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JP1 Remotes
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Ube_Astard
Joined: 25 Jun 2005 Posts: 185 Location: Stockport UK |
Posted: Fri Oct 01, 2010 5:43 pm Post subject: My 9910 is now hard work |
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I have to press it several times and move it closer to the item to get any response, and yes this is even with fresh batteries. Does the signal eventually weaken on these things? |
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The Robman Site Owner
Joined: 01 Aug 2003 Posts: 21271 Location: Chicago, IL |
Posted: Fri Oct 01, 2010 5:52 pm Post subject: |
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The contacts on the bottom of the buttons does wear out, the symptom being that you have to press the buttons hard to get them to respond. There are a few different options for fixing that.
I don't know why the overall power would weaken though. _________________ Rob
www.hifi-remote.com
Please don't PM me with remote questions, post them in the forums so all the experts can help! |
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andyross
Joined: 13 Jun 2004 Posts: 264 Location: Aurora, IL |
Posted: Sat Oct 02, 2010 8:39 am Post subject: |
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It may not be wear but oils and other gunk getting inside. I've taken apart my 8910 (same as 9910 but without RF transmitter) and cleaned it a few times.
Use soap and water on the rubber membrane, with a soft toothbrush. Be gentle and do NOT use any chemicals (I found that out the hard way.) Rinse well, pat or blow-dry.
Carefully wipe down the contact areas of the PCB with a clean cloth.
Also clean the plastic spacer/light spreader and case to remove oils. Again, some soap and water and a toothbrush can help.
The LCD display is semi-stuck on and not glued. Don't panic if it comes off. It's mainly pressed rubber contact when you put the 4 screws in on the PCB. Also, there is a plastic light spreader in the LCD that slides a bit side-to-side. Make certain it's centered when putting the PCB back in the case or the PCB will not sit properly. The PCB should sit flat. |
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ElizabethD Advanced Member
Joined: 09 Feb 2004 Posts: 2348
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Posted: Sat Oct 02, 2010 8:47 pm Post subject: Can't get into the inside of my 8910/HTpro |
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Volume buttons stopped working and 1 and 3 also are unreliable.
So, finally, after years of trying I opened the remote using credit cards etc according to Tommy Tyler's instructions I remembered from long ago. Scary procedure. Most scary. I can't find Tommy's instructions to be able to continue.
So at this point, the case is off, and I'm trying to figure out how to continue without breaking it. Here's the current state, and I'M TOTALLY STUCK as I can't get it all opened up
http://img413.imageshack.us/i/img2539y.jpg
I just read a very timely thread, one post below
http://www.hifi-remote.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=12603
but HOW do I get in there? _________________ Liz
Tweeking 8910, HTPro/9811, C7-7800, 6131o, 6131n, AtlasOCAP-1056B01, RCA-RCRP05B and enjoying the ride |
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MaskedMan Tivo Expert
Joined: 10 Feb 2004 Posts: 1018 Location: Boone, IA |
Posted: Sat Oct 02, 2010 10:09 pm Post subject: |
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You haven't taken all the screws out, you can see at least one under the rf puck right near the modem coil. There are usually 4 screws at the top of board. And two at the bottom. _________________ Edmund |
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ElizabethD Advanced Member
Joined: 09 Feb 2004 Posts: 2348
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Posted: Sat Oct 02, 2010 10:19 pm Post subject: |
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Thanks. Yes, I see the 4 more screws and took'm out. They sure are small and I failed to see them initially.
I was afraid the buttons would fall out
So it's all one piece. I can see lines on the 3 volume buttons' black bottoms.
I suppose that needs to be corrected. Normally I'd think of a pencil eraser, or pure USP alcohol, but that other thread talks about soap and water. So what do I use?
Another thing I see is on the board itself. PREV button contact point looks corroded - dark line of something goes across the little traces. PREV hasn't caused any problems yet. What to do here? Picture:
http://img841.imageshack.us/img841/9918/img2547y.jpg
It's just North off LED7, NorthEast off the big hole. _________________ Liz
Tweeking 8910, HTPro/9811, C7-7800, 6131o, 6131n, AtlasOCAP-1056B01, RCA-RCRP05B and enjoying the ride |
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Ube_Astard
Joined: 25 Jun 2005 Posts: 185 Location: Stockport UK |
Posted: Sun Oct 03, 2010 10:24 am Post subject: |
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Thanks fo your responses. Please can you advise me how to open this one without doing any damage? There are two screws in the battery compartment but the thing doesnt seem to want to open easily with those removed.
Rob, what is your solution for the buttons not responding? |
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vickyg2003 Site Admin
Joined: 20 Mar 2004 Posts: 7073 Location: Florida |
Posted: Sun Oct 03, 2010 10:35 am Post subject: |
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My response for the buttons not working is to reboot the box. Everytime I experienced a brownout, where the lights went dim, all of my set top boxes started ignoring my remote and I had to move within inches of the unit to get my remote to work. For me, the problem was never with my 10 year old remotes, but rather with the devices they controlled.
