buster37862
02-19-07, 05:48 PM
A number of Panny owners here and on other boards have posted that their Panny unit has one or more of the following issues:
1) Upon start up it takes a long, long time and often results in crashing into the dreaded "SELF CHECK" endless loop, or
2) Cannot finish burning DVD-+R's without a failure (including the dreaded "SELF CHECK" restart loop), or
3) Hard drive works fine, but any DVD (including Ram) is another story (including failure to eject a disk).
Well, the following info will supposedly fix these issues in the E85, and may apply to some other models as well (E80, E100), or even some non-HDD earlier models?
I have not tried this procedure myself, but it does seem to provide a ray of hope for some.
I am not an electronics repair techie and have never soldered anything in my life, so I can only pass along what I've found. I must admit that I was somehat surprised that the supposed fix is not the obvious --- especially since I would have bet that a bad/failing DVD drive was usually the culprit whenever the HDD still works fine.
It seems that in many cases these issues are caused by a poorly engineered Power Supply. Here is the info I have found on repairing this issue for around $15-20 + labor. Of course, do it yourselfers can save a few more bucks:
Many thanks for the posts on the Panasonic DMR E85H dvd recorder on this forum and other forums about the : SELF CHECK : problem which goes into a continuous loop taking 10 minutes to 30 minutes before the recorder will sign on or may be just not sign on at all (DEAD) or other problems.
Mine developed this fault about 2 years after I purchase and the machine had very little use mainly recording to the hard drive. It finally died on me.
Reading the forums I decided to do the repair it myself
The problem is that it as a poorly designed PSU (power supply) NOT COOLING THE VOLTAGE REGULATOR…….IC part No. STRG6353 made by SANKEN ELECTRONICS in China .This is marked on the PCB board IC 001.
THE PART IC STR-G6353 CAN BE PURCHASED AT NIKKO ELECTRONICS FOR AROUND £5 EACH I bought 2 one for a spare over the internet with next day delivery………………………www.nikkoe.com
THE REPAIR
1. DOING THIS IS ENTIRELY YOUR OWN RISK AND I WILL NOT BE HELD RESPONABLE FOR ANY DAMAGE OR INJURIES INCURED.
2. DISCONECT ALL MAINS POWER AND REMOVE MOULDED TWO PIN PLUG FROM RECORDER.
3. Remove top cover….one large silver screw at each side…..three small black screws on the back.
4. Remove the hard drive top retaining metal cover which as the black ribbon cable also attached to it then pull out the ribbon cable from the hard drive CAREFULLY then also pull out the power connection plug to the hard drive remove hard drive
5. You will see that there is a plastic rubber moulded insulator to reduce vibration from the hard drive….remove this.
6. Remove the bottom hard drive retaining plate (four screws) to get access to the power supply PCB board.
7. Removing the PSU board (card)….Remove the small black screw where the mains electric enters the machine then lift off the multi jumper that conects to the main board pull and gently tilt towards you.
This should take an average twenty minutes at most to get the card out.
8. I took the card and the IC to a local T.V repair shop who took just five minutes to replace WHICH I RECOMMEND BECAUSE THE CARD IS DOUBLE SIDED WITH VERY SMALL SURFACE MOUNTED COMPONENTS WHICH CAN BE DESTROYED VERY EASILY.They charged me £5
9. RE-ASSEMBLE
Worked fine for me without having to replace any more components.
Hope this helps without getting ripped off for the repair.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
95% of the problems with the panasonic DMR E85H are caused by the voltage regulator marked (IC 001) on the PSU (power supply board)...part no STR-G6353 which gradualy starts to fail then dies this is caused by lack of cooling.
The IC part No STR-G6353 is made by SANKEN CORPORATION in China and sells for around £5 here in the U.K. read my previous post where to buy or search the NET
By replacing this IC should solve the problem .......IF this does not solve the problem then two more components nead to be replaced on PSU board which are.......
ZD002 = MA4068N
ZD004 = MA80510ML
These are diodes...... REMEMBER THE CORECT POLARITY WHEN REPLACING
WARNING....WARNING.....DO NOT ATTEMPT TO SOLDER THE COMPONENTS INTO THE BOARD UNLESS YOU HAVE CORRECT SOLDERING TACKLE AND HAVE EXPERIENCE WITH SURFACE MOUNTED COMPONENTS....BE WARNED...........
TAKE THE BOARD OUT AND TAKE IT GOOD T.V REPAIR SHOP.Should not cost more than £5 five minute job.
