Reddit mentions: The best lab meters

> How and when should I start up the system and then when after that should I add tilapia and plants?

You should add plants after you get the system into a starting location and have been running the system for a 3-4 weeks. while adding either raw urine or pure concentrations of ammonia daily to the running water. The ideal is to have the nitrite/nitrate cycle stable before adding fish.


> > I'm in USDA zone 7a. People are already planting soil gardens here but I'm guessing our night temperatures aren't quite warm enough for tilapia yet.

Depends upon the breed of tilapia. Blue tilapia can easily live in 40+ degree water. They won't grow very quickly but its surviavable.

> I've heard various recommendations to get the bacteria going: add chemical ammonia and let it run for a while, add disposable minnows or fish and let it cycle with them for a while, or add pond water which will already contain bacteria. I do have a large, healthy pond on my property with many fish so I have easy access to pond water, minnows, bluegill, crawfish, and tadpoles. I'm ok with losing pond fish as the system balances itself but I'll be buying the tilapia from a supplier so I'd rather have the system stable and safe before I add them.
What chemical levels will I need to monitor? What testing kit do I need and where should I get it? Is there a good one on Amazon?

Get the master aquarium testing kit. petco has them and amazon.http://www.amazon.com/API-Freshwater-Master-Test-Kit/dp/B000255NCI/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1458229467&sr=8-1&keywords=master+aquarium. test for ammonia, nitrites, nitratesm and PH. If you have hundreds of dollars get the oxygen meter too. http://www.amazon.com/Hanna-Instruments-HI9147-04-Water-Resistant-Aquaculture/dp/B0085X2GZ6/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1458229571&sr=8-2&keywords=dissolved+oxygen+meter

>What kind of fish food and where should I get it?

Feed your self real food from whole ingrediants and feed the scraps to the fish. NO HOTDOGS. course tilapia will eat almost anything. but the main thing to concentrate on is... are you wanting a heavy harvest of fish?

>How many tilapia for this system? I'm hoping to stock them small and then harvest them at the end of the growing season.

Well, thats a 300 gallon system tank. A realatively safe level would be if you stock for aprox 1 pound of fish per 5 gallons of water. 60 pounds of fish at the end of the season, depending on growth.

>What easy to grow, hard to kill plants would you recommend for a beginner in zone 7a? We like full-sized tomatoes, jalapeño peppers, poblano peppers, zucchini, strawberries, and squash if they're not to difficult. If they are I'll probably skip them for the first year. I'm open to suggestions on whatever's easy!

The fruiting stuff will need a couple ounces of phosphorus and potassium added to the media beds. you should consider dual-root zone aquaponics. It allows for amendments to be added to the root zone of the plant instead of indiscriminately to the system.

>The person I got the system from ran it without any aeration aside from the natural splashing as water runs into the growbeds, fish tanks, and sump tanks. Think I'll be ok with this or should I add an aerator?

You will be ok like this most likely... But growth of tilapia follows the 1-1-1 guideline. 1 pound of feed plus 1 pound of oxygen grown for 1 year equals 1 pound. More oxygen will allow the quick growth that your interested in.

Oh yes, because third shift factory work isn't a common, widespread phenomenon that these frameworks bear every goddamn hallmark of. No, I'm not drawing on years of research on manufacturing including primary sources in the form of family members that contract with factories and have to deal with this. No, I'm clearly just an idiot. I mean, you have Google, a Facebook group, and gut feelings! Obviously you're better versed in this than I am.

EDIT: Oh neat. More downvotes from people with no idea what they're talking about. What a surprise. So, apparently I need to give more evidence. Okeydoke! Check this shit out! The A8 is a generic framework. Want proof? Here's some. Here's some more. Let's keep going, though. Plenty more where that came from. Notice how all of these printers look all but identical when you look at the frame, despite being from different brands and advertised as different machines? That's because the files for the laser cutter, and the .hex for the firmware, are the shared components. These are traded around, and "ANET" is a name built into the file, not the name of the manufacturer. A set of images for packaging around the box on the board and screen are traded around with it. Some choose to use parts of that name, some choose to discard it. This is an incredibly common scenario in China. You can brigade my posts all you want, but all you're showing is that you'd prefer to plug your fingers into your ears than listen to anyone other than your own echo chambers of positivity.

If you like working with your printer, good for you. I'm glad you enjoy it, and it's great you're a part of this hobby. However, the fact that you enjoy your machine doesn't in any way shape or form change the fact that your machine is just part of a long history of Chinese knockoffs of things being made out of spare parts. If you want to argue that ubiquity is the reason this isn't the case, I urge you to go look for any consumer electronic on Amazon, Aliexpress, eBay, or whatever eCommerce site you like to visit the most. Take a look at, say, computer mice. You'll notice a dozen designs up there, with a hundred manufacturer names. These are third-shift frameworks. This is a commonly known, widespread phenomenon in Chinese manufacture.

Your link is very useful. I'd read that these things send light pulses, but now I have details on the popular encoding methods. :) Thanks!

You've also confirmed what I expected... I can just measure the voltage on the LED. I wasn't sure how I'd keep it on the screen, but knowing there is a 'one-shot' mode on most oscopes solves that ambiguity for me, as well. I'm always in favor of buying equipment, as it obligates me to keep using it, and that is never a bad thing.

Would either of these scopes serve my purposes?

