Mastersizer 3000 by Malvern Panalytical

"The Mastersizer 3000 is very simple to use and very quick. The previous instrument runs take about 10 minutes after preparation of the sample. With the Mastersizer prep and run time is half that. The customer service is very attentive, and quick to help resolve any issues. They will attempt to fix the problem over the phone with you, to save a service call charge, or the instrument being down until they get here. In the few times we have had them come out, they are here within 5 to 10 days."

"The Mastersizer 3000 instrument is considered to be the most advanced instrument in the field of particle size determination. Instrument provides rapid and accurate particle size distribution using both dry and wet dispersion in the range of 0.1 – 1000μm. Software is 21 CFR part 11 compliant. Has a laser as source with an array detector. Various dry dispersion and wet dispersion accessories are available to use as per application. Good accuracy, precision and reproducibility. The instrument is quite compact and decent looking. Only issue I can find is that result are sometimes not comparable with Mastersizer 2000."

"Instrumentation technically sounds. Staff highly knowledgeable. Robust equipment. Work horse for our needs."

"This unit is very straight forward in its uses, Good software and simple to operate for various parameters. Support for technical matters had good followup with clarity and resolved our issue quickly."

"Very useful and easy instrument to learn and develop a method on, with very user-friendly software that is easy to navigate. Results are somewhat reproducible, as long as the instrument has been thoroughly cleaned and degassed. The on site instrument technician (Razvan) is very knowledgeable, professional, and is a great resource for troubleshooting minor method issues. Tech support through the Malvern website is less helpful and defensive when an instrument issue is brought to their attention, they would rather blame the user and the user method development. After sending raw data to them (Tony), they do not respond with any advice."

"Since introducing the Mastersizer 3000 we have been able to mill to an appropriate particle size to help eliminate issues with the intermediate materials going into a final product, which before use was causing issues if the particle size was too big."

"Often used analysis-method. Easy to use and well accepted."

"It's fairly accurate but we have a problem with everything getting stained. I'm constantly scrubbing what I can to get the red color off so that it doesn't effect the next sample run. Also there's a few things I'd want changed in the results part of the testing. You can't edit anything until the the run SOP pop up box is closed. If I have to run the same sample multiple times but i need to edit something I've got to close everything out, edit everything then reopen everything to get back to what I was doing. IT'S A PAIN!! There's a couple of renaming issues too that can be annoying. But overall the results seem to be about what I'd expect so no complaints there."

"It help us improve the quality of our products. We are carrying out analysis of cement and raw meal."

"The Malvern Mastersizer 3000 fits perfectly in our application. The transition between Mastersizer 2000 and 3000 was very smooth. The instrument is compact compared to the older one and it's also more powerful. The software has more advanced features like determining refractive index, determining the true absorbance of the material etc. After sales service and technical support is excellent. Overall, we love the instrument and is good addition in the lab."

"The Malvern is very easy to use and is accurate. My only issue is with a particular part that seems to wear prematurely from regular use and requires replacement every 6-8 months. I have contacted them about making a stronger, more robust part but have heard no response to my feedback. I will keep buying replacement parts until they resolve the issue."

"Easy to use and precise."

"I like to use the Malvern particle sizer for my analysis in the analytical lab. It helps give all the results we are looking for. Getting information is quick and easy."

"The Mastersizer 3000 is intuitive. The reports are streamlined and make interpreting results quick and uniform."

"Very easy to use. We have them in R&D and manufacturing (3 plants)and they are consistent in the data they give."

"It will give you a good indication of the stability of the emulsions or suspension by measuring the diameter of droplets that are around 1 μm for emulsions. It will help you to have more realistic shelf life on your products. Very handy and useful and it is a bit pricey! But worth it."

"It is a very useful and essential instrument in any quality control laboratory. It always gives me consistent results and is quite robust."

"This is a really good instrument to measure the particle size with um scale, and it is pretty simple to use and get the data faster with more efficiency."

"The Mastersizer 3000 is straightforward to use and does a good job. One complaint is that the instrument does not automatically save data, so if you do not manually save and power goes off, you lose data permanently."

"Very impressed with capabilities of the software and the ability to easily analyze the accuracy of each measurement and also the ability to easily and full customize the reports. Very simple to change between the different cell types and also different SOP's. Do not typically get good results from the internal sonication typically get far better results using an external probe."