The voltage regulator STRG 6353 has 5 legs and is bolted to the big metal heat sink. Viewable from the top of the board.
The diodes d02 and d03 are soldered very close to the STRG 6353.
The surface mount diode is located on the underside of the board.
If you're experienced at repairing PCBs you should have no difficulty replacing the 6353. The 5 pins are single in line as they come out of the package, but pins 2 and 4 are preformed to make a DIL arrangement. I used a solder sucker once on each pin, moved the device gently, moved a couple of pins gently, and it came out cleanly. The pins weren't a tight fit, and I don't think the holes were PTH (but this is from memory, and I don't remember specifically checking), so there was no need to cut the pins.
If you're not experienced at soldering but want to have a go, here's how, using a solder sucker (others may advise using wick). Remove the screw securing the 6353 to the heat sink. It's easier to remove cut pins than the intact device, so cut the 6353's pins on the component side of the board using a small pair of side cutters. You can either cut them short and suck the pins out with the solder, or cut them long and pull them out from the component side. Use a temperature controlled iron if you can. Wait till it's up to temperature. Clean the tip of the bit by applying a little solder and wiping the bit on a damp sponge. Prime the solder sucker and hold the tip of the sucker close to the first pin. Then apply the tip of the soldering iron bit to the solder fillet, rather than the pin or the pad. As soon as the solder fillet melts (it should almost immediately), pull the bit away, move the sucker tip against or over the pin and trigger the sucker, all in one quick smooth move. If you time it right, the sucker should remove almost all the solder and possibly the pin, leaving a clean undamaged pad. If the pin is still in the hole there will probably be a tiny bridge of solder between the pin and the edge of the hole. (If you don't get it right, it may be easier to apply some fresh solder to the joint then let it cool before trying again.) Repeat for the other pins. Apply just enough heat to free any pins that are still in the holes in turn and pull them out using fine pliers. Check there are no solder splashes or fine strings of solder between the pads. If you've got some PCB cleaner, now is a good time to apply some to the area you've been working on and scrub it with a fibreglass brush or a tooth brush.
Be careful not to apply too much heat with the soldering iron, or too much force when trying to remove the pins, or you might lift the pads from the PCB. There are some surface mount devices on adjoining tracks quite close to some of the pads. In these cases apply the bit to the solder fillet on the side of the pin furthest from the surface mount device.
Fit the new 6353 and screw it to the heat sink. Then solder each pin in turn. Apply the bit so the tip is touching the pad and the side is touching the pin. At the same time feed some solder onto the bit so it runs onto the pin and the pad. As soon as the solder has formed a conical fillet right round the pin, remove the solder and the iron and let the joint cool. The solder fillet should have a shiny appearance. Finally check there are no solder splashes or fine strings of solder between the pads. As before, if you've got some PCB cleaner, apply some to the area you've been working on and scrub it with a brush.
Some other comments:
You don't have to remove the top and bottom brackets from the hard disk (though it does no harm). You can remove the hard disk with the brackets still attached. Remove one screw securing the flexible printed cable and the four screws holding the hard disk assembly and the PSU board. Remove the hard disk connectors (forwards) and lift out the assembly.
Some screws are fitted beyond the reach of your fingers. A slightly magnetised screwdriver helps when reassembling.
The cooling is directed through the PSU by plastic baffles. The fan sucks (rather than blows). Cold air enters via ventillation holes in the sides of the case near the front and warm air exits via the fan in the rear panel. The case remains fairly cool. In my opinion there should be no problem with stacked units. They look like they are designed to be stacked. But it is important to ensure that the ventilation holes in the sides of the case are not blocked in any way. I would allow at least one inch clearance between the sides and any other objects.
Here's a link to the other forum where I found this info. Page 8 and beyond is where the possible solution is put forth and discussed by those who have successfully performed the surgery. The first 7 pages are still interesting because (like here) it has many posts of people describing their issues and seeking help.
AV Forum Link (http://www.avforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=316972)
I do not in any way endorse this as THE FIX, but it very well could be in many cases. And before any wise crackers tell me to try it and let you know how it works out, I will say that I may resort to this at some point since my E85 has been intermittently acting up for some time. I've been inside my unit a few times and I CAN remove the PSU board, so if I can get a tech to do the soldering/unsoldering for a few bucks --- it won't cost much to try one day. At least it's a heck of a lot cheaper than a brand new DVD drive or sending it to Panny. We'll see. In the meantime, I'll appreciate input on this idea and hope that it will help some posters here.
