Page 2 - What's a multimeter? How to use it to test your PSU rails? (howto)

That tester sounds nice, dirtfarmer, but personally, I like to see what the actual measurements are... plus, what knod of load is the tester putting on the PSU? It can't be a whole heck of a lot, because it will need to be able to test a 200w as readily as a 600w monster.

simple and easy is some time better, at least it would tell you with out a lot of messing around if it good or bad
and really that all you need to know

i dont see how those testers can put a significant load, if any load? on the power supply! this guide shows you how to measure voltages accurately. those ezy testers dont even show if our 12v is 12v, or if it's a little high say 12.3v or if it's starting to struggle at 11.8v

this guide shows how to accurately measure voltages under the load of the pc. this is an accurate test to see if the psu can handle the pc's load. if a psu cant provide enough amps/watts then output voltages will go down. if the regulation is crap then votages will fluctuate. the SMALLEST amounts of this can be easily seen on a multimeter but only massive amounts will ever be visible on an ezy tester. it will just have "ok" leds lit up unless a major fluctuation happens.

ezy testers are about as useless as software readings. even if the ezy tester had big resistor banks to load the psu, which could be adjusted to give a specific load for the psu (which they DO NOT HAVE) they dont even have a numeric display!!! no-one should ever buy one! buy a multimeter instead.

edit: i forgot to mention that you cant test a power supply with little or no load and then expect it to perform the same with bigger loads. This is another reason a basic digital multimeter used as described in the guide is a great way to test a psu.

Dude, he hasn't been back since that last post, three months ago...

Hey, guys,

I've recently written a two-parter on the topic of "Accurate Voltage Measurements." That's why it can be associated with this sticky.

The first part explains in great detail the methodology that is used to measure the voltages (Winbond Super I/O chip) and how this feedback becomes evaluated and then ultimately interpreted and reported. Specific scenarios where misreported voltages might occur are outlined. Furthermore, the everlasting vCore dilemma is covered. Then you will find one of the popular myths being debunked. As a closure, techniques to measure your PSU rails are described. All in all, this part gives a sense of what to anticipate and expect from the upcoming half.

The second part is a bit "tougher." The article is jump-started covering the basics of VCC (Vcore) measuring; how to do it, why, when, which is the correct way to do it enlisting a couple of possible techniques. Moreover, we will emerge into cutting-edge VCC measuring strategies. We will emphasize on the VRM circuitry and won't leave out the Super I/O chips, yet again. Finally, I will show you a real-world applicable practice on how to professionally measure the VCC on an Intel Core2 processor.

First segment: An Introduction to Accurate Voltage Measurements.

Second segment: Advanced Study of Accurate Voltage Measurements.

Thanks.