"for the most part our Mastersizer 3000 has been a good purchase for us and we use it every day. Our lab technicians do complain about a few features that were on our older Mastersizer 2000 and are not on the new unit. specifically, batch printing is not as easy with the new 3000 unit. Also the master report template is not as easy to modify and there is a lot of empty space on the report that we wish we could populate with useful data or notes."

"The Technology and product development are exceptional. The industry we compete in, is slightly behind the times so the equipment has more capacity than our current uses demand. (That is why I only gave a "fair" review on cost). Hopefully the future continues to see increases on customer requirements, seeking properties that would require a much more detailed evaluation of our supplies. Then the true value of the Mastresizer will be realized."

"The machine is easy to use... once you get the hang of how the data output can be leveraged to learn the quality of your sample. After sales support from Peter and Greg was awesome. We had some initial qualms from the set up but Greg and Peter took the effort to make a special stop to give a more detailed understanding of the tests and set ups that we were particularly interested in."

"I am using everyday for my testing! The Malvern support department also very helpful and quick response. Any time I requested spreadsheets for excel COA I got it! That’s great service provided by company!"

"The Mastersizer is reproducible and easy to use. Even less capable technicians are able to use it effectively. We have been able to improve are pigment grinds by using the data produced by the unit. IT is easy to keep clean and the software is user friendly."

"The mastersizer 3000 was a great purchase for our production lab. It gives accurate and precise results very quickly. The program is user friendly so anyone can be trained to use it. Malvern/ PANalytical setup and qualified our instrument in just a few hours, the instrument also arrived before the estimated delivery date so that was a bonus for us, since we were up and running before our target date. John Raia was the service engineer who setup our instrument and did our team's training session. He was very knowledgeable and was able to answer all of our questions, even with our larger than normal training group Thanks John and thank you Malvern for the great customer support!"

"We still believe that Malvern is at the forefront of this technology and the hardware of this new unit is outstanding. They have made it easier for us to convert from the various configurations that we purchased. This is especially important in the R&D environment where we use it. All of the hardware portions are seamless and well thought out. On the software side we feel more could be done to ensure we have not lost any capabilities that we had on our previous Mastersizer 2000. There seems to be areas in the software that were needless changed or where logical flexibility has been lost. Why not have an interface that emulates the old system to allow for easier method transfer and less user re-training especially since these can also be used for final lot testing in a QA environment. We also need more security to ensure created methods can only be modified by authorized users who truly understand what the inputs are. Since this is a general use instrument it concerns me that nearly every user has access to the SOPs and can inadvertently modify them. In addition to security we have had several incidents of the program glitching and then needing to be restarted. Perhaps this has to do with our network or computer but we feel it should be more robust."

"I have had occasion to also use a Horiba LA-950V2 laser diffraction instrument. I feel that the software Malvern offers was far superior in appearance and ease of use. The ergonomics of the dry dispersion system by Malvern are better for a typical bench install. The sonication of the HydroMV was proven to have a higher level of agglomerate dispersion ability."

"The Malvern Mastersizer 3000 is easy to use and efficient but we regulrarly have issues with the LV unit attached. We have experienced several days of downtime at various times since purchasing. The service department is always quick to respond and assist but it can be a bit frustrating to keep having issues repeatedly."

"Very useful for the size range used in food industry. Relatively easy to setup and operate for R&D. / research applications"

"The Mastersizer 3000 is a very precise instrument."

"Great instrument. More reliable. The instrument is easy to use. Gives more reliable results"

"Reproducible results- cleaning is sometimes tedious. Automated programs need improvement. We purchased a new instrument and there was about a year of debugging. Otherwise, very happy with this instrument. Would be happier if a visualization feature or module (microscopy -simplified version of FPIA instrument) was included to see large aggregates versus entrained air bubbles! That's a $10,000 upcharge I would pay for compared to another instrument as it would reduce the need to confirm results by manual microscopy. Great support from Joe Wolfgang."

"What an awesome machine. So easy to use. The reports are printed out beautifully. All you have to do is run your samples and perform the scans. The help desk and service team is so friendly and respond so quickly to your needs with almost next day service. I am very happy with my decision to purchase this Mastersizer 3000 ."

