertheless, I bought, well, the plus model and, as an amateur radio operator, I am extremely satisfied with it. Price performance is excellent and what is also impressive is the extremely fast continuity tester when troubleshooting. Your video helped me decide, thank you very much. Greetings from the Bernese Oberland Thomas

[@LazerLord10]

Wait a minute, why did you insist on putting the UNI-T on its corner for the NCV test, when you put the other meter flat-on? The NCV tester is on the front face, is it not?

[@beefchicken]

Just before he did the test, he showed that the NCV tester is on the corner.

[@LazerLord10]

@@beefchicken Huh, must've missed that.

[@ppal64]

@@LazerLord10 well it’s an on demand video you can go and have a look.

[@mrpetit2]

Tbh I don't really care for temperature measurement in a DMM. For $3 delivered you have a stand alone thermocouple temp reader, and then you have temp measurement and DMM measurement at the same time.

[@imkow]

Uni-t is considered high-end in China.. because there are better bang-for-the-buck brands like Fuyi and Zoyi .. their meters are about 2/3 of Uni-t's price while retaining the same precision..

[@hqiu6828]

Uni-T used to work for Fluke as OEM, low-end stuff, btw, thus has better quality control. Also, Rigol used to work with Agilent.

[@melvynsmith2143]

Hi Dave, you know what, this meter the 61E+ is being sold here in the UK through Amazon for £139, much more than the more reasonably priced 61E which is just £59, I wish it were just half as much again as the E, I would buy one, but at the price they are being offered in the UK I don't think its worth it, I can get a used but working Fluke for that price. Love your videos BTW and your Ausie sense of humour... Keep up the good work buddy.... Mel - Yorkshire, England

[@conodigrom]

I understand criticism for UNI-T, but I think both are quite a bang for the buck for the money AND the hobbist/home lab/low voltage use. Even the UT61E debate...come on, who on their sane mind would use it professionally or above 240V? 500,750,1000V work with an $60 UNI-T? Who complains about that has bigger issues to fix..

[@flybackrs]

Well there is the whole Uni-T being a Chinese company and China runs literal concentration camps. So there's also the "supporting China's government" ethical issue.

[@flybackrs]

Especially since you can find a used Fluke on eBay for the same price or less...

[@conodigrom]

@@flybackrs Absolutely.

[@flybackrs]

@@conodigrom shame, because I agree that they look like great budget options for hobbyists.

[@whuzzzup]

@@flybackrs So does the US?

[@todayonthebench]

The "No contact voltage sensing" seems a bit like a gimmick, even when well implemented. (I much prefer using the traditional pen type, since poking a whole multimeter into an electrical cabinet seems down right silly...) The lack of temperature measurement is a bit of a bummer, but I can live without it to be fair. Though, I don't know why Dave needs to hate the transistor gain measurement as hard as he does... I have found transistor gain measurements actually useful a fair few time. (Though, usually I want a known base/collector current, and typically graph it a bit as well. Ie, a straight up "beta" is a bit lack luster. But I don't discredit a whole meter just because it has the feature.....)

[@hwingerrr5680]

All NCV implementations I've seen in DMM units are fairly unuseful not only because of the bulk but also because they're so ambiguous. That's more worthy of the gimmick gripe because I doubt anyone would actually use and rely on that ncv feature when the pen type is so much better. With a good one, it can easily determine the hot side of a lamp cord, which isn't possible with the DMM version.

[@caseyrevoir]

00:11:47 The delay/light is because if the resistance is below 300 ohm the light will illuminate green, if over 300 the light is red.

[@ElmerFuddGun]

*New Uni-T Model Number Meeting:* Pres. Joe: _So what should we call our completely new meter?_ Frank: _The 61 was pretty popular._ Tony: _Well we had a bunch of different 61 models. It must be a lucky number._ Sarah: _I can't think of any numbers other than 61._ Johnny: _How about adding a plus sign? So, like, ya know, like the 61E but, ya know, different and, ya know, better._ Pres. Joe: _Oh, that's good, Johnny! You get a raise, Johnny! Meeting adjourned._

[@ДикийИзвинятор]

Why not 69? :-)

[@firstmkb]

I loved Sarah's comment - she must be in marketing!

[@ElmerFuddGun]

@@firstmkb - LOL. Ya, I'm not sure of her exact title... as I didn't get that far down into details when making this up!

