HYCC Digital Magnetic Stirrer MX-8K - review

The Homebrew Forum

Help Support The Homebrew Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

crowcrow

Landlord.
Joined
Jul 11, 2017
Messages
1,009
Reaction score
592
Location
Crow
So I have been wanting a stirrer for a while, as they seemed fun and scientific and I can pretend I'm doing experiments, rather than just brewing beer to drink.

I was going to make one, but as much as I enjoy playing with electronics, I just don't have the time or headspace right now. In my normal style I was going to get the cheapest I could get from Aliexpress, but after reading for a bit it seemed that the couldn't mix 2litres and since I already bought a 2l conical flask lately, I needed a bigger one.

I started looking in ebay and found a great old second hand one from a science lab, but missed out. I spotted a review here of a different hycc model and started looking for those and found a reasonably priced (£25 delivered) digital one for sale. All the reviews on Amazon seemed to be from people on Amazon Vine who had been gifted the product so take this as a review from someone who bought one (albeit at 2nd hand prices).

IMG_20211105_143742.jpg

The box is nice but nothing to write home about
IMG_20211105_143721.jpg


Inside is the manual, adaptor, 30mm stir bar and the unit

IMG_20211105_132312.jpg

It looks pretty nice and feels fairly sturdy enough though it is just plastic.

IMG_20211105_132331.jpg


I like the fact you choose the exact speed you want and also how long it should stir for. I think the max is 48 hours and 2000rpm. A mild complaint would be the light leaking around the display, but I don't really care about that!
IMG_20211105_132706.jpg


I was a little worried about this, it appeared that there was a way for liquid to get in around the edge of this circle, which could be disastrous! So I opened it up to check...

IMG_20211105_132719.jpg


Nope the circle is just on the outside. Liquid can't get in. I was quite pleased how well put together it looks, and the sturdy looking motor.

IMG_20211105_132422.jpg


Another shot of the motor and the magnets.

IMG_20211105_132438.jpg


I think the adaptor connector is nicely put together - seen far worse on more expensive devices!

IMG_20211105_133043.jpg


My only complaint! The adapter is far far too short! Like maybe 70cm. That is OK but not great. 1.5m would have been far more useful for me, but I'm sure I'll cope...
 

Attachments

  • IMG_20211105_143834.jpg
    IMG_20211105_143834.jpg
    90.3 KB · Views: 17
Last edited:
So in all very happy. Easily stirs 2 litres, and I've tried it with 4 and it managed fine (didn't get a picture as was in a garden bucket.)

IMG_20211105_131659.jpg


The instructions are very simple, turn it on with the adapter, then first sent the stir time - 0 will stir forever, otherwise you are setting minutes - I think the max is 48 hours. Then you press the dial in and select the speed. Then press the dial for 2 seconds and it will start and adjust to the speed you set. Pressing once again will allow you to adjust the speed. Turning the dial slowly allows you to edge the rpm up and down, turning fast jumps in higher counts so you don't stand there spinning the dial for ages. As I did at first...

The top number is the current speed, the next is the set speed and the bottom is the time remaining.

It is quite fun to rise or drop the speed a lot and watch the digital readout show the actual speed of the bar, it can take a little time to get up or down to speed. Man I am easily amused...

Manual for anyone interested:
IMG_20211105_143758.jpg


IMG_20211105_143834.jpg


They are somewhere between £39.99 and £54.99 on amazon, not sure I'd pay £40 for it, but very very happy at £25 - keep a look out for one, looks good to me.

Stirrer on Amazon


IMG_20211105_131704.jpg
 
Last edited:
Great review! It looks like quite a hackable little unit if you wanted to make any changes and for 25 notes it's a winner.

Having built a few of these I've learned that...

Stirring water isn't like stirring wort. Once the yeast populates wort it's much denser and resists the stir bar more.

Neodymium magnets are essential. The thickest you can get, as close to the flask as you can position them.

The magnets should be spaced below the ends of the stir bar (where their magnets are)

You can get Neodymium stir bars (they have a black dot on them for id) but they are expensive. I use a regular 50mm stir bar.

Torque is better than RPM when it comes to the motor. They seem to grip the stir bar more reliably at speed.
 

Latest posts

Back
Top