So, let’s say you want to look at your coin collection, and possibly list some items up online for trade or sale. The value of your coins comes from the special mint marks or imperfections on the coins themselves–usually naked to the human eye. How does your target audience know that you’re a legitimate seller, and that the price you have on the coin is as valued without seeing that specific mark–especially when a regular camera can’t capture it?
That’s when you get your hands on a stereo microscope like the AmScope fixed stereo microscope SE306R-AZ. This unit has a good magnification range for inspection of coins (20x for most of the coin, up to 80x for small details). Keep in mind, however, that I’m not recommending this unit for viewing full coins by any means–20x magnification is too high to be able to get a large enough field of view for a quarter or nickel–maybe even a dime sized coin. But, for getting in close to those elements, this is a great economic way to go. You could always use a regular point and shoot to get images of the whole coin anyway, right?
AmScope Fixed Stereo Microscope Review “SE306R-AZ“
In terms of lighting, the SE306R-AZ comes with both top and bottom illumination, so you can use it for technically just about any sample you can get your hands on and put on the stage of the unit. It’s usually used for coins, stamps, rocks, and bugs–whether you’re in the pest elimination business and trying to identify the infestation, you’re getting an easy to use unit for your grandchildren for the holidays, or you’re an avid bug collector and want to get more detail from your collection, this unit will cover all of that without any additional accessories needed.
Now, for the photographers or those that have a use for images of their samples, as this AmScope fixed stereo microscope comes packaged it doesn’t include a camera. You can use any of the MU series cameras with this unit without issue, however! That would give you 20x magnification from the camera though, so you would be more magnified than through the standard 10x eyepieces. I’d recommend this MU503 (PC or Mac) for a cost effective camera that still gives you enough resolution for all applications–certainly enough for web listings for customers or potential clients, or for school projects (who doesn’t like quality pictures for the science fair after all?)
Now, with that said, this AmScope fixed stereo microscope is a stereo unit, which generally means low power. By using two separate paths of light that are slightly offset from viewing the same point, you get a stereoscopic (3Dish) view of your sample, so it’s great for opaque samples or larger samples that you want depth of (circuit boards are a great example). That means that this isn’t going to work for something microscopic like bacteria on a slide. Even though it has enough magnification to do it (40x), you really aren’t going to get the resolution you need to see that much detail. So, keep that in mind that no one microscope is going to be able to do both applications–be sure you have the right fixed stereo microscope for your application before purchasing.
The eyepieces on this specific fixed stereo microscope are interchangeable with any 30.5mm outer diameter sized eyepieces, so you could always get others to increase or decrease the magnification as desired. This one came with 10x and 20x eyepieces, so you won’t want to duplicate that if you’re ordering others for it.
All in all, for the price point it’s at, you won’t find a unit that isn’t a toy fixed stereo microscope that is also similar to the fixed stereo microscope model SE306R-AZ is, but be sure to keep your expectations realistic–it won’t do everything, nor will it have the largest field of view compared to the more expensive zooming microscope microscopes, nor the flexibility of a zooming head. This one has set powers you cycle between like a compound microscope, not a knob that allows you to zoom to all powers in and between the ones listed. Great as a gift for a beginner/student, a basic hobbyist, or a collector in your list of loved ones!
To get this on order or check out more user reviews of this AmScope fixed stereo microscope, head on over to Amazon here: SE306R-AZ