:)
1) Upon start up it takes a long, long time and often results in crashing into the dreaded "SELF CHECK" endless loop, or
2) Cannot finish burning DVD-+R's without a failure (including the dreaded "SELF CHECK" restart loop), or
3) Hard drive works fine, but any DVD (including Ram) is another story (including failure to eject a disk).
Well, the following info will supposedly fix these issues in the E85, and may apply to some other models as well (E80, E100), or even some non-HDD earlier models?
I have not tried this procedure myself, but it does seem to provide a ray of hope for some.
I am not an electronics repair techie and have never soldered anything in my life, so I can only pass along what I've found. I must admit that I was somehat surprised that the supposed fix is not the obvious --- especially since I would have bet that a bad/failing DVD drive was usually the culprit whenever the HDD still works fine.
It seems that in many cases these issues are caused by a poorly engineered Power Supply. Here is the info I have found on repairing this issue for around $15-20 + labor. Of course, do it yourselfers can save a few more bucks:
Many thanks for the posts on the Panasonic DMR E85H dvd recorder on this forum and other forums about the : SELF CHECK : problem which goes into a continuous loop taking 10 minutes to 30 minutes before the recorder will sign on or may be just not sign on at all (DEAD) or other problems.
Mine developed this fault about 2 years after I purchase and the machine had very little use mainly recording to the hard drive. It finally died on me.
Reading the forums I decided to do the repair it myself
The problem is that it as a poorly designed PSU (power supply) NOT COOLING THE VOLTAGE REGULATOR…….IC part No. STRG6353 made by SANKEN ELECTRONICS in China .This is marked on the PCB board IC 001.
THE PART IC STR-G6353 CAN BE PURCHASED AT NIKKO ELECTRONICS FOR AROUND £5 EACH I bought 2 one for a spare over the internet with next day delivery………………………www.nikkoe.com
THE REPAIR
1. DOING THIS IS ENTIRELY YOUR OWN RISK AND I WILL NOT BE HELD RESPONABLE FOR ANY DAMAGE OR INJURIES INCURED.
2. DISCONECT ALL MAINS POWER AND REMOVE MOULDED TWO PIN PLUG FROM RECORDER.
3. Remove top cover….one large silver screw at each side…..three small black screws on the back.
4. Remove the hard drive top retaining metal cover which as the black ribbon cable also attached to it then pull out the ribbon cable from the hard drive CAREFULLY then also pull out the power connection plug to the hard drive remove hard drive
5. You will see that there is a plastic rubber moulded insulator to reduce vibration from the hard drive….remove this.
6. Remove the bottom hard drive retaining plate (four screws) to get access to the power supply PCB board.
7. Removing the PSU board (card)….Remove the small black screw where the mains electric enters the machine then lift off the multi jumper that conects to the main board pull and gently tilt towards you.
This should take an average twenty minutes at most to get the card out.
8. I took the card and the IC to a local T.V repair shop who took just five minutes to replace WHICH I RECOMMEND BECAUSE THE CARD IS DOUBLE SIDED WITH VERY SMALL SURFACE MOUNTED COMPONENTS WHICH CAN BE DESTROYED VERY EASILY.They charged me £5
9. RE-ASSEMBLE
Worked fine for me without having to replace any more components.
Hope this helps without getting ripped off for the repair.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
95% of the problems with the panasonic DMR E85H are caused by the voltage regulator marked (IC 001) on the PSU (power supply board)...part no STR-G6353 which gradualy starts to fail then dies this is caused by lack of cooling.
The IC part No STR-G6353 is made by SANKEN CORPORATION in China and sells for around £5 here in the U.K. read my previous post where to buy or search the NET
By replacing this IC should solve the problem .......IF this does not solve the problem then two more components nead to be replaced on PSU board which are.......
ZD002 = MA4068N
ZD004 = MA80510ML
These are diodes...... REMEMBER THE CORECT POLARITY WHEN REPLACING
WARNING....WARNING.....DO NOT ATTEMPT TO SOLDER THE COMPONENTS INTO THE BOARD UNLESS YOU HAVE CORRECT SOLDERING TACKLE AND HAVE EXPERIENCE WITH SURFACE MOUNTED COMPONENTS....BE WARNED...........
TAKE THE BOARD OUT AND TAKE IT GOOD T.V REPAIR SHOP.Should not cost more than £5 five minute job.
