Comment cheap 40 MHz scope (Score 5, Informative) 321
The most common source for these type of PC-card "instruments" is National Instruments.
If you are teaching about electronics, you would be better off buying a used Tek 475 (or similar) analog scope, you can get a very good one for $300-400. They can learn about the actual circutry, timing, measurement error, etc. without
getting heavily into sampling theory and digitial
signal processing.
If you want the students to learn "the new way" of
electronic instruments, check with National Instruments about used/traded in cards, and software; they may have an educational discount.
There are also some "poor man's" type of scopes made of surplus parts, old TV's, etc.. that you can find in the back pages of Nuts& volts magazine; I don't recommend these if you want the students to learn what they will use in the future, in real-world engineering applications.
Finally, there are mixed-mode instruments that are analog with analog storage, analog with digital storage, analog with digital readouts added, various standard instruments with serial or GPIB interfaces, and s/w from the mfr or 3d party for
control and analysis.
See if you can find on some engineer's shelf a catalog/book from Tek or HP, say, from the 1980s
or 90's, this is about the vintage that will work and be in your price range.
If you are teaching about electronics, you would be better off buying a used Tek 475 (or similar) analog scope, you can get a very good one for $300-400. They can learn about the actual circutry, timing, measurement error, etc. without
getting heavily into sampling theory and digitial
signal processing.
If you want the students to learn "the new way" of
electronic instruments, check with National Instruments about used/traded in cards, and software; they may have an educational discount.
There are also some "poor man's" type of scopes made of surplus parts, old TV's, etc.. that you can find in the back pages of Nuts& volts magazine; I don't recommend these if you want the students to learn what they will use in the future, in real-world engineering applications.
Finally, there are mixed-mode instruments that are analog with analog storage, analog with digital storage, analog with digital readouts added, various standard instruments with serial or GPIB interfaces, and s/w from the mfr or 3d party for
control and analysis.
See if you can find on some engineer's shelf a catalog/book from Tek or HP, say, from the 1980s
or 90's, this is about the vintage that will work and be in your price range.
