First post, by Ozzuneoj
- Rank
- l33t
Basically, I want an LCR meter to more effectively work on old computer parts. The majority of repairs will be on motherboards with electrolytic caps. Being able to tell if they need replaced or not could save a ton of time.
I know nothing about LCR meters though. It seems like I need ones that will support the common capacitance ranges of PC caps, and I guess I should look for something that can test ESR. I don't really know how this works, I just want something that will be useful but not overly expensive, since I'm not doing this "professionally". I have a decent (older) Fluke multimeter for basic stuff, and I own an oscilloscope (which I haven't yet had time to learn how to use), I just need an LCR meter to make testing caps relatively easy.
Anyone have any suggestions? $100 is somewhat expensive to me, but I know that is considered a pittance to electrical engineers and such. I would even buy second hand if it was of high quality if it made it more affordable. As long as it isn't junk and will actually be somewhat useful for testing the usability of capacitors frequently found in PCs (electrolytics, SMD caps and tantalums), it should work for my needs.
Now for some blitting from the back buffer.