The voltage regulator STRG 6353 has 5 legs and is bolted to the big metal heat sink. Viewable from the top of the board.
The diodes d02 and d03 are soldered very close to the STRG 6353.
The surface mount diode is located on the underside of the board.
If you're experienced at repairing PCBs you should have no difficulty replacing the 6353. The 5 pins are single in line as they come out of the package, but pins 2 and 4 are preformed to make a DIL arrangement. I used a solder sucker once on each pin, moved the device gently, moved a couple of pins gently, and it came out cleanly. The pins weren't a tight fit, and I don't think the holes were PTH (but this is from memory, and I don't remember specifically checking), so there was no need to cut the pins.
If you're not experienced at soldering but want to have a go, here's how, using a solder sucker (others may advise using wick). Remove the screw securing the 6353 to the heat sink. It's easier to remove cut pins than the intact device, so cut the 6353's pins on the component side of the board using a small pair of side cutters. You can either cut them short and suck the pins out with the solder, or cut them long and pull them out from the component side. Use a temperature controlled iron if you can. Wait till it's up to temperature. Clean the tip of the bit by applying a little solder and wiping the bit on a damp sponge. Prime the solder sucker and hold the tip of the sucker close to the first pin. Then apply the tip of the soldering iron bit to the solder fillet, rather than the pin or the pad. As soon as the solder fillet melts (it should almost immediately), pull the bit away, move the sucker tip against or over the pin and trigger the sucker, all in one quick smooth move. If you time it right, the sucker should remove almost all the solder and possibly the pin, leaving a clean undamaged pad. If the pin is still in the hole there will probably be a tiny bridge of solder between the pin and the edge of the hole. (If you don't get it right, it may be easier to apply some fresh solder to the joint then let it cool before trying again.) Repeat for the other pins. Apply just enough heat to free any pins that are still in the holes in turn and pull them out using fine pliers. Check there are no solder splashes or fine strings of solder between the pads. If you've got some PCB cleaner, now is a good time to apply some to the area you've been working on and scrub it with a fibreglass brush or a tooth brush.
Be careful not to apply too much heat with the soldering iron, or too much force when trying to remove the pins, or you might lift the pads from the PCB. There are some surface mount devices on adjoining tracks quite close to some of the pads. In these cases apply the bit to the solder fillet on the side of the pin furthest from the surface mount device.
Fit the new 6353 and screw it to the heat sink. Then solder each pin in turn. Apply the bit so the tip is touching the pad and the side is touching the pin. At the same time feed some solder onto the bit so it runs onto the pin and the pad. As soon as the solder has formed a conical fillet right round the pin, remove the solder and the iron and let the joint cool. The solder fillet should have a shiny appearance. Finally check there are no solder splashes or fine strings of solder between the pads. As before, if you've got some PCB cleaner, apply some to the area you've been working on and scrub it with a brush.
Some other comments:
You don't have to remove the top and bottom brackets from the hard disk (though it does no harm). You can remove the hard disk with the brackets still attached. Remove one screw securing the flexible printed cable and the four screws holding the hard disk assembly and the PSU board. Remove the hard disk connectors (forwards) and lift out the assembly.
Some screws are fitted beyond the reach of your fingers. A slightly magnetised screwdriver helps when reassembling.
The cooling is directed through the PSU by plastic baffles. The fan sucks (rather than blows). Cold air enters via ventillation holes in the sides of the case near the front and warm air exits via the fan in the rear panel. The case remains fairly cool. In my opinion there should be no problem with stacked units. They look like they are designed to be stacked. But it is important to ensure that the ventilation holes in the sides of the case are not blocked in any way. I would allow at least one inch clearance between the sides and any other objects.
Here's a link to the other forum where I found this info. Page 8 and beyond is where the possible solution is put forth and discussed by those who have successfully performed the surgery. The first 7 pages are still interesting because (like here) it has many posts of people describing their issues and seeking help.
AV Forum Link (http://www.avforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=316972)
I do not in any way endorse this as THE FIX, but it very well could be in many cases. And before any wise crackers tell me to try it and let you know how it works out, I will say that I may resort to this at some point since my E85 has been intermittently acting up for some time. I've been inside my unit a few times and I CAN remove the PSU board, so if I can get a tech to do the soldering/unsoldering for a few bucks --- it won't cost much to try one day. At least it's a heck of a lot cheaper than a brand new DVD drive or sending it to Panny. We'll see. In the meantime, I'll appreciate input on this idea and hope that it will help some posters here.
:)