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Best ESR meter for in-circuit (even if it is not accurate)

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RiRaRi:
IMHO ESR70 is better because it measures at different frequencys. Is it worth the money?

RiRaRi:
Why exactly would you need different testing voltage in order to test ESR? Which voltage to select and when

kripton2035:
for the voltages, you need less than 0.3V not to activate any schottky component on your board. if you don't have any, a voltage less than 0.6V is ok, again not to activate any semiconductor on the board. so the in-circuit test is more accurate.
for the frequency, 100Hz 1Khz and 100Khz are enough. I don't see the interest in other frequencies for esr testing.
... and I almost only measure it at 100KHz except when it is a large capacitor the de5000 forces me to use 100 or 120Hz

graybeard:
This thread got mt interesting in looking at the Peak ESR70.   Page 10 of the ESR70 manual there is a graph of typical ESR values.   I recreated it so I could put it up in my lab.  I am sharing it here.

Shock:
My personal preference is to use a separate ESR meter for quick test use inciruit. Easier to grab, always setup for 2 wire measurement with the right probes. I want to avoid damaging my LCR meter so an alternate meter with superior input protection helps prevent that.

I have the older Bob Parker Australian sold kitset versions. EA/Dick Smith (original), Silicon Chip/Dick Smith and newer Altronics (MkII). They work very well and easy to read, zero and operate. Diode modded they have robust input protection. 100mV test voltage, 10 milliohm resolution. Since these came in kit form, full schematics and detailed explanation of the circuit are provided. Fully repairable.

The latest Bob Parker designed Blue 2 has 1 milliohm resolution, 50mV test voltage. There is an optional audio/talking version. Doesn't mention if the diode extra input protection mod can be added, it's 50V max despite that. https://evbesrmeter.pt/blue2esr.htm

Alternately Jay_Diddy_B's esr adapter project which I also own, includes robust diode input protection, 2 and 4 wire testing and 100mV test voltage. It works with a multimeter so 1 milliohm or greater resolution possible depending on multimeter.

Edit:

I like the DE5000 as well, just not for incircuit testing. The Capacitor Wizard is an analog meter which doesn't work well for me comparing small measurements, it's threshold feature seems not necessary on a digital meter.

The Peak has discharge and capacitance features but I don't find that necessary as I discharge caps myself and own a multimeter for capacitance. Mainly I'm just not a fan of miniaturized pieces of test equipment with small displays and non standardized probe sockets.

My previous ramblings on this subject can be found in this thread:
https://www.eevblog.com/forum/testgear/low-cost-cap-tester-esr-lcr-2018/msg1548833/#msg1548833

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