"Very good, friendly using software. Highly recommended"

"PROS: Easy to use Quick change windows CONS: Not a like for like switch from MS2000, still struggling to transfer SOPs Resolution of Hydrasight unit is poor Auto Quality check of test results is minimal and lacking capability"

"Local sales and service technicians are very knowledgeable on their products. Also readily accessible."

"We have had a few minor issues with the equipment. Malvern is always super helpful to assist on a remote basis to see if preliminary trouble shooting will help, before committing to a service visit."

"Workhorse for our particle size distribution measurement in vaccine development work. Very reliable instrument, but could improve on ease of use."

"Easy to use. you can have real time monitoring for your particle size. if something goes wrong they are always there to take care of your needs"

"The MS3000 software is super easy to use. The Malvern support always gets back to us right away. Great Particle Sizing system"

"Best value for any instrument in its class (laser diffraction) for powder particle size distribution. It is extremely easy to use. The automated SOPs allow for highly reproducible results for both wet and dry dispersion analysis. Switching between the wet and dry modules is a fast and simple process. It takes up very little bench space. The software is user friendly and free updates. Almost infinite customization of the reports. The software makes it so simple to create your own reports. My reports have impressed everyone I've given them to (you can even add pictures such as SEM). It is an amazing instrument to say the least."

"The build of the Mastersizer 3000 is robust and easy clean. Measurements are easy to make and the software is easy to negotiate. Feed back from other end users in the department has been extremely positive and the training they require to get started is minimal. Malvern also has an extremely good aftersales team they will help with technical problems and often make suggestions which they think may help. This is the third Mastersizer I have had in a timespan of around 35 years and the first one was still working after 20years of service."

"User-Friendly is one of the main attribute with this instruments. Technical and Quality staff used this instrument to determine that our dispersion are stable by the particle distribution analysis."

"The Good: Instrument is easy to learn and method development is easily transferred from 2000 to 3000 if sonication is not overly used. Software layout is nice and it is recommended that you have two monitors to get the best viewing. Manual mode is nice for full control of what you want to run and data is easy to pull up and review. The Bad: The earlier model of the 3000 I had at Amgen (~5-6 years ago) would not reduce the stir speed during wash cycle. The model I bought about 2 years ago at Gilead reduces it to 1000 rpm whenever you drain valve. I prefer not having to manually pump back up the stir speed every time I clean between samples. The Mastersizer 2000 also maintains stir speed during cleaning. The 3000 has a known software issue where you can not take a screen shot of the print preview report of more than 6 overlays without it cutting off the distribution names and summary table. You can try to export the overlay image via the software, but it too will still cut off longer file names making it difficult to make nice e-images to drop into a power point slide show. I have been told by the company that this is considered a known issue and a low risk because physical print outs do not show this behavior. Problem is, these days, we dont tend to deal with physical printouts."

"Malvern Mastersizer 3000 is an invaluable equipment for supporting drug development. It is essential measurement tool to provide rapid and accurate data for PSD which is crucial in dry powder inhaler development. I achieved high quality and reproducible results with many years practical experience. It is easy to use with many functions to help SOP development. After sale care and value for money are all excellent."

"Fairly simple to operate. Bit quirky having to maneuver between screens for reports."

"This is our third unit purchased and we are very please with both the reliability of the unit itself and service provided by Malvern Instruments. We are characterizing particles ranging in size from 15 micron up to 90 microns and the unit has provided use with the ability to review an infinite range of sizes giving us reliable quantitative results"

"Very beautiful piece of equipment. Easy to use as long as the manuals has been read and understood. Results are reproducible for the most part, with a slight variance. The after sales care could be a bit better. The technician who came to install the equipment could have been a bit more thorough with explain certain features. The Mastersizer 3000 is definitely worth the money, it facilitates quick and easy results within minutes."

"Getting this instrument set up at our institution was a little challenging because of the purity of air and water required, but once that was done, it's been working great. We've had it for about 7 months, and all the users are happy with the data. We have not had to call for service on anything yet."

"Love it! a huge improvement from the Mastersizer S."

"The Mastersizer 3000 is very user friendly. It is easily changed from a dry feed operation with the Aero to a wet analysis with the Hydro. This makes it perfect for use in our application where both types of analysis is needed. The improved layout makes navigating the software much easier. All-in-all I believe the Mastersizer 3000 is probably one of the best products available in this market."

"Instrument is incredibly reliable and the aftercare we receive from Malvern is great. I would also recommend the bespoke training we have received from their technical experts."

