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Sanwa N-501D

Osmium

Jan 28, 2013
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Picked up a Sanwa N-501D multimeter at a country market yesterday. Meter movement itself seems ok - but the instrument needs a bit of tlc.

Anyhow, I was wondering if anyone has any details about this model? Specs, user manual and so on. Google shows me some pictures but not a lot else.

There were apparently a number of models called N-501"something" - The N-501 used both a 1.5v battery and a 9v battery. Specs on another model indicate a 22.5v battery. My N-501D has space for a 9v but no connection and seems to indicate that only a single 1.5v battery is required.

Any help appreciated.

-Roy
 

quantumtangles

Dec 19, 2012
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Last edited:

Osmium

Jan 28, 2013
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Thank you, quantumtangles. It is a lovely meter.

The Japanese site suggests only 1 x 1.5v battery required. The English site says 3. My meter has space for 1 x 1.5v with connectors. Then a further space which would fit a 9v battery (as for the N-501) - but no connectors. I'll open it up on the weekend and check out what's going on battery-connector wise.

I was attracted by the case and then the words "taut band suspension" and 2uA full scale... nice engineering! Looking forward to bringing it back to fully operational. And I'll oil the wooden sides - should look terrific!

-Roy
 

Osmium

Jan 28, 2013
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Curiouser and curiouser...

Opened up the meter and discovered a permanently installed (= soldered in) pair of batteries. AA size. In series. Markings all in Japanese, except for "2300" in bold across each. Measured around 2v on my Fluke for the series pair. I'm guessing they're dead - but no idea yet what they are supposed to be voltage-wise.

-Roy
 

Osmium

Jan 28, 2013
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Then again, since the specs from the radiomuseum link indicate "3 x 1.5v" batteries, it's a fair bet that they are 1.5v types.
 

Osmium

Jan 28, 2013
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I managed to obtain a user manual from the kind folks at Sanwa in Japan. It's in Japanese - but I'll work on that...

I extracted the schematic which is very useful:

N-501D_Schematic.jpg


-Roy
 

quantumtangles

Dec 19, 2012
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Thanks for posting the schematic.

These analogue multimeters are still uniquely useful because digital multimeters are useless in so far as transient fluctuations in voltage are concerned. The screen might just about flicker on a digital MM during a rapid voltage spike, but you really need an analogue MM needle to flick up and down to get any real idea of the scale of fluctuations in real time. At least that holds true in relation to the cheap DMMs that I use :D
 

Windt

Nov 13, 2020
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Nov 13, 2020
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Hi everyone.
I just bought a Sanwa multimeter N-501D and it came without the owners manual.
Does anybody know where I can find the manual for this model?
Any help is appreciated.
Regards.
Windt
 

Ubiratan55

Jan 18, 2021
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Jan 18, 2021
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I just got one yesterday and it is almost perfect. My battery is 1,2 volts recharchable and the 9v one. I just don t know how to recharge it. I don t know how to send a picture of mine.
 

CristianoFerreira

Sep 27, 2021
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Sep 27, 2021
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SANWA N-501 Rotary SW Type Ultra Sensitive Tester (175X215X100)
An ultra-sensitive tester that uses a 2 µA meter. The internal resistance is 500kΩ / V DC, which is comparable to Barbol. In AC, the input impedance is 1MΩ and does not change in any range. Adopting an integrated SW rotary plate, the measuring range is well balanced and accurate measurement (reading) of voltage from minute to high voltage is possible.
The batteries are 006p and Type C batteries, which are relatively easy to obtain.
The board that looks like a printed circuit board is a rotating SW board and the wiring of the parts is a lead wire method. It is a tester with a well-designed SW cut. Interval split is a new flow in series 3-6.
However, this tester is a little iffy when considering usability. Due to the high sensitivity meter, the meter's responsiveness is poor and takes time to measure. This lacks the characteristic of analog testers, which is that they can accurately measure slowly changing voltages. Furthermore, the subdivided measurement range (especially the current range) appears to have been over-engineered from the standpoint of how to use the tester. It can be said that it is a product that is very aware of the "highest peak of analog testers".
The function I want from a tester is "a measuring machine that can be used easily, quickly and easily".

This tester has five sibling testers that are very similar in shape.
There are 5 models, N-101, N-201, N-301, N-401 (N401F), N-501 (N501D), but I haven't seen the N-201 yet. Therefore, it is not clear whether the shapes are similar. Please take a look at the other brothers.

DC / V 60mV, 0.3.1.2,3,12,30,120,300,1.2k (500kΩ / V)
DC / mA 2μ, 0.3.1.2,3,12,30,0.12A, 0.3A, 1.2A, 12A
AC / V 3,12,30,120,300,1,2k
AC / A 1.2A, 12A R / Ω X1, X10, X100, X1k, X10k, 100k dB Magnification function Memory, polarity switching SW Battery used Single 2X1 006p / 9V



About the N-501D type
N-501 has N-501D.
The big difference is the ability to switch to a zero DC central meter. Even in the low AC voltage range, it can be read on the same scale as the uniform DC range. Along with this, the design of the meter panel has been changed.
Used batteries can also be used with AA 2X1 only.

There is little difference in other features. These are not confirmed in kind by the catalog investigation.
 
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