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Hantek 6022BE USB Oscilloscope and 6 Scope Software Apps to go with it.

An oscilloscope is an essential tool to any hobbyist that tinkers with electronics. I once got myself the JYE DSO Shell 150, more as a fun DIY project than as a really serious scope. I was in the market now for a somewhat more professional oscilloscope, with 2 channels and with a larger screen.

My eye fell on the Hantek 6022BE. It is a USB oscilloscope. The aluminum box contains only the signal digitizing electronics and a USB interface, while a PC or laptop or an Android phone or tablet provides the display and runs the software to make it a full fledged oscilloscope.

Why would one want to get a USB scope in stead of a ‘normal’ one? Well … price could be a reason … the 6022BE can be had around $50,- (excluding import duties). Portability can be another one … the unit is light and small and who does not carry a phone or tablet?

Also, the fact that a laptop or tablet need not be connected to mains power is an advantage, electronically speaking. It is even recommended to use your laptop on battery, since the scope’s GND is connected the laptop GND via USB … if the device under test is connected to mains while the laptop is too, unexpected things could happen.

What’s in the box (click to enlarge):

• The scope unit, which is an aluminum case with protective rubber ends.
• Two probes with 1x / 10x switch, multiple colored rings and a plastic screwdriver for probe overshoot / undershoot trimming.
• A USB cable with an extra power plug (the red one) … which so far I never needed. A USB3 port can deliver more power than USB2, but on my USB2 ports the unit worked well without using the extra power plug.
• A CD with Windows app software and driver.

The main specifications of the 6022BE are:

• 2 channels.
• 20 Mhz bandwidth, max 48 Msamples/s.
• max 5V input voltage, translating to max 50V with the 1x / 10x switchable probes that come with it.

There are several options with regard to the oscilloscope software. Read on below the video …

The options are: (click the images to enlarge).

Hscope for Android

My personal favorite, thanks to the visually attractive display and user interface and to the super portability of using a phone or tablet. Hscope is available on Google Play. There also is a Hscope website with a user manual.

The official Hantek app for Windows

A CD comes with the box. A newer version could be available via this link. If Windows 10 complains about ‘unsigned drivers’ and refuses to install them, a solution can be found here.

Open6022BE

Click here for the software and a user manual. Open source Sw with added features over the Hantek app has been developed by several contributors on the EEV blog. This is one of them. It uses the Hantek driver, so install that first, then run Open6022BE.

BasicScope

BasicScope is another attempt at improving the original Hantek app. It also uses the Hantek drivers. The user interface did not fly well with me and the screen kept flickering, which made me not investigate any further. I might not be doing it justice, best have a look yourself.

OpenHantek6022

Available for Linux, Mac and Windows, where it is a little bit more effort to get it working cause it needs another driver. The installation of which is made easy with the Zadig app. See the instructions on the Zadig site, or look here. An extensive user manual is available here.

sigrok & pulseview

sigrok / pulseview is not only a logic analyzer, it can also be used to display the analog signals from the 6022. It needs a fx2lafw driver that can be installed via Zadig, just follow the instructions on the Zadig site.

In the coming posts we’ll have a closer look at some of these apps, including videos on (driver) installation and usage.

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