mitchbaker46 Posted October 6, 2016 Share Posted October 6, 2016 Hi Guys, I have come here as a last resort. I have a Strand GSX that I will be using in a production for my School next Thursday!! I am currently having issues with it turning on and booting up. When I flick the on switch, it just displays two rows of lines on the LCD screen. Sometimes these are bright and sometimes you can barely see them. To try and get it to work I opened up the case and pulled out the long white connector that goes from the bottom circuit board into the top control circuit board. I have to put the connector back in on an angle. Left first - This gets all of the lights on the console to turn on. I then put the other end in, the lights go out and the LCD either displays the two rows brightly or I cannot see them at all. Sometimes the console will load the software, other times it will do nothing, in which case I repeat the same process again. However, when I do get the console running, it will work perfectly fine for about 5-10 minutes. After that, the LCD display goes very dim and all controls are lost. Please help me, I'm not sure whether it is the inductor/resistor thing where the long connector/LCD cable is soldered into or whether the voltage in the power supply drops for no reason. This is all beyond me. If anyone can help me, I would really appreciate it. Thank you in advance. -Mitch Baker https://postimg.org/gallery/3iv3st0qe/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alistermorton Posted October 6, 2016 Share Posted October 6, 2016 It could be as simple as the battery is cattled- that can give rise to those sort of symptoms. So that would be my first port of call, then leave it on charge for 24 hours to see if it recovers. However, if the battery has leaked, as happened in my LBX (same motherboard) and damaged the tracks, it will need proper attention. Depending on the damage it may be recoverable, but mine was just crumbling to nothing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mitchbaker46 Posted October 6, 2016 Author Share Posted October 6, 2016 Thank you very much. The display flickered between light and dim after about two minutes of charging. I will leave it on overnight and see what happens. Just wondering, should the transformer be buzzing? It's a bigger buzz than I've heard before. It has been a while since I used it last. Thanks again! -Mitch Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alistermorton Posted October 6, 2016 Share Posted October 6, 2016 If it hasn't already been done, it's worth changing the battery. Newer batteries are NiMH which are better than the old NiCd batteries used in the 90s. Mine cost about a fiver - worth it I'd have thought. Probably cost a comparably small amount in Aus. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mitchbaker46 Posted October 6, 2016 Author Share Posted October 6, 2016 Okay, thank you. I highly doubt that the battery has been changed. Have you any idea what I could search to find a battery for the GSX? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alistermorton Posted October 6, 2016 Share Posted October 6, 2016 It's a standard Varta component. You can probably lift the part number of the existing one. This battery is the one from the UK seller CPC-Farnell. You should be able to source the same one in Australia from an electronics supplier. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mitchbaker46 Posted October 6, 2016 Author Share Posted October 6, 2016 Thank you very much once again. If the following battery is the correct one, I shall purchase it right away!http://www.master-instruments.com.au/products/55291/3/V150H%20D+10mm%20S-.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DrV Posted October 6, 2016 Share Posted October 6, 2016 As Alister says you should change the battery if it hasn't been done recently. When taking it out be very careful not to damage the through plated holes in the board. There are both top and bottom side connections to the battery. Once it is out have a good look at the state of the tracks in that area. When an old battery leaks the electrolyte creeps along between the green solder mask layer and the copper tracks and eats them away. If it is really bad, like Alister's was then it may not be possible to rescue it. That type of battery has been the source of untold misery on many pcbs!Dave Thank you very much once again. If the following battery is the correct one, I shall purchase it right away!http://www.master-instruments.com.au/products/55291/3/V150H%20D+10mm%20S-.htmlThat's the one Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mitchbaker46 Posted October 6, 2016 Author Share Posted October 6, 2016 Thank you Dave, there has been some on and off activity with the console. I shall remove the battery in the next 24 hours. Thanks again -Mitch Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alistermorton Posted October 6, 2016 Share Posted October 6, 2016 Dave - do you reckon there's space to cut the battery pins off near the battery body (leaving them in the board) then solder the new battery to those, possibly bending the legs of the battery to fit, thus avoiding removing the pins from the board at all? On my LBX that wouldn't have been a problem as there was more space to work in, but IIRC a GSX is a bit of a tighter fit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gerry Posted October 6, 2016 Share Posted October 6, 2016 Dave - do you reckon there's space to cut the battery pins off near the battery body (leaving them in the board) then solder the new battery to those, possibly bending the legs of the battery to fit, thus avoiding removing the pins from the board at all? On my LBX that wouldn't have been a problem as there was more space to work in, but IIRC a GSX is a bit of a tighter fit.That's the way I did it on my GSX.Saves taking the boards out.CheersGerry Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DrV Posted October 6, 2016 Share Posted October 6, 2016 The front (-ve) pin is a bit close to the connector but otherwise I can't see why not. But I wouldn't do it that way. If you have decent desoldering gear (in particular a powerful enough soldering iron) it's not difficult. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paulears Posted October 6, 2016 Share Posted October 6, 2016 I tried to replace it completely and found the problem above - a but crumbly. Mine now powers up but is not 100% reliable - leaving the tags is a sensible move! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mitchbaker46 Posted October 6, 2016 Author Share Posted October 6, 2016 Thanks to everyone who helped me out. My life has literally been saved by you great people. I left the GSX turned on overnight and after about 3 hours of being left on, it booted and stayed like that for the rest of the night. It was even still running this morning. Thanks again to everyone!!! Kind Regards, Mitch Baker Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jivemaster Posted October 6, 2016 Share Posted October 6, 2016 Early motherboards took something like 50 hours to fully charge the on board battery, so while it's nice to be up and running please let it have 24 hours switched on so that a lame and aged battery may catch enough charge to hold up for as long as you need. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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