Keysight u1273a, keysight u1273ax Quick Start Manual

Keysight U1273A/U1273AX
Handheld Digital Multimeter

Quick Start Guide

U1273A/U1273AX Handheld Digital Multimeter

NOTE

Verify that you received the following items in the shipment of
your multimeter:

✔ One pair of red and black test leads

✔ One pair of 4 mm test probes

✔ One K-type thermocouple lead kit

✔ Four 1.5 V AAA alkaline batteries (for U1273A) or lithium

batteries (for U1273AX)

✔ Printed copies of the Certificate of Calibration (CoC) and

the U1273A/U1273AX Quick Start Guide (this manual)

If any item is missing or damaged, keep the shipping materials
and contact the nearest Keysight Sales Office.

The descriptions and instructions in this guide apply to the
U1273A/U1273AX handheld digital multimeter.

All related documents and software are available for download
at www.keysight.com/find/hhTechLib.

U1273A/U1273AX Quick Start Guide 1

U1273A/U1273AX Handheld Digital Multimeter

NOTE

Install the Batteries

Install the Batteries

Your multimeter is powered by four 1.5 V AAA batteries
(included with the shipment).

1 Turn the rotary switch to OFF and remove

the test leads from the terminals.

2 Lift the tilt stand and loosen the screws

with a suitable Phillips screwdriver.

3 Remove the battery cover and observe the

polarity markings.

4 Insert the batteries and replace the battery cover and screws.

Turn On the Multimeter

To power ON your multimeter, turn the rotary switch from the
OFF position to any other position.

Your multimeter is capable of remote data logging. To use this
feature, you will need an IR-USB cable (U1173A, purchased
separately) and the Keysight GUI Data Logger Software (down­loadable from www.keysight.com/find/hhTechLib).

Auto Dim

By default, the multimeter’s Auto Dim function is enabled. The
multimeter’s backlight will dim automatically after 90 seconds
of inactivity. Press any button to cancel this effect and reset
the Auto Dim timer.

You may change how the multimeter’s backlight behavior
through the Setup menu. Refer to the User’s Guide for further
instructions.

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U1273A/U1273AX Handheld Digital Multimeter

Display screen

Keypad

Rotary switch

Input terminals

Test lead/probe holders

IR communication port

Battery cover

Tilt stand

(Lift tilt stand for access)

The Multimeter at a Glance

The Multimeter at a Glance

U1273A/U1273AX Quick Start Guide 3

U1273A/U1273AX Handheld Digital Multimeter

NOTE

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Z

LOW

Smart

Auto

Understanding the Rotary Switch

Understanding the Rotary Switch

Press to switch between the primary and shifted func-
tions shown on the rotary switch.

Legend Description

Z

(low input impedance) AC/DC V for eliminating

LOW

ghost voltages

Off

AC V

AC V with Low Pass Filter

AC mV

AC mV with Low Pass Filter

DC V

AC V or AC+DC V

DC mV

AC mV or AC+DC mV

Resistance

Continuity or Smart (offset compensation)

Diode

Auto-diode

Capacitance

Temperature

DC mA (or A)

4 U1273A/U1273AX Quick Start Guide

AC mA (or A) or AC+DC mA (or A)

DC A

AC A or AC+DC A

U1273A/U1273AX Handheld Digital Multimeter

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Exit

Dual

Setup

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Understanding the Keypad

Understanding the Keypad

Legend

Key response when pressed for:

Less than 1 second More than 1 second

Sets the Null/Relative
mode.

Starts the MaxMin
recording.

Freezes the present
reading in the display.

Switches between avail­able dual-combination
displays.

Sets the Scale mode for
the specified ratio and
unit display.

Starts and stops the
Peak recording.

Automatically freezes
the present reading once
the reading is stable.

Exits the Hold, Null,
MaxMin, Peak, fre­quency test, and dual
display modes.

Increases the OLED
brightness incremen­tally when LOW,
MEDIUM, or HIGH set-

Enters and exits the mul­timeter’s Setup menu.

ting is selected.

U1273A/U1273AX Quick Start Guide 5

Switches between fre­quency, pulse width, and
duty cycle measure­ments.

Sets a manual range and
disables autoranging.

Switches between the
primary and shifted
functions.

Starts and stops the
Data Logging.

Enables auto-ranging.

Enters and exits the Log
Review menu.

U1273A/U1273AX Handheld Digital Multimeter

WARNING

Z

LOW

Smart

Auto

or

Understanding the Input Terminals

Understanding the Input Terminals



Ensure that the terminal connections are correct for that
particular measurement function before starting any
measurement. To avoid damage to the device, do not
exceed the input limit.