Rigol DS1102e

Siglent SDS1102CML

And now you've got me looking into the arduino. :) Enormously useful post. Thanks so much. Any other advice?

Get a 5 stage RO/DI unit from BulkReefSupply (BRS) (http://www.bulkreefsupply.com/bulk-reverse-osmosis-filters-systems/reverse-osmosis-systems.html). You can integrated it directly into your water line under the sink OR you can use the attachments to run it from the faucet, just screw it in and go. There are three lines, red, black, blue. The red is the water input, black is "waste" water that just goes down the drain or you can use it to water plants, and the blue line is the purified water. Get the auto shutoff switch/valve/floater thing (http://www.bulkreefsupply.com/reverse-osmosis-float-valve.html). Get a 20gallon or 30gallon rubbermade container, drill a hole in it, install the float/auto shutoff and connect the blue line. Turn it on and forget about it for a full day because that's how long it takes to make that amount of water. Double check the shutoff valve works first by holding it in the off position and making sure that the unit shuts off and doesn't explode.

Second, you can use RO/DI water for freshwater tanks you just need to use a buffer, here is a good article about that: http://www.liveaquaria.com/PIC/article.cfm?aid=65

BRS has a great video on how to setup the RO/DI unit you just bought, they are < $150 and work perfectly. Get a cheap TDS meter, these (http://www.amazon.com/Digital-Tester-Quality-Purity-Filter/dp/B007VK4YY0/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&qid=1419568328&sr=8-7&keywords=tds+meter) work great but make sure you order it right away because they ship from hongkong, so you can check the PPM (parts per million) in your water, if it starts to go above zero you need to change out parts of your ro/di unit, could be the membrane or carbon.

edit: lastly, you can drink this water just fine.. BRS even sells a tank to hold pressurized water and a dispenser. it bypasses the "DI" phase http://www.bulkreefsupply.com/brs-add-on-faucet-kit.html

edit 2: i am not affiliated with BulkReefSupply, i just really rely on them for the best info on the net and best products, plus good prices.

Ahhh now I understand...

This is where a TDS meter is needed to check the PPM. An example: http://www.amazon.com/Digital-Tester-Quality-Purity-Filter/dp/B007VK4YY0/ref=sr_1_2?s=industrial&ie=UTF8&qid=1417057910&sr=1-2&keywords=ppm+meter

The ppm depends on the nutrients you use. I have used a few different brands. Most of the ones I have used recommended the ppm to be around 1100. Keeping it at the recommend ppm will ensure you are not under/over feeding your plants. The ppm can vary somewhat but rarely do I have to adjust between water changes. So much depends on the quality of your water. I used to buy reverse osmosis water and my results were very good. I am thinking of getting my own unit just for growing purposes.

Even before I got my meter I followed the directions on the nutrient bottles. I still got good results. Not knowing if they were getting the proper amount of nutrients is why I bought a meter. It's a labor of love and I wanted to make sure I wasn't wasting time and money.

Just a little side note. I cannot tell you which nutrient brand is best. I like to experiment with different ones. But I can tell you that going organic was quite difficult for me. I had to adjust almost everything daily.

if you want something simple and insanely well priced when compared to other nutrients then check out dyna-gro.

dynagro foliage pro + pro-tekt and you will be years above most other growers. just focus on your environment which IMHO is the most important thing.

what is good about dynagro is it has everything in it as a base nutrient. with most other products (botanicare, GH, and famously Adv Nutrients) the base leaves out C and MG and micro nutrients.

Protekt is a silica additive that makes the plants noticeably stronger and thicker healthier stems.

If you call dynagro's number you can get a starter kit with a PK booster (used around week 4 and 7 of flower).


If you only want to water once every few days I suggest a hempy bucket https://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=98419

You can do a coco hempy bucket too and is very popular as well. if you decide to go that route make sure to grab some botanicare Calmag. So your list would be dynagro foliage pro/dynagro protekt/botanicare calmag.

You will 100% need to buy a PH meter and I strongly advise an EC/PPM meter. These are the ones I use

https://smile.amazon.com/Oakton-EcoTestr-Waterproof-Tester-Range/dp/B004G8PWAU/ref=sr_1_13?ie=UTF8&qid=1479005211&sr=8-13&keywords=ph+meter
https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B01FPG89CE/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

In a hempy bucket and coco always PH to 5.5-6.2

If you were to put the plants in your pic in to a 3 gallon hempy bucket with vermiculite and perlite for the first 2-3 weeks you are going to want to water once every 2/3 days until a little bit of water flows out. Then when they get big once per day.

I would strongly, strongly suggest not using CFL's. It would be a better investment to get a 250-600w HPS. they are really cheap on amazon. If you go with 250w you dont want the plants to get bigger then a foot or so before you flip the schedule to 12 hours on and 12 hours off.

150W - LINK - Grow 1-4 small plants

600W - LINK - Grow 4-6 medium plants


Dont spend so much time on nutrients and what type of grow medium and focus mostly on keeping a good enviornment in terms of temp and humidity and fresh air. You also need to consider when you flower the room needs to be 100% dark. Even a tiny pinhole of light coming in can be very bad

So, for a basic beginning to get into electronics you need:

1. A soldering iron. For troubleshooting and assembly it is important to know how to solder. There are a bunch of YouTube videos on the subject.
   
   
2. Hookup Wire. 22 AWG solid core is the best wire in my opinion for use in breadboards and general repair.
   
   
3. A Multi-Meter. Probably the most important diagnostic tool you could own. This is not the end all best meter but it is a good DIY soldering experience. You learn some soldering basics while building your own test equipment.
   
   
4. An Oscilloscope. This is a cheap beginner build it yourself scope. This is the second most important tool for a circuit designer to own. This particular kit is good enough for basics.
   
   This would be a starter kit which would help build up soldering skills and start building up knowledge.
   
   Getting Started in Electronics is a good read for a beginner to understand basics in circuit theory. I may have seen this floating around the interwebs as a PDF when Radio Shack was going down.
   
   

You are going to want to balance tools and parts.

TOOLS (must haves)

• Multimeters (At least two, I suggest starting with one cheapo ($5-$10) and one in the $30-$50 range)
  
• Variable regulated power supply with current limiting (Skip the cheap/dangerous chinese crap and get a used HP/Agilent/Keysight one off ebay like this or this.)
  
• Breadboards (several)
  
• Jumper wires
  
• Wire strippers and cutters
  
• Decent soldering Iron ($50-$100) (DO NOT CHEAP OUT ON THIS)
  
• Desoldering pump and/or wick (The ctrl-z of the soldering world)
  
• Heat shrink tubing for sealing connections (Especially if you are going to be doing outdoor stuff)
  
• Microcontrollers (I suggest starting with an Arudino Uno since it has the largest amount of online support material, you could get an Uno kit, any of them will be fine)
  .
  .
  TOOLS (eventually)
  
• Logic Analyzer (Let's you see the logic signals in your circuit which is super helpful for debugging, I have a bitscope micro which is decent, but the software kinda sucks and is more than just a logic analyzer)
  
• A function generator (variable voltage and frequency for sine, square and triangle waves) (Again I suggest used off ebay, something like this.)
  
• Oscilloscope (a really amazing tool for actally seeing what is going on in your circuit)
  .
  .
  PARTS (vaguely in order of usefullness)
  
• Elenco Resistor Kit
  
• Elenco Capacitor Kit
  
• Elenco Transistor Kit
  
• Elenco Diode Kit
  
• Elenco LED Kit
  (Of couse you don't have to get the Elenco kits, those are just the ones I use and really like)
  
• Voltage regulator ICs (Great for providing regulated power to things that need more than what your arduino can provide)
  
• Trimmer Potentiometer Kit (really useful to have around for many projects)
  
• Old electronic equipment to scavenge parts out of (Many of my parts have come from old equipment or broken ATX computer power supplies. Tearing stuff apart is both fun and yields great parts.)
  .
  .
  .
  I think that's all for now...

That is the wrong way to learn about growing. It's costly and slow. Just watch some YouTube videos and go try. It's how I got started. I knew 0 about growing anything 6 months ago. Now I've got a successful crop and have a single tomato plant with over 20 tomatoes on it and many bell peppers growing, okra, pablano peppers, raddish, lettuce, basil, potatoes, kale and brussel sprouts. I've only spent about $200 too.

Most Helpful links/videos:

Intro to NPK: https://youtu.be/-gtFvhEjA3o

This is a great intro to nutrient deficiencies and effects on plants and how to diagnose: https://youtu.be/9SotrCwqfHo

Cheap Vinyl Downspout grow box: https://youtu.be/bYhwJIarjQ0

Pool noodles instead of rockwool, rocks, or cups: https://youtu.be/rFQiDbkjxY4

Common Veggie EC and pH: http://www.homehydrosystems.com/ph_tds_ppm/ph_vegetables_page.html

Easy to use nutrients:
https://www.amazon.com/MASTERBLEND-4-18-38-Complete-Combo-Fertilizer/dp/B072F2BL9D/

Cheap good EC meter (EC is shown in μs/cm instead of the more common ms/cm, as in above link, so the EC shown should be divided by 1000 to get normal EC numbers; it's easy, just remember when it shows 2300 EC, that's an EC of 2.3, or 700 is 0.7. Also note I've found with all these EC meters you need to dip and then swish them around in the solution and then read it, otherwise it will read inaccurate due to tiny air bubbles on the probes) https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B01FPG89CE?psc=1&ref=ppx_pop_mob_b_asin_title

Cheap good pH meter: https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B07R4FMYY4?psc=1&ref=ppx_pop_mob_b_asin_title

Easy micro greens, which you use to sprout seeds you want to grow or eat as micro greens:
http://imgur.com/gallery/VARfNoo

ReUse 2 disposable plastic food containers, a cheap poly wicking cloth, and your choice of grow bed (dirt, coco coir, whatever)...

Stack the two containers.

Make 2 long cuts in the bottom of the top container thru the lid of the bottom container, along the 2 longer sides.

Push the cloth thru the 2 slots, such that it's layered across the bottom of the top container and the ends are hanging in the bottom container.

Fill bottom container with water.

Place grow bed material in top container on top of cloth.

The cloth wicks up the water and keeps the grow bed moist. You don't have to water it but maybe once every two weeks and can leave the micro plants there for staging plant growth every couple weeks cause they will grow slow. If you don't use dirt as the grow bed, you will need to replace water with a weak nutrient solution after three or four weeks.

I can't recommend due to lack of experience, but your thought process sounds a lot like mine. I, too, am cheap frugal but recognize the utility of decent-quality tools. I, too, had started out intending to get the Nano, upped that to the Rigol based on forum feedback, and now intend to splash out an extra 50 for the Owon 100MHz DSO, based on feedback from here and /r/ECE.

