ANATEK Blue ESR Meter REV 1 PCB first build. Tips and component upgrade suggestions..

[MegaOne302]

I've finally bought my first ESR meter kit. Wish me luck.

Parts


Front


Back reads "Bob... Dec '07" lol


Please note PCB images are for my reference.

[PlainBill]

Re: ANATEK Blue ESR Meter REV 1 PCB first build. Tips and component upgrade suggestions..

Luck has very little to do with it. This kit can be assembled by anyone willing to follow directions (assuming all parts are there).

PlainBill

[MegaOne302]

Re: ANATEK Blue ESR Meter REV 1 PCB first build. Tips and component upgrade suggestions..

I'm done building the meter, but I have 4 silver clips leftover. Any ideas what these are for?

[PlainBill]

Re: ANATEK Blue ESR Meter REV 1 PCB first build. Tips and component upgrade suggestions..

I'm done building the meter, but I have 4 silver clips leftover. Any ideas what these are for?

The case is a marvel of multifunctionality. With those four clips the battery compartment becomes a battery holder for 2 AA cells.

PlainBill

[MegaOne302]

Re: ANATEK Blue ESR Meter REV 1 PCB first build. Tips and component upgrade suggestions..

Thanks Bill for the update ((no extra parts) = (a good build))...

Anyone know why I'm having to zero the meter out every time I power up?

[Toasty]

Re: ANATEK Blue ESR Meter REV 1 PCB first build. Tips and component upgrade suggestions..

>>Anyone know why I'm having to zero the meter out every time I power up?<<
'cuz that's the way it is.

If you were to use longer or shorter leads, change tips, use probes instead of clips etc., the meter is so sensitive to low ohm changes that if not zeroed, you'd have false or bad readings. Simply moving along a trace on a PCB will register changes.

Toast

[MegaOne302]

Re: ANATEK Blue ESR Meter REV 1 PCB first build. Tips and component upgrade suggestions..

Looks like I'm good then.

Thanks Toasty,

Joe

[MrVik]

Re: ANATEK Blue ESR Meter REV 1 PCB first build. Tips and component upgrade suggestions..

I just got mine yesterday and put it together in a couple of hours. I was going to post pictures but it looks just like yours! Enjoy!

[MegaOne302]

Re: ANATEK Blue ESR Meter REV 1 PCB first build. Tips and component upgrade suggestions..

Here are a few pics of the completed Blue ESR meter and my work bench / kitchen table. =)

[Bob Parker]

Re: ANATEK Blue ESR Meter REV 1 PCB first build. Tips and component upgrade suggestions..

Well done! Looks nice. I hope it will give you years of faster electronic repairs.

Bob
(in Australia)

[MegaOne302]

Re: ANATEK Blue ESR Meter REV 1 PCB first build. Tips and component upgrade suggestions..

WOW, we commoners aren't use to such kind words from royalty.

Thanks Bob for the complement on the build…

May I ask that on your next ESR meter have three digits please, the Blue meter reads .01/.00 on 6.3v 820uf MBZ's; I really would like to see how low SP-Caps can go.

Thanks,

Joe

[Bob Parker]

Re: ANATEK Blue ESR Meter REV 1 PCB first build. Tips and component upgrade suggestions..

Royalty? Definitely not!

Thanks for suggesting a higher resolution ESR meter. Actually quite a few people have asked me about that. Once you start measuring down that low, it's necessary to do things a bit differently like using 'Kelvin' (two wires to each cap terminal) connections to the cap being tested to minimise errors.

I've finally added it to my list of things to try doing. Maybe it would only need to read from 0.001 up to 0.099 ohms and the present ESR meter would be OK to use above 0.1 ohms? That would be much easier than trying to cover the whole range in just one meter.

Thanks
Bob

[dbs]

Re: ANATEK Blue ESR Meter REV 1 PCB first build. Tips and component upgrade suggestions..

just give us a ship date Bob - I want one

[MegaOne302]

Re: ANATEK Blue ESR Meter REV 1 PCB first build. Tips and component upgrade suggestions..

We all know you can do it, you're the "Cap Master"…

Do you realize you've created Bob? An low ESR seeking capacitor cult; may we live strong and prosperous on our repairs.

Oh ya, you can do it...

[MegaOne302]

Re: ANATEK Blue ESR Meter REV 1 PCB first build. Tips and component upgrade suggestions..

Maybe there could be a way to integrate the two meters in to one case using the already existing display but adding one more LED to the right side instead of adding another digit (because we would already know it's a zero, it would just be kind of a place holder). And we could switch between the two PCBs with a selector switch. We could add spacers to the case, it would be just a bit thicker. The display would look something like this ..0.0

What you think?

[Bob Parker]

Re: ANATEK Blue ESR Meter REV 1 PCB first build. Tips and component upgrade suggestions..

We all know you can do it, you're the "Cap Master"…

Do you realize you've created Bob? An low ESR seeking capacitor cult; may we live strong and prosperous on our repairs.

Oh ya, you can do it...

Wow, thanks for your confidence, Joe! Actually I'm just another technician and I only designed that ESR meter for myself originally.

Back in 1995, if someone had told me that it would get well known outside my native Australia (that Down Under place where it's winter right now) and even get sort-of 'cult' status, I would have told them they had rocks in their head.

For sure I want everyone who's got one of the meters, from the original 1996 Dick Smith version to the present Anatek Blue one, to live strong and prosperous (very Spock-like) in their repairs. That's what the meter's for!

Maybe there could be a way to integrate the two meters in to one case using the already existing display but adding one more LED to the right side instead of adding another digit (because we would already know it's a zero, it would just be kind of a place holder). And we could switch between the two PCBs with a selector switch. We could add spacers to the case, it would be just a bit thicker. The display would look something like this ..0.0

What you think?

Good idea. There are better components available now, than when I designed the original meter. I'll need to put some serious thought into what would be the simplest & cheapest way to measure single milli-ohms, and how to display them. Thanks for giving me some possibilities to contemplate.

[MegaOne302]

Re: ANATEK Blue ESR Meter REV 1 PCB first build. Tips and component upgrade suggestio

Any updates on the “higher resolution ESR meter”?

[Agent24]

Re: ANATEK Blue ESR Meter REV 1 PCB first build. Tips and component upgrade suggestio

I'd be keen on an ESR meter that can measurer lower too.

I love my Blue ESR meter but I have seen several datasheets which state values lower than 0.01 Ohm, so there is need for one that can do lower better range, I think.

[PCBONEZ]

Re: ANATEK Blue ESR Meter REV 1 PCB first build. Tips and component upgrade suggestio

I've looked [a little] into making one but I never seem to have enough time to devote to it.
That kind of project is not something I'm particularly good at [I have to 'cook book' every step] and for things like that I have to set -everything- else aside for the duration or I'll never finish.

BK Precision 885 and 886 will do it but they start at around $500 a pop.

.

[Bob Parker]

Re: ANATEK Blue ESR Meter REV 1 PCB first build. Tips and component upgrade suggestio

Any updates on the “higher resolution ESR meter”?

Hi again. Sorry but unfortunately my 'home' situation hasn't let me do anything useful with electronics for the last few years and it's likely that I won't get a chance to get back into it until some time late next year.

Conversely, measuring down to milliohm resolution runs into the problem of contact resistance between whatever your test leads terminate in, and the capacitor's leads.

Assuming that things start looking up next year, I'll try to look at all this in more detail.