KSGER v2.10 vs 2.1s - what's the difference?

[michalism]

Hello

Anyone knows about the difference between these two versions of the KSGER soldering iron?

My guess from my searches is that the (s) version has an extra connector on the PCB in case you want to connect a 24V suction pump.
But this maybe totally wrong.

thank you!
Michalis

[Specmaster]

Can you post links to the units that you are referring to please?

[Hemi345]

Did you mean the 2.01 vs 2.1s ?  If so, check out THIS LINK, 3rd post.

[floobydust]

H/W 2.1S as of May 2019 has two optional MOSFETS for controlling pumps. You would have to populate two Si4800 MOSFETS, two FR107 diodes and three 2-pin connectors.
Something JBC supported by connecting to pad that goes to R11.  JW5026 buck-converter is used to make 3.3VDC.
I'm not sure what the pumps are - vacuum pickup, fume extraction, desoldering vacuum. It must be for an upcoming model and enclosure.

H/W 2.1S predecessor (or banggood copy of it) uses LDO for 3.3VDC power, and has no pump MOSFETS.
H/W 2.01 fixed the LDO overheating, added copper-pour heatsink. Some knock-offs have no copper-pour heatsink
H/W 2.0   had some issues... LDO for 3.3VDC power overheats due to bad copper-pour. Look at the tab heatsinking.

You have be very careful to see which controller version they are selling with the station. The lower priced stations come with older controllers, despite "STM32 OLED" etc.
Banggood seems to be selling crappy controllers that are a cheapened copy of KSGER controllers.

I think these are the correct pics to see the differences.

H/W 2.1S BUGS
-High parasitic drain 0.28mA from CR2032 battery. It basically eats batteries, which seem to be needed only for the RTC. Remove resistor R10 10k from MCU VBAT to GND (thanks to John Salt  Youtube vid).

-He also had problems with the encoder's tabs shorting to PCB, through the solder mask. Bad keepout.

-The encoder housing is not grounded. It should be to deal with ESD hits and I use that node as a (no drill) tie point for safety ground on the aluminium front panel/case.

-There is only cap C8 across the 30V P-ch MOSFET as a snubber. So -ve spikes from the heater/cable inductance (~4uH) are still there.

- Cold Junction compensation does not seem to be working, it's stuck at 41°C regardless of voltage at the NTC pin. I'm still troubleshooting.

edit: added bug list

[michalism]

Thank you floodydust!!!

Indeed I have bought one of these from Banggood, it was DOA and now I'm fighting with them for a full refund which they refuse to do! I bought it when it was at ~40€, with the aluminum handle.

I will buy another from KSGER official store in Aliexpress, I hope I have better luck with that.
Thank you very much, your post is really helpfull.

[Specmaster]

My controller from Banggood was useless, the Quicko 952 from Aliexpress have been good ones.

Sent from my POT-LX1 using Tapatalk

[floobydust]

S/W 2.10 options for the vacuum desoldering pump (on H/W 2.1S):

13. Desolder Mode -> INCHING or VALVE
INCHING mode, the handle shake switch turns on a vacuum pump motor, for T seconds.
VALVE mode, the handle shake switch turns on a vacuum solenoid valve, and the pump motor- which runs for T seconds extra for the reservoir tank.
I think you can connect a (wand) pushbutton in place of the shake switch.
14. Pump Set -> On Time -> 30 sec.

edit: Found a schematic for adding these pump features to older controller boards and more info.

Older STM32 T12 2.1S controller blank PCB is available as a shared project over at PCBWay, if you want to build one. Same schematic as what I posted earlier.


I find the KSGER store on Aliexpress is expensive, but the quality is very good for the stations. A few accessories, like the stands are a complete ripoff and don't fit anything very good.

Aluminium FX9501 handle is really good. The T12 tip does not stick out so far like other handles, so it (handle) gets warmer. It's aluminium tube and silicone cable and grip.
Have not found a stand that really works well, it has a 16mm collar 2mm thick at the end. I might have to CNC machine something.

[michalism]

Thanks for the info, I will probably buy the board from PCBWay for experimentation.

I see what you say about the Aliexpress KSGER Shop, but after my bad experience with Banggood, I want to minimise the possibility of receiving another bad item. So I am willing to pay the little extra.
Ebay is even more expensive.

if you don't mind, I'd like to ask your opinion which station to buy. I do not intent to buy any accesories at this point.
I'm opting for the station with the power supply included, even though according to some reviews it may be a little bit too noisy from an EMF point of view.
Plus the plastic case model seems to have better spacing, while the aluminum case is a bit tight.
Also, is it worth buying the latest model, or go for the previous version that comes with a better price?

