should i buy this oscilloscope

[Jason Stout]

this is NOT a triggered sweep scope.
Avoid it.

I hate to get off topic, but just how would you use a scope without triggered sweep?

[Peter Snowberg]

Here's one on eBay for $1 with no reserve.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2597739953&category=58281

You can bet it's going to sell for more than $1.

If I recall correctly, Colin picked up a nice one there cheaply.

Take care,
-Peter

[ExpAnonColin]

If I recall correctly, Colin picked up a nice one there cheaply.

Take care,
-Peter

Oui oui, about $150 shipped for a new-in-box recently calibrated BK precision 2120B.  It's sort of an "educational scope", but it's done everything I've needed it to, and very little more-except for frequency counting.  I really want that.

-Colin

[downweverything]

I hate to get off topic, but just how would you use a scope without triggered sweep?

The way my eico works is in order to make the waveform stop moving you have to change the frequency of the dot that moves across the screen to match the frequency of the waveform, its a total pain as it has to be perfect and anything you do will cause it to start moving.  triggered scopes just use a certain voltage as a kind of reference level and then make the image not move according to that.

[MR COFFEE]

I used to have one of those EICO scopes circa 1965. Yeah it is tube, but more important, since it's NOT a triggered-sweep scope, you can't get a stable display of a guitar waveform no matter how much you fool with the knobs.

I still have an old Tek RM15 which is a tube-based triggered sweep scope, and it works beautifully and is easy to troubleshoot since all the old Tektronix stuff is built to last forever. I do keep a box of spare tubes for it handy, though! That's the only thing I've ever had to do to it (replace a tube). I paid all of $125 (American) for it 15 years ago. Even has a delay line so you can see what triggered the sweep.

You don't have to spend a fortune for a good one. The tubes make me less paranoid when I'm using it to service a tube amp. It's a LOT harder to damage if you hit it with too high a voltage by accident than more modern scopes designed for logic-level signals.

10 mhz bandwidth and up is plenty for audio work, even with Analog delay IC clocks. And you can see RF oscillations or other stuff you can't hear that may be causing noise or (unwanted) distortion.

In any case, GET A MANUAL FOR ANY OLDER PIECE OF TEST GEAR.

You can get them over the internet for about $35 in most cases