Spotted a hot mic trick at a repair shop in Austin last month

A guy was using a cheap USB microscope to find cold solder joints on a motherboard, saved himself an hour of probing. Has anyone else tried that instead of a multimeter for visual inspections?

3 comments

3 Comments

sullivan.spencer25d ago

I mean, maybe it's just me, but I kinda feel like that's overcomplicating something simple. Using a USB microscope to spot a cold joint sounds like a lot of setup for something a multimeter can check in seconds. Idk, I'd rather just probe the pins and see the voltage drop than try to eyeball some tiny crack on a board. Plus, those cheap microscopes have bad lighting and you'll miss a lot of issues that a multimeter catches right away.

charliestone25d ago

fr fr though those cheap usb microscopes are a total gamble with their lighting, half the time you're just squinting at a blurry blob. multimeter tells you the facts without all that hassle, way more reliable for checking joints fast.

sanchez.pat24d ago

Yeah that "squinting at a blurry blob" part hit home. I ended up just sticking to a cheap multimeter for checking joints, way less headache than trying to mess with a microscope light that keeps flickering. Worked for me at least, what do you use for tough joints you can't get a probe on?