When I was a kid my dad once tickled my feet until I got hiccups. I used to think that was the worst torture in the world but now you made me realize that it's nothing compared to capacitive touch buttons without haptic feedback or glued in feet that cover screw holes.
@@sdgelectronics True! Touch buttons don't give the best user interface. For me, it's always better to feel the depression of the buttons and hear the clicks. Different strokes for different folks.
About half a year ago I have looked through options to upgrade from my cheap Chinese 120W station and in the end decided to splurge and settled for 120W JBC (CD-2BQF) and oh boy, what a difference. It feels like magic. I am not being paid to say this:) Now, I think this one gets you quite some way there maybe except for tip selection. I think you can work around most problems with the station but if there are no tips that suit you there isn't much you can do. I am using Quick 861DW hot air and it also suffers from a little bit of shortage of different types of nozzles. Fortunately, some people found market and are producing nozzles in couple of shapes and sizes but I still learned a lesson to take a look at tip/nozzle selection before making purchase.
My fake Hakko costs the same as your 3 tips alone! Mine may be cheap as hell, but it's exactly right for me. Fast, accurate, ergonomic, cheap, makes it ideal. served me well for the past 3 years. If it dies, I won't cry... I'll just buy another one and be a happy camper again :)
I also own this soldering iron, everything you say is right. If you want professional stuff for smartphone repairs you have to buy something else, however for larger electronic boards it may be fine, the tips don't heat well and even the solder doesn't always stick well. great review
Good video, i still really like my JBC, i know it's expensive BUT it will last along time ( i hope ) and just addicted to hot swapping tips when SMD soldering !
I think a decent soldering iron purchase should really last an entire career. Unless JBC make the tips obsolete at some point in the future, I don't think you'll have any issues and should be reliable.
@@sdgelectronics My last few Wellers didn't last at all, So i jumped into the 700$ Iron from JBC bought a few tips and won't look back. hot-swapping tips is the cat's MEOW. Love it !
I do a lot of soldering inside old vintage tube amps and like to rest my hand on the edge of the chassis. So longer tip to handle distance isn't a problem. And actually prefer it in some situations.
I have one of these stations and am overall happy with it. The biggest issue is there is a very limited range of tips. I only have 4 with mine. Also having to hold the power button to power it on or off is annoying, a simple pushbutton switch would be much better. I feel like it might be possible to modify it to use JBC cartridges since the tips are 24v like JBC, although the thermocouple types are likely different.
Yeah I'm not sure what type of sensor is in these tips, but it's probably possible to hack the PCB to make it work. At that point though, I'd go with the JABE or BEST.
High frequency irons heat just as fast if not better (they use induction not resistance heating) have temp control that is just as good (the temp probe in the handset inserts into the back of the tip) and the tips are cheap and widely available. Look up the Quick 203 and the Xytronic LF-3200.
Hmmmm, a bit "boxy" looking, and the industrial looking iron holder didn't impress me long before you powered it up. Maybe it's better in person though.
@@Ivor_Nastyboilyou need to set screen brightness to minimum level when you get the TS100 to extend the life of the OLED. Better if it automatically turned the display off while in use. And if it does display something, constantly move it around the screen.
Thank you for the review. On the rework bench you will see multicore wire solders grouped as to flux. R, RA, RMA, Water Based and No Clean (many RMA types are labeled no clean), both lead (usually eutectic) and lead free (usually SAC305), with a brush-on bottle having compatible liquid flux to what is in the cores. You will see wire sized of 0.010" (Special Order), 0.015", 0.031", and 0.062". With the question why the 0.062" monster solder? Well this is used to tin tips before returning to the stand, which is common good practice. The large size is really good at tinning tips and you can keep it next to the stand. Your analysis is spot on about the problem with not having instant stand sensing setback. It makes no sense to me that you would put a sleep mode power up feature ahead of instant setback for a new design. If you work in electronics manufacture you will see the importance of dropping the bottom of the handpiece stand for easy cleaning, which usually happens every shift. So there is a lot of maintenace in keeping things clean. So undo the set screw and tap on the bottom and it should brake loose. The location of the brass cleaning wire, as with other stands, like from PACE are not really easy to get to as compared to a HAKKO 599B holder you can put anywhere on your bench. PACE's little holder is removeable but really just too small as compared to the HAKKO. I think the brass is more useful than the sponge, so for me the design of a stand would make the brass easier to access than the sponge. Can you provide a pinout of the tip contacts? Internally relative to the contacts Is it wired like a PACE or a JBC? Thanks for all your efforts in giving these reviews.
I have this station for about 4 months and i can already say that tips for this station are realy bad, did someone try to change the hendle piece to JBC c245?
It certainly looks great with that crisp display. I wonder if that third mode with the dual temperature setting is the automatic setback? Like 10 seconds before it drops back to the lower temp when it's in the stand. I had very high hopes after owning one of the new quick hot air rework stations which is absolutely fantastic!
I saw this on the Metcal website, maybe this is supposed to be something similar: "“Customers can set profiles with preheat ramp rates (on the GT90/120), that allow for a more robust soldering solution, preventing damage from thermal shock caused by rapid heating. The capability of handling the most sensitive of components to the most demanding thermal load applications all with one system, enhanced with thermal profiling, brings the most versatile soldering system to the market today,” said Hoa Nguyen, CTO for OK International, the parent company for Metcal."
You know you can get every available tip from a company in the uk? They used to supply me when I had one. Go onto grove sales. They come in at around £12 each inc vat
They reused the case from other device, looks like they also left mounting holes for a larger transformer, maybe 180w or so, for two irons? I think they should have mounted that 220v-12v transformer and the relay on a tiny pcb and then screw that down near the regular transformer, there's plenty of room there, and would allow to easily adapt the power supply to other countries by replacing the transformer pcb (or allow ordering the pcb from them at reasonable price). Not a fan of those surface mounted electrolytic capacitors, those seem to be much less reliable than through hole parts, and it bothers me a bit how much they use vias to route traces to the other side of the pcb. Also ... using rectified 12v with a 3.3v linear regulator seems like such a waste...
While i can understand them using linear reg for cost reduction but the display is probably also powered by it so it would probably get quite toasty, and i wouldn't be surprised other things are toasty as well
Thanks, that's the video i had been looking for the last 3 months, but i read a review talking about issues with the captive buttons, so i went with PACE ADS200 regarding my earlier good experience with Quick stations
@@sdgelectronics First, I looked at JBC CD-2BQF in the same price range and similar spec. but was suggested the PACE instead on EEV forum, had i asked locally they would have said Weller. There is a lot of snobbery on tools, but the fact that the PACE seems to work and feel like an old Russian tank, just adjust temperature, and solder… It is made from generic parts, tips that last longer and are cheaper, was a win for me. Unfortunately, the delivery time to Europe surprised me, I did not expect 3 months with a great supplier as Farnell
Have you seen the "mini t12/jbc245/210" on aliexpress they are in the style of the mini Ksger, so you need to add a PSU and handpiece but even after buying that stuff I think it might be the lowest cost JBC 245 compatible setup out there. I have one which I quite like, but seeing it compared to others would be interesting.
True. The PCB transformer is rated 230V though and the main transformer shouldn't suffer. Since the heater is in a control loop, it may just see a slightly higher peak power.
Good review ....I'm in the market for something decent, work tool but 3rd world budget, this is one option. I need to move on from my 30 yr old Weller lol which still works a treat but rather low on features. Pace ADS200 list in the US is US $340+ vs TS1200A $135 + full set of tips $50 (both ex shipping) :o I reckon it might be worth the compromise, our exch rate is pants.
I've been wanting to change out my Soldering station and replace it with a new one, so I have been watching all your soldering station review and you have done a great job. Thanks for sharing. Have you ever done a review on the Sugon T-3602 Soldering station? It looks really nice and a great price. What do you think?
I can't vouch for the build quality, but what we are seeing is the JBC style handpieces and cartridges all do a good job. I doubt you'll have any problems with it.
In terms of actual soldering performance, it's pretty good. I doubt you'll have any issues with it. Unknowns at this point are primarily how long the tips last (how thick is the tip plating). If the handpiece was a little higher quality, it would give a far better impression.
Not quite, the TR1300 is a bit bigger but it should be arriving soon so I can confirm. The TS2300 iron is a higher power version in the same case, which may explain the fan.
This is going to perform slightly better than the FX951, but FX951 is solidly built, bit better handle, and has huge tip variety. If you are a hobbyist look at some of the JBC clones instead mentioned below.
I have not used the Quick but I have been very happy with the Hakko for several years. You can set the Hakko to go into immediate sleep mode with parameter #2.
I don't have the T3B yet, but the T3A is best from a cost/performance point of view. The BST-933 is probably better built however and likely to last significantly longer due to the iron core transformer for the power supply.
Very informative video. Thank you. Do you know if the Quick TS1200A is the cheapest Soldering station thats uses cartridges as tips? And do you know how it compares to the JBC CD 2D in terms of thermal recovery etc? Thank you
@@sdgelectronics I recommend checking out Sugon T26. I have 2 units at the moment (3 in total but I broke one) and it uses Jbc tips. It performs basically the same as Jbc and user interface is actually better. The issue I have is Jbc tips are easy to break I use c210-018 tips. I also have two jbc units and the tips break on those quickly as well. C245 larger tips seem reliable tho.
I like the review, however I think it was a little bit biased against the TS1200, first, its performance is almost the same as the JBC, which, for its price point is just amazing, second, you say there is not a great variety of tips, which is not correct, and even if were the case, my question is: so what ? How many tips do you need for professional applications? A good expert only need a few, Btw, soldering without flux, come on! Even a JBC looks awful like this, respect to the standby, what’s the harm of leaving a soldering iron without use for one minute? Really? If this is and issue, you just can use the one of the preset buttons in the lower temp, I’m going to give it a try, and maybe I can use Hakko tips! Who knows... 😃
You would never normally use any additional flux for soldering since the flux in the solder wire is sufficient for production level soldering. At a more professional level, you would expect tips for specific applications particularly rework. If you look at the C245 cartridge range for example, there's over 150 varieties available.
@@nilomyki Because at the time I only have one ksger and one sugon. I got the jbcs and another sugon(two extra actually but I broke one) afterwards. Before I had ksger I had an older model of quick and was happy with it. Hakko has better tips so Ksger is already better imo. And once you touch sugon/jbc there's no way back. They melt solder so responsive.
When I was a kid my dad once tickled my feet until I got hiccups. I used to think that was the worst torture in the world but now you made me realize that it's nothing compared to capacitive touch buttons without haptic feedback or glued in feet that cover screw holes.
Fortunately I had no issue with these touch buttons, but it's an easy way to kill the user experience.
@@sdgelectronics True! Touch buttons don't give the best user interface. For me, it's always better to feel the depression of the buttons and hear the clicks. Different strokes for different folks.
You should probably talk to a therapist about that.
@@garekvhwhat would therapist do with quick's issue?
Performed reasonably well and is aesthetically pleasing. Thanks for sharing.
About half a year ago I have looked through options to upgrade from my cheap Chinese 120W station and in the end decided to splurge and settled for 120W JBC (CD-2BQF) and oh boy, what a difference. It feels like magic.
I am not being paid to say this:)
Now, I think this one gets you quite some way there maybe except for tip selection. I think you can work around most problems with the station but if there are no tips that suit you there isn't much you can do.
I am using Quick 861DW hot air and it also suffers from a little bit of shortage of different types of nozzles. Fortunately, some people found market and are producing nozzles in couple of shapes and sizes but I still learned a lesson to take a look at tip/nozzle selection before making purchase.
My fake Hakko costs the same as your 3 tips alone!
Mine may be cheap as hell, but it's exactly right for me. Fast, accurate, ergonomic, cheap, makes it ideal.
served me well for the past 3 years.
If it dies, I won't cry... I'll just buy another one and be a happy camper again :)
I also own this soldering iron, everything you say is right.
If you want professional stuff for smartphone repairs you have to buy something else, however for larger electronic boards it may be fine, the tips don't heat well and even the solder doesn't always stick well.
great review
Awesome, I've been waiting for a proper review of this. Thanks!
Good video, i still really like my JBC, i know it's expensive BUT it will last along time ( i hope ) and just addicted to hot swapping tips when SMD soldering !
I think a decent soldering iron purchase should really last an entire career. Unless JBC make the tips obsolete at some point in the future, I don't think you'll have any issues and should be reliable.
@@sdgelectronics My last few Wellers didn't last at all, So i jumped into the 700$ Iron from JBC bought a few tips and won't look back. hot-swapping tips is the cat's MEOW. Love it !
I do a lot of soldering inside old vintage tube amps and like to rest my hand on the edge of the chassis. So longer tip to handle distance isn't a problem. And actually prefer it in some situations.
I have one of these stations and am overall happy with it. The biggest issue is there is a very limited range of tips. I only have 4 with mine. Also having to hold the power button to power it on or off is annoying, a simple pushbutton switch would be much better. I feel like it might be possible to modify it to use JBC cartridges since the tips are 24v like JBC, although the thermocouple types are likely different.
Yeah I'm not sure what type of sensor is in these tips, but it's probably possible to hack the PCB to make it work. At that point though, I'd go with the JABE or BEST.
High frequency irons heat just as fast if not better (they use induction not resistance heating) have temp control that is just as good (the temp probe in the handset inserts into the back of the tip) and the tips are cheap and widely available. Look up the Quick 203 and the Xytronic LF-3200.
Hmmmm, a bit "boxy" looking, and the industrial looking iron holder didn't impress me long before you powered it up. Maybe it's better in person though.
It’s ok. Works well. But it’s no JBC
Compared to my TS100 with the fading OLED screen - great review
Ah, I'm not the only one with a TS100 screen problem then.
@@Ivor_Nastyboil OLED displays are overrated!
@@Ivor_Nastyboilyou need to set screen brightness to minimum level when you get the TS100 to extend the life of the OLED.
Better if it automatically turned the display off while in use. And if it does display something, constantly move it around the screen.
Thank you for the review. On the rework bench you will see multicore wire solders grouped as to flux. R, RA, RMA, Water Based and No Clean (many RMA types are labeled no clean), both lead (usually eutectic) and lead free (usually SAC305), with a brush-on bottle having compatible liquid flux to what is in the cores. You will see wire sized of 0.010" (Special Order), 0.015", 0.031", and 0.062". With the question why the 0.062" monster solder? Well this is used to tin tips before returning to the stand, which is common good practice. The large size is really good at tinning tips and you can keep it next to the stand.
Your analysis is spot on about the problem with not having instant stand sensing setback. It makes no sense to me that you would put a sleep mode power up feature ahead of instant setback for a new design.
If you work in electronics manufacture you will see the importance of dropping the bottom of the handpiece stand for easy cleaning, which usually happens every shift. So there is a lot of maintenace in keeping things clean. So undo the set screw and tap on the bottom and it should brake loose. The location of the brass cleaning wire, as with other stands, like from PACE are not really easy to get to as compared to a HAKKO 599B holder you can put anywhere on your bench. PACE's little holder is removeable but really just too small as compared to the HAKKO. I think the brass is more useful than the sponge, so for me the design of a stand would make the brass easier to access than the sponge.
Can you provide a pinout of the tip contacts? Internally relative to the contacts Is it wired like a PACE or a JBC? Thanks for all your efforts in giving these reviews.
I have this station for about 4 months and i can already say that tips for this station are realy bad, did someone try to change the hendle piece to JBC c245?
It certainly looks great with that crisp display. I wonder if that third mode with the dual temperature setting is the automatic setback? Like 10 seconds before it drops back to the lower temp when it's in the stand. I had very high hopes after owning one of the new quick hot air rework stations which is absolutely fantastic!
I saw this on the Metcal website, maybe this is supposed to be something similar: "“Customers can set profiles with preheat ramp rates (on the GT90/120), that allow for a more robust soldering solution, preventing damage from thermal shock caused by rapid heating. The capability of handling the most sensitive of components to the most demanding thermal load applications all with one system, enhanced with thermal profiling, brings the most versatile soldering system to the market today,” said Hoa Nguyen, CTO for OK International, the parent company for Metcal."
You know you can get every available tip from a company in the uk? They used to supply me when I had one. Go onto grove sales. They come in at around £12 each inc vat
Yes I did see them on there, but when I contacted them it was going to be possibly 6 weeks lead time. You're right though, good prices.
They reused the case from other device, looks like they also left mounting holes for a larger transformer, maybe 180w or so, for two irons?
I think they should have mounted that 220v-12v transformer and the relay on a tiny pcb and then screw that down near the regular transformer, there's plenty of room there, and would allow to easily adapt the power supply to other countries by replacing the transformer pcb (or allow ordering the pcb from them at reasonable price).
Not a fan of those surface mounted electrolytic capacitors, those seem to be much less reliable than through hole parts, and it bothers me a bit how much they use vias to route traces to the other side of the pcb. Also ... using rectified 12v with a 3.3v linear regulator seems like such a waste...
While i can understand them using linear reg for cost reduction but the display is probably also powered by it so it would probably get quite toasty, and i wouldn't be surprised other things are toasty as well
Nice thorough review....cheers.
Thanks, that's the video i had been looking for the last 3 months, but i read a review talking about issues with the captive buttons, so i went with PACE ADS200 regarding my earlier good experience with Quick stations
ADS200 seems to be really highly regarded.
@@sdgelectronics First, I looked at JBC CD-2BQF in the same price range and similar spec. but was suggested the PACE instead on EEV forum, had i asked locally they would have said Weller. There is a lot of snobbery on tools, but the fact that the PACE seems to work and feel like an old Russian tank, just adjust temperature, and solder… It is made from generic parts, tips that last longer and are cheaper, was a win for me. Unfortunately, the delivery time to Europe surprised me, I did not expect 3 months with a great supplier as Farnell
@@seahawk_dk I've got an ADS200 on order now, supposedly around 3 weeks lead time - we'll see how long it takes
I bet the t12 tips you get for £3 from Ali express will work with it. The t12 tips work on my aouye
Have you seen the "mini t12/jbc245/210" on aliexpress they are in the style of the mini Ksger, so you need to add a PSU and handpiece but even after buying that stuff I think it might be the lowest cost JBC 245 compatible setup out there. I have one which I quite like, but seeing it compared to others would be interesting.
The quick station living up to its name and only its name. Thanks for the review. What's next?
I have a Pace ADS200 on order, possibly a JBC and Metcal CV system. I will look at some budget options too.
The label is not only missing CE, but also 220V instead of 230V.
True. The PCB transformer is rated 230V though and the main transformer shouldn't suffer. Since the heater is in a control loop, it may just see a slightly higher peak power.
Wao. Excellent video.
Already in my lab, but Metcal is king.
What about weller?
@@informediatech-bruno5766 I have Metcal, Quick, JBC, Pace ADS200, TS80, TS100, and a lot of Chinese cheap crap. But for now i don't have any Weller.
@@richardmagnorstenbro3234 So you'd definitely recommend this Quick TS1200z for board level mobile repair work?
@@richardmagnorstenbro3234 too many send me some😁
@@richardmagnorstenbro3234 why metcal is so good?
The soldering tips looks a bit like the Aoyue 2703a. I wonder if they're the same. Btw, have you reviewed the Aoyue 2703a station?
Thanks for the review!!!!!!
Nice Tear Down! Man, this station have power off iron in base??
Good review ....I'm in the market for something decent, work tool but 3rd world budget, this is one option. I need to move on from my 30 yr old Weller lol which still works a treat but rather low on features. Pace ADS200 list in the US is US $340+ vs TS1200A $135 + full set of tips $50 (both ex shipping) :o I reckon it might be worth the compromise, our exch rate is pants.
I will be reviewing some lower cost stations in the future, though the upcoming line-up is fairly premium.
I've been wanting to change out my Soldering station and replace it with a new one, so I have been watching all your soldering station review and you have done a great job. Thanks for sharing. Have you ever done a review on the Sugon T-3602 Soldering station? It looks really nice and a great price. What do you think?
I can't vouch for the build quality, but what we are seeing is the JBC style handpieces and cartridges all do a good job. I doubt you'll have any problems with it.
@@sdgelectronics Thank you very Much.
Why not use another tap on the main transformer?
But the quick do not have a very precize temperature reading .
Im looking to buy one, but i need trustee SDG review first
In terms of actual soldering performance, it's pretty good. I doubt you'll have any issues with it. Unknowns at this point are primarily how long the tips last (how thick is the tip plating). If the handpiece was a little higher quality, it would give a far better impression.
@@sdgelectronics i just wish they had the micro pencil for this station
Im rocking a ksger t12 made in china that makes 2 times its value per day
My main concern with them is the AC power supply, but they do get the job done.
it looks like they might use the same enclosure for the TR1300 ?
Not quite, the TR1300 is a bit bigger but it should be arriving soon so I can confirm. The TS2300 iron is a higher power version in the same case, which may explain the fan.
@@sdgelectronics ahh yeah I saw the 100W version, will be nice to see the hotair model revieww, it looks nice, have not seen much about it yet
@SDG Electronics - so between this unit and the Hakko FX-951, you'd recommend the Hakko?
This is going to perform slightly better than the FX951, but FX951 is solidly built, bit better handle, and has huge tip variety. If you are a hobbyist look at some of the JBC clones instead mentioned below.
Never used an actual Hakko. The have no market presence in the UK
I have not used the Quick but I have been very happy with the Hakko for several years. You can set the Hakko to go into immediate sleep mode with parameter #2.
Hola amigo puede subir un video de como la calibrar la estacion quick st1200 .saludos
Which would you recommend between this quick, the bst933 or the T3B? Thank you
I don't have the T3B yet, but the T3A is best from a cost/performance point of view. The BST-933 is probably better built however and likely to last significantly longer due to the iron core transformer for the power supply.
@@sdgelectronics Thank you. Isn't the T3B the same as T3A with the new stand?
@@salvamipc no not quite. No T245 handpiece on the T3B,
@@sdgelectronics You right. I got the T3A with the 245 handpiece. Thank you for the advice.
Jbc is my only choice
Very informative video. Thank you. Do you know if the Quick TS1200A is the cheapest Soldering station thats uses cartridges as tips? And do you know how it compares to the JBC CD 2D in terms of thermal recovery etc? Thank you
Your need a bigger storage place for all these irons.
There is very little floor space at the moment!
Wath is the next soldering iron ?
Not sure yet, but it'll be a couple of weeks away.
@@sdgelectronics just a sugestion : fx 951 or pace ADS 200.
@@sdgelectronics olso very Nice video .
@@sdgelectronics I recommend checking out Sugon T26. I have 2 units at the moment (3 in total but I broke one) and it uses Jbc tips. It performs basically the same as Jbc and user interface is actually better.
The issue I have is Jbc tips are easy to break I use c210-018 tips. I also have two jbc units and the tips break on those quickly as well. C245 larger tips seem reliable tho.
@@johnyang799 yes the Sugon is a good choise as well . In the future i will definetly trieit .
"Genuine" "Quick"... 🥺
I like the review, however I think it was a little bit biased against the TS1200, first, its performance is almost the same as the JBC, which, for its price point is just amazing, second, you say there is not a great variety of tips, which is not correct, and even if were the case, my question is: so what ? How many tips do you need for professional applications? A good expert only need a few, Btw, soldering without flux, come on! Even a JBC looks awful like this, respect to the standby, what’s the harm of leaving a soldering iron without use for one minute? Really? If this is and issue, you just can use the one of the preset buttons in the lower temp, I’m going to give it a try, and maybe I can use Hakko tips! Who knows... 😃
You would never normally use any additional flux for soldering since the flux in the solder wire is sufficient for production level soldering. At a more professional level, you would expect tips for specific applications particularly rework. If you look at the C245 cartridge range for example, there's over 150 varieties available.
Que estaño es ..
I bought one and returned it. It's basically shit. Buy sugon t26 instead (even easier to use than JBC, from my use I have 2 jbcs 2 t26s)
True Jbc and Jhugon are the Best .
Why buy it if it's on the lower-end of the JBC's you already own?
@@nilomyki true
@@nilomyki for me this is the solution
@@nilomyki Because at the time I only have one ksger and one sugon. I got the jbcs and another sugon(two extra actually but I broke one) afterwards.
Before I had ksger I had an older model of quick and was happy with it. Hakko has better tips so Ksger is already better imo. And once you touch sugon/jbc there's no way back. They melt solder so responsive.