DER DE-5000

Finally received it 🙂

This is the LC meter with 4-wire kelvin probes:

Backlight:

Want to compare it with the chinesse MLC500.

Little intro.

Anyone who measure inductors and capacitors knows that the result of measuring is depending on the frequency on that we are doing measurements. One of the advantages of DE-5000 is that we can choose the frequency and for MLC500 — not. MLC500 has only two choices — «low» and «high» and automatically adjust the frequency. For MLC500 maximum frequency is 500kHz and for DE-5000 is 100kHz. Usually, for normal parts, frequency of factory measurement is in datasheet, but as I don’t have a parts with datasheet 🙂 I will try to measure on the 1kHz for DE-5000 and also on the 100kHz to get close to MLC500.

4.7uH inductor 1kHz:

4.7uH inductor 100kHz:

4.7uH inductor MLC500:

3.3uH inductor 1kHz:

3.3uH inductor 100kHz:

3.3uH inductor MLC500:

Chinese capacitor 470uF 1kHz (it’s pretty high for it):

Chinese capacitor 470uF 100Hz (better frequency for that high capacitance):

Chinese capacitor 470uF MLC500:

For low values SMD parts I’ve used only 100kHz on the DE-5000.

So just series of photos:

And «ultralow» inductance — SMD parts with nH values. As I understand it’s hard to measure them precise, because any conductor has a «big» inductance for that lower values measurements so my hands and probes can affect it so hard.

For this test I’m using chinese multilayer SMD parts, so we can’t be sure that values declared for them are correct 🙂 Almost always I’m getting a way higher values but maybe this guys are designed for high frequency schemes and then their values will be much closer to declared value.

390nH a bit high 🙂 :

But MLC shows pretty the same:

470nH — muuuch closer to the declared value:

470nH — MLC500 — higher frequency better measurement for low values, but regarding next measurement I think something affected this measure for DE-5000:

47nH:

47nH for MLC500 — pretty the same:

So I thought that MCL500 is not good device for LC measurement.

I was wrong — it’s pretty good for amateur home lab. 🙂

The only thing — you always have to remember that «L» and «C» are not resistance or voltage and it’s values are always depend on the frequency.