Tag: Comparison

Excellent Build Quality Inside The UNI-T UDP3305S | Voltlog #479

If you’re an electronics enthusiast or professional, you understand the importance of having a reliable and high-quality power supply on your workbench. The UNI-T UDP3305S has been making waves in the industry, and after using it for a month, I can confidently say it’s my favorite bench power supply.

However, a thorough review wouldn’t be complete without a deep dive into its inner workings. In this blog post, I’ll share my findings from tearing down this impressive device. The teardown process revealed a level of build quality that exceeded my expectations. From the matte green FR4 PCB, which is a hallmark of high-end production lines, to the tidy wiring and locking connectors, every aspect screamed attention to detail.

The toroidal transformer, mounted on a solid bracket with rubber insulation, is a testament to the engineering prowess behind this power supply. One of the standout features is the modular design. The back IO panel, main body, and front panel are separate modules, making servicing and maintenance a breeze.

The power stage module, which houses the independent channels, is a marvel of engineering. It features current shunts, bridge rectifiers, MOSFETs for regulation, and relays for input voltage transformer tap selection. The front panel is where the real magic happens. It houses the brains of the operation – an STM32H750 microcontroller, a powerful Cortex-M7 with a floating-point unit and advanced peripherals.

Complementing this is a trio of high-precision DAC (DAC8562) and ADC (ADS1118) chips, ensuring accurate voltage and current regulation across all channels. Throughout the teardown, I was impressed by the attention to detail and the use of high-quality components. From the Fujicon and Macon capacitors to the Hongfa relays, every component has been carefully selected to deliver exceptional performance.

In conclusion, the UNI-T UDP3305S is not just a powerhouse on the outside; it’s a masterpiece of engineering on the inside as well. The build quality, modular design, and top-notch components make it a worthy investment for anyone seeking a reliable and precise bench power supply.

Is the UNI-T UDP3305S the BEST Programmable Power Supply? Find Out! | Voltlog #478

Are you tired of juggling multiple power supplies on your workbench? The UNI-T UDP3305S could be the solution you’ve been waiting for. This programmable DC power supply unit combines four independent channels into one sleek and powerful package, making your life easier and more productive. With three independently programmable outputs (two at 0-30V 5A and one at 0-6V 3A) and a fixed 5V 2A USB output, the UDP3305S offers a total combined power output of 348W.

Its 1mV/1mA resolution and low ripple voltage of less than 350uV (measured at 1MHz bandwidth) make it suitable for powering even the most sensitive analog circuits. One of the standout features of this unit is its ability to internally switch channels 1 and 2 to series or parallel mode, eliminating the need for external wiring and separate adjustments.

Need more than 30V? Switch to series mode for up to 60V at 5A. Need more current? Parallel mode delivers 30V at 10A. The 4.3-inch TFT display provides a clear and intuitive graphical user interface, allowing you to monitor and adjust settings with ease. The unit also offers advanced features like waveform viewing, programmable sequences, monitoring, triggering, and data logging.

With a robust build quality, rubber corner protection, and a carry handle, the UDP3305S is designed for the demanding workbench environment. Connectivity options include USB, Ethernet, RS232, and digital I/O, enabling remote control and integration into automated test setups. While the included Windows software could be more polished, the instrument itself excels in usability and performance.

Compared to alternatives from Rigol, Siglent, and others, the UNI-T UDP3305S offers more features at a lower cost, making it an attractive choice for professionals and hobbyists alike.

Voltlog #243 – TS80 VS KSGER T12 Soldering Iron Comparison

Welcome to a new Voltlog, yet another soldering iron comparison video and today it’s between the TS80 and the KSGER T12 station. Everyone knows the TS80, is quite a popular portable soldering iron, works with USB type C input, it needs a quick charge compatible adapter to reach full power and it’s quite a capable soldering iron. The drawback is the cost of the tips, it uses this proprietary type of tip and the cost is about $20 a piece.

