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Buying a used Voltcraft VC-5070 analog multimeter good idea for hobby electronics? (feddit.org)
submitted 1 month ago by DonnerWolfBach@feddit.org to c/askelectronics@discuss.tchncs.de
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I saw it is basically superseeded by the vc-5080 and vc-5081, but I am not finding any good comparisons and don't know enough about this to understand the difference myself.

My usecases are basically checking whether my soldering is connected, whether some switch is working, whether a cable is broken (thus why I am looking for a analog ones: easier to see the needle changing) and sometimes some simple voltage and resistance checking. So as far as I can guess I can I don't need the precision which I would lack with a analog multimeter like that.

I saw an offer for a used vc-5070 for 25€ around where I live. It has the features I need: continuity-sound, exchangable Messleitungen/wires (I need clamps very often).

Good idea for my use case? Is a cheap new one better? Do older models have some quirks that make them difficult/dangerous to use for beginners like me?

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[-] adb@lemmy.ml 3 points 1 month ago

I think it’s a good idea. I’d certainly get that over a new 25 bucks digital meter.

If ever you get more serious about electronics and want/need to buy a good dmm, an analog meter can still be useful alongside it.

[-] DonnerWolfBach@feddit.org 1 points 1 month ago

Thanks for the insight!

[-] DonnerWolfBach@feddit.org 1 points 1 month ago

I would bring a battery to test the voltage and resistor to test that - anything else I can easily bring to test the other functionalities?

[-] JustEnoughDucks@slrpnk.net 2 points 1 month ago

Like the other person said, it can still be very nice and useful!

However, modern (even cheap) DMMs have some quality of life or useful features like auto ranging, diode measurement, capacitor measurement, max/avg/min functions, duty cycle, etc... Like the standard low budget ANENG AN8008. And this one is certainly better quality than the cheap stuff.

Though the continuity sensor for that meter being able to select sensitivity levels is quite nice. Most multimeter's simply use "banana plugs" so you can't go wrong and can always use standard lab wires (that are readily available)..

this post was submitted on 06 Apr 2026
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