Branson Sonifier review

Last month, we looked back at the recently discontinued Soniprep 150 Plus ultrasonic disintegrator and evaluated its possible replacement, the Branson SFX Sonifier. This month we will take a closer look at the Branson Sonifier and review its features and benefits.

Who is Branson?

Branson is an American company which is wholly owned by Emerson. Emerson is a large organisation offering solutions for a variety of market sectors from automotive to chemical. Emerson represent a wide range of other brands with Branson just being one of them. Branson attends to the needs of the material joining and cleaning market. However, they do also manufacture a sonicator for laboratory applications. This is called the Branson SFX Sonifier.

Although Branson is essentially an American company, it is worth noting that their manufacturing base for the SFX Sonifier is in Slovakia. This means that lead times are relatively quick and there is no duty to pay on their products (at least, not at the moment), making them competitively priced.

Branson Sonifier overview

There are in fact, three Branson SFX sonifiers in the range: the 150, 250 and 550. They all have the same features but the only difference is that each model varies in power. A wide range of probes and other accessories are available.

The Branson Sonifier comes with a very long warranty- three years in fact! However, this does not cover the probes, or ‘horns’ as Branson like to call them. These do wear out over time and can break if they are dropped or banged around.

Accessories and optional extras for your Branson Sonifier

There are a wide range of accessories available for the Branson SFX Sonifier. Users can choose to purchase, at an additional cost, an acoustic enclosure. This reduces the noise of the sonicator. This is particularly useful in busy labs such as production sites where there is already considerable noise being made by other equipment like centrifuges.

The Branson SFX Sonicator is primarily a hand-held device. A stand can be purchased as an optional extra. This can be combined with the acoustic enclosure.

There is also an accessory called a Rosette Cell. This is essentially a way of circulating the sample to minimise the amount of heat generated.  In addition to this, when it is immersed in a cooling bath, the enlarged glass surface and circulation through the side arms provide an efficient means of heat exchange.

However, probably the most important optional extra are the horns. There is a wide variety of horns available depending on the sample size. There are up to 11 different horns which can be used for volumes from 0.25ml to 2L.

Branson Sonifier conclusion

The Branson SFX Sonifier is an extremely versatile product, living in what is a pretty uncongested market sector. There aren’t too many alternatives on the market for this type of product, particularly at this level of quality and versatility. It is competitively priced too. Users can purchase a Sonifier complete with stand, acoustic enclosure and a selection of horns for under £5,000.

Pros

• Easy-to-use.
• Programmable device with an impressive range of features.
• A number of probes available for a wide range of applications.
• 3-year warranty for peace-of-mind.

Cons

• A sound enclosure is not sold as standard which might be annoying for some users given the noise it can make.
• You have to purchase a stand separately too.

Overall score

8/10

How Henderson Biomedical can help

Henderson Biomedical is a UK distributor of Branson SFX Sonifiers. We are able to offer excellent sales advice as well as after sales service. For more information, please contact our team on 020 8663 4610 or alternatively email us at info@henderson-biomedical.co.uk. You can also visit our dedicated Branson SFX Sonifier web page for more information and downloadable brochures.