I Need some help, about 2 weeks ago my DVD Recorder the DMR-E85H started flashes a self check in the front display panel. I didn't know what to do so I tried to turn my machine off, but it wouldn't turn off. All it did was keep rebooting. After trying several different things without success I finally unplug it. At that point my DVD Recorder appeared dead and the power hasn't ever come back.
I opened up my DVD Recorder, and found that 2 different capacitors that where bulged on the top with no apparent leakage. The capacitors are numbered C1260 and C1261. Do you believe that this is the problem? And if so, how do I get the circuit board out of the system to get repaired?
I greatly Appreciate anybody's help.

http://vassfamily.net/projects/DMRE85H/dmre85h.html

Here are the best directions,

On my EH85, I have more problems than just capacitors so I will be sending mine to Panasonic service.

I Need some help, about 2 weeks ago my DVD Recorder the DMR-E85H started flashes a self check in the front display panel. I didn't know what to do so I tried to turn my machine off, but it wouldn't turn off. All it did was keep rebooting. After trying several different things without success I finally unplug it. At that point my DVD Recorder appeared dead and the power hasn't ever come back.
I opened up my DVD Recorder, and found that 2 different capacitors that where bulged on the top with no apparent leakage. The capacitors are numbered C1260 and C1261. Do you believe that this is the problem? And if so, how do I get the circuit board out of the system to get repaired?
I greatly Appreciate anybody's help.

Also see this post and others that follow it:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=14452857#post14452857

http://vassfamily.net/projects/DMRE85H/dmre85h.html

Here are the best directions,

On my EH85, I have more problems than just capacitors so I will be sending mine to Panasonic service.

Those are great photos. The DVD Drive's rubber hub needs cleaning as well.

I usually keep my E85 turned off when not in use. Early last night I notice a "Please Wait" message for no reason. Didn't pay much attention. A few hours later I turned the unit on to transfer a movie from my Dish 622 receiver to the E58s hard drive.

Everything seemed fine. Left it transferring and went to bed. Got up this morning and the E85 is stone dead. Nothing lit up and no signs of power to unit. Tried different outlets, etc. Nothing. This unit's been rock solid for years.

The movie I was transfering was a Dish HD VOD (Eagle Eye) which I had access to for 24 hrs. My wife thinks some sort of copy protection scheme fried the E85, which I find very hard to believe. I was transfering it via S-Video which has worked very well for making really good dvd copies.

Any ideas before I contact Panasonic. I really hate to loose this unit for whatever time it would take to fix it.

Does anyone know if this unit has a fuse and how to access it?

Thanks
Waltinvt

Walt, unplug from power for at least 10 sec, longer if poss.. Might be the Standby circuit lost power, which can be reset by unplugging... let's hope so, anyway.

Thanks for the advice but no luck. Let it set unplugged for an hour and tried plus even tried a different power chord - not a flicker of life. Does anyone know if there's a fuse in this unit?

I know people don't like it when others post without first searching for answers, so I'll go back and look some more but in the meanwhile, does anyone know if there's a way to retrieve the contents of the HDD, assuming it's still ok? I have a lot on it I'd hate to loose.

Thanks again.

Does anyone know if there's a fuse in this unit?

In Vmalhotra's sixth and eleventh photos the fuse is seen at the lower right, near the AC cord connector:

http://vassfamily.net/projects/DMRE85H/dmre85h.html

I took the cover off, removed the HDD assembly and exposed the main circuits underneath. The fuse does not appear to be blown but there are a few capacitors with slightly bulging tops. Not saying those aren't or won't be a potential problem but would they cause the unit to appear completely dead?

Is the power supply itself under the dvd mechanism because I still don't see anything that looks like it?

In Vmalhotra's sixth and eleventh photos the fuse is seen at the lower right, near the AC cord connector:

http://vassfamily.net/projects/DMRE85H/dmre85h.html

I think that's the problem. Although the fuse did not look blown, I dug around and round my old voltmeter and checked with the fuse in it's holder - no reading at all! At the power plug insert right near the fuse it checks out fine with about 115v.

What fuse number will work as a replacement and where can I get them? I live in rural Vermont and don't have many local options.:)

Thank you all so much for your assistance.

I think that's the problem. Although the fuse did not look blown, I dug around and round my old voltmeter and checked with the fuse in it's holder - no reading at all! At the power plug insert right near the fuse it checks out fine with about 115v.

