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Digilent Analog Discovery 2 Review | Workbench Wednesdays

https://www.element14.com/community/docs/DOC-94199/l/workbench-wednesday-18-digilent-analog-discovery-review?ICID=baldengineer
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The Analog Discovery 2 combines all the equipment found on a typical electronics workbench into one small package. It packs an oscilloscope, logic analyzer, power supplies, spectrum analyzer, and so much more. As impressive as the hardware is, the Analog Discovery 2’s software, called Waveforms, is fantastic as well. You can configure it for any measurement situation, and it has extensive scripting capability. See if you should be considering adding the Analog Discovery 2 to your electronics workbench.

My day job causes me to travel on a regular basis. Sometimes that means taking my circuits with me. I picked up an Analog Discovery 2 so that I could take test equipment with me. It’s a small enough box that fits nicely into my bag. The one significant trade-off is that it requires a PC to be functional. However, for travel, that works out great.

The key functions the Analog Discovery 2 provides are:

  • 2-Channel oscilloscope
  • 2-Channel function generator
  • Voltmeter (not DMM!)
  • 2-Channel Power Supply w/ negative voltage
  • 16 Digital Channels for Logic, Protocol, and General Purpose I/O
  • Network Analyzer (Bode Plots!)
  • Spectrum Analyzer
  • Impedance Analyzer

There are probably other functions, but that covers the major ones. Years ago, I reviewed the Virtual Bench from National Instruments. While the Virtual Bench has better specs than the Analog Discovery 2, the difference in price points is staggering. You can get the AD2 for $200-300.

Check out how some of the features work and my thoughts on this device in this Workbench Wednesdays review.

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Fan of making things beep, blink and fly. Created AddOhms. Stream on Twitch. Video Host on element14 Presents and writing for Hackster.IO. Call sign KN6FGY.

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