Rotary position Input terminals Overload protection

1000 Vrms

1000 Vrms for short

circuit <0.3 A

11 A/1000 V

fast-acting fuse

440 mA/1000 V
fast-acting fuse

6 U1273A/U1273AX Quick Start Guide

U1273A/U1273AX Handheld Digital Multimeter

DC

1

2

3

4

Performing Measurements and Tests

Performing Measurements and Tests

Voltage measurements

The figure below highlights the primary functions allowing
voltage measurements in your multimeter.

Set up your multimeter as shown in the figure below to per­form voltage measurements. When measuring DC voltage from
a mixed signal in DC measurement mode, ensure that the Filter
(

) is enabled.

U1273A/U1273AX Quick Start Guide 7

U1273A/U1273AX Handheld Digital Multimeter

CAUTIONCAUTION

Setup

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Exit

Dual

Setup

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Setup

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Performing Measurements and Tests

1 Press for more than 1 second to enter the multimeter’s

setup menu.

2 Browse to Menu 6 > Filter, and press to edit the

value.

3 Press or to enable the Filter.

Refer to the table below for the respective firmware ver­sions.

Version 1.64 or older Version 1.95 or newer

on DC

4 Press to save your changes.

5 Press and hold until the multimeter restarts and returns

to normal operation. Turn the multimeter to DC Voltage
mode to verify that the LPF symbol is turned on.

To avoid possible electric shock or personal injury, enable
the Filter

() to verify the presence of hazardous DC

voltages. Displayed DC voltages can be influenced by high
frequency AC components and must be filtered to assure
an accurate reading.

LPF during AC measurements:

Press while performing AC
voltage measurements to pass the
measured signal through a low pass
filter.

• Passing the measured signal through a LPF help blocks
unwanted voltages such as electronic noise.

• Use the LPF function to improve measurement on compos­ite sine waves that are typically generated by inverters and
variable frequency motor drives.

8 U1273A/U1273AX Quick Start Guide

Z

Z

LOW

measurements:

LOW

U1273A/U1273AX Handheld Digital Multimeter

Performing Measurements and Tests

Rotate the rotary switch’s position to

to enable low impedance mea-

surements.

• Use the Z

(low input impedance) function to remove

LOW

ghost or induced voltages from your measurement.

• Z

can remove ghost voltages from your measurements

LOW

by dissipating the coupling voltage. Use Z

to reduce the

LOW

possibility of false readings in areas where the presence of
ghost voltages are suspected.

U1273A/U1273AX Quick Start Guide 9

U1273A/U1273AX Handheld Digital Multimeter

Smart

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Exit

Dual

Performing Measurements and Tests

Resistance measurements

Set up your multimeter as shown in the figure below to per­form resistance measurements.

Smart  measurements:

• Use the Smart  (offset compensation) function to measure

10 U1273A/U1273AX Quick Start Guide

resistors affected by DC offset or leakage current.

• Smart  removes unexpected DC voltages within the instru-
ment, at the input, or at the circuit being measured, which
will add error to resistance measurements. Press to
switch between the bias voltage (BiAS) display or leakage
current (LEAk) display, calculated based on the bias voltage
and corrected resistance value, on the secondary display.

While performing resistance mea­surements, press until BiAS is
shown on the secondary display to
enable the Smart  function.

U1273A/U1273AX Handheld Digital Multimeter

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Exit

Dual

Smart

ON

(closed)

OFF

(open)

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NOTE

Performing Measurements and Tests

Continuity tests

Set up your multimeter as shown in the figure below to per­form continuity tests. Press to switch to the continuity
test function ( is shown on the display).

The beeper will sound as a continuity indication. Press to
switch between normal open ( ) and normal close ( )
contacts.

• Normal open: Circuit is normally open, the beeper will
sound when a short is detected.

• Normal close: Circuit is normally closed, the beeper will
sound when an open is detected.

The continuity function detects intermittent shorts and opens
lasting as short as 1 ms. A brief short or open causes the multi­meter to emit a short beep.

U1273A/U1273AX Quick Start Guide 11

U1273A/U1273AX Handheld Digital Multimeter

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Performing Measurements and Tests

Diode tests

Set up your multimeter as shown in the figure below to per­form diode tests.

Auto

Auto-diode tests:

Press to use the auto diode
function.

• The Auto-diode function tests both the forward bias and
reverse bias directions of your diode simultaneously. The
forward bias voltage is shown on the primary display and
the reverse bias voltage is shown on the secondary display.

•GOOD is shown briefly on the secondary display along with
a brief beep if the diode is found to be in good condition. If
the diode is out of the thresholds, NGOOD is shown instead.

12 U1273A/U1273AX Quick Start Guide

U1273A/U1273AX Handheld Digital Multimeter

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NOTE

Performing Measurements and Tests

Capacitance measurements

Set up your multimeter as shown in the figure below to per­form capacitance measurements.

is shown on the bottom left of the display when the capaci­tor is charging, and is shown when the capacitor is dis­charging.

