[volt-nuts] Keithley 2001 vs HP 3457A multimeters / Any problems to watch out for on Keithley 2001?

[Todd Micallef]

Dave,

The 2001 is an excellent meter. They are easy to service and have one big
potential issue that you will need to investigate. The electrolytic caps
are prone to failure. They can leak from underneath eating away the traces.
They can look fine from the outside but are leaking. I have repaired a few
of these and recapped them with the primary cause of failure caused by the
caps. I also have one that burned through the pcb because of the same
issue. There is an article online on what to do. The link is here   ...
https://xdevs.com/fix/kei2001/
It was written by another volt-nut member. Also, the schematics are
available for download if you haven't found them. I am sure they are
located on xDevs.

I have a 3457A and the only feature I like is that it is silent. I don't
like that its best range is 3V compared to the 10V with most other bench
meters. I have never used the lowest ranges but I have a nanovoltmeter for
that.

On Fri, Jun 24, 2016 at 8:08 AM, David Garrido <d.garrido at me.com> wrote:

> Good Morning Dave,
>
> I just traded my 2001 for a 182 in equally nice condition.  Each of them
> in solid working condition should fetch north of 1000USD.  One of the
> hidden features of the 2001 is that it WILL display 8.5 digits on screen.
> It will not be as stable as running a Solartron 7071 in 8.5 DM, but nice to
> know.  To my understanding the 3457 is not as stable as the 3456 not to
> mention all of its other limitations WRT other 6.5 digit meters.
>
> Your inner volt-nut will be pleased.  Especially at that price!!!
>
> Cheers,
>
> David
> > On Jun 24, 2016, at 7:16 AM, Dr. David Kirkby (Kirkby Microwave Ltd) <
> drkirkby at kirkbymicrowave.co.uk> wrote:
> >
> > I've got an HP 3457A (6.5 digit multimeter) which has served me well.
> But
> > I see a Keithley 2001 7.5 digit meter on eBay
> >
> > http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/152113460174
> >
> > which sort of tempted me as
> >
> > 1) It has an extra digit, I have not looked to see how much that extra
> > digit gains one. It would be nice to think the uncertainty is only 10% of
> > the 6.5 digit 3457A, but I very much doubt that's the case. I have not
> > looked at the specs closely.
> >
> > 2) I see it was a current model at Farnell selling at £4150 + 20% VAT =
> > £4980, so quite a bit of money. The 2001 is not a cheap meter.
> >
> > 3) It was £650 or "best offer".
> >
> > 4) The 3457A is a great meter, but is much older.
> >
> > Anyway, my offer of £380 (GBP), was accepted, which is 7.6% of the
> current
> > cost of this new from Farnell. As I write, this is around $520 (USD), but
> > with the UK just voted to exit the EU, and the pound fallen quite a bit,
> > that US price may not be very representative. But it seems fairly cheap.
> I
> > can't see any Keithley 2001's sell for that low on eBay, unless they have
> > had faults.
> >
> > Having made an offer, it been accepted, and me paid for it, now I decide
> to
> > see if it was a good or bad idea! I think one is compare the meters
> first,
> > then make a decision to buy or not, but I have done this the other way
> > around!
> >
> > I'm interested in hearing any onions on
> >
> > 1) What's the 2001 like in general?
> >
> > 2) How does it compare to the 3457A? Have I made  big mistake in paying
> > £380 (GBP) to buy a 2001, when I already have a HP 3457A?
> >
> > 3) Are there any specific advantages of the 3457A which would make it
> > desirable to keep both units, rather than sell the 3457A, which is my
> > intention?
> >
> > 4) I assume the "Revision A06" refers to some hardware/firmware releases.
> > Does that give any idea of how old this is?
> >
> > 5) I note from a Google there are some revision B07's, which I am
> assuming
> > are later. Does anyone know if there are any significant issues on an
> A06,
> > or whether it can be upgraded - is it just firmware?
> >
> > *6) Most importantly, are there any specific faults that occur on the
> 2001,
> > which I might be able to spot doing procedures X, Y and Z, but which are
> > not blindingly obvious? *
> >
> > Obviously when this arrives, I will attempt to do any self-tests I can
> find
> > in the manual. I don't have any "standard" good enough to check the
> > accuracy, but a comparison with the 3457A should show up any really bad
> > faults - or at least leave me wondering what meter to trust! I will be
> like
> > the man with two clocks! The 3457A has not bee calibrated for ages.
> >
> > I will get a quote from Tektronix for calibration. Hopefully that will
> show
> > up any faults.
> >
> > BTW, it does seem the 8.5 digit meters (Agilent 3458A, Keithley 2002)
> hold
> > their value far more than the 7.5 digit ones. I guess the cheaper 7.5
> digit
> > ones are sold in much larger quantities.
> >
> >
> > Dave
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