Tips needed, wich Capacitance meter should i get? - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / testgear

author: Chaoswarper86
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: February 15, 2017, 02:38:24 pm
content: Hi Everybody!I could use some tips, wich capacitance meter I should get? Range must be up to 15000 microF and ebay price must be under 100€It can also be dmm wich has wide range capacitance range.Thanks for your help, I'm trying to find one myself also

author: RayRay
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: February 15, 2017, 06:57:39 pm
content: Tip #1, you need both a capacitance and an ESR meter (and in most cases, these come in separate units)Sometimes, a capacitor can have good capacitance (but bad ESR) and this would mean it wont work properly (but you wouldn't be able to tell that from the capacitance level alone) so again, you need both. Anyhow, I'd recommend you get the UNI-T UT601 (for capacitance), and MESR-100 (for ESR). You could also get a DMM (with capacitance testing ability) but in terms of accuracy, the UT601 is hard to beat!It has a 0.5%+10 accuracy (for caps upto 200 UF) and 2%+2 for higher ones. I have yet to see a DMM with capacitance that doesn't have at least 3% accuracy level.

author: usagi
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: February 16, 2017, 03:53:17 am
content: The DE-5000 is a good buy. It does capacitance, inductance, ESR, and more.https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005EMT8PC/

author: Chaoswarper86
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: February 16, 2017, 04:37:59 am
content: I found thishttp://www.ebay.com/itm/291575836211?_trksid=p2055119.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AITwhat do you think? Sounds good

author: usagi
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: February 16, 2017, 05:05:24 am
content: Quote from: Chaoswarper86 on February 16, 2017, 04:37:59 amreadthis.also dave did a full de-5000 teardown.

author: Paul Moir
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: February 16, 2017, 07:48:18 am
content: Why are you measuring the capacitance of? While I love my DE-5000, it's not for all uses. For example, due to it's sensitivity it has no real input protection. If the capacitor has a charge, you'll stand a good chance of ruining it. On the other hand, if you're doing repair work the ESR or dissipation factor measurements you get with an LCR meter are more valuable than any DMM capacitance function.

author: cnqhdszq
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: February 16, 2017, 12:42:53 pm
content: http://bbs.38hot.net/forum.php?mod=viewthread&tid=195383&highlight=%CA%D6%B3%D6The dmm with capacitance is not enough for measure,it only can measure capatiance . The dissipation factor and ESR is more important than capacitance . if you not mind ,a bench LCR is better than a handheld LCR . and cheaper than it .I have three bench LCR : TH2820 (made in China 1KHz ) ,WK4225(made in England ,it is too old ), HP E4925A(on sold now Stanford Research System inc. SR715 up to 10K 5 frequence points .SR720 up to 100K ) .and bad been used BK precision 886 100K handheld LCR .The best is HP E4925A and the BK precision 886 .

author: usagi
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: February 16, 2017, 12:47:26 pm
content: Quote from: cnqhdszq on February 16, 2017, 12:42:53 pmOP's budget is only 100€. i don't think any of those qualify.

author: Gyro
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 16, 2017, 12:59:21 pm
content: Quote from: Chaoswarper86 on February 16, 2017, 04:37:59 amI have one of those. The listing isn't very well written - it's a dedicated ESR meter that doesn't measure capacitance value. It works well (you need to zero it frequently). For testing suspect capacitors ESR is much more valuable than actual capacitance value, unless you need to know the value more accurately than 'what it says on the can'.

author: umkumiut
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: February 16, 2017, 01:12:04 pm
content: Take a look at the Peak ESR 70. It can measure capacitance up to 22mF and also does ESR. It is around the 100EUR mark.http://www.peakelec.co.uk/acatalog/jz_esr70.html