USB Volts & Current Tester

[arcaxis]

I like gadgets, particularly when they're cheap. I bought a USB voltage and current tester from Amazon and it arrived today. I've curious about the current draw of a few USB devices I have and it was impractical to use a standard DMM. Below is a quick check of the volts and current draw of a Tascam US-144mkII. In my haste I neglected to connect up a condenser mic to see what it did with phantom power enabled.... tomorrow if I get a chance.
X-DRAGON USB 2.0 Digital Multimeter Power Meter Tester Current and Voltage Monitor, Test Speed of Chargers, Cables, Capacity of Power Banks (7 Modes Monitor, dual USB ports, Accuracy) - - Amazon.com
There are other manufacturers of similar testers. This one had decent reviews.

 

[CoolCat]

very cool...

i like the gadgets,
off topic, theres one gadget that supposedly can translate the electric usage to $$$ amounts, just plug it in the wall.

so 5v, 370 ma on your USB 2?

also wonder what the effect of the phantom and headphone amp all running , all the preamps being used etc.

 

[spitzer]

Now this is interesting. The current draw is close to the specified maximum (500 mA for USB2). I would also be interested to see does it change anything if you plug things in, activate everything like phantom power etc.

This got me wondering whether these USB-powered things need to be designed differently (possibly non-optimally sound-wise) etc. because of the power limitations seeing that it's THAT close to the limit.

 

[Mack Caster]

Very nice Mark. At this time, I think the only devices I have that are USB powered is my C90 webcam and my Logic Headset I use for video conferencing. I still may check into your gizmo as it never hurts to be able to trouble shoot and rule something out. Plus, what man doesn't like gizmos!

 

[Bobbsy]

Darn! I want one! Count me as another request to see what happens when you load up the system.

 

[Pinky]

Although this isn't an exact real-time measurement, Windows does report what the device is estimating its usage to be in device mangler. It's handy in case your computer and/or usb hub has limited power for the ports in use, or you want to verify like I did that the audio interface is on its own hub.

 

[rob aylestone]

I've got one of those, and I must admit the current consumption of different devices is quite surprising.

 

[Mack Caster]

Although this isn't an exact real-time measurement, Windows does report what the device is estimating its usage to be in device mangler. It's handy in case your computer and/or usb hub has limited power for the ports in use, or you want to verify like I did that the audio interface is on its own hub.

Crap! Now I don't get/need a new gizmo! "KKKKKKKKKAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN"! <-- Quote from James Kirk on Star Trek.

 

[mjbphotos]

That probably would have told me that the charger that came with my phone was delivering minimal current - phone would buzz and say it was charging, but coming morning, no change in %. I just grabbed a different USB charger off my shelf, one that came with one of my cameras.

 

[arcaxis]

A freebie utility USBDview can also look at current draw on USB devices. This is a very good utility for troubleshooting USB issues.
My use for the 'gadget' extended further than just monitoring USB on a computer. I have a couple lithium battery packs, as well as some DC charger/adapters with USB connections that I wanted to be able to check if I thought there was a problem.