What fuse number will work as a replacement and where can I get them? I live in rural Vermont and don't have many local options.:)

Thank you all so much for your assistance.

The fuse seen at the upper left corner of the photo seems to be universal with my Panasonics. Notice the specifications, 250V 2A. The stripes may indicate some performance characteristic, maybe whether it's a "slow blow" design or not. I don't know. The parts list in the DMR-ES35V and DMR-EH75 Service Manuals have a notation that these fuses have "special characteristics important for safety."

In this photo (of a DMR-ES35V "parts machine") the largest electrolytic capacitor (C11108) in the power supply has been removed.

If you live near a Radio Shack they should carry glass fuses. As Digado said some may be of a "slow blow" design but most devices just use a regular straight wire type. I'd be more concerned to get the 2 Amp part correct. If yours was a slow blow and you install a straight wire fuse you'll actually be MORE protected and your new fuse would have more a chance of blowing than a slow blow. Either should be just fine. It's best not to put a slow blow in a device that was designed for a faster acting fuse, I'd be more worried about going that way.

http://vassfamily.net/projects/DMRE85H/dmre85h.html

In Vmalhotra's twelfth photo the fuse specification is seen on the underside of the power board as seen at the photo's upper right corner. The fuse specification appears to be 250V 1.6A.

Sure does, hopefully it has a fuse holder and isn't a solder in type.

Yes mine also says 250v 1.6A and it is a fuse holder type. The nearest Radio Shack is 40m so I may try to order them online.

Thanks a bunch guys and I'll post how this works out. If it turns out it's more than just the fuse, does anyone know if there's anyway to save the contents of the HDD to my PC so I can burn them to disk from there?

Yes mine also says 250v 1.6A and it is a fuse holder type. The nearest Radio Shack is 40m so I may try to order them online.

Thanks a bunch guys and I'll post how this works out. If it turns out it's more than just the fuse, does anyone know if there's anyway to save the contents of the HDD to my PC so I can burn them to disk from there?Now that you have the fuse out of it's holder, just double check and check the continuity with your volt-meter to make sure it is really blown.

No one has ever been able to connect a DVDR HDD to a PC and read the file system. It is proprietary. Your only hope is to include a nice note when you send it for service requesting that they not format the HDD if possible. If ultimately it turns out the HDD is the problem then you are out of luck.

Now that you have the fuse out of it's holder, just double check and check the continuity with your volt-meter to make sure it is really blown.

No one has ever been able to connect a DVDR HDD to a PC and read the file system. It is proprietary. Your only hope is to include a nice note when you send it for service requesting that they not format the HDD if possible. If ultimately it turns out the HDD is the problem then you are out of luck.
Thanks Kelson,

Maybe it's not the fuse after all. Obviously I'm way out of my range of expertise here and know nothing about adjusting the OHMS meter or interpreting it's readout but when I stick the volt meter pins on either end of the fuse I get a reading of 20, the same as when I just cross the pins. I assume this means current is flowing through the fuse and the fuse is good.

Yes if you get the same reading when shorting the 2 leads together as when going across the fuse, the fuse is good.
Others have sent there unit into Panasonic and for $130 they get it fixed. Unless the HDD is bad you should also still be able to play back your programs once it's fixed. IOW they don't reformat the HDD.

I am having this issue as well...Took my DVR apart (which is a miracle that I even did that) and found this with the capacitors:

http://i43.tinypic.com/ifd5wp.jpg

Not as bad as I have seen others have, but it doesn't look right. The next step is soldering which I have never done and I don't want to start with my pride and joy DVR.

So my question is this: Anyone here on this forum have the know-how to fix this and happen to live in Northern NJ? I would gladly bring it to you to fix (and compensate for)....I am currently out of work and cannot afford to buy another machine, nor to pay the outrageous prices Panasonic charges to fix this DVR..

LMK
-Joe
jbwave@aol.com

I am having this issue as well...Took my DVR apart (which is a miracle that I even did that) and found this with the capacitors:

Not as bad as I have seen others have, but it doesn't look right. The next step is soldering which I have never done and I don't want to start with my pride and joy DVR.

So my question is this: Anyone here on this forum have the know-how to fix this and happen to live in Northern NJ? I would gladly bring it to you to fix (and compensate for)....I am currently out of work and cannot afford to buy another machine, nor to pay the outrageous prices Panasonic charges to fix this DVR..

