Electrolytic capacitors are annoying.

There's just not one test that gives you a definite answer.... Is it any wonder that once you find one or two bad ones, you just change the whole batch??

[@JonPaul]

I appreciate your video, it's important to realize that there are different ways of testing and diff testers can reveal diff results. But a decent Atlas tester is not expensive, I can't imagine doing just an esr test on a cap, that's no good. Next do transistors and how they can pass the diode\voltage\atlas test but you put them on a curve tracer and find it's faulty.

[@DeadKoby]

Hopefully I'll have an OG leakage tester soon...

[@James_Bowie]

Need to compare apples with apples. ESR is frequency dependent. It's very large at low frequencies, decreases very quickly as frequency increases, and continues to decrease at a much slower rate as frequency continues to increase. So need to know what test frequency is being used by each meter.

[@DeadKoby]

There's no 1 test that gives you the whole picture.

[@harrymartin1661]

Interesting but before testing Cs you must discharge them. And looking only for the ESR is not enough. First capacity then ESR and after this thinking if it is posible...

[@DeadKoby]

Yeah. I just wanted to point out the differences in testers. If you have just one type, you may miss something.

[@harrymartin1661]

@@DeadKoby For those differences you are absolut right! Sometimes I ask me who is programming them...

[@nevillegoddard4966]

Good one mate! Yeah, it pays to know the limitations of your test equipment that's for sure! There's a multitester from banggood the guitologist uses thar gives up to doubly high capacitance values to leaky capacitors! There's possibly no ideal capaitor tester that tests every relevant failure mode, although that tester with the colourful graphic on the front picked it one.

[@DeadKoby]

The black tester will do that too. Honestly, the "component identifier" is one of the most useful things I own.

[@jjsant3250]

I have the same ESR and small "everything" tester and get similar results. I also have a real DC leakage tester (25-400vdc) since that is also needed. Low DCR is the same as DC high leakage so that meter is helpful.

[@DeadKoby]

I'm hoping to come across an old school leakage tester. It will happen some day.

[@LouinVB]

Of course a big cap should show a low ESR. I used to use that tester you are using. I changed & instead use a Capacitor Wizard that gives you a needle indication.

[@DeadKoby]

I like the grey one that does ESR and DCR... very helpful since it works as an in-circuit.

[@foogod4237]

The ESR meter isn't technically wrong. The series resistance (ESR) of a shorted connection actually should be (by definition) very low, which is exactly what it reported. The only real issue is just understanding that ESR isn't the only thing you need to test caps for to tell if they're good or not...

[@DeadKoby]

That was the message I intended to get across

[@JPDESS]

I have the MEC-100 esr tester and those unit are not working properly. Should use the LCR-T7 instead.

[@DeadKoby]

I'll run some additional checks on it before I condemn it.

[@JPDESS]

When you look at their advertising video (for the tester), the demo shows a bad functioning unit.

[@DeadKoby]

On the smaller value caps, the Mesr-100 v2 (mine) shows readings very similar to my grey tester.