Probe 100+ - USB Power Line Monitor, Black

I really liked the features of this smartbox, and was determined to make it work on my Windows 10 laptop, even though the logging software provided is more than 10 years old now (2014 date). The box's technology is pretty mature and stable, from what I can tell, and it does exactly what I need, which is to record data on a single phase power line and monitor for various power fault conditions; it just suffers from having been neglected by the parent company Powertronics in terms of software upgrades (a product frozen in time). Someone could write a new GUI back-end for this in Linux and give it some more life, since the box just sends the computer a series of text strings that you can watch on a terminal emulator.The user manual and instructions for installation are straighforward, and the user manual covers the basics of what the box is looking for and what it records. The basic software for Windows that it comes with is more than adequate for most testing, I think. If you can get it to work, that is.I installed the software for logging on my Windows 10 laptop, but had to first manually run the VisualBasicPowerPackSetup package they provided to install the prerequisite VB packages it needs, and it worked for a while. But after a Windows update, it would no longer run. In addition, I could not run the Setup command to reinstall it; it would simply quit, and I was only able to determine that it had run with errors by looking at the Event Log under Applications. It does not meet the certification requirements imposed by Micro$oft with it's newer versions of Windows, so it is just allowed to run and die.I was able to get around this by uninstalling the application from Programs and Features, then running the Setup.exe file, have it error out, then type in the application search box "Run Programs Made for Previous Versions" and select the Program Compatibility Troubleshooter, find Setup.exe in the list of applications, and allow it to change the mode of execution to "Windows 8-compatible". Running it again reinstalled the software and created the Desktop icon "ProbePlus Data Logging", but clicking the icon would not run the application. I looked at the properties of the icon saw that it was pointed to some kind of Application Reference file, but it was not starting the application. I created a new Desktop shortcut icon by navigating to where the application had actually been installed under C:\Users\<username>\App Data\Local Apps\2.0\OAHP86AP.76L\" followed by a series of nested subdirectories with gobbledy-gook names, to finally land on "Probe Plus Data Logging.exe"; the desktop shortcut points to that executable.After changing the location of the shortcut, the program ran OK. I did run the Program Compatibility Troubleshooter again and chose the Probe Plus Data Logging app from the list and let it change the compatability mode to Windows 8, just for good measure, but it actually ran before I did that.The data log files are saved in the user's Documents folder under a subfolder called \Powertronics; the files are date stamped, and there are two types, .dlg and .drp. It appears there is a new pair of files created for each day, containing that 24 hour period's data. I was able to open the files and look at the contents using Notepad. The .dlg files appear to be raw voltage data in CSV format, with the two first fields a time stamp of hour and minute, followed by 60 voltage readings, probably one per second. The .drp files contain the same text that is displayed in the logging program on the screen, with each event timestamped with date, time, event type, and description. I could not find any reference to this in the user manual, nor does there appear to be a way to bring this data up later in the software logging program, but it is pretty easy to read the data in Notepad (or any text editor) or import raw voltage data into a spreadsheet.Anyway, I hope this helps the next guy who is fighting with making this old software run on a newer laptop. The box itself is pretty solid.

The Powertronics probe 100+ does exactly what is states: it monitors the AC voltage and reports on disturbances. I had no issues installing the datalogging application on a Windows 10 computer. Disturbances are by day, so you need to select the day you wish to examine.Some feedback:1. Probe Plus datalog file display is not sorted by date. My dates seem to have a random order.2. The manual could be clearer. On initial startup you need to hold down the reset button until all lights are flashing.3. It would be nice to have an auto start on logging once the usb cable is plugged in.4. would be nice if the unit had a battery backup, so power outages could be monitored. With a power loss, the unit stops functioning and logging stops. Logging does not restart once power comes back up.5. The supplies USB cable is too short.

