Products > Test Equipment
IC testers, do they work?
retiredfeline:
:popcorn:
Fungus:
--- Quote from: Someone on August 08, 2023, 07:22:50 am ---
--- Quote from: Fungus on August 08, 2023, 06:34:30 am ---
--- Quote from: Someone on August 08, 2023, 12:33:30 am ---Probably more correctly described as a IC identifier rather than a tester, there are no pass/fail criteria or performance measurement as would be associated with testing.
--- End quote ---
I imagine a chip has to be working for it to be identified correctly.
--- End quote ---
"working" enough to match logic patterns does not say it is working to datasheet specifications.
Dictionary definition of test vs identification matches what I wrote. Or do you want to come up with your own new definitions of "test" and "identification".
--- End quote ---
To "identify" a chip all you need to do is look at the number printed on the top.
These devices are doing much more than that.
Someone:
--- Quote from: Fungus on August 08, 2023, 11:14:18 am ---
--- Quote from: Someone on August 08, 2023, 07:22:50 am ---
--- Quote from: Fungus on August 08, 2023, 06:34:30 am ---
--- Quote from: Someone on August 08, 2023, 12:33:30 am ---Probably more correctly described as a IC identifier rather than a tester, there are no pass/fail criteria or performance measurement as would be associated with testing.
--- End quote ---
I imagine a chip has to be working for it to be identified correctly.
--- End quote ---
"working" enough to match logic patterns does not say it is working to datasheet specifications.
Dictionary definition of test vs identification matches what I wrote. Or do you want to come up with your own new definitions of "test" and "identification".
--- End quote ---
To "identify" a chip all you need to do is look at the number printed on the top.
These devices are doing much more than that.
--- End quote ---
Watch the video above, presenter said all quad input FET opamps were simply identified as "TL084". Most of those devices are not doing more than a cursory low speed functional match.
Can they cycle through some states and guess what sort of device is attached? yes. Can they cycle some states and check pass/fail against a specific pattern? yes. But thats about it.
ledtester liked out to a "fancy" example which explains the methods behind it and documents the details. You're just posting inflammatory crap.
TERRA Operative:
I have a Retro Chip Tester Pro too and it's great.
Occasionally I find a chip that is not supported, but so far it does the job without any fuss.
Someone:
--- Quote from: David Aurora on August 08, 2023, 10:49:00 am ---
--- Quote from: Someone on August 08, 2023, 10:06:45 am ---Except it's not even a go/no-go as they dont specify what has been tested. A diode test on a multimeter generates some measurements which can be directly applied to the end use (screening for matched forward voltage or checking for excessive reverse leakage are both practical on a multimeter) but a widget that says "diode*"
* probably.
Is not a test. Look at the good link above
--- Quote from: ledtester on August 08, 2023, 03:08:15 am ---For a tester that makes analog measurements on the outputs, have a look at the Tauntek IC tester:
http://tauntek.com/LogICTester-low-cost-logic-chip-tester.htm
It's just a pcb + pre-programmed microcontrollers. You'll have to supply some commonly available parts to build it.
List of supported devices: http://tauntek.com/ctchiplist.pdf
A blog post about it:
https://www.barbouri.com/2021/09/13/building-the-tauntek-logic-ic-tester/
--- End quote ---
A basic tester that has some limits etc, very different from a device which tells you what it thinks the chip is (identifies).
--- End quote ---
Again, you're looking at this from an overly ambitious perspective. My analogy with the diode test was precisely that when you're quickly sweeping through with one as a go/no go test you AREN'T using it to match forward voltages and so on. It's just "Is it blatantly fucked? Yes? In the bin it goes". Same with these cheap IC testers.
As a quick example of both the analogy and the actual use case- on one job today a power supply board was shutting down. I had seen the exact same fault on another unit yesterday, so the first thing I did was probe the rectifier diodes I had seen fail before and found a shorted one as expected. I don't remotely care about the precise forward voltage when using the meter for this, all I want to know is if the diodes are basically OK or not. In the case of the IC tester, earlier tonight I had a channel strip from a mixing console up on the bench. On these particular strips I've seen one particular IC kill audio on a few of them, so if one goes down now I'll routinely pull that IC and throw it in the tester. If it fails I can replace it on the spot while I'm at the studio and the channel will likely spring back to life. No need to wire up the channel with a bench supply, set up a scope, etc., if it's as simple as a bad IC I know and it's sorted in a minute.
--- End quote ---
If you are looking for shorts, why bother with diode test? Just use continuity mode and listen for beep. You framed the discussion around diode test.... which is not comparable to these automated IC "testers". I'll suggest they're much closer to continuity beepers in information content than a diode test mode.
So when you say a "tester" which model/style are you referring to? what information does it provide? is its documentation available online?
There are a range of products out there with wildly different capabilities, the device you refer to may well have much more intelligence than the example the OP is asking about. What passes as "ok" in these cheap testers doesnt always function in real circuits, thats the biggest problem as it provides a false sense of security/validation.
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