Suggestions for ESR and LCR Meters - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / testgear

author: Anson
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: June 23, 2013, 02:24:08 pm
content: Sometime in August I will be getting a little bit of money to get an LCR and ESR meter or meters. I am looking at The Uni-T UT612 or Mastech MS5308 for LCR. Leaning towards the Mastech as I have an MS8268 I am happy with. I notice these also do ESR but I do not know if the ESR capabilities are limited and not as good as say the Blue ESR or Capanalyzer 88a Which are the two I am looking at for ESR. I am wondering If I can get away with just purchasing the one Mastech for $200 and be done with it or do I still need a good ESR meter. I am open to other suggestions. I cannot spend more than $300 total for either one or two meters depending on whats best.I seem to be doing a lot of repair work so I am in need of a good quality proper meter.

author: Fraser
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 23, 2013, 04:11:17 pm
content: I have bought several ESR meters but my favourite for bench use is still the MS5308. It works well for me and includes the essential test leads and tweezers in the kit at no extra charge. There are several LCR meters available that use the same chipset and all are good performers from the feedback I have seen. The IET DE-5000 is one such meter that has an excellent reputation.IMHO it is important to find an ESR/LCR meter that can produce a 100kHz test signal.If you choose a meter based on the same chipset as the MS5308 you will not go wrong. There is a thread dedicated to the MS5308 on this forum and it details the other meters that are available.

author: don.r
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: June 23, 2013, 05:46:09 pm
content: CEM 9935 and also a Tonghui version (in white!). The Tonghui comes in various flavours from 1KHz max to 100KHz. All based on the same chipset as the Uni-T, IET and Mastech meters.

author: Chris Wilson
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 23, 2013, 07:25:16 pm
content: I acquired a Philips / Fluke PM6303A a while back, very cheaply, can you tell me why a 100kHz test signal is advantageous? My main interest is RF and I want to measure coils from about .2 uH to about 500 uH and RF caps, including vac variables and air variables. On another forum a member who is seriously into RF amp building swears by his B and K 875B digital LCR meter. I suspect this Fluke is not ideal for my needs?http://www.chriswilson.tv/6303A.jpg

author: Unknown
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: June 23, 2013, 09:59:54 pm
content: The PM 6303A has a test frequency of 1 kHz and has a resolution of 0.1 uH on the inductance range. An ES51920-based LCR meter capable of using a 100 kHz test frequency like the IET DE-9000 or the Mastech MS5308 will have a resolution of 0.001 uH. The uncertainty for a reading of 0.2 uH on the Philips would be +/- 0.1 uH. The uncertainty for the same reading on the IET DE-5000 would only be +/- 0.01 uH.

author: Bryan
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: June 24, 2013, 10:53:53 am
content: If you want to do it on the cheap there is the fleabay MESR-100. Version 2 is much better.http://www.ebay.com/itm/MESR-100-SMD-Clip-Probe-ESR-Low-Ohm-In-Circuit-Capacitor-Meter-/321080299313?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item4ac1e08f31

author: rstoer
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: June 25, 2013, 02:54:16 pm
content: A few years back Dave gave a good review to an Extech 380193 at about $200. They now have a new model, LCR200, at $259 that looks promising. It adds 100KHz, better accuracy and ESR to the old model. The only downside I could find was the RS232 cable goes away. Has anyone seen one of these yet?

author: Anson
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: June 25, 2013, 04:05:13 pm
content: That one's pretty ugly compared to the B&K Precision 879B. And for only $20 more I would go rather have the B&K. The specs on the B&K seem a bit better also. How does the B&K rate compared to the Extech and the Mastech? I think I am dropping the Uni-T as a candidate. Also would there be any reason to have a dedicated esr meter if I had one of these? I can't really think of one.

