Here is a Do-It-Yourself collection of project references that I have found from electronic project websites for building a simple cable tester of your own. A pretty good reference to study the various designs for your ideal cable tester.
Simple Cable Tester 3
A simple cable tester with indicator lights for connection and breaks.
Featuring also many DIY electronic projects using microcontrollers. Check out www.weigu.lu website here.
Author: Weigu
Multi Wire Cable Tester Schematic
This schematic for a multi-wire cable tester is from DIY Electronic projects website.
Author: Andy Collinson (http://www.zen22142.zen.co.uk)
RJ45 Cable Tester
This project comes from electronicsforu.com featuring a RJ45 Cable Tester. It includes the schematic, BOM list and Gerber files for a hobbyist to create their own RJ45 cable tester.
Author: Bhaskar Pandey (Electronic Hobbyist)
LAN Cable Tester
Using only a simple 555 timer and 4017 IC chip. Very similar to the one above.
Author: AI Williams
https://www.instructables.com/DIY-LAN-Cable-Tester/
https://diy-projects4u.blogspot.com/2018/09/diy-lan-cable-tester.html
Do-it-yourself LAN Cable Tester
This is a simple Ethernet network LAN cable tester for RJ45, RJ11 to check the continuity and short circuit of a new assembled cables. There are LED indicator to show the connection..
Author: Frank Weithöner
http://www.frankshospitalworkshop.com/electronics/diy-lan_cable_tester.html
XLR Audio Cable Tester
Simple tester circuit to test XLR audio cable, using a 9V battery.
Using 4044B IC chip.
Author: Ashley Dawson (Silicon Chip Electronics)
IDC cable tester (Arduino based)
This is a IDC cable tester that is more advanced using an Arduino Mega board. IDC cable is often also known as ribbon cable or flat cable. Typically the adjacent wire-to-wire pitch is 1.27mm.
This project comes with a big Alphanumeric display to test the cable without needing the tester connected to a computer.
Using only a simple 555 timer and 4017 IC chip. Very similar to the one above.
Author: Tony
http://blog.think3dprint3d.com/2014/08/arduino-based-idc-cable-tester.html
http://microfabricator.com/articles/view/id/53f8482a3139441c558b456d/arduino-based-idc-cable-tester
10/16 pins IDC Power cable tester (Arduino with result display)
This is a very nicely done-up IDC power cable tester by Tomarus.
Schematic of the circuitry and the Arduino source code is provided. Driven with a dot matrix display module. Very professionally constructed.
Check out this project here,
https://github.com/tomarus/cabletester
Author: Tomarus
Another project was replicated by another electronic hobbyist. https://lookmumnocomputer.discourse.group/t/ribbon-cable-tester/1600
IDC Ribbon Cable Tester circuit
This is a less complicated IDC cable tester with using any microcontroller. Simple circuitry that can check for connection and short circuit in your IDC cable.
There is also an explanation of how the circuit works. This can give you a more detail understanding of designing your very own cable tester.
Author: Ron Hoffman
https://www.gadgetronicx.com/idc-ribbon-cable-tester-circuit/
PIC Cable Tester
This network cable tester (PIC Cable Tester) uses microchip microcontroller PIC16F877A.
It comes with two RJ45 socket and can identify common Ethernet patch cable or cross cable. The design comes with LED indicator for the display of the connection.
Report of the cable connections will be generated and display on the LCD display screen.
Schematic and source code is available.
Check out VE3LNY’s Web Site,
https://www.qsl.net/v/ve3lny/cabletester.html
Probador De Cables for USB Cables
Author: Puchinis 79
URL: https://www.youtube.com/user/puchinis79
This is a Probador De Cables for USB Cables. Probador De Cables” is a Spanish language for “Cable Tester”.
It is a very simple cable tester for USB cable design by the author “Puchinis 79“. Check out their Youtube channel online for other of their projects.
More specialised high-end tester for testing the quality of USB cable, you can click here.
DIY Guitar Cable Tester
Aurther: Wozlaser
A simple tester guitar cable. Guitar cable are frequent having broken wire connection or faulty connector socket.
This simple tester is designed in with LED indicators and audio jack socket can help to detect your cable problem faster.
Simple tester that you can do it yourself.
Wirescanner Kit
Product ID: K-UTL-02
Manufacturer: antilog devices
This is a low cost DIY kit that you can buy and assemble yourself.
A simple cable tester with a matrix LED to show you the wire connection. Allows up to 16 wires connection.
To purchase, check out the following URL,
https://www.midiphy.com/en/shop-details/203/93/midiphy-wirescanner-full-kit-midiphy-wirescanner-cable-tester-idc-micromatch-ribbon-cable-diagnostics-eurorack
USB Sleuth Cable Tester
This is a very nicely made USB cable tester using STM32C031K6T microcontroller.
It can test simple connections of various USB cables up to USB 3.0. The pins are also exposed to allow you to test with your multimeter as well.
Check out this page here for more details of the making of this USB cable tester.
URL: https://hackaday.io/project/194646-usb-sleuth-cable-tester
Click here for more specialised tester, testing the quality of USB cable.
Automatic USB Cable Tester
This automatic USB cable tester provides a very complete and detailed construction of a USB cable tester.
This is circuit hardware design is from the electronic hobby enthusiast magazine “Silicon Chip”
Inside this magazine, it has a very detailed schematics, instructions and explanations from page 28 to page 36.
For the details, you can click here to check out from Silicon Chip magazine website.
URL: https://archive.org/details/silicon-chip-2021-no-11-november/page/28/mode/2up
Click here for more specialised tester, testing the quality of USB cable.
More DIY cable tester projects
- DIY USB Cable Tester with Arduino Nano (ATmega328)
- Super Simple Ethernet Cable Tester
- Build the DIY Musicians Cable Tester
- Homemade ethernet cable tester demo.
- Compact and affordable USB-C cable tester.
- Arduino cable tracer to help diagnose broken USB cables.
- Do-it-yourself LAN cable tester with or without Arduino.
Forum sharing of DIY cable tester design with Arduino
- Best way to make a cable tester?
- Cable tester, unsure of pinmode setting
- Arduino mega continuity and short tester
- Cable Tester using Arduino
- First Project – Cable Tester
- Continuity tester for a 12 pin connector
- hardware used to test continuity of a 50 pin connector?
- Purpose Built Cable Tester
- MultiPlex Input
- Continuity Tester (Pass or Fail outcome only)
- Cable continuity tester
- Continuity tester (58 pin)
- continuity tester
- wiring testing tool
- Arduino Continuity Tester
- Arduino Continuity Tester (zebra GK420t printer)
Commercial Cable Tester
DIY cable tester may requires some fabrication or setup in order for you to start using them.
If you are looking for a simple cable tester that you can unbox and start using them to test your cables, you can consider buying directly for a general-purpose cable testers that are already selling on the market place.
Click here for a list of commercial cable testers that are available on the market.
Check out our Simple Cable Tester Tools
Presented to you by www.Cable-Tester.com