MX180TP, but the resolution just vanished?

[Dragony]

Hello,

I have purchased the PSU MX180TP because of the extraordinary 5 digit current metering, which makes an external current meter obsolete for many applications.
In their brochure on page 5 they even give a screenshot of a metering showing 5.9435A and it says in a new headline "Up to 1mV and 0.1mA resolution".

In the manual every sign of this feature just vanished and I just can't get this damn thing to show me more than 0.001A.

Is there a secret hidden knob somewhere? Have I been ripped? I have send aimtti a mail but they did not reply to me (yet?).

Does anyone have this power supply and can tell me whats wrong about it?

Firmware Versions are
Control Main: 1.02
Control PIC: 1.00
Remote Interface: 1.01

[MarkL]

The screen shot must be from the MX100TP.  It has that resolution only on channel 1.

The specs for the MX180TP in the brochure says (page 8 ):

METERING (each Output)
Meter Function: 5 digit voltage and current meters (O/P 1 and O/P 2), 3.5 digit voltage and current meters (O/P 3). Simultaneous display of actual and set values.
Meter Resolution: 1mV/1mA (O/P 1 and O/P 2), 10mV/10mA (O/P 3).
...

[Fungus]

Hello,

I have purchased the PSU MX180TP because of the extraordinary 5 digit current metering, which makes an external current meter obsolete for many applications.
In their brochure on page 5 they even give a screenshot of a metering showing 5.9435A and it says in a new headline "Up to 1mV and 0.1mA resolution".

In the manual every sign of this feature just vanished and I just can't get this damn thing to show me more than 0.001A.

It certainly does:

Is there a secret hidden knob somewhere? Have I been ripped? I have send aimtti a mail but they did not reply to me (yet?).

Maybe you have to set individual display mode. I don't think that many digits fits on screen otherwise.

[Dragony]

I have pushed every button and checked every submenu, but there is just no option to extend to high resolution mode....

I also checked the detailed display (the same as in your screenshot), but I only have 4 digits, like 0.001A.

Either there is something seriously wrong here, or the firmware I have 1.02 is an old one. It is a brand new device I got yesterday and I cant find any firmware upgrades on the internet.

[Fungus]

Beats me 

Some PSUs have unlock keys and firmware-upgrade options for stuff like that but there's nothing listed under "options" on their web site.

http://www.aimtti.us/product-category/dc-power-supplies/aim-mxseries

Wait and see what they say.

[kfitch42]

It is a little troubling that the specs at the end of the brochure (page don't match the body of the brochure (page 5).

Have you tried any of the external interfaces (GPIB, USB, RS-232, LAN/LXI) to see what resolution you get there?

The brochure mentions 7 different ranges, perhaps you only get the extra digit on some of the ranges?

[Dragony]

I got a response from TTI now.

Basically they say "Oops, we made a mistake. Only 1mA resolution for MX180T. Sorry for that."

What makes me angry is that they are advertising this feature with a separate headline, essentially making this a main feature. Bummer...

[MarkL]

The MX180T spec section on page 8 is correct, then.

The MX100T came first and that's when the brochure was written.  Someone wasn't very careful about adjusting the brochure for both models when the MX180T was added.

It's quite misleading in several places.  If you really needed 0.1mA, I think you have a legitimate claim to request an exchange for a MX100T, or even a refund if neither is suitable.

[Robaroni]

I reported on this elsewhere here too. I originally bought the MX180TP and exhausted every avenue trying to get the higher resolution. I got the same oops! from TTI.
Since I only had it a couple of days and it was just as I received it I sent it back to Tequipment for the MX100TP.

One aside, I really like the supply and have run it for a couple of weeks now, I'd say it's well worth the price. Very stable, easy to use and read and very quiet. I don't know the 832's and I know this costs a lot more but for me it's worth it. Its been on virtually since I got it and I even ran a couple of histograms on my 34465A with good results.

I think it would be a real chore getting a supply with the range of the MX180TP to read out 0.0001 amps over 6 amps, the cost would have to go up quite a bit. It depends what you need the supply for, the MX100TP will do about 99% of what I need and I really like the extra digits on chan. one.

Rob