Good luck, whatever you decide.

Ed: Came back to add that the Rigol has a dated, low-res screen. It's overdue for a rev/refresh. This was part of my reasoning--it is usually a false economy for me to get a lower quality tool, because I end up getting the better one later. Of, course, later you'll want a signal generator...and a protocol analyzer... So, the extra 50 might come in handy. :)

Test your tap waters ph,tds, gh and kh. Here are shrimp parameters . If your tap water isn’t ideal I would recommend doing the ro water with a remineralizer.

I don’t think stratum is worth is for neocaridina shrimp since they require kh in there water. The kh will run the buffering real quick. For neocaridina I think sand is the best substrate.

I would highly recommend looking at different types of mosses there’s a lot of very cool ones besides java moss.

I've heard a lot on here, and online, it's pretty common for your first batch to die off, the key is if you have babies or the first batch has babies in your water, if the water is in the acceptable parameters that you say, will be born and used to your water and will thrive. I just recently started and my first batch all died I got from my LFS then I orders 10 from shrimp farm .com and it came with 2 extra, and I almost didn't notice it came with like a dozen, must've been born a day or two before shipping or maybe even on the way, baby shrimp smaller than a grain of rice. All of them are still going strong and I have 3 berried females right now. Of that batch I've lost 3 or 4 adults.

Edit: also saw your looking at getting a TDS meter off Amazon. Be selective in what you choose, I got a couple on there I returned because they were giving me extremely adverse / fluctuating readings all the time. You want to make sure you get one that has ATC, Automatic temperature calibration, or something like that.

I got this one and verified it still my school chemistry lab testing their tap water, RO water, and DI water and compared it with their readings and it was pretty darn close.

Professional TDS ppm Meter | Digital Test Pen Combines EC, TDS & Temp (3-in-1) | 0-9999 ppm & ± 2% Accuracy | Quick and Easy Testing For Hydroponics, Ro System, Pool, Aquarium, Spa and Water Hardness https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01FPG89CE/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_fNB2AbFRA3C04

It's out of stock right now it looks like through Amazon? May be available through other sellers or sites ?

You might ask /r/audiorepair to see if anyone has a lead on a schematic. Make sure the output relay is clicking and try using the front/rear channels as well. In cases like this it helps to have an oscilliscope to probe the signal as it goes through the amp and see where it stops. I have a $85 DSO Nano V3 specifically for this and the fact that it's battery powered helps keep things safe since there is no path to ground.

Cool, those ESS have Heil AMTs. Sounds like a good project.

You can get an OK Tektronix portable for about $400. It's not fancy, no color, but it works and gets the job done for most people who are looking for a cheap scope such as this device. People who need the better scope are not going to consider a bluetooth adapter for their phone.

Color one on Amazon for $550

Generic Brand for $279

I had the black and white version of the color Tektronix and spent $399, but it was also 100MHz not 50. But I don't see it on Amazon, and this was 6 years ago.

Other options

USB Scope, 40MHz, with cheap probes - $99

Cheap generic 72MHz scope - $170

Generic Handheld, 25MHz - $225

Cheapest generic Standalone 25MHz - $249

The point is, for a 12MHz scope, and 2 probes, and uses your tablet / phone, $179 doesn't buy you much. There are other options out there that would be a better choice.

Not that they are totally worthless, but most people say a used <$100 scope is better.

The other option is save your money for something like this for $400: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B012938E76/

There are firmware mods that take it to 100MHz and open up all kinds of features, like serial decode.

WA state medical patient with RA and wanting to do a real grow for almost a decade. Helped a few friends with their grows and trim sessions over the years and also attempted a few outdoor hidden grows with little success (bad weather, theft, pests/animals). Finally decided to save up and do it properly now that I have space indoors. I have been lurking /r/microgrowery for over a year now and have learned a lot and want to thank you all for everything you do. I also want to thank the YouTubers Growing With Mr.Tight, JustinTime2Grow, and medgrower1 for also being excellent resources. Now onto the details:

 

    Equipment

Gorilla Grow Tent 4x4

2x 600w MH / HPS lights for a total of 1200w. 75w per sq. ft.

400 CPM 6in In-Line Fan

Phresh Filter 400 CFM

Hygrometer

TDS Meter

Infrared Thermometer

Grow Room Glasses

 

    Plants

Blue Dream - DJ Short x Santa Cruz Haze. 80% Sativa / 20% Indica. 7-8 week flower cycle

Boy Scout Cookies - Girl Scout Cookies Thin Mint x Pre-98 Bubba Kush. 60% Indica / 40% Sativa. 8 week flower cycle.

Darth Vader Haze - 4-way Black Haze Black Cross. 100% Sativa. 9-10 week flower cycle.

Grand Daddy Purple - Big Bud x Purple Urkle. Indicia Dominant. 8-9 week flower cycle.

 

    Grow Medium and Feed

5 gal Smart Pots

Fox Farm Ocean Forest Soil

Fox Farm Trio

18-6 Lighting cycle for veg. full 1200w of MH.

Using tap water and PH Down (is around 8.0 right out of the tap). I let the water sit for at least a few hours to let any chemicals leech out into the air and bring it closer to room temp.

