I know that I have mentioned about my bench LCR meter, the XLW01 which is really accurate and is inexpensive and can user calibrated using the resistors supplied.
This video provides a excellent guide to using it because it may or may not come instructions depending on where you buy it from, but it is superb alternative to the much liked DE5000 which many people here favour but it does a lot more than this unit and not any more accurate.
Edit, it is geared towards power supplies and audio type of work and NOT RF work.
They also offer DIY kits now
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/4001156913695.html?spm=a2g0s.8937460.0.0.56e72e0eaUaFKS
I shopped that one pretty hard when I bought my DE-5000; I decided against it for several reasons.
1) It doesn't use industry-standard test frequencies.
Any values you get from the non-standard frequencies will not directly translate to any comparative testing EXCEPT that done with the same type meter; so not really useful for sharing tech reference or comparing against datasheets.
2) It does
ESR and
Dissipation, NOT
ESR and
tan δ. At lower frequencies the stats are very comparable... however at high frequencies and low ESRs, they diverge greatly. This makes
the tester not ideal for the main thing I was trying to get a handle on at the time:
what values are "normal" for MMLCCs. Non-standard freqs and no tan δ made it a non-starter for me. Also, Dissipation is also not always given in the datasheets, while tan δ is, so you can check against a datasheet to confirm if your suspect cap is healthy or not.
3) The DE-5000 comes calibrated, ready to use with actual published specs. Obviously, if you're doing the cal yourself, no such specs apply.
4) No DUT slots. Uggh.
4) And finally... it costs more than a DE-5000. I paid US$110 for mine, with tweezers and alligator heads. At the time, this thing was going for US$130. Even at the kit price, still a "Ehhhhh...." deal. US$62 for a kit from AliEx that you have to build and cal yourself... I'd still take the DE-5000 every time.
And before anybody says it... the DE-5000 is Kelvin connection on every test jig. The slots are true Kelvin with signal at one plate and measurement the other, while the tweezers & alligators are Kelvin to within a few mm of the actual contact point. There are more videos out there than I can count now, all demonstrating that the assumed inherent inaccuracy is not measurable; that consistency in test setup is far more important, which the DE-5000 configuration makes easily repeatable.
I really WANTED to like the XLW01; but right now, I'd for sure spend that money AGAIN on a DE-5000, no question. And before I'd buy the XLW01 kit "for funsies", I'd get me a NanoVNA and a TinySA.
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mnem
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