13-07-2020, 06:58 PM
I'd say it was definitely worth a look. I've seen teardown videos and dipped into various threads about them, and people seem pretty positive about it. It's a newer design than the 1054Z, and has improved specs in many areas - obviously the increased bandwidth is very welcome, but many other things are improved too.
Of course, the 50MHz 1054Z can be hacked to 100MHz - I haven't bothered to do that yet as it actually goes quite a bit higher than the spec suggests - very much higher in fact, as we discovered when we tested one at work a couple of years back - of course, the amplitude is down, but if you're not trying to measure that, it's still useful - it doesn't tail down in the usual way for some reason.
I think these days all other options are enabled by default on a 1054Z, so there's no need to hack it once the 30 day trial ends unless you want to bump the bandwidth up. Obviously responding to market pressures, as all those sorts of things have always been standard on the Siglent.
I'd be tempted to consider the 4 channel SDS1104X-E, which is only(!) 100MHz. That costs £450 inc. VAT, so a bit more than the Rigol, but it might be worth the extra.
Note that these scopes run the same sample rate (1 GHz) as the Rigol, so there is a danger of running into problems there with non-repetitive waveforms. There is a 4 channel version that runs to 200MHz (SDS1204X-E), so you'd have to be especially mindful of that on that model. Against that, the waveform capture rate is higher - comparable with the Keysight models, indeed.
Sorry I can't be more specific as I haven't had the chance to see it in the flesh, but everything I've seen suggests that it's a strong contender for the Rigol crown. If bandwidth is more important to you than having 4 channels, then that probably swings it. Personally, I did take a bit of a chance when buying the Rigol unseen, but because it was so revolutionary at the time, there were lots of videos and reviews about it, and it seemed like a fairly safe bet. Now it's £100 more expensive, I'd probably be a bit more conservative, and would try to get to a show to see one in action and have a good play with it before deciding. If buying today, I'd probably prefer 4 channels rather than the extra BW - as is often necessary for logic troubleshooting, so it would be a choice between the 1054Z and the SDS1104E-X. Based on the comments I've read over the years, I'd probably stump up the extra £50 for the Siglent, subject to seeing it first-hand before deciding. While the Siglent does have the better spec in several areas, it would probably be the UI that swings it, as the Rigol's spec hasn't been found wanting yet. Fan noise would be a factor too
All that said, what's your application for a DSO?
Of course, the 50MHz 1054Z can be hacked to 100MHz - I haven't bothered to do that yet as it actually goes quite a bit higher than the spec suggests - very much higher in fact, as we discovered when we tested one at work a couple of years back - of course, the amplitude is down, but if you're not trying to measure that, it's still useful - it doesn't tail down in the usual way for some reason.
I think these days all other options are enabled by default on a 1054Z, so there's no need to hack it once the 30 day trial ends unless you want to bump the bandwidth up. Obviously responding to market pressures, as all those sorts of things have always been standard on the Siglent.
I'd be tempted to consider the 4 channel SDS1104X-E, which is only(!) 100MHz. That costs £450 inc. VAT, so a bit more than the Rigol, but it might be worth the extra.
Note that these scopes run the same sample rate (1 GHz) as the Rigol, so there is a danger of running into problems there with non-repetitive waveforms. There is a 4 channel version that runs to 200MHz (SDS1204X-E), so you'd have to be especially mindful of that on that model. Against that, the waveform capture rate is higher - comparable with the Keysight models, indeed.
Sorry I can't be more specific as I haven't had the chance to see it in the flesh, but everything I've seen suggests that it's a strong contender for the Rigol crown. If bandwidth is more important to you than having 4 channels, then that probably swings it. Personally, I did take a bit of a chance when buying the Rigol unseen, but because it was so revolutionary at the time, there were lots of videos and reviews about it, and it seemed like a fairly safe bet. Now it's £100 more expensive, I'd probably be a bit more conservative, and would try to get to a show to see one in action and have a good play with it before deciding. If buying today, I'd probably prefer 4 channels rather than the extra BW - as is often necessary for logic troubleshooting, so it would be a choice between the 1054Z and the SDS1104E-X. Based on the comments I've read over the years, I'd probably stump up the extra £50 for the Siglent, subject to seeing it first-hand before deciding. While the Siglent does have the better spec in several areas, it would probably be the UI that swings it, as the Rigol's spec hasn't been found wanting yet. Fan noise would be a factor too
All that said, what's your application for a DSO?
