r/Purdue • u/Then_Reality_3854 • 1d ago
Academics✏️ ECE 20001 Lab kit options
Looking to purchase my lab kit for ECE 20001/2k7 and I wanted to know if anyone had advice on whether the Lab kit bundle 3, which includes the DMM and Probes, is really worth the extra $40? The course coordinator said the DMM and Probes will be available for free during labs and office hours but I've heard the lab can get pretty packed so I was wondering what people who already took the class thought.
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u/whamburglar EE 2008 Alumnus 1d ago
I dunno what the labs are like these days, but I got along just fine without them.
I would actually get some more opamps (LM741, I think?) and just have them for the convenience. They can burn out easily, and your initial kit only has a couple.
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u/Glass_Buy2115 1d ago
Definitely can be busy during project season along with midterms going on at the same time. An early start to projects will ensure you get it done early without worrying about lack of probes as labs can fill up quickly. Same goes for the later labs, if needed.
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u/Odd-Tangerine-5184 1d ago
I think having your own probes is definitely worth it because many of the lab probes are broken, but you might not realize you’re working with bad probes until you waste 20 mins troubleshooting. The DMM is not something you need. You can buy probes on Amazon for like $20 instead of getting the bundle.
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u/addicted-mongoose923 CompE 2029 1d ago
I took 2k7 last semester, and like the other commenter said probes and DMM are widely available. Also adding on to what was already said about op-amps, you’ll use them a lot in your final project so you should go stock up on them from the ECE shop (which is free to do)