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Supported hardware
Any meter works with NextProbe through manual entry. These models connect over USB and stream their readings to the bench, so each reading takes itself once it holds steady.
| Meter | How it connects | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| NextProbe USB Meter | One USB cable to the computer | Tested. The bench sets its mode and range for each step and reads it over the cable. |
| UNI-T UT61E+ | USB cable (HID) | A dial meter: you turn the dial to the mode each step asks for. |
NextProbe USB Meter
The meter in the bench kit. Everything goes over its one USB cable: the bench sets the mode and range, then reads the meter while you probe.
- The meter comes set to 115200, the speed the bench uses. If the bench can't find it, check Utility → Serial on the meter still reads 115200.
- Plug the USB port on the back of the meter into the computer. On Windows the CH340 driver installs itself; on a Mac nothing needs installing.
- The meter connects by itself and appears under Connected. If two meters share the same kind of USB chip, the bench asks each one who it is and picks the right one.
From then on the bench sets the mode and range for each step and checks the meter has changed mode before it takes a reading. Leave the meter on its front panel; the bench hands the panel back when it disconnects.
A few habits of the meter that the bench deals with for you, which you may notice:
- After a mode change the meter takes about a second to settle, so the first reading of a step comes a moment later.
- Over USB it updates two to three times a second whatever its rate setting says, so a reading settles in about a second.
- In temperature mode it pauses for about three seconds every ten minutes to update its reference.
Dial meters
On a dial meter such as the UT61E+, the step names the mode and you turn the dial. The bench reads the mode from every reading the meter sends and refuses readings from the wrong mode, so a voltage can't be saved on a diode step. The Reading panel waits until the dial matches.
Something not working?
See Troubleshooting: meters, or get help.