Having your own scope is a real pleasure. I’ve had one myself for the last 20 years or more. When you really need to look at a signal, you just hook up the scope and you can see the waveform. It’s beautiful.
There are many places that you can be a used oscilloscope for a reasonable price. Ham radio operators have been getting by with industry castoffs for years. Now, however, it might be time to think about buying your first, new oscilloscope. Tektronix is holding what they’re calling their 2011 Scope Sales Event. The sale runs through July 1, 2011.
You can save 10% on TDS2000C series scopes (see right), 25% on MSO/DPO2000 Series scopes, and 10% on the MSO/DPO3000 Series scopes. For example, you can get a 200-MHz TDS2022C with two analog inputs for only $1,854. A two-input 100-MHz TD2012C is only $1,308.
Not only are these scopes (relatively) inexpensive, they’re much easier to use and fully-featured than older models. For example, the TDS2000C series uses an LCD display, meaning the scope is more like a small, flat-panel TV, and it takes up a lot less bench space than the older scopes. They also have a whole range of analysis features that the older scopes don’t have.
A scope is one of those things that you never knew you needed until you have one. And, once you have one, you wonder how you ever did without it. Now, with the cost of a new scope about the same price as a mid-level transceiver, perhaps it’s time that you got one of your own.
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