This is a bad product.I found myself going around and around with my electrical utility concerning power quality issues. I wanted hard proof of these issues. Competing power line monitors/analyzers all cost far more than the Powertronics Probe 100, and just weren't in the budget. I hoped this product would work well enough to give me that proof.I'll start with the included software. This isn't software that was developed. This is software that escaped. It's built using the .NET Framework 4 and so should have worked well on an old laptop I use for all my datalogging capable testers and multimeters. The installer couldn't bring itself to properly install the .NET Framework 4, even though it is supported on Windows XP. No problem. I can install that myself. Fortunately, the installer was smart enough to continue once I'd satisifed that requirement externally. Unfortunately, it did not actually install the software. It created some kind of a bizarre desktop shortcut and left the software on the USB flash drive. That worked until I removed the flash drive and stored it safely away. I finally copied the program to the computer myself and then it worked properly.Something about the data logging proved unreliable after a few days of capture. The software just stopped collecting data silently and it's not clear whether it or the underlying hardware failed. As you'll read in a moment, it could well have been either. The software did not alert me to any issues. As best I remember, I had to restart both the software and the Probe 100 to get things going again.The Powertronics hardware isn't a whole lot better than the bundled software. Curiously, for a device intended to monitor and report on power problems (lack of a working ground connection being one of those for which it has a warning light), you're cautioned not to connect it to an ungrounded circuit. If the Probe 100 loses power for any reason, it doesn't start up in a sane state. You have to perform a manual reset to properly initialize this unit. That seems like an unreasonably poor design choice for a device that could alert you to a power failure having taken place.Just out of pure curiosity, I connected the Probe 100 to an ungrounded outlet that hadn't yet been rewired. Several completely irrelevant fault indicators illuminated (low line voltage, sag, dropout, and perhaps most strangely as such was not the case, hot/neutral reversed) and yet the open ground light remained off. Please see the photos attached to this review, which demonstrate several other testers both new and old, inexpensive and higher priced, all successfully indicating the actual fault.After about two weeks of trying to log data with the Probe 100 and its included software, I gave up. I never got the information I wanted from it. I cut my losses and returned it.

The device seems to work correctly. Setup needs to painstakingly follow instructions in the readme file. The instructions for usage are incredibly incomplete. Any idea of how to access the data is quesswork and I have not guessed correctly. Powertronics support did not respond to my query. Also, if power goes out the data logger program stops rather than counting how long the outage lasts. It is not clear there is a better product at a reasonbable price for home use, but keep searching

Simple to use as a stand-alone power line quality analyzer, yet when coupled with a computer becomes a sophisticated data logger.Provides indications of many types of specific power quality problems, with detailed explanations of the criteria used to qualify each problem in the manual.A USB serial output transmits the line voltage being measured once per second, along with any power events detected such as dropouts, sags, surges, etc. All the messages are in simple ASCII text form, so a laptop running the included software, a terminal program, custom software or a batch script can easily be used to monitor and log a power line's condition for an indefinite period.There is no other unit within several hundred dollars of the cost of this one that can analyze and recording a variety of common AC power line quality problems. For homes or small businesses experiencing problems with their electrical service other than total outages, this device is one of the only affordable solutions for diagnosing them.

Good unit, software is a bit weird (-1 star) but it does exactly what it is supposed to do.

I was able to use the USB data drive to install the software, including the Visual Basic add-on, without a hitch. Then I installed the program software and an icon appears on my desktop. There is a small user interface on which you press to start monitoring. Be sure to read the "read-me" file, and look at the user manual, of course. Within 5 minutes, I did have a voltage spike, then 2 more in the next 20 minutes. I wasn't worried about my AC wiring though, and am planning to take it to my elderly parent's apartment where she is having problems with her VOIP modem and phone (going off line frequently). I will be able to print out the information that is reported so the technician can change the circuit breaker if needed, or I will determine if I need advanced AC remediation such as with an AC line filter or UPS device (suggests are included in the manual). This device met all of my expectations and I do recommend it if you have needs similar to mine.

Powertronics Probe 100+ USB voltage disturbance recorder.I was looking around for a simple single phase 120vac voltage monitor. A simple monitor that can record voltage anomalies and show them on the graph. This is one such unit that can be helpful. The probe itself can diagnose your 110 outlet wiring configuration. It would also notify you when you have high voltage or low voltage. From then on it would latch any LEDs to the range of anomalies that it had seen. This unit indeed is simple to use and easy to read. All your faults or events will be logged by a lit LED. However the time and the actual event will not be recorded because there is no built-in memory or storage facility within. The lit LEDs will just say it happened. For greater use of this product you will need a computer. The communication software provided by Powertronics via a flashdrive worked very well, downloading the software easily on my out-of-date Windows 10 Asus computer. It failed on my Windows XP computer which is also out of date. I downloaded just the probe 100+ USB software and started the program before connecting the active probe. Once you have completed the install of your probe and software on your computer, the Probe Plus data logging application screen will come up. Start your data logging by clicking the button at the top left-hand corner. It is best to leave both the Probe and computer on to monitor the investigated supply. Please remember to keep your computer awake otherwise you will lose data information while recording. You will see it as no information recorded on the graph. Recorded information will be 24 hours at a time. Therefore your print screen read out graph will only give you 24-hour information. Also, while your communication software thumb drive is connected to your computer. Look for the probe manual PDF and read through it a couple of times, just so that you will get a better understanding of your unit.In short - it's simple and easy to use 🌟🌟🌟🌟.For me it lost a the star because there's no memory 😔