On the other hand we have the KSGER soldering station which I reviewed in Voltlog #232. This station has a built in power supply and uses the well known T12 tips which are widely available on aliexpress, for example you can get KSGER T12 branded tips for about $3 a piece. I think that’s important, because I have 2-3 different tip shapes that I use regularly and maybe another 2 or 3 that I use occasionally for odd jobs. You can’t just rely on a single tip shape and purchasing the same number of tips for the TS80, is not going to be cheap.

Voltlog #215 – Is a genuine Hakko T12 tip much better than fake one?

A while ago in voltlog #186, I compared the TS100 soldering iron to the STM32 T12 based soldering station and the results were pretty interesting to watch, if you haven’t seen that video there will be a link in the video.

As we all know the market is flooded with counterfeit or replacements for hakko products. So I’ve always wondered how does a genuine T12 cartridge tip compare to a replacement or fake hakko tip. So today, we’re going to test a genuine T12 tip vs a replacement one. This is my genuine tip, I got it from an authorised reseller, the cost was $20, shipping excluded. As you might notice it says T15 on the packaging but don’t worry there is no difference between T12 and T15 tips, except they use a different part number depending of the markets. T15 for EU and US markets and T12 for Asia as far as I know.

Voltlog #186 – TS100 VS Generic T12 Station

Welcome to a new voltlog, today we’re talking about the TS100 portable soldering iron, but this won’t be a review because there is no point in making a review video for this mode. There are only a few things you can test with a soldering iron and there are already some very good reviews on youtube from known channels.

I am however interested in how will this iron compare with the stm32 soldering station that I’ve been using for a couple of years. So if you haven’t seen this before, I’ve shown it in detail in voltlog #85, this is a station which I got about 2 years ago, directly from taobao with the help of a friend who lives in China. At that time it wasn’t widely available so it was a bit of a gamble but it payed out because it uses hakko T12 tips and I have a bunch of different models of those and it payed out because the station works great. Nowadays you can find similar models on aliexpress so I will place a link in the description below if you would like to take a look.

I am curious though to see how this would compare with the newly acquired TS100 soldering iron. The TS100 uses a similar type of tip which has the heating element and the thermocouple built in, that type of construction ensures great thermal coupling so the tip can really transfer the heat to the joint and at the same type the sensing element get’s a very accurate reading of the tip temperature and can compensate for that.

Voltlog #148 – Affordable Pocket Multimeter Shootout

In this episode we are going to be taking a look at the affordable pocket multimeter market, I’ve god 4 models which you can get for under $20 and I’m going to review these to see which one is best.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ykZ-ZVXjP24

If you just want to skip to the results checkout this spreadsheet on google docs.

Here are links to where you can buy these pocket multimeters:

Here are the pictures from the teardown of these meters:

VolLog #129 – Ebay Bussmann Fuse vs Genuine Bussmann Fuses DMM-B-44/100-R

If you remember Voltlog #117 in that video we analysed some ebay Bussmann fuses to try and figure out if they are fake or real fuses. The ebay fuses we’re way cheaper than anywhere else so that made me suspect they are not genuine.

It’s good to know if the ebay fuses are real or not because they are selling allot of them and people might be relying on these to perform as required when in fact they might be out of spec. For the average bench user which only occasionally goes up to 240VAC it might not be an issue if the fuse is slightly outside the specs but if you are probing some high energy circuit and relying on the ebay fuse to perform according to the datasheet at it is not then something serious might happen, like the multimeter could explode because of a high energy discharge or it could simply damage the meter which is to be avoided.

Links for the products and test equipment shown in this video:

 

Voltlog #123 – Buzzer Comparison

In this video I am measuring the output level of the various buzzer that you can find on ebay, banggood or aliexpress.

 

Get the UNI-T UT353 Sound Meter from these sources:

Here are all the buzzers shown in this video: