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Reviews For: M3 Electronix Component Analyzer

Category: Tools & Test Equipment for the amateur radio work bench

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Review Summary For : M3 Electronix Component Analyzer
Reviews: 3MSRP: $55
Description:
Kit - Small handheld PIC-powered analyzer that will tell you what that diode,
transistor, or FET is, its pinout, HFE, etc. Really fun!
Product is in production
More Info: http://www.m3electronix.com
# last 180 days Avg. Rating last 180 days Total reviews Avg. overall rating
0035
VA7ION Rating: 2009-11-10
Outstanding products, outstanding after market support Time Owned: more than 12 months.
This review was long overdue: bought every single piece of equipment this company has to offer. Never disappointed, outstanding products, outstanding after market support.

Thank you Mike and Mike#2
K3MGC Rating: 2006-06-08
fantastic Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I won't bore you with the details of this great little tester, you can find them on M cubed electronix web site as well as the specs and you can down load the instruction manual which is very comprehensive. It wasn't many years ago that a tester such as this would have cost many hundreds of dollars. At $55 it is not only a bargain but a steal. It only takes several hours to build by using a very high quality pc board. You can also purchase a seperate case (already cut and drilled) for this tester from them. I have had and used many different transistor testers over the years and not only is this unit small and light but you can carry it around all day and not get tired.
Because of the unusual versitility of this unit I dare say that the next step up from this tester would probably be a Tektronix cure tracer. You can find them on e-bay for several thousand dollars used but I guarantee you that you won't be able to tuk one of those under your arm and walk around with it all day. Nuff said.
NS6Y_ Rating: 2006-02-12
Very fun to build and use! Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
This is a kit, which you can order from their site, that's pretty easy to build, has a backlit LCD display, and a user interface so simple (3 hook leads, on/off switch, readout) that labeling of buttons knobs etc is not even necessary. The kit takes a bit over an hour to build, it has a lot of 1% resistors and even if you know the color code down cold, USE YOUR OHMMETER and check 'em out just to be safe, I caught one mistake that way. The component count is quite low, actually, and this is very easy to build. Clip on a 9V battery and watch it light up, then if you're like me, grab a fistful of motley old transistors and diodes and put it through its paces. This thing is GREAT! Being able to test components, find their pinouts, and have some idea of their real-world HFE etc is invaluable. This will not analyze coils, caps, and resistors, this is for transistors, FETs, darlingtons, and diodes. There's a black plastic box offered for a small extra charge, and I used it to try to keep the hassle factor down, but feel free to use your own box. One thing that I found annoying is the main board doesn't have mounting holes. I got out the Craftsman tool and put in a carbide bit, put two holes in the main board that match the top two on the display board, and right now have this hanging off of those to the two upper holes in the box. I had to cut a trace to do that, but PCB traces were made for jumpering! I'm still working out how to better support the lower board, but the boards are thick, sturdy, and well-made, and right now it's not as bad a system as it sounds. I congratulate designers for using a real, sturdy, 9V battery connector, and a good quality of components, but they have told me personally they regret not being able to put a better grade of hook leads on without seriously increasing the price. I chose to use some factory-built Pomona hook leads I had around the place, and those work great. Another option could be to install 3 banana jacks then use leads with banana plugs on them, that way you could use different kinds, like you do with a DMM. Another interesting feature is the calibration feature, in the initial power up and test, you hook all 3 leads together and let the PIC sense the resistance and store that value. Then you cut the CAL jumper you installed, or if you're me, take it out and install a couple of hi-rel IC gold lined socket pins, then any piece of component lead can be plugged in to CAL the unit.

I highly, highly, highly recommend this unit! Not only is it neat to build, it won't just sit around and collect dust, you'll find yourself using it a lot!