The order you buy instruments in matters more than which models you pick. Each one should make the next more useful, and each should still have a job once the bench is finished. This is the order we'd follow for a general electronics bench, with the reasons and some catalog examples at each step. It assumes you build and repair circuits. If you only do radio, read step five first.
1. A good handheld multimeter
A multimeter answers the most questions of anything on the bench. Is the supply on? Is the fuse open? Is this the resistor you think it is? It's also the instrument you'll grab when something is plugged into the wall, so it has to be safe. Get a meter with a real safety rating and fused current inputs, from a maker that publishes both.
The Fluke 87V is the usual answer. It's true RMS, rated CAT III 1000 V and CAT IV 600 V, and reads 6,000 counts, or 19,999 in its high-resolution mode. The Fluke 179 carries the same safety ratings, with a backlit display and temperature measurement. The Fluke 289 adds a 50,000-count graphical display and logs readings over time, which helps when you're chasing a fault that comes and goes. Older meters like the Fluke 87 III turn up often too.
Why handheld before bench? It goes where the fault is, it runs on a battery, and a basic meter's resolution is plenty for almost everything you'll measure in your first months. Test the current fuses as soon as it arrives. Our checking guide shows how.
2. An oscilloscope
A meter gives you a number. A scope shows you what a signal does over time, and that's where most real faults live, in ripple on a supply, ringing on an edge, a clock that's stopped or an audio stage that's clipping. Once you've used one, debugging without it feels like guessing.
Analog or digital is the first choice. An analog scope draws a live trace with no menus and no sample rate to think about, and the older Tektronix ones come with full service manuals. The Tektronix 465, built from 1972 to 1983, is a 100 MHz two-channel scope, and the 2465B takes that to 400 MHz. Hugo Holden notes the 2465B has been called the last repairable oscilloscope. What an analog scope can't do well is catch a one-off event, like a single glitch at power-up.
A digital scope stores the waveform, so it can catch that glitch and measure it for you. The TDS 3054B has four channels at 500 MHz with 5 GS/s on each channel, and it shipped with four P6139A probes. The TDS 540 is an older four-channel 500 MHz scope that samples at 1 GS/s on one channel and 250 MS/s with all four running. If you work with microcontrollers and digital buses, start digital. If you mostly repair audio and analog gear, an analog scope serves you well for years. Either way, buy one that comes with probes.
3. A bench power supply
Once you can see what a circuit is doing, you'll want to power it on your terms. A bench supply gives you a set voltage and, more importantly, a current limit. Set the limit a little above what a new board should draw, and a solder bridge or a backwards part just trips the limit. Nothing burns. Whatever you buy, make sure you can set a current limit.
The Agilent E3631A is a good example of what to aim for. It has three outputs, 0 to 6 V at up to 5 A, and 0 to +25 V and 0 to -25 V at up to 1 A each, with GPIB and RS-232 built in. That covers 5 V and 3.3 V logic on one output and split rails for op-amps on the other two. Check its mains setting before you plug it in, as with any older bench gear.
4. A bench multimeter
By now you'll want to measure two things at once, like the voltage on a rail and the current into it. A second meter does that, and a bench meter adds the resolution and steadiness a handheld can't match. Two meters also check each other, which is most of what a home bench needs in place of formal calibration. Our calibration guide explains why.
The HP 34401A is the classic pick, a 6½-digit meter that Keysight discontinued in 2016 and replaced with the 34461A, which has a color display, USB and LAN, and 34401A command compatibility. The HP 3457A reads 6½ digits, or 7½ over GPIB, but keeps its calibration in battery-backed RAM, so ask about the battery. The Keithley 2000 and Fluke 8842A are other common bench meters you'll see listed.
5. Generators and analyzers for RF work
Only buy these when you start working with radio. Get a signal generator first, because a known, clean signal is how you align a receiver or check a filter. The HP 8656B covers 0.1 to 990 MHz with AM and FM, including internal 400 Hz and 1 kHz tones. The Marconi 2019A and IFR 2025 are the usual alternatives.
A spectrum analyzer comes next, for looking at harmonics, spurs and what a transmitter is really putting out. The HP 8562A reaches 22 GHz. The Rohde and Schwarz FSH3 is a handheld that suits field work and smaller benches. An RF power meter such as the Marconi 6960B rounds things out if you measure transmitter output. These are heavy, delicate instruments, so ask how they'll be packed. If you only need a rough look at a spectrum for audio work, a digital scope with an FFT function may do the job first.
What can wait
A source-measure unit like the Keithley 2400 is a superb tool for characterizing parts, but it belongs after the five steps above. The same goes for a second scope. Build the bench in order, learn each instrument properly, and the next purchase will be obvious. When you're ready, browse the catalog or start with oscilloscopes or multimeters.