[@ElmerFuddGun]

@@ДикийИзвинятор - LOL. I thought someone might mention that number. :-P

[@VoidHalo]

I've been waiting for you to make a video about my meter since I got it a couple years ago. Best I could ever find was your review way back ago on the UT61B, but unfortunately you just crapped all over it. Maybe it deserved it, but the comments didn't seem to think so. Either way, it may not be a review, but it's good to hear you saying positive things about the UT61E. Cheers, m8. :D

[@jkobain]

What a nice price upgrade! Thank for the review.

[@ford1546]

9v battery does not leak. if they leak then the leak is inside the battery box and does less damage. AA. batteries leak a lot and do a lot of damage 4 pcs. AA. batteries will be 6v. 4 pcs 1.2 rechargeable becomes 4.8v. can multimeters use modern 4.8v rechargeable batteries?

[@WacKEDmaN]

when this baby hits 88$, youre gonna see some serious shit! nice updates...

[@chaoticlife311]

LOL, for chinese the 8 is quite the desirable number. hahahahahahaha

[@WacKEDmaN]

i take back that "nice updates" part!... sorta nice...but not worth the extra $$

[@DarthZackTheFirstI]

its already at 60$ from his link

[@muppetpaster]

@@DarthZackTheFirstI I have two of the old ones, paid 40 in total...

[@andymouse]

I was just waiting for it as you clicked the dial round !

[@kcuhc84]

Looks like a shoe maker has replaced a very popular range of shoes with boots while still calling then shoes.

[@felenov]

I like my Fluke 87 as it is, thank you

[@kriswillems5661]

Could someone explain me why a transistor tester is useless?

[@matth3wc]

As someone who owns the Uni-T UT61E, the Uni-T UT61E+ is a disappointment, sure it's an upgrade but not worth 30-40 more over the non-plus version. I like my Uni-T UT61E, looks like i'll be holding onto it a while longer.

[@MazeFrame]

I have a Voltcraft MT-52, and the NCV sometimes falsely triggers on any metal object.

[@DantalionNl]

I'd take a Brymen BM257s over this anyday, same price in my country anyway

[@dusanmilojevic3017]

Same.😁

[@hameedullah6633]

Which one is the best multimeter for everything. ( home, industrial, electricians and for electrical users)

[@avaydon7679]

Old one had big buzzer.

[@michaelmiller641]

I'm not an electronic expert, but my new fangled meter had hfe measuring capability, but I did find it useful when I was trying to match two BC 109 transistors for a homebrew stereo tape preamp, but was that necessary? I don't know. I also used it to test a germanium transistor to see if it was knackered! But as I say, I'm just a bumbling amateur! I do love your videos Dave!

[@gloomyblackfur399]

Thanks for the review. I was thinking about buying one, but those fuses are a deal breaker for me. I have a Cliff Quicktest that uses them. At least in the US, genuine BS1362 fuses are rare as unicorns. All the ones I've found are counterfeits, with no sand.

[@chrispletcher6535]

I dunno, I just don't think there's USD 75ish worth of meter (current price although like Dave I have seen it swing) in it. Welectron is asking USD 120 shipped for a Brymen 257s or USD 110 for a BM235 which meets all the compliance for sure and much fewer bugs. I think the gotcha is the RS232, not included in the Brymen (ugh). I could see myself getting a 61E for a cheap data logging to USB solution or maybe casual use, but the price point is still a tad high. Thanks for opening this up for us Dave.

[@martinlutherkingjr.5582]

Really wish the 61e had a backlight

[@lee3r24]

You can add it , just google 61e backlight mod

[@martinlutherkingjr.5582]

@@lee3r24 Yeah I know, saw that years ago, never bothered with it. Thanks for the reminder though.

[@thulinp]

Mine does, but I added it. The chip already supports it.

[@Protocol-X]

Thank you for another great video. Do you have any suggestions for an accurate low current clamp meter that won't break the bank?

[@lordmadnes]

excellent video as always. But every time a measurement is made you could put a temperature meter to know at what ambient temperature you are making the measurements. Thank you. greetings from Chile Mauricio

[@retrocomputeruser]

A shoot-out with the AN870 would be nice.

