The specific characteristics of a signal can be measured by a variety of instruments. For example, a counter can measure a signal’s frequency or its period, and an ac voltmeter can measure the RMS value of the signal. Although these instruments are very useful and can be more accurate than the oscilloscope, their application is mainly limited to the measurement of one parameter of the signal. With an oscilloscope, one can visualize the signal of interest and also observe whether the signal contains properties that would not be made apparent by most other instruments (for example, whether the signal is superimposed on a de level, or whether there are noise or relative hf oscillations present with the signal at the test point). Thus the oscilloscope is a more valuable instrument because it gives an exact visual representation of the signal waveform.
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