LCD Power Supply Tester - Handy Tool!

Big.Wayne

Big.Wayne

Big.Wayne

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Hello there,

just a few days ago I made a post asking for information on a PSU tester and someone suggested gOOgle lol

Anyway spent an hour reading some reviews and looking at prices and found this for about £25 smackers

lcdpowersupplytesterxv5.jpg


There were various models that looked decent but only this one could accept every different type of power cable (SATA, PCI-E etc) and I thought the LCD screen was cool lol! :D

lcdpowersupplytester1pn7.jpg


Don't know why I never knew about this product before, really easy to use, just plug in your 20/24 pin ATX lead and switch the PSU on (or switch it on at the plug socket if the PSU doesn't have an On/Off switch). The tester starts up the PSU and runs a few checks and gives you a conformation beep if everything is tip-top, it also gives you a readout and displays it on the LCD screen.

If the PSU is truely borked the tester will not start up, it gets all its power from the PSU (no batteries).

lcdpowersupplytester2ge9.jpg


Already used it to diagnose a faulty PSU (which was brand new!!) and can see that it will prove useful in the future, anyway I thought I would just give you guys a heads up as I know some of you might find this a useful tool also.

Highly rated, pity it costs £25 as that may put some people off, but the fact it could save you hours (and hours) of headbutting your computer when there is a problem makes it worth every penny!
 
Nice little gadget that, very interesting. Thanks for recommending it, it probably is worth the money I would have thought given that it is a very valuable tool.
 
Not bad, but does it test voltages under "normal" load? Or just under idle? It should really have resistance circuit built in to test each voltage rail.
 
squiffy said:
Not bad, but does it test voltages under "normal" load? Or just under idle? It should really have resistance circuit built in to test each voltage rail.
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You could probably wire up an old HD or something, if you want to test the 12v and 5v rails under load... Not sure what you'd use for the 3.3v rail tho... maybe an LED or something?
 
I can't see that thing providing any kind of load that compares to a decent system.

I suppose it confirms that your rails are actually working though... :p
 
I use a £10 Antec PSU cable tester. More basic than yours as it just allows the main PSU power connector to be plugged into it, then shows some "status" lights for each rail and the PSU itself.

There are spots to attach a multimeter for exact measurements of the 3.3v, 5v and 12v rails if required.

This has been an absolute life saver. Well worth the tenner I spent. Your device there looks like a Rolls Royce of testers. Always well worth having.

It is surprising how many PSUs look like they are working, but are actually on the point of failiure.


I did email the OCUK staff and try and hassle them into adding these into stock. The reply I got back was "we are thinking about it". And then they mentioned that they have a number of the Antec units around for thier own testing purposes. :D
 
I have a PSU tester my version has l.e.d lights and just bleeps ., but your version looks a lot pleasing on the eye. mine cost £8.95 does the job quick and easy.
 
"It's worse than that, it's dead Jim"

faultyneohe5002bxq5.jpg


Well there ya go, who would have thought a brand new ANTEC PSU would be DOA? It was a replacement PSU sent to me in exchange for my original ANTEC NEO480, only it wouldn't boot up any of my systems (all ASUS motherboards), so when it failed the PSU tester ANTEC told me:

- Please cut the wiring harness from the faulty power supply at the point that the wires exit the rear bulkhead of the PSU.

- Please take a digital photo of the power supply such that the cut wires and the serial number show clearly, and email the image to us.

- We will ship your replacement upon receipt.
 
That seems like a good RMA process. When I had to get an Antec PSU replaced a year ago they made me send the PSU to Holland!
 
MAllen said:
It is surprising how many PSUs look like they are working, but are actually on the point of failiure.
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What symptom's to PSU's show when they are about to fail? Low voltages? or unstable voltages... I've got a shuttle PSU somewhere, and I want to test it before plugging it up to an expensive shuttle mainboard. :)
 
MikeHunt79 said:
What symptom's to PSU's show when they are about to fail? Low voltages? or unstable voltages... I've got a shuttle PSU somewhere, and I want to test it before plugging it up to an expensive shuttle mainboard. :)
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Get yourself a cable tester. By far the easiest way. I have had my Antec cable tester confirm that a misbehaving PC was down to the failing PSU. The PSU _seemed_ to be working, but when tested showed fail lights. I then swapped the PSU to a decent one - and the PC settled down back to sanity.

If you can't find a PSU tester - email in trust and I can get one over to you.
(Look on the Antec website for details....)
ATX12PSUTester.jpg


Notice the Good / Bad lights? These are testing other parts of the PSU and not just the volts within spec.
 
Big.Wayne said:
"It's worse than that, it's dead Jim"

[

Well there ya go, who would have thought a brand new ANTEC PSU would be DOA? It was a replacement PSU sent to me in exchange for my original ANTEC NEO480, only it wouldn't boot up any of my systems (all ASUS motherboards), so when it failed the PSU tester ANTEC told me:

- Please cut the wiring harness from the faulty power supply at the point that the wires exit the rear bulkhead of the PSU.

- Please take a digital photo of the power supply such that the cut wires and the serial number show clearly, and email the image to us.

- We will ship your replacement upon receipt.
Click to expand...

I suppose if it was modular it'd be "please take a hammer and pound the chassis in a few select places, not obscuring the serial number" ? :D
 
Justintime said:
I suppose if it was modular it'd be "please take a hammer and pound the chassis in a few select places, not obscuring the serial number" ? :D
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This could start a new craze......

If you want your item replaced under warrenty, please supply a video of you throwing the old item off a high building.....
 
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