LMK
-Joe
jbwave@aol.com



Just take it to nearest TV repair shop, if there is such a thing near your neck of woods, and they will happily do it for $20.

I replaced my capacitors and it went from PLEASE WAIT to just frozen on GVGuide screen and no buttons active, I will be sending it to Panasonic in few days, if you think $130 is a robbery, find out what Toshiba and Pio charge for similar service and you will think AIG bailout was a bargain. :cool:

Just take it to nearest TV repair shop, if there is such a thing near your neck of woods, and they will happily do it for $20.

$20? I dunno - I recall a decade or so ago when I had a VCR break on me the TV Repair shop wanted $65 just to open the sucker up...and I am sure prices now are a lot worse then then...

$20? I dunno - I recall a decade or so ago when I had a VCR break on me the TV Repair shop wanted $65 just to open the sucker up...and I am sure prices now are a lot worse then then...

$65 included diagnostics too, I would take it to shop and say, I just want "these two capacitors" replaced, as you already have the case open, you already have the problem diagnosed (hopefully) they dont have to charge you for that.

I agree. Shops around here, at least ones that would do component level repair, wouldn't turn on a soldering iron for less than a hundred bucks. That's why if you can't do something like this yourself (or find a friend/relative to do it for you) the $130 flat rate repair from Panasonic is such a bargain.
YMMV

I am having this issue as well...Took my DVR apart (which is a miracle that I even did that) and found this with the capacitors . . .

Not as bad as I have seen others have, but it doesn't look right. The next step is soldering which I have never done and I don't want to start with my pride and joy DVR.

So my question is this: Anyone here on this forum have the know-how to fix this and happen to live in Northern NJ? I would gladly bring it to you to fix (and compensate for)....I am currently out of work and cannot afford to buy another machine, nor to pay the outrageous prices Panasonic charges to fix this DVR..

From your photo it looks like the power board with the bad capacitors is almost ready to take out of the machine. Observe the conductive bridge between the two circuit boards. The wider side is the connector. It appears that there may be a retaining tab (or keyed alignment guide) toward the center of the connector. If it's a locking tab release it and lift the connector--grasp the connector from both ends. Then disconnect the wired power connector. Take the power board (but not the machine) into some place with a an electronics service area. They should take care of capacitor replacement for a reasonable price.

You're sort of "damned if you do, damned if you don't" when it comes to these kinds of repairs. As many have observed, Panasonic's $130 all-inclusive fee is reasonable compared to Toshiba or Pioneer, who will cheerfully razor your wallet pocket and remove $250 with a straight face. Convincing a local shop to do this "little repair" for $20 is a long shot: its easy to say they shouldn't charge a diagnostic fee because you've already diagnosed it for them, but realistically on most repairs they know what the problem is before opening the unit up. They cost-average the "diagnostic fee" into their basic rate so they can break even on the tougher jobs which are subsidized by the easy ones. When you hand them this frugal line of reasoning you're basically saying they're crooks and you won't put up with it: not the best approach. It can work, if you know the shop, but be very tactful.

The really annoying thing about this caps repair is its a piece of cake to anyone with the least bit of soldering experience. But like learning to ride a bike, working with solder is terrifying for newbies. If money is really tight, and repair shops won't budge below $50, I usually recommend stalling this repair as long as possible while you network friends and relatives: someone always knows someone whose teenage nephew can do this sort of job neatly and in five minutes. Offer the kid $25, hand him the board and you're home free.

$20? I dunno - I recall a decade or so ago when I had a VCR break on me the TV Repair shop wanted $65 just to open the sucker up...and I am sure prices now are a lot worse then then...Yes, you are right. You will be charged an hourly labor rate of the shop in the neighborhood of $80-100/hr with a minimum of 1/2 hr -- plus parts which will be inflated. You will not get a fixed rate, they will charge you for their time -- whatever it takes to do the job. It's just like auto repairs.

IMHO you are being "pound foolish". Based on the opinion of well-meaning posters on a message board you are assuming that all your problems are related to capacitors. If you had the skill to replace them yourself and it did not solve the problem, you would be out only a couple dollars before having to box it up and send it into Panasonic for repair. If you have to take it into a repair shop and pay someone else to do your experiment, you run the risk of spending say half the Panasonic repair fee and not solving the problem -- then spend the $130 for Panasonic to fix it.

So, it's all a question of how lucky you feel.