U1273A/U1273AX Quick Start Guide 13

U1273A/U1273AX Handheld Digital Multimeter

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K-type thermocouple

Heat source

NOTE

Performing Measurements and Tests

Temperature measurements

Set up your multimeter as shown in the figure below to per­form temperature measurements. Press to switch to the
temperature measurement function.

Do not connect the thermocouple to electrically live
circuits. Doing so will potentially cause fire or electric
shock.

The multimeter uses a type-K (default setting) temperature
probe for measuring temperature.

14 U1273A/U1273AX Quick Start Guide

U1273A/U1273AX Handheld Digital Multimeter

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WARNING

AC

LOAD

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4

NOTE

Performing Measurements and Tests

Current measurements

Set up your multimeter as shown in the figure below to per­form current measurements. Press to switch between
AC, DC, AC+DC, or % scale current measurements. When mea­suring DC current from a mixed signal in DC measurement
mode, ensure that the Filter (

Always use the proper function, range, and terminals for
current measurements. Set the positive input terminal to
the terminal for currents below 440 mA, and the

terminal for currents above 440 mA.

) is enabled.

For better accuracy when measuring low currents (up to A),
turn the rotary switch to the position.

U1273A/U1273AX Quick Start Guide 15

U1273A/U1273AX Handheld Digital Multimeter

Smart

Smart

To check Fuse 1 To check Fuse 2

Check the Fuse

Check the Fuse

Follow the instructions below for a quick check on the fuses
(Fuse 1 and Fuse 2) of your multimeter.

Fuse

Part

number

1 2110-1400 440 mA/1000 V 102  OL

2 2110-1402 11 A/1000 V 0.05  OL

Displayed readings

Fuse rating

Fuse healthy Replace fuse

16 U1273A/U1273AX Quick Start Guide

U1273A/U1273AX Handheld Digital Multimeter

NOTE

Check the Fuse

• To c he ck Fu se 1: Ensure that the probe tip is touching the

top half metal contact inside the µA mA terminal.

• To c he ck Fu se 2: Ensure that the probe tip is touching the

left half metal contact inside the A terminal.

The multimeter will sound an input warning alert if the probe
tip is in contact with any other sides of the µA mA or A termi­nal other than the sides specified in the instructions above.

U1273A/U1273AX Quick Start Guide 17

U1273A/U1273AX Handheld Digital Multimeter

Check the Fuse

18 U1273A/U1273AX Quick Start Guide

Contacting Keysight

CAUTIONCAUTION

WARNING

CAT III
1000 V

CAT IV

600 V

To obtain service, warranty, or technical assistance, contact us at the fol­lowing phone numbers:

• United States Call Center: 800-829-4444

• Canada Call Center: 877-894-4414

• China Call Center: 800-810-0189

• Europe Call Center: 31-20-547-2111

• Japan Call Center: (81) 426-56-7832

For other countries, contact your country’s Keysight support organization. A
list of contact information for other countries is available on the Keysight
Web site: www.keysight.com/find/assist

Safety Notices Safety and EMC Information

A CAUTION notice denotes
a hazard. It calls attention
to an operating procedure,
practice, or the like that, if
not correctly performed or
adhered to, could result in
damage to the product or
loss of important data. Do
not proceed beyond a CAU-
TION notice until the indi­cated conditions are fully
understood and met.

A WARNING notice
denotes a hazard. It calls
attention to an operating
procedure, practice, or the
like that, if not correctly
performed or adhered to,
could result in personal
injury or death. Do not pro­ceed beyond a WARNING
notice until the indicated
conditions are fully under­stood and met.

This meter is safety-certified in compliance
with EN/IEC 61010-1:2001, ANSI/UL
61010-1:2004, and CAN/CSA-C22.2 No.
61010-1-04 for CAT III 1000 V/CAT IV 600 V
pollution degree 2 environment. EMC is
designed in compliance with IEC
61326-1:2005/EN 61326-1:2006. Use with
standard or compatible test probes.

Safety Symbols

Earth (ground) terminal

Equipment protected
throughout by double insula­tion or reinforced insulation

Caution, risk of electric
shock

Caution, risk of danger (refer
to the instrument manual for
specific Warning or Caution
information)

Category III 1000 V 
overvoltage protection

For further safety information details, refer to the

Keysight U1273A/U1273AX Handheld Digital Multimeter User’s Guide.

Category IV 600 V 
overvoltage protection

This information is subject to change without notice.

© Keysight Technologies 2012 – 2014

Edition 3, August 2014

*U1273-90004*

U1273-90004

www.keysight.com