Uni-Byte 0184 - We look CLOSER at the SDS804X-HD and THIS is what we found! 

Thank you!

Yeah, these probes have the compensation at the BNC. I find nothing wrong with these probes. They handle nicely and test out very nicely.

Yeah, the 12-bits is impressive. I'm going to do a quick rundown of the UI, but it won't be for a while until I get some time with it's operation.

Thanks for the added information Andy.

@@uni-byte hey brother i needs a scope for my garage and i dont want to take my old tek scope out or my better (term used loosely) rigol. i am going to be using it as a second workbench scope near all my machinery and such and also to find a short in car before i sell it. haha. i want a micsig but they cost way more than the siglent sds804 hd in canada. i was going to order the siglent from ali express as it's on sale now. i plan to but a decent signal gen and i can carry it back and forth. instead two crappy ones i'll buy one decent one. great video by the way.

@@jstro-hobbytech Thanks! Rather than go to AliExpress and have no warranty, try Electro-Meters Tech Supply. Their pricing, taking exchange into account, is quite a bit better than Siglent NA direct. Call them and ask for Jesse.

@@uni-byte ive bought a few things from them. i talk to the rep all the time. haha. small world ehh.

I too seem to collect scope probes. I have enough for twice as many scopes as I have. Always looking for a bargain. I even have 200MHz probes for my old Heathkit 5MHz scope.

that is sweet man! someone was selling 5 active tektronix probes in various states of use for 400cad and i regret not buying them.

Good question. Siglent make a decent probe in that BW. The SP2035A @ $85/ea. However, even though I'm a Siglent fanboy, you might try searching eBay for lightly used Tektronix P6139A or P6139B probes. They are extremely well made probes, are 500MHz, only 6pF and can be found for near that price if you are not in a hurry. Just make sure they have a decent set of accessories with them. However, most of the accessories can be bought separately too.

Understood. I'm sure for some cases those feet will be less than ideal. As for the probes, I'm not sure about the chamfers you are talking about. What do these chamfers do? Also, I have Tektronix active probes that cost several thousand $ when new that have no more protection at the ground connection. Would they be junk too? I did more than feel them. I tested them. These probes tested to 210MHz, to me that's the measure of importance.

There is a python script that will produce license keys which can be installed using an SCPI command. Go over to the EEVblog forum and search for "Siglent SDS SDG Hack Script". It's pretty easy to do.

@@uni-byte Would that make the SDS804X-HD a better option for hobby work than the SDS814X-HD? I was about to order the 814X.

@@carloscervantes836 Yes. It is considerably less expensive and either the 804 or the 814 can be changed into an 824 in about 10 minutes just by entering a few commands.

@@carloscervantes836 Yes, absolutely.

@@uni-byte excellent, saved me some money brother!

It is just a bit noisier than the SDS1104X-E. Not a lot, but just noticeable. I'm not one to be bothered by noise though. Most of my professional electronics career was spent around much noisier equipment.

Oh, it is possible to zoom so much also vertically in "zoom" mode

The 8-bit scope was an SDS2104X Plus that has been upgraded to SDS2504X Plus. I used a 50 ohm pass-though load on the 12-bit scope (see @ 8:40). I was only at 200mV/div on the 8-bit scope (actually 20mV as I had the channel set for 10X).

@@matusc What I did was take a single sweep then used the vertical and horizontal controls to zoom in.

Might be a bit too complicated to explain here, but it you google "relationship between rise time and bandwidth" you can get the full explanation. The result it that for a Gaussian system if you divide 0.35 by risetime in seconds you will get the bandwidth in Hz. But numbers with large powers can be cumbersome. I've just re-arranged the powers of 10 so that if you divide 350 by the risetime in nanoseconds you get the bandwidth in MHz. It just makes it more manageable. Actually, most modern ADCs are not truly Gaussian but utilize methods to maximize BW. It depends on the chip, which in this case we don't know, but the number for most these days is actually .4 to .45. Using those you get a BW of between 292MHz and 328MHz. Then you need to take into consideration how the analog side of the FE is designed. The best way to determine actual BW is with a frequency sweep, but using the 350/risetime will get a safe result on the lower end of the scale.

This is a better overall scope than the Rigol in almost every way. Not that the Rigol is a terrible scope or anything, but it's specs just aren't as good. If you must have the ultimate in compactness though, the Rigol would be a good choice.

@@uni-byte would you say there is a better bang for the buck oscilloscope or is this the best I can get?

@@wolf_industries I honestly think this is the best bang for the buck by a good margin. That's why I have one! 👍

@@uni-byte May I ask what is the difference between this and the sds1104, except the bigger screen and being 3x times the price? And is there a scope for a little bit more with a bigger screen?

@@wolf_industries The 1104 has the bigger screen which is really nice, plus probe detect, 50 ohm internal terminating more I/O and some other features. It would be best to compare their data sheets too. I'm pretty sure the 1104 is the lowest cost Siglent scope with the big screen. The SDS2104X-P also has it, but it's (or at least was) around the same price.

Indeed it's not as heavy-duty as something like a Tek 465, but it's miles ahead in capability. I own both, like both and use both. However, this is not as feeble as you suggest. Unless you are trying to abuse it, it handles just fine and will last a good long time. It's not a FNIRSI. It's a real test instrument in every respect and no more "Fisher Price" than any other modern oscilloscope. Try one if you can. It might just impress you.