 

The GDP went in almost a full day later. It was a younger clone and I was worried about the transplanting shocking it, but turned out fine. One of my MH bulbs had bits of broken glass in the outer part and didn't work so I had to wait on a replacement arrived on day 6. Also I ordered the wrong size Phresh filter and am waiting for the refund to process so I can get the right size. Temps have been hovering around 80F ambient with the lights on and 40% RH.
Temp minimum during dark cycle is 68-70F and humidity maxed out around 85% RH.

First watering with nutrients will be as soon as the soil dries a bit more (still damp at knuckle deep). Will be doing a half strength of the Big Bloom for the first feed likely tomorrow morning an hour or so after the lights kick on.

I eventually want to get an 8x4 to use as a flower tent and have the 4x4 as a veg tent to set up a perpetual grow. I am also seriously looking at the GrowBlu lights for veg when I do this, the results I am seeing from the guys on YouTube using them just looks amazing. I also want to switch over to en Ebb and Flow type system instead of soil when I do that, but that is something I need to look into much more.

It should have already been calibrated but Amazon sells calibration solution here The TDS of the solution is 1000ppm, you can use it to make sure your pen is accurate from time to time. I would recommend testing it at least once so you’re positive that it is accurate before you start using it.

Generally you should follow the instructions on the fertilizer as instructed, if there are any. Then test your water with a TDS meter to ensure you have acheived the right concentration. I use this one.

Hopefully you picked a water soluble fertilizer, preferably one meant for hydroponics. I have heard of getting by with other fertilizers such as miracle-gro but this kind seems like a hack job to me personally. General Hydroponics make some cheap and effective hydro concentrates that are a good place for beginners

I use this. It works very well, and it's at the very least a name brand. You can add in a DI can if you need to for not very much money, if you don't get 0 ppm. I get 0 ppm every time, and we have 400 ppm source water from the tap. If you want to test, this is only $20, and it's great. Best shit you can get, without regard to the price. For home use, it's awesome.

The 50 gallon version makes it fast enough.

I paid $450 for mine. Got it off Amazon:

http://www.amazon.com/SDS7102-Digital-Oscilloscope-2-channel-interface/dp/B006G54K3G/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1347080824&sr=8-2&keywords=owon+oscilloscope

I've seen it about $10-20 cheaper at other places, but was wary of their return policies if it didn't work, or wasn't what I expected so I opted to pay 20 bucks more for something fulfilled by Amazon and subject to their awesome return policies.

Are you in college? Or is there a nearby college you can make friends with? This is the sort of equipment they should absolutely have on hand.

If you're able to transport yourself, this may be a great place to look: https://www.electronicsfleamarket.com/schedule

Otherwise, I've no experience with these, but you might check out standalone units like this: https://www.amazon.com/Handheld-Oscilloscopes-DSO-Nano-V3/dp/B015X6LZFO

There's also stuff like this where you might be able to get more bang for your buck if you're able to supply a computer: https://www.electronicproducts.com/Test_and_Measurement/Benchtop_Rack_Mountable/Top_7_PC_based_USB_oscilloscopes_of_2017_for_hobbyists_makers_and_pros.aspx

Or go the engineering route and DIY: https://hackaday.com/tag/diy-oscilloscope/

did you get a kit?

i'm interested in some basic audio and control circuitry testing.

for the audio i really only need to be able to see if there's clipping or significant distortion compared to the output of a known well performing amp.

for the control it's even simpler, i just want to be able to monitor voltage being applied to some terminals in real-time, but my multimeter is insufficient to track 4 outputs with momentary voltage.

do you think these kits would be a better option than something like a cheap Hanatek scope?

https://www.amazon.com/Hantek-HT6022BE20Mhz-Digital-Oscilloscope-Bandwidth/dp/B009H4AYII/

I've had my eye on this Rigol oscope for years now, haven't been able to talk myself into it yet:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B003MYND5A

Is there a different one you'd recommend with good features but perhaps a bit cheaper? I'm not a pro, just a hobbyist that likes nice tools.

You can have good luck scouring eBay or craigslist for a used analog scope. Also some of the the Chinese off-brand models have good reviews (Ex - Rigol DS1052E 50Mhz scope)

As far as a bench top PSU I used an old ATX power supply from a desktop supply which gives 12V/5V/3.3V rails.

Bok choi has been the easiest thing for me to grow by far so there's definitely something off in your system.

Having a pH pen and an EC pen is pretty much critical to diagnosing nutrient solution problems. This is the pH meter I have, which is kind of mid-tier but comes with calibration solution. Also pick up some storage solution as it will reduce how often you have to recalibrate the pen vs keeping it dry. EC meter you can go cheap on, I use this one and get good results.

Sounds good. I find it amusing that you played it upside down.

Is that scope one of these?

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0195ZIURK/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I am almost done building one with the intention of using it in my eurorack setup. What does the nob do on it?

Oscilloscope kits are great. I just did this one a little while back. It was a lot of fun and handy for the price. They sell an acrylic case kit separately too.

kuman 3O-IUX5-O0TZ DSO 138 DIY Kit Open Source 2.4" TFT 1MSPS Digital Oscilloscope Kit with DIY Parts + Probe 13803K, SMD pre-soldered https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0195ZIURK/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_LzIQDbP8TT31D

I also got this little signal generator kit to check the O-scope function.

Naravis Gelatinized Black Maca... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01HM70CMY?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

1. It's your money, do what you want.
   
   
2. The downside of lower-price digital scopes is tiny memory storage depth, lower bandwidth, and lack of serial bus decoding. If you are working with any microcontrollers, then at some point you'll wish you had the ability to decode data on various serial buses, and yes it's worth the extra money to get it. I recommend that you look at other scopes that have serial bus decoding features. I found the following while looking at the Siglent website.
   
   $379 SDS1202X-E includes bus decoding for I2C, SPI, UART/RS232, CAN, LIN buses.
   
   
3. Users say the SDS1202X-E had some capacitors missing on models without "BB" in serial number, so ask before buying to ensure you get the fixed model. Look at comments at Amazon link below.
   
   https://www.saelig.com/product/sds1202x-e.htm
   
   https://www.siglent.eu/sds1202x-e.html
   
   https://www.amazon.com/Siglent-Technologies-SDS1202X-Oscilloscope-Channels/dp/B06XZML6RD
   
   

I use an O'tool module for a scope which I like because it's a lot smaller than the Mordax. You can probably score a used version 1 pretty easily.

There's also this:
https://www.amazon.com/Handheld-Oscilloscopes-DSO-Nano-V3/dp/B015X6LZFO
There's a cheaper version of that somewhere as well.

EDIT: Found it. https://www.adafruit.com/product/468

I used to have an under-sink charcoal filter system (basically like a brita, but it comes out of a faucet) that cost around $50-90 to replace every 6 months to 1 year...one time I was looking on amazon to replace my filter and I discovered that an RO filter system was not that expensive...

For $190 (around the cost of 2-3 replacement charcoal filters) I got an RO system that makes very tasty water...much better than the charcoal filter... and I haven't had to replace any of the filters in the system yet after about 3.5 years.

I'm using a TDS tester, still getting around 10 ppm...comparable to most bottled water that I've tested (my normal tap water is about 180 ppm).

Also, the replacement filters are much cheaper than the charcoal system.

Even a $20 oscilloscope(full disclosure: this is my video) is better than a DMM when it comes to debugging anything beyond the most basic circuits. But if you really want to splurge, buy him a ~$349 Rigol 1054Z. That's a professional-level instrument on a tinkerer's budget... I used to use a $40,000 Tek scope, and honestly I prefer the Rigol's user interface... I only use the $$$ scope when I need more than 100 MHz analog bandwidth (which is rare for most engineers to ever need).

Popular hobbyist benchtop scopes are rigols DS1052E and newer DS1054Z. Both easily hackable for expanded features.

Seeed studio also has very decent pocket scopes, ready-made DSO models



I own the DS1052E(hacked) and DSO Nano V3(alternate firmware) personally. Both have been great, but id opt for the newer 4ch rigol if i were on the market now

They seem a bit expensive from amazon, though...

This one is the newest version. Needs a firmware update, but once you get update, it works great.

I can recommend this one. Two channels for ~$80. I have the 4-channel version and it works great.

there's two kits under 50 bucks (amazon Canada) that seem okay,

this one doesn't have a case if you're into that. but it's pretty decently reviewed

this has a case but apparently there's issues with the enclosure

this one is already built so I might lean towards this but it's more pricey

Technically, a higher RMS subwoofer can theoretically handle a clipped signal better than a lower RMS woofer from a lower RMS amplifier.

However, clipping sounds like shit. Buy a bigger amp if your electrical is up to snuff.

You can use a DMM to set your gains, or if you have a little money to spend buy this. Totally worth the money if you're into electrical engineering or you just want your best sound.

DSO Shell kit - it's a $30 kit that makes a half-decent oscilloscope. If he's working with Arduino and audio he'll wish he had an oscilloscope at some point, and it's a fun little kit to solder.

id try on of these Rigol DS1054Z Digital Oscilloscope

https://www.amazon.com/Rigol-DS1054Z-Digital-Oscilloscope-Channels/dp/B012938E76/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1479681375&sr=8-3&keywords=oscilloscope
they're pretty nice

Used analog scopes on ebay are in the $100 to $200 range, and many are quite good. But Rigol digital scopes are as cheap as $260 and probably easier to use. You can also get a USB scope that uses your computer for the interface and display for I think about $100.

It's not a synth, but this DIY oscilloscope is only $20, and you can order them with the SMD parts presoldered. In case you don't settle on a DIY synth, you can get a prebuilt one and this guy for soldering fun!

Invest in one of these, it looks like it'll save you money in the long run.

Oscilloscope

The data stream is going to be a few kilohertz at most with these cheap 443 MHz units so that low cost USB scope will work. You only need to tap on to the data output of the 443 MHz receiver to read the data being sent.

You'll have to do manual decoding which is not hard at all. There are protocol analyzers built in to oscilloscopes, though. There is something to be said for a desktop scope particularly if it's your main scope. The "color temperature display and 256-intensity grading" feature is extremely valuable.

https://www.amazon.com/Siglent-Technologies-SDS1202X-Oscilloscope-Channels/dp/B06XZML6RD/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_1?keywords=Siglent+SDS1104X-E+100Mhz+digital+oscilloscope+2+channels+standard+decoder&qid=1567190698&s=industrial&sr=1-1-fkmr0

To directly sample a 433 MHz signal you'd need a 5 GHz or so oscilloscope which is many thousands of dollars. You pay for speed.

edit- with on-off keying you can put something like this with a wire antenna next to the transmitter and just read the output with any scope. I can also pick up some data streams from my cell phone with this although it's not on-off keying.

https://www.amazon.com/AD8318-Logarithmic-Detector-Measurement-1-8000MHz/dp/B074RFSLMP/ref=lp_306884011_1_2?s=industrial&ie=UTF8&qid=1567191106&sr=1-2

I build one of these, quite useful for an electronics beginner like me to have an inexpensive way to visualize the waveforms.

