Gauss Meters

[Woodenspoke]

I wanted to get a better undersatanding of what gauss meter is best for checking magnets. Prices range from $150 to over 2K. I guess the question would be easier if I said what is the cheapest meter you would recommend that does the job. I have been looking at the FW Bell 5100 series.

Any recommendations on a brand/model or what should I be looking for when I buy a Gauss meter. I dont want to start off with a meter that will need to be replaced down the road.

[J S Moore]

I think this is the one that will garner the most recommendations.

http://www.carlsenmelton.com/gm200a/gm200a.htm

[kevinT]

+1

+ 1 It's a great little device.

[Woodenspoke]

I think this is the one that will garner the most recommendations.

http://www.carlsenmelton.com/gm200a/gm200a.htm

I was wondering why you would choose a meter that does not have a probe?

This unit which can be had on ebay for less than $260 has a probe
http://www.trifield.com/gauss_meter.htm

If you had to check individual magnets on a bobbin would non probe Gauss meter like the one you linked to do as well.

I think you have confused me even more. I do want a unit that can do everything even trouble shoot existing pickups. My searh for info on Gauss meters has turned up very little on its use and the different kinds available. Other than point and read what am I missing?

[belwar]

+1 to the GMA-200. I've used it to measure a boatloat of magnets. Works greate ven after dropping it :>

[Possum]

...

I have the AlphaLab gaussmeter myself. It does have advantages like the probe can go into really tiny spaces. The downside is the lead is long and always gets twisted up, plus the hall sensor on the lead died last year, $80 replacement fee, but the good side is it CAN be replaced instead of throwing the meter away. There used to be a guy who made clones of it on Ebay for $100....

[J S Moore]

Oooooh, that one looks nice. Which do you have, the Laboratory one or the basic?

[JGundry]

I have the Carlsen Melton meter and it is very nice. But I have to warn you that mine went goofy two weeks ago and eventually went dead. I took it apart and the battery terminal arrangement is cheapo crap. It has super thin pressure contact tabs that conducts the power from the battery clip to the printed circuit board. One broke on my unit and I think likely will with other people sooner or later. Luckily I was able to fix it by soldering a pigtail wire on it as a jumper wire. If this happens to you will need to reset the meter by holding down the power button the while you put the new batteries in. This seems to zero out the meter.

[MKB]

Don't know if it has been mentioned here, but you can build your own with a linear Hall Effect device, a few resistors, and a surplus panel meter. It may not be calibrated for an accurate absolute gauss reading, but is very useful for comparing magnetic strength between different magnets and determining polarity. I built one from the linear Hall device in a Melexis sample kit about 10 years ago, and it still works great. If anyone is interested I can try and find more info.

[Woodenspoke]

Don't know if it has been mentioned here, but you can build your own with a linear Hall Effect device, a few resistors, and a surplus panel meter. It may not be calibrated for an accurate absolute gauss reading, but is very useful for comparing magnetic strength between different magnets and determining polarity. I built one from the linear Hall device in a Melexis sample kit about 10 years ago, and it still works great. If anyone is interested I can try and find more info.

I have that info already thanks. If you Google Gauss meters for pickups this is what I found http://www.guitarattack.com/winder/gauss.htm. I was hoping for something I didnt have to make as I have many other projects pending as well. Also I wanted to go all out and get what I needed right off. Having it calibrated seems like a prudent thing given all the talk about magnetic charge VS tone mentioned so many times on this forum.

So I don't see any consensus about probe VS non probe except that a probe gets into tight spaces (assembled pickups) and replacing a probe is cheaper than the whole meter. That would be +2 for a probe model.

My other question will every gauss meter work for pickups. I keep seeing low sensitivity (lab model) and standard sensitivity (my words here). Should I care?

[Woodenspoke]

Here is the Alpha Meter on eBay AC/DC version for $256

http://cgi.ebay.com/AC-DC-MAGNETOMET...1%7C240%3A1318

[Clint Searcy]

I use this Alpha labs meter. They are about $275 new and will do every thing we pickup guys need a meter to do. Having a probe can help you pin point a problem magnet. I wouldn't want a meter without a probe. The down side is, as Possum mentioned, the cord is a bit fickle.

[Woodenspoke]

I use this Alpha labs meter. They are about $275 new and will do every thing we pickup guys need a meter to do. Having a probe can help you pin point a problem magnet. I wouldn't want a meter without a probe. The down side is, as Possum mentioned, the cord is a bit fickle.

I just did a quick search for this meter and came up as this is the lesser of the two Alpha meters we have been discussing. For $260 the price I have seen for this meter at the Manufacturers web site and the $256 ebay price for the lab model ($380 otherwise)I will have to do a bit more research into these two before I make a decision. Especially the AC/DC option seems a bit easier to stomach for long sessions when checking blocks of magnets.

Even thought the Carlton sounds like an excellent meter, but the additional $100 does not seem like it is the better deal if the meters are close in accuracy.

[Woodenspoke]

Well I made a decision just after my last post, mostly it was price but quality was important too. Thanks to the few who did respond. Sorry it wasn't a post about pickup theory everyone could fight over.

The Alpha meters were selling on eBay, and as I posted on this thread the price went down, So figuring that the ebay "make an offer button" would work given the price drop (it did), I got the Lab model with the AC adapter for $230 shipped (maybe I should have tried a lower price?). On Alpha's web site this retails for over $400 (with AC) plus shipping. Since it was from Alpha directly It comes with a 1 year warranty. The only thing it is a B stock unit but when do I care about looks or if someone touched it. I will live with the cable issue for now, seems like a minor inconvenience.

[Clint Searcy]

Well I made a decision just after my last post, mostly it was price but quality was important too. Thanks to the few who did respond. Sorry it wasn't a post about pickup theory everyone could fight over.

The Alpha meters were selling on eBay, and as I posted on this thread the price went down, So figuring that the ebay "make an offer button" would work given the price drop (it did), I got the Lab model with the AC adapter for $230 shipped (maybe I should have tried a lower price?). On Alpha's web site this retails for over $400 (with AC) plus shipping. Since it was from Alpha directly It comes with a 1 year warranty. The only thing it is a B stock unit but when do I care about looks or if someone touched it. I will live with the cable issue for now, seems like a minor inconvenience.

Wow, Great deal! Wish I had bought it!