After measuring the lowered voltage with a meter, what does the meter apply to calculate the actual voltage?

• A. A fixed calibration constant of 1
• B. A standard factory multiplier
• C. A randomly assigned scale factor
• D. A user programmed multiplier

Answer: (D)

The meter compensates for any attenuation in the measurement path by using a scale factor that you program into it. When the voltage is lowered by a probe or divider, the device can’t know the true value unless you tell it how much attenuation there is. By entering a multiplier that reflects your setup, the meter multiplies the read value by that factor to show the actual voltage. For example, with a 10x or 100x probe or divider, you would set the multiplier to 10 or 100 so the display reflects the real voltage. A fixed constant of 1 would ignore attenuation, a factory multiplier may not match your specific setup, and a randomly assigned factor would be incorrect. The user-programmed multiplier ensures the reading represents the true voltage given your particular measurement configuration.