Abstract: A portable wire locator device for sequential identification of conductors within a cable includes a diode matrix board arranged with a plurality of wire-receiving terminals which are arranged into evenly spaced rows and columns, a plurality of lights arranged into a row of lights and into a column of lights and a source of electrical power. The source of electrical power is a battery and is coupled in parallel to the lights in the row and the lights in the column which in turn are coupled to the various wire-receiving terminals of the matrix board. Each wire-receiving terminal is coupled through a first diode to one light of the row and through a second diode to one light of the column so that each wire-receiving terminal corresponds to one and only one pair of lights. Similarly, each pair of lights corresponds to one and only one wire-receiving terminal.