[floobydust]

Best to start a new thread about the T12 clone stations from the KSGER store, and leave this one to the controller differences.

[michalism]

Best to start a new thread about the T12 clone stations from the KSGER store, and leave this one to the controller differences.

Sure. I will do that. Thank you for the advice and valuable support!

Sent from my SM-G965F using Tapatalk

[Monkeyboi]

Just purchased one of these units.  H/W V2.1s  F/W V2.10

My unit displays J02 (0) in the bottom left corner of the screen no matter what tip type is inserted into the handle.

All tip types are enabled in the TIP menu (with a tick) but there doesn't appear to be any way to manually select the tip type?
When scrolling through the TIPS menu the J02 tip is inverse highlighted compared to the other tips.

I'm suspecting the controller might be faulty but thought I'd check here before taking further action in case it's 1D10T user error.

[exe]

There is no tip autodetection, user has to select the right one from the menu. This process is not very intuitive, please check the manual to see how to do it: http://www.thedefpom.com/randomfiles/KSGER_T12_Soldering_Station.pdf

[Monkeyboi]

Thanks for the link, however the menu selections are quite different from those in defpom's guide.
There is no tip selection as such in the menu of the unit.  When you select [05. Tip ] from the main menu items it takes you to the Tip Enable submenu where you are presented with a list of tips numbered -
[01] [ N1-06 ] [tick symbol]
[02] [ N1-08 ] [tick symbol]
.
.
.
[32] [  J02    ] [tick symbol inverted colour]  - controller stuck in this setting and can't be changed. 
[33] [  JL02  ] [X]
.
.
.
[92] [ CF40Z ] [X]
[93] [ USER1 ] [X]
.
.
[98] [ USER6] [X]
In this menu the control allows you to scroll through all 98 tip types. Pressing the rotary control knob briefly toggles between enabled (ticked) or disabled X, but the tip type can't be changed in this unit.

Any suggestions?

[exe]

Ask the seller for help.

[Monkeyboi]

Thanks exe.  I sent them an email.  Hopefully there will be helpful reply forthcoming soon. 

[exe]

Please keep us updated. Just in case, on my station, the tip selection menu is activated by pressing down the knob AND twisting it clockwise. Then release the knob, pick the right tip, and press the knob again. Did you try this?

[vns]

I received today one, I purchased it in Aliexpress from the official KSGER store, I got the 2.1s version. software version in mine is 2.12. So far so good, everything seems to work as expected.

[Alokin]

Your need to rotate clockwise while keeping pressed on the main view  and it will let you select the tip between those enabled in settings

[Dokroma]

I received today one, I purchased it in Aliexpress from the official KSGER store, I got the 2.1s version. software version in mine is 2.12. So far so good, everything seems to work as expected.

Mind uploading some photos of the outside and inside? Also, is your back mains switch LED or just plain red/black?

[Alokin]

Regarding the pump, it is a desoldering pump, they sell it for 80+€ on the official AliExpress store but it is a simple 12v vacuum pump worth 15€ (or less) of 80kpa with some capacitors soldered on it and a metal retention to screw it to a case. They label it 24v as it is supposed to be wired on the PSU board. The desoldering gun with the reservoir should be  be a generic one.
I guess that if you want to add it, the stock case would not be big enough to fit it.

[tfmeier]

I'm interested in the KSGER T12 but see there are different versions of the FW. I can buy a model with V2.1 for about A$70 whereas the latest v3.1 goes for about $110. Yes there are other differences like tips included etc. but v3.1 is more expensive. Also there are different hardware versions around. I don't mind spending a bit more as most reviews I heard conclude that this is a solid station and will last for a long time.

Since I couldn't find any info I was wondering what the difference was between firmware v2.1 and v3.1. Or if anyone has been able to upgrade the firmware from an earlier version to v3.1 how was that process

[exe]

I'd ask the seller.

But for such a big price difference I wouldn't bother with updated version of the station...

[dreamcat4]

don't mind spending a bit more as most reviews I heard conclude that this is a solid station and will last for a long time

For the sort of money you should be looking at getting a WOKA station instead

https://shop69897254.taobao.com/shop/view_shop.htm

Or one of the JBC clones.

[exe]

don't mind spending a bit more as most reviews I heard conclude that this is a solid station and will last for a long time

For the sort of money you should be looking at getting a WOKA station instead

https://shop69897254.taobao.com/shop/view_shop.htm

Or one of the JBC clones.

What's the difference between ksger and woka?

[cosmin1]

About this KSGER controller schematic... the diode connected from white wire to GND, would be the temperature transmitter, used instead of the 10k NTC?