The Only Cable Tester Buying Guide You Will Ever Need
As the name suggests, a cable tester is a device used for testing the condition of cables; whether they’re working properly or not. These are usually handheld devices on which you attach the questionable cable, press a few buttons and initiate testing. After a short period of time, you get straightforward feedback and you know what action to take next. Cable testers are an essential tool used during installation of electrical connections such as telephone lines, electric guitars, stereo systems and other electrical devices that make the use of cables. Also, cable testing is performed as a significant part of maintenance and setup processes.
Why are they mainly used?
We’ve all experienced a cable problem at least once in our everyday lives. Whether it’s the TV, the laptop charger, or even the mobile phone charger, at some point a cable in our homes has died. And you know how dangerous that can be; it can burn down not just the entire electrical installation in the house, but it can also destroy the attached device; phone, laptop or other. As a measure of precaution, you should do occasional check-ups of cables with a cable tester.
Basically, with a cable tester, you’d be checking one of two conditions: whether there are intended or unintended connections. If the tester shows an intended connection between two points, then it’s said that this connection has an “open circuit”. The opposite situation is when there’s an unintended connection, and this one is often described as “short circuit”. To make things even clearer, if the electrical connection has an open circuit then the cable won’t work properly, and if tThe tester shows the presence of a short circuit, then the cable, not just that won’t work properly, but it will also cause damage to electrical devices connected to it and other cables hooked up to it.
Types of cable testers:
There are a lot of different types of cables we use in our everyday lives, and therefore, the offer of cable testers is consequently as large. The most common ones are network cable testers and audio cable testers. Network cable testers are used for devices like computers, telephone cables, and other types of devices related to communications. The main purpose of these testers is to ensure data runs smoothly through them. There are three main types of these testers and they’re divided into groups according to use: verification testers – used for verifying whether a cable is working right or not, qualification testers – used for repairs of existing cables and certification testers – which are the most sophisticated devices and are used to confirm whether a cable meets industrial standards for a specific cabling structure.
Audio cable testers, on the other hand, serve to install and maintain audio cables, and are an inevitable part of equipment for sound technicians and musicians, especially when they need to set up a scene and perform on stage.
In conclusion, whatever you need a cable tester for, make sure you can make a difference between the basic types of testers and their purpose. You can find them in stores that sell electric equipment and online too; just make sure the seller is reliable.
