Is it better to have a multimeter with clamps or without?
This depends on the focus of the work, such as engaged in power line electrical maintenance special clamp current meter is good to use, engaged in electrical maintenance or engaged in weak power personnel multimeter is good to use.
Specialized clamp meter on the detection of line current and high precision, although a single function but enough to meet the line current detection. Simple to see, clamp current meter is composed of current transformer and ammeter. Measurement process to switch gears, must be detached from the measured wire to switch gears. Because in the gear change will make the secondary side of the current transformer instantaneous open circuit, if the measured current is large, the secondary side of the current transformer will produce instantaneous high voltage, clamp current meter is likely to burn.
Clamp meter is initially used to detect the AC current measurement is running line current size meter. As you can see, the current can be detected without breaking the power supply, and it is specialized in detecting AC high current. Nowadays, the functions of the clamp meter are no longer single, the multimeter has the functions of the clamp meter also has.
Therefore, each has its own advantages, if you want to detect the current of the circuit is running certainly clamp current meter is good to use, do not disconnect the line directly for current detection. With a multimeter but also disconnect the line to measure, if the equipment in the continuous production process can not be arbitrarily disconnected, at this time the multimeter is not good.
Now the clamp meter has long been not a few decades ago the clamp meter, it uses Hall induction principle, not only can measure AC circuits, DC current; insert the pen into the digital multimeter, you can also measure voltage, resistance, capacitance, frequency and other parameters. As for the accuracy, and digital multimeter is the same, there is no difference.
Their differences
If you have to say which one of the clamp meter and multimeter is good to use, their experience in the process of using them is still a little bit different.
1. Clamp meter it can be constantly measuring current, which can not be done with the multimeter. If you need to frequently measure the AC and DC current, it is recommended to buy a clamp meter; do not need to frequently measure the current on the purchase of the multimeter. 2.
2. In order to measure the current without power, the clamp meter must have jaws, so its body shape is relatively long. Because there is no bracket on the back of the clamp meter, I feel that the clamp meter is more inclined to hold in the hands of measurement; multimeter has a bracket on the back of the more inclined to be placed on the table measurement. So if you are often sitting at the table next to the maintenance, or buy a multimeter is convenient, or stretch your neck to see the clamp table screen is very uncomfortable.
3. From the price point of view, the clamp meter it not only has a multimeter of large multi-function, but also more current transformer, so the price is relatively more expensive.