I got mine from Amazon for about 60 bucks. It has lasted me 2 years so far. Same for my ph meter at the same price point. As long as you properly maintain it these things will last.

HM Digital COM-100 Waterproof Combo Meter for EC, TDS and Temperature, 1-Pack https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000VVVEUI/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_GXPvzb690905F

I didn't even know that it had all those measurement settings until I had it for a while and then decided to read through the manual hah. I was measuring using a different conversion factor than tds Nacl and my ppm numbers were super high.

After changing to the NaCl conversion factor my numbers are much closer to the bounds I mentioned in my comment.

Few options at that price point.

Others have already mentioned Owen and Rigol, I'd add https://www.amazon.com/Siglent-Technologies-SDS1202X-E-Oscilloscope-Channels/dp/B06XZML6RD/ref=redir_mobile_desktop?_encoding=UTF8&keywords=siglent%20oscilloscope&qid=1503249344&ref_=mp_s_a_1_1&sr=8-1 siglent. They are all about the same quality scope,great for hobbiest but not the best for daily use. I believe keysight just came out with a dsox1000 pretty close to your price set as well.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000VVVEUI/ref=oh_details_o09_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

It's this. Apparently I can measure in EC. Gonna have to read the manual. :-)

Thanks!

Well those roots look healthy to me. Just try the flushing. Here is a TDS I use for $16. Even if you do not go for the calibration solution gotta have it if you want to grow the dro.

These are the models I went with, they've been working flawlessly so far:
https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B00YBUH4RC
https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B007VK4YY0

Definitely worth every penny, even if they do end up breaking sooner.

There's a lot of them on Amazon. I had the wonderful outstanding opportunity to use this specific one a month or so ago. I mean, color screens are cool. But all in all, it was a giant pain in the ass to use. It locked up a couple times and just has the 9V battery dangling off the bottom of it. Will it get the job done for our purposes? Absolutely.

Meanwhile this goes for 80 bucks and it's a large readout multimeter and scope all in one. No need to build it yourself. No need to tiptoe around it so you don't break it.

I bought the older version of this when I started with diy synth and I've been really happy with it. 2 channels is all you need. https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B01LYAXCCW/ref=asc_df_B01LYAXCCW58580977/?tag=googshopuk-21&creative=22146&creativeASIN=B01LYAXCCW&linkCode=df0&hvadid=310805577543&hvpos=1o1&hvnetw=g&hvrand=13157039443331092715&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=m&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9045907&hvtargid=pla-442794609510

Personally I'd start very small, like $50. I just put one of these together and it works well enough for home projects. I would not buy any specialists tool until there is a specific need for it.

for PH i own this one and i bought this calibration solution.

For PPM this guy.

​

People highly recommend BlueLabs however, Im poor and these work LOL

I'm pretty happy with this scope:

http://www.amazon.com/Siglent-SDS1052DL-TFT-LCD-Bench-Top-Oscilloscope/dp/B00GQNN70A/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1419176995&sr=8-2&keywords=siglent+oscilloscope

It's only 50 MHz and two channels but that is a huge improvement over
no scope.

I'm religious about instrument choices when the company's picking up the tab, but I can't afford to be a snob with my own money.

You don't actually need that high of a sample rate, since it's just audio you're dealing with the highest you'll be scoping will be ~20kHz. But should you ever do anything else you'll want a higher rate. Here's what I would recommend: Rigol DS054Z

Edit: I bought the Tenma one for the same price and it is nowhere near as good as that Rigol. Seriously for the value, if you want to spend less than $500 that's the one to go with.

I was just on amazon looking for that a minute ago. I only have 50 bucks to spend right now and there is one for just under that.


Here it is.


I am not sure if this is also a ph meter, but I have no problems with ph, I'd just like to get my ppm right and bonus if I can get ph meter combo for the same price.


Does anyone have any experience with this or recommend a different $50 model?

This is more or less my portable / cube bench. It should be more than adequate.

• $58. Hantek HT6022BE20Mhz 6022be PC Based USB Digital Storage Oscilloscope, 20 MHz Bandwidth
  
• $63. KKmoon High Precision Digital DDS Dual-channel Signal Source Generator Arbitrary Waveform Frequency Meter 200MSa/s 25MHz
  
• $59. 75W Soldering Station & Solder Tip Cleaner With 10 Pack of Solder Tips & Extra Rosin Flux
  
• $58. 30 Volt DC 5 Amp Switch Mode Bench Power Supply
  
• $39. True-RMS Autoranging Digital Multimeter

The cheap scope on a chip would work for this.... any number of them on amazon and they are fine for basic stuff with ardino or rpi


https://smile.amazon.com/kuman-3O-IUX5-O0TZ-Digital-Oscilloscope-pre-soldered/dp/B0195ZIURK/ref=sr_1_3?keywords=Oscope+kit&qid=1572835568&sr=8-3

Totally. FYI, /u/rjeffords, I bought this TDS meter for under $5 and it gave me the same reading on a sample as someone's benchtop pH meter that had a TDS feature.