[@juancarlosgarcia4005]

How much is a Fluke multimeter with these characteristics? Where is the price difference? I already tell you, in people like you who live very well with the difference in price. They all assemble in China

[@TheFelix63]

How useful is a 20000 Counts if the last digits fluctuate or are not precise, compared to one with fewer digits, in the same price range

[@mrpetit2]

The board says that the components for the communication port are both leds. If thats true it cant be 2 way communication of course. It would be nice to see what the software can do though. Too bad that it got more expensive.

[@nabman_]

I have the 61D+ and the NCV is quite sensitive (at 120V 60Hz). The NCV function must be the same between the E+ and D+ variants; I bought mine a year after this review so UniT must have made improvements. BTW the D+ has temperature, micro amps, and no hFE. Very good DMM.

[@englishrupe01]

Oh wow.....I hadn't realized the new Brymen/EEVBlog meter was reduced to circa $88! Please either give a link.....or don't bloody well compare the UT61e+ to it for NCV!

[@Flying0Dismount]

The separate AC and DC switch setting is the one big reason to get the new model... I hate meters with combined AC/DC setting with a passion.. Yes, I agree that the hFE is useless, but I never use temperature measurements with multimeter either because I have to figure out where I put the storage case in order to find the stupid thermocouple.. It's far quicker to grab the FLIR thermal imager.. In any case, I agree that it would not be a worthwhile "upgrade" if you already have the original or an equivalent, but if I were buying a meter and had to choose between the two, there's no question that I'd take the + for the separate voltage function alone.

[@E-GaN]

Make a review of Habotest HT118a.

[@luizatecnica1491]

You simple friend is very good at your explanations congratulations! Now let me clear up some doubts! 1 - I bought the UT61E +, it says it is 20A but it comes with a 10A fuse. Can I change the fuse for 20A without any problems? 2 - Could you for example exchange the 1A that comes from 250v for one of 1A 1000v? 3 - Could you change the 10a of 250v for one of 20a for 1000v? 4 - Now, last question, could I not reuse the fuses of my Fluke and put it in the unit? And again congratulations on your channel and thanks in advance!

[@sec21]

Propagation of uncertainty could be a cool subject for a video. Like sqrt(δa²+δb²+...) and all that.

[@ovalwingnut]

I really like the RED one. Just saying.

[@d.jensen5153]

I hope no one at Uni-T is listening to you about the bjt gain feature.

[@theawt]

what happened to the eevblog? Turning something on before tearing it apart? Nice vid btw

[@oskimac]

im pretty sure hi tear it apart before. because he said about it at 2:37 "look at the teardown" that we can find the optical interface.

[@EEVblog]

Technically I did tear it down and shoot that bit first!

[@theawt]

@@EEVblog lmao, I was just joking of course. The times you actually did you told us! Nice video (as always)

[@TheDIMONART]

New UNI-T UT39E+ costs 40 usd and more precise than Uni-T UT61E!! Also, UT61E can`t handle 220 Mhz frequency (fake specs!!)😂

[@uK8cvPAq]

Those look like the same fuses as used in British electrical plugs!

[@EEVblog]

I believe they are.

[@NeilHillard]

They most certainly are! BS = British Standard.

[@cesaru3619]

Cheap and for general use, i suggest you invest for a more precise, faster one.

[@poprawa]

Nice, standardized mount will be great outside of benches, on job. With shitty tripod it will hang from anything and with precise angle

[@elkingmohamed1993]

Hello, Would you mind taking a minute to answer my question? I am writing to you to seek your advice on the purchase of a multimeter for measuring small values on the order of millivolts and microamps. I am considering two models: the UT61B+ with a 6000 display count and the UT61E+ with a 22000 display count. I understand that the display count refers to the maximum number of digits that can be displayed on the multimeter's screen. However, I am still unsure of the practical difference between the two models. Would you be able to provide me with some guidance? Thank you for your time and consideration.

[@antoniogonzalez542]

I had a UT61E and measuring voltage and frequency (600 / 1.5K) the voltage measurement misadjusted, I did not buy another one and much less paying more, I am from Spain and when the BM786 is available I will buy one.

[@1Hippo]

According to the datasheet the new chip is more capable with 30 000 counts and 3 conversions per sec instead of 2. Also it has a fast mode with 30 times/s and 300 counts. Maybe it is possible to unlock it?