Free 186 More Best Homemade Tools eBook:  
Get 2,000+ tool plans, full site access, and more.

User Tag List

Results 1 to 5 of 5

Thread: Audible resistance checker

  1. #1
    Supporting Member mklotz's Avatar
    Join Date
    Aug 2015
    Location
    LA, CA, USA
    Posts
    3,433
    Thanks
    357
    Thanked 6,378 Times in 2,116 Posts

    mklotz's Tools

    Audible resistance checker

    Audible continuity checkers are very handy. If you have your eyes glued on the probes sitting next to some live capacitor or a rotating fan blade, you may not want to look away to check the reading on the ohm-meter.

    Many modern VOMs have built-in audible continuity checkers. I built one that's just a bit different. Instead of sounding a fixed frequency tone when the circuit is completed, this one sounds a tone the frequency of which is inversely proportional to the resistance in the circuit. It won't replace an ohm-meter unless you have perfect pitch but it will alert you to less than perfect connections.

    This appallingly dull (but blissfully short) video will demonstrate it in action. [The real reason for the video is to record the sound the device makes.] A continuous click proves the device is working and signals an open circuit. When the circuit is completed the device emits a high-pitched tone. At the end of the video I grasp the probes to complete the circuit through my body. As I modulate the pressure applied with my fingers thus changing the resistance of my connection to the probes, you can hear the pitch of the sound change.



    The circuit is very simple. The only active device is a 555 wired as a multi-vibrator. In this role, an RC circuit determines the frequency it emits (which drives the loudspeaker directly). A 1M resistor in this circuit creates the low frequency click when the circuit is open. The probes are wired in parallel with this resistor so, when shorted, the resistor is removed from the circuit and the 10K resistor generates the high-pitched tone. Resistances other than zero and infinity across the 1M produce other effective resistances which generate other frequencies.


    186 More Best Homemade Tools eBook
    Last edited by mklotz; Oct 1, 2017 at 04:17 PM.
    ---
    Regards, Marv

    Home Shop Freeware
    https://www.myvirtualnetwork.com/mklotz

  2. The Following 2 Users Say Thank You to mklotz For This Useful Post:

    Seedtick (Oct 1, 2017), Thatwey Chris (Oct 2, 2017)

  3. #2
    Supporting Member Christophe Mineau's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2014
    Location
    France, Brittany !
    Posts
    913
    Thanks
    825
    Thanked 1,687 Times in 481 Posts

    Christophe Mineau's Tools
    Quote Originally Posted by mklotz View Post
    Instead of sounding a fixed frequency tone when the circuit is completed, this one sounds a tone the frequency of which is proportional to the resistance in the circuit.
    I think you mean in inverse proportion to the resistance of the circuit.

    This is very clever Marv, Sure I will build one !
    I do agree with your concern about inserting probes in a tiny space in a circuit on tension, it can be hazardous to look away ...
    great idea !

    2000 Tool Plans
    Cheers !
    Christophe
    ________________________________________________________________
    Visit my Website : http://www.labellenote.fr/
    Facebook : La Belle Note
    All my personal works, unless explicitly specified, are released under
    Creative Commons BY-NC-SA license.

  4. #3
    Supporting Member rgsparber's Avatar
    Join Date
    Nov 2012
    Location
    Phoenix, AZ
    Posts
    1,278
    Thanks
    733
    Thanked 2,763 Times in 650 Posts

    rgsparber's Tools
    I bet it has a distinctive sound when you put it across an electrolytic or a large inductor.

    Rick
    Rick

  5. #4
    Content Editor
    Supporting Member
    DIYer's Avatar
    Join Date
    Aug 2013
    Posts
    3,056
    Thanks
    772
    Thanked 1,850 Times in 1,652 Posts


    Thanks mklotz! We've added your Audible Resistance Checker to our Testers category,
    as well as to your builder page: mklotz's Homemade Tools. Your receipt:




  6. #5

    Join Date
    Apr 2016
    Posts
    3
    Thanks
    0
    Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts

    Cool continity tester

    Quote Originally Posted by mklotz View Post
    Audible continuity checkers are very handy. If you have your eyes glued on the probes sitting next to some live capacitor or a rotating fan blade, you may not want to look away to check the reading on the ohm-meter.

    Many modern VOMs have built-in audible continuity checkers. I built one that's just a bit different. Instead of sounding a fixed frequency tone when the circuit is completed, this one sounds a tone the frequency of which is inversely proportional to the resistance in the circuit. It won't replace an ohm-meter unless you have perfect pitch but it will alert you to less than perfect connections.

    This appallingly dull (but blissfully short) video will demonstrate it in action. [The real reason for the video is to record the sound the device makes.] A continuous click proves the device is working and signals an open circuit. When the circuit is completed the device emits a high-pitched tone. At the end of the video I grasp the probes to complete the circuit through my body. As I modulate the pressure applied with my fingers thus changing the resistance of my connection to the probes, you can hear the pitch of the sound change.



    The circuit is very simple. The only active device is a 555 wired as a multi-vibrator. In this role, an RC circuit determines the frequency it emits (which drives the loudspeaker directly). A 1M resistor in this circuit creates the low frequency click when the circuit is open. The probes are wired in parallel with this resistor so, when shorted, the resistor is removed from the circuit and the 10K resistor generates the high-pitched tone. Resistances other than zero and infinity across the 1M produce other effective resistances which generate other frequencies.

    ilt one like this and it worked for finding solder bridges and even used pencil lines to create resistances and water lines .



    186 More Best Homemade Tools eBook

Thread Information

Users Browsing this Thread

There are currently 1 users browsing this thread. (0 members and 1 guests)

Bookmarks

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •