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Hi! This is Toby with HMC Electronics. Today we're going to be taking a look at the new
Edsyn 951SXe.
Anyone who is familiar with the Edsyn line is familiar with the Edsyn 951SX. This unit
has been a top-selling, top-performing station of theirs for years, if not a decade. They
have made some improvements to it, they've listened to customer feedback, and the 951SX
will slowly but surely be phased out, and they've already released the new version,
which is the 951SXe.
So, here it is, the 951SXe. A slightly different design as you can see. A lot smaller footprint,
which is very, very important, as we see work areas and workstations getting smaller. Operators
are working closer together, so bench space being more valuable.
A few things worth noting. If you've got the LT-Series tips, the tips that you were using
with your 951SX, don't worry. You can continue to use those in the new 951SXe. Tips, the
LT-Series are all interchangeable between units.
It has the same heater coil assembly, so you're still putting out 95 watts of power, so you've
got an excellent station for leaded applications, lead-free applications, as well as applications
with heavy heat sinks and things where it might be a higher capacity or higher drain
on that iron.
One of the things that I don't like about this unit--and I don't think it's a major
design flaw, in fact it's very easily addressed--is how they've done this modular sponge tray.
It's kind of hidden under here. What I look at this more, as is, this is pretty much a
storage compartment, if you will. And then rather than using these old-style cellulose
sponges, using and picking up the Edsyn EA439-C, which is one of these wire-sponges for tip
cleaning. We've seen a huge number of these sold in every iteration: Weller, Hakko, Metcal;
all of them have them. But the Edsyn EA439-C is a great buy.
So what makes this an SXe? Why is this an SX-e, or a "sexy" station? And I think that's
what Edsyn was going for with that part-numbering system. And there it is, and in fact actually,
I will turn down these lights so you can actually see what makes this such a sexy station. One
second.
And there it is! The Edsyn 951 SXe has electric blue LED lighting. Used to be only reserved
for nightclubs and 1990s raves. You've now got this awesome blue lighting, which I just
think is pretty cool.
While, I'm looking at it like this, you probably see this blinking light that is slowly pulsing
right now. That is actually telling you the heating element is on. If you turn up the
temp it will blink very, very, very fast. That is telling you that it is getting up
to temp. And then as soon as it is at that new temperature it will go back to its slow
blinking.
One of the things that is often overlooked when people are looking at the Edsyn station,
the 951SX and I'm sure the 951SXe will have the same oversight, is that it is a 95-watt
soldering iron. Not the power supply, the iron itself is putting out 95 watts of power.
Feel free to browse the internet, browse our website, hmcelectronics.com, and you'll see
there aren't that many stations that are putting out that much power.
Now take into account the price point on this station. The 951SX was about $130-$140. The
951SXe is about $150. There aren't any, there are no other stations on the market putting
out this much power at this price point.
Now let's look at cost of ownership. If you were then to find a station that had some
power that was comparable--80 watts, 85 watts, 90 watts, even--take a look at how much those
soldering tips cost and you will see that most of them cost around $10, if not $12 or
$13. The Edsyn 951SXe takes the LT-Series of tips. So for example an LT375 tip is going
to cost you less than five dollars. So when you're looking at the total cost of ownership
for a soldering station--what it's going to be costing you the weeks, and months and years
after you've bought that station--take a look at the tip cost, take a look at the station
cost, add it all up and you'll see that 951SXe like its predecessor, the 951SX, is a great
deal for a very high-powered station.
If you have any questions on the Edsyn 951SXe, the old Edsyn 951SX, or any of the Edsyn line,
feel free to pick up the phone, give us a call, drop us an email. We'll be happy to
help.
Thanks very much for watching, and happy soldering!