I apologize for not linking. That was poor Reddit etiquette.

So far the PH meter has been on point, and it’s wicked quick. And I am able to check my PPM coming out of my coco now also. To make sure I have flushed old with new.

Huge time saver. I am personally super frugal with my $, and with that said, I would absolutely buy these again.

Apera Instruments AI209 PH20... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01ENFOHN8?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

Professional TDS ppm Conductivity... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01FPG89CE?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

http://www.amazon.com/Digital-COM-100-Waterproof-TEMP-Meter/dp/B000VVVEUI

This is all I need right? Will it come calibrated/with some solution?

I have this one and I'm happy with it. I have another cheaper one which is good and useful, but the Rigol has much finer control than that one.

I would suggest not getting a software 'scope, no matter what you do, because it may rely upon an audio interface, and I haven't yet seen an audio interface that has DC-coupled inputs. (You need DC-coupled if you are going to analyze signals under 10-40Hz or so, because an AC-coupled interface will not represent them correctly.)

Something like:

http://www.amazon.com/Rigol-DS1054Z-Digital-Oscilloscopes-Bandwidth/dp/B012938E76/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1462302494&sr=8-2&keywords=oscilloscope

If you need cheaper, there are USB scopes.

I would go with a Rigol DS1052 or DS1102 because they are a very thoroughly tested unit at the $300 - $400 price point. If you want to go lower than $300 buy a second hand scope.

http://www.amazon.com/Rigol-DS1052E-50MHz-DSO/dp/B003MYND5A/ref=pd_sbs_indust_1

I have a Rigol DS1054Z and it is a really nice piece of equipment, it's not overly expensive at $400 but may be complete overkill for automotive work (I'm not sure what kind of signals you'll be looking at).

Are cars a lot of lower voltage logic signals? Or is it a mix with a lot of analog stuff as well?

Hah yeah, it's a Rigol DS1054Z, about the least expensive new scope you can buy.

I've found a few pages that talk about this type of DTR-only reset circuit for the ESP8266, but it's based on the Arduino schematic.

edit: also SJ2 is a solder jumper with a cuttable trace in case I need to disable the auto-reset.

I have access to one of these: http://www.amazon.com/Siglent-SDS1052DL-TFT-LCD-Bench-Top-Oscilloscope/dp/B00GQNN70A#

But, I have no idea how to use it in this application. I've only used it a few times to make sure the 16MHz crystal on the board is actually outputting 16MHz. Is there a document or a video somewhere that would explain how to use it for this? Is this scope even fast enough?

For testing something this simple, you could probably get the answer with something dirt cheap like a DSO138 Kit , $25 unassembled, $30-40 assembled. There's also a 'bigger brother' versions, the DSO202 or DSO221 which are still <$100 assembled.

Rigol DS1054Z

just so yall know the Rigol DS 1054Z can be hacked to be a 100MHz scope (normally 50MHz) and have extra triggers

Here's the cheaper one: https://www.amazon.com/JYETech-Source-Digital-Oscilloscope-pre-soldered/dp/B0195ZIURK/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1493921911&sr=8-2&keywords=oscilloscope

this doesn't seem that wide

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01N6PUX70/

Is that a decent oscilloscope? Is it this one on Amazon? If so, how do you connect to it?

If you have an iPad an oscilloscope can be yours for $300.

Otherwise as pointed out, you can get a 50MHz or 100MHz resolution oscilloscopes for around $400.

What other equipment are you looking to get?

Try eBay for used equipment, and Google Product Search for new and used equipment.

You can get a similar Rigol DSO for about $400

[TDS-3] (https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000VTQM70/ref=s9_acsd_hps_bw_c_x_6_w)

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0195ZIURK/ref=mp_s_a_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1499210029&sr=8-2&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_FMwebp_QL65&keywords=Diy+dso&dpPl=1&dpID=511YMguI%2BbL&ref=plSrch

Is there a tool that can give me the PPM for N-P-K?

I ordered these.
PPM: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B071CP4P1J
pH: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01FPG89CE

It all depends on what speeds you need. I regularly look at signals between 100MHz and 200MHz, so I recently bought https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B06XZML6RD/ which is the cheapest I could find a 200 MHz scope. It's also seems to be the breakpoint for scope bandwidth on a budget - anything faster was over $1000 instead of ~$400.

Logic analyzers make more sense for digital work... but if your problem can be solved with a logic analyzer you can usually use the internal one (Each FPGA brand has something that works similarly: Chipscope, SignalTap, Reveal).

I only pull out a scope when I'm worried about analog fuckery like contention/ringing/rise time issues.

You could pickup an oscilloscope such as this one and see if there’s anything funny going on with the power. A few evenings of YouTubing should get you familiar with how to use it and what to look for. Could be a bad transformer supplying power from the utility.

Just a cheap diy kit I picked up off amazon. It requires soldering and when I was finished it didn't work. I had to spend about a day googling and scouring through old forum posts to find someone who had a similar issue and see how they fixed it.

Edit it was specifically this one. I got it to teach myself how to solder and even if I fucked it up, I was really only out like 20 bucks.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0195ZIURK/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_VkuyDb6BQPFJT

It's one of these just sitting on top of the dx7 I think. Cheap as fuck but definitely not pretty. I think its the red pcb clashing with the dx7 pastels that is problematic.