author: Marc M.
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: July 05, 2013, 07:43:43 am
content: Quote from: Anson on June 25, 2013, 04:05:13 pmI can't think of one either. I'm another Mastek MS5308 owner and I've been very happy with it. I use it mainly for sniffing out bad caps so I use the ESR mode all the time. It's always performed well. The only downside to the Mastek was they were being shipped with power adapters that were so poor they would cause inaccurate readings and actually bricked some users meters. I haven't kept up with the issue, but I think at some point they stopped including the AC adapter. They work fine off batteries (8 AA's IIRC).

author: Anson
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: July 05, 2013, 03:22:16 pm
content: I read about the dc supply issues seems at one point their fix was to just ship without the supply. Not sure if they have replaced them now or not. I have decided on getting the Mastech still though. I like the B&K better but it lacks all the accessories the Mastech has and I simply can't afford to spend another $100 on those. I can get the Mastech for under $200 shipped so that's what I will go with. Thanks everyone.

author: Chris Wilson
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 05, 2013, 04:46:04 pm
content: Quote from: Bryan on June 24, 2013, 10:53:53 amThanks for the reply Bryan. I am just wondering what advantage apart from simplicity of use an LCR meter would have over my AIM4170 antenna anlyser? Am I likely to get more accuracy from a dedicated LCR meter than my AIM4170? Some info on the AIM is at:http://www.arraysolutions.com/Products/AIM4170.htmI am sure a standalone LCR meter with 100kHz frequency is faster to use and doesn't need a PC, but that aside am I duplicating measurement ability, or is a decent LCR meter more accurate? I find the specs a bit bewildering. Thanks.

author: dr.diesel
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 05, 2013, 05:33:40 pm
content: Quote from: Chris Wilson on July 05, 2013, 04:46:04 pmI have a 4170 and a Hameg HM8118 on order, I'll soon be able to compare the results.

author: The Electrician
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 05, 2013, 06:14:10 pm
content: Quote from: Chris Wilson on July 05, 2013, 04:46:04 pmThe published specs:http://www.w5big.com/prog_update.htmindicate that the best accuracy (up to 60 MHz) is 1 ohm +- 2% of reading. This is a return loss bridge type of instrument as can be inferred from its specified measurement range of 1 ohm to 5k ohms. Also, thelowestmeasurement frequency is 100 kHz. An LCR meter can measure over a much wider range of impedances and to lower frequencies.If you mostly want to make RF measurements of inductors, I'd say your AIM4170 is the instrument of choice. You probably don't need high accuracy for that sort of thing since you will tune up your projects after they're built anyway.

author: Bryan
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 06, 2013, 10:24:32 am
content: Quote from: Chris Wilson on July 05, 2013, 04:46:04 pmThe Ebay Item I referenced is a ESR meter. From my experience and from others input the actual ESR value is not that important, more so the reading is high so the capacitor should probably be replaced. What is important more is the quality of the probes and ease of use. If you want to DIY the BLUE ESR is quite well rated.http://www.capacitorlab.com/anatek-blue-esr-meter/https://www.eevblog.com/forum/chat/dave-jones-gets-his-wish-blue-bob-parker-esr-meter-by-anatek/I don't have a LCR meter but would assume accuracy is important when measuring inductance, similar to resistance I suppose..

author: Unknown
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: July 09, 2013, 08:22:43 pm
content: I have Unit-T UT70A for L, V, A,UT601 for C & R.both for hFE,both for Beep.The new UT612 measures ESR,want to upgrade.UT601? RC

author: Unknown
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: July 09, 2013, 08:23:33 pm
content: Part 2.

author: Unknown
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: July 09, 2013, 08:24:41 pm
content: Part 3.

author: Chris Wilson
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 09, 2013, 10:23:17 pm
content: Blimey. My head hurts, I think I'll go for a nice colour case....Thanks for collating all that, by the time I watch them all they'll be obsolete though <LOL>

author: robrenz
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 10, 2013, 02:33:14 am
content: @ JuanPC Is there some reason you left out the IET DE-5000?