"The Mastersizer 3000 is a step up form the 2000 in that its footprint is smaller and usability has improved. The software has had a face-lift and this is welcome; I think this has an added improvement in the ease of use."

"We can produce reliable results that help us explain improvements or reasons for good/poor performance of our paint products. The initial teaching that was provided produced a basis for understanding rheology in terms of our application field."

"The Mastersizer 3000 software is easy to use and intuitive. Measurements are very reliable. We sometimes have problems with air bubbles or contaminant particles disrupting our measurement, but these are usually easily resolved with cleaning, sonication or changes to the method."

"High quality reproducible results. Reliable and easy to use software. Good after sales customer service and knowledgeable service engineers."

"Malvern mastersizer 3000, is one of the best instrument for determination of particle size for powders, granules both in solid dispersion and in liquid dispersion. The instrument is very user friendly and easy to use as the principle of operation of the instrument is very simple and robust. The data generated on the instrument is very reliable and accurate. Method development on the instrument is very simple and gives reproducible results time and again. Further the attachments we have procured for handling toxic products is very good and effective in containing the dust and extract. We feel that this is the best instrument for research & development and routine quality control. This is one of the flagship instrument we added in our laboratory recently. After sales service from the uk based malvern team is very good and we are totally satisfied with the instrument. We would strongly recommend this instrument."

"The product is an effective way to determine the particle size after treatment. Easy to use and results relevant with results obtained with other instruments and tests."

"The Mastersizer 3000 has proved to our company many times that it is worth the investment. It has proved to be an excellent way to check our manufacturing to ensure quality products straight from the line. The results which we receive are consistent and easy to confirm accuracy by just looking into the multiple graphs and screens. There are many product features which have helped in our investigations that we feel Malvern did very well with."

"In comparison with the MS2000, the MS3000 is a lot easier to use. The updated software is an simpler. We cut down our measurement time down to 1/3 and it's a space saver."

"I have now been using the MS3000 for @4years and have found it to be an extremely capable and user friendly platform, we as a company performed a large peer to peer comparison of products in the open market to assess which system best met our current, and future business needs (Compared against 5 other competitor products). WE as a technical sub-team unanimously agreed that the MS3000 best met our requirements for technical capability and user friendliness. Since purchasing we have found it to be an extremely capable instrument, and it has become our first choice platform for laser diffraction particle size analysis"

"Good results, consistent. Transferring methods from our old Malvern S was initially a problem that we struggled with but we are learning to use it."

"Mastersizer 3000 is a user friendly equipment. However, the software has some glitches making it freeze during the particle size measurement runs, even when the latest software is downloaded."

"We use the Mastersizer 3000 to check our metallic powders. We want need comparisons more than extremely accurate values but the software is easy enough to use to be able to refine the results if required."

"The mastersizer allows easy and simple determination of PSD of our bulk coarse sanding material used in our shell cells. The use of the Aero dispersion unit allows for a quick turn around time and the quick load SOPs and minimal cleaning requirements aid in the prevention of human error."

"We love this instrument. It is easy to use and the results are reproducible when tested correctly. We have not received good after sales care. We have not heard from Sales or service to look into preventative maintenance."

"We are happy with the results we are obtaining. Easy transition from the 2000 to the 3000. Good solids/measurements features."

"Customizability of methods in combination with easy-to-use equipment and fantastic support from Malvern make the Masersizer 300 near-perfect for our particle analysis applications. Techs find the product easy to use, there was plenty of follow-up by the Malvern team after setup, and given the frequency with which we perform particle analysis, we are certainly getting good results for our dollar spent. If I had any complaints, it would be with the current software. It isn't always intuitive, and has a tendency to utilize significant resources, lock up and restart, and the seemingly arbitrary locking of files into read-only mode can be an exercise in frustration."

"Recently upgraded from the Mastersizer 2000. This unit is much smaller, freeing up valuable bench space. Cleaning the lenses is much easier than on the old unit. Overall, it's much easier to use, while providing us with the accuracy we need."

"Very simple to use. Set up was painless. Creating the SOPs and reports were easy and quick. Results were repeatable and reproducible while comparing data between 2 Malvern Mastersizer 3000 systems. Sales experience was excellent. Malvern went above and beyond to meet all of my demands and timeline."

"This instrument is easy to use, and provides consistent results."

