OScilliscope and multimeter question

[Skiroy]

Hey guys Im getting better at undertstanding electronics and come along way. I am calibrating a OB-XA right now and 2 issues have come up I am trying to figure out. Now I dont have a Oscilliscope yet but I have a friend that does, that I am trying to get my hands on for this.

1. On one section of the calibration procedure I am supposed to read a pin on an IC chip to be 5.000V +/- 5mv. This was no problem when I was testing a IC that was supposed to be 0.000V +/-25mv because I used the 200mv setting on mt multimeter. But with the 5.000V +/-5mv the 2V,200mv and 2000mv settings are to small and the 20V is too big. So can a reading like this only be done with an Oscilliscope or are there (consumer priced)digital meters that can test 20V with three decimal places to also test down to 1-999mvs?

2. One another section of the calibration procedure I have to play a note and then play the octave up and adjust the volts per octave trim pot untill the beats are doubled per second. My ear is not that good and would rather have a precise way to do this. So the question is if I hooked up an Oscilliscope and played one note at middle C 261.00 Hz and then the octave up at roughly 522Hz what would happen to the wave? Would it just transform into a 522Hz wave or would 2 waves become visual? How could I do this part of the calibration visually via the Oscilliscope?

 

[PRR]

> 5.000V +/- 5mv

"4.995V to 5.005V"

Yes, a 199-count "2-1/2 digit" DVM will not resolve 5mV around 5V.

For a first-crack, find 4.99V and 5.01V, split the difference. It certainly will work.

There are 1999-count 3-1/2 digit voltmeters.

> can a reading like this only be done with an Oscilliscope

'Scope is no good for this. 'Scope gives shapes, not exact values. (Yes, some 'scopes do have ways to read values; this is in fact a built-in voltmeter but there's no reason to send a 'scope to do a voltmeter's job.)

> beats are doubled per second. My ear is not that good

My ears are HIGHLY un-musical but I can easily hear beats and approximate beat-rate and double beat-rate. Yes there's some learning. No, it isn't a golden-ear skill. If the instructions say "beats", try it their way. The ear IS more sensitive to pitch relationships than any practical measurement tool.

If it's only synth-frills for rock-n-roll, a frequency counter will do. +/-1Hz at 440Hz can be 30 cents in error, but that's moot in Lucky Man or Muskrat Love.

Finally: all piano tuners work to the fork or strobe, but then play a few minutes. Of course this checks for sticky keys or blunt felts, but also if a harmonic jump or arpeggio sounds long or short, they will re-check the tuning. (Moreso in piano because the overtones are never exact harmonics and the error has to be blended; synths with their perfect harmonics are "easy".)

 

[Skiroy]

Thanks. What about something like this? Could this see two fundamentals(C4 and C5) at the same time? Or read a saw wave off a audio output?

http://warebuzz.com/real-time-audio-analyzer-oscilloscope.html

What is the screen shot showing that 850Hz is the fundamental and all the rest is the harmonics?

Or maybe melodyne could assist me?

 

[Skiroy]

http://www.ebay.com/itm/New-VICTOR-VC9806-4-1-2-Digital-Handheld-Multimeter-Electrical-Meter-AC-DC-Ohm-/230743492026?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item35b96245ba

Would this multimeter do 5.000V +/- 5mv?