"The software makes the difference for this instrument. The smaller footprint of the 3000 versus the 2000 is noticeable however the software improvements are great. The ability to create SOP's from manual measurements and the optical properties optimizer help our lab save time and improve the quality of the analyses."

"New to our laboratory. We are learning as we go and find that it is very user friendly."

"Instrument works really well, the user interface is very easy to use. Results are repeatable and the run time is short. The report printout has everything we need and looks professional. When we did need a repair, not due to the instrument but to poor maintenance by one of our departments, the person that came out was knowledgeable and explained everything that was wrong with the instrument in great detail."

"Very easy to use, good service and excellent inter instrument agreement"

"The instrument is very easy to operate. Sometimes, the measurement cell can be dirty with fine particles stuck to the measurement window glass, but it is very easy to clean with lens cleaning wipes. The software is fabulous. In my opinion, it really makes this instrument standing out compared with other peers. The software allows a great control on how to collect the data (background, stirring rate, sonication, etc.), but also how to process the data. A lot of times, the sample being analyzed is a mixture of different components, and hence the refractive value should be carefully chosen to represent the average result of all major components. The software allows users to change the refractive index value, and gives the goodness of fit to the measured profile. Thus users can fine tune the refractive index value to get the best match to the measured profile, and achieve "true" particle size information. "

"The Mastersizer 3000 is very user friendly. We have been able to easily train all of our employees on proper use and cleaning. We are able to achieve consistent results on a daily basis, and also our results correlate very well to our production sites. The Mastersizer has been an exceptional instrument, and the software is very simply to use yet complex. It allows us to tailor our SOP's to specific products and raw materials."

"Pros: 1. Compared to the old 2000 unit, the new unit has enhanced sensitivity, a much more modern interface, and a good selection of settings for various common materials. 2. The customer support is great. Then vendor conducts product demos, onsite training, and is available through email/phone for troubleshooting/support. 3. The product is more modular and switching between different modules is easy. Cons: 1. Requires a larger sample size than the older model for the standard attachment."

"This product was very good at helping quantify the effectiveness of various blenders. I used various degrees of blade sharpness coupled with taste testing to find a "golden zone" of how diced up the food being blended should be."

"I have both the Hydro LV wet dispersion unit and the Aero S dry dispersion unit. Both work great and provide excellent results. The software is incredibly easy to use. Parameters within the system are easy to adjust to fit a variety of material types. I've used the Mastersizer 2000 in the past and the Mastersizer 3000 is an excellent upgrade from an already terrific piece of equipment."

"We use this instrument daily in the lab. It has served us well."

"We make extensive use of this instrument so it basically has easily payed for itself. It's easy to develop documentable and reproducible methods for each sample and both tech service by telephone and the repair engineer who trained us and has done the annual PM once already have been very helpful when needed."

"The instrument is very user friendly. Has a good operating window and allows for quick learning. The results it delivers are reliable and can be replicated."

"Very user friendly while at the same time it can be used for a wide range of applications. We can test other products that are very different from what we routinely test. The maintenance plan gives us peace of mind and helps us maintain our accreditation. Service has always been excellent weather there is an issue or a question we have always been helped thoroughly."

"We always receive high accuracy results and the report with value is accepted world wide"

"Results are of high quality, and reproducible. The Mastersizer 3000 is very user friendly, and an easy transition from the Mastersizer 2000."

"Liquid and solids dispersion for the 3000 work very well and are easy to train new users. The software build/configuration for administration of accounts and project folders which requires exporting and importing is unique and not an intuitive approach. The annual qualification is well designed."

"System is reliable and easy to use. Running the same method at multiple sites give comparable data, indicating the robustness of the technique and instrumentation platform. Some annoyances exist that limit the upside. Examples: 1. liquid level sensor does not handle non-aqueous dispersant properly 2. disperser is compact, so is difficult to repair simple things such as internal tubing connections 3. access to parameters in the modeling is limited for R&D work. 4. control of the vacuum unit for dry powder work is cumbersome."

"Easy to use. Great software with free updates and open license. Use software on any computer on the network to analyze or view data. Small footprint takes up less bench space."

"The machine is easy to use. In the past, the lab techs had to run the sample several times to get an accurate reading but with this machine the first time does it. The Matersizer 3000 is a good machine that gives you the results needed. The compact size is great for an over camped lab."