Rebooting the boxes, is definately worth a shot if not ALL of your devices are having trouble where you are having to move closer to get your remote to work. _________________ Remember to provide feedback to let us know how the problem was solved and share your upgrades.
Tip: When creating an upgrade, always include ALL functions from the oem remote, even if you never plan on assigning them to a button. Complete function lists makes an upgrade more helpful to others.
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The Robman Site Owner
Joined: 01 Aug 2003 Posts: 21271 Location: Chicago, IL |
Posted: Sun Oct 03, 2010 11:23 am Post subject: |
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The URC-9910/8910 is pretty easy to open. Slide a very small screwdriver into the crack between the upper and lower casing besides either the SET or LIGHT button and separate the casing a little. This should pop the first clip. Then get a plastic putty knife or an old credit card (that you don't mind getting ruined) and slide it into the opening. You can now drag the knife/card along the sides of the remote to open the casing.
Once it's open, as Vicky discovered earlier, there are 4 screws that hold the PCB tight against the LCD screen, so these will need to be removed in order to remove the PCB itself. _________________ Rob
www.hifi-remote.com
Please don't PM me with remote questions, post them in the forums so all the experts can help! |
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vickyg2003 Site Admin
Joined: 20 Mar 2004 Posts: 7073 Location: Florida |
Posted: Sun Oct 03, 2010 11:26 am Post subject: |
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The Robman wrote: |
Once it's open, as Vicky discovered earlier, there are 4 screws that hold the PCB tight against the LCD screen, so these will need to be removed in order to remove the PCB itself. |
That would be ElizabethD I think we're forever linked because of our teamwork on the URC-7800. _________________ Remember to provide feedback to let us know how the problem was solved and share your upgrades.
Tip: When creating an upgrade, always include ALL functions from the oem remote, even if you never plan on assigning them to a button. Complete function lists makes an upgrade more helpful to others.
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The Robman Site Owner
Joined: 01 Aug 2003 Posts: 21271 Location: Chicago, IL |
Posted: Sun Oct 03, 2010 12:15 pm Post subject: |
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Oops, I think I got you mixed up because you were the one responding in this thread. _________________ Rob
www.hifi-remote.com
Please don't PM me with remote questions, post them in the forums so all the experts can help! |
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The Robman Site Owner
Joined: 01 Aug 2003 Posts: 21271 Location: Chicago, IL |
Posted: Sun Oct 03, 2010 7:51 pm Post subject: |
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Just FYI, I had to do some remote maintenance myself this weekend. Some of the buttons on my 15-2116 were requiring hard presses to get them to work, so I took the remote apart and sure enough, there was some fluid buildup on the PCB, the hard plastic sheet and the button sheet. So I used electrical contact cleaner to clean the PCB and water to clean the button sheet, and all is good now.
I also needed to revive some very old Radio Shack remotes so that I could capture some signals from them. I noticed that there was a coating of sorts on the button pads on the PCB, which could either be the result of oxidation or maybe it came from the buttons themselves, but either way, there shouldn't be any coating on the button pads, so I scrapped them a bit using a small screwdriver then cleaned them with contact cleaner, and also washed the button sheet, and these old remotes were as good as new again.
I don't know if everyone knows how remote buttons work, so for those that don't, here's a quick primer.
Imagine there's a computer chip with 8 wires coming out of the left side and another eight wires coming out of the right side. On each side the wires are numbered 0 thru 7. Touching one of the left wires with one of the right wires, is equivalent to pressing a button. If the left wire was #1 and the right wire was #4, the octal code for the button would be S14.
On the remote, the left and right wires are traces, of course, and they meet at the button pads, but they don't touch. Each trace becomes a shape that looks like three fingers. When you push the button down, it forms a contact between the left fingers and the right fingers.
Looking at Liz's PREV button above, even though the fingers are broken, it looks like there is enough good trace present to still make contact when the button is pressed. _________________ Rob
www.hifi-remote.com
Please don't PM me with remote questions, post them in the forums so all the experts can help! |
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ElizabethD Advanced Member
Joined: 09 Feb 2004 Posts: 2348
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Posted: Sun Oct 03, 2010 9:15 pm Post subject: |
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Ube_Astard wrote: | Thanks fo your responses. Please can you advise me how to open this one without doing any damage? There are two screws in the battery compartment but the thing doesnt seem to want to open easily with those removed.
Rob, what is your solution for the buttons not responding? |
MaskedMan helped, here is the picture of the 4 mystery screws that also need to be removed
http://img843.imageshack.us/img843/7595/4screwsin8910.png
Hope you can see them without a microscope. Tweezers help get'm out.
I did not hijack your thread, but my separate thread appears to have migrated here.
Rob, you mentioned contact cleaner. I'll go to Radio shack tomorrow, but isn't USP alcohol ok? Or how about that toothbrush and soap and water routine?
And should I try scraping that stuff in the PREV trace? _________________ Liz
Tweeking 8910, HTPro/9811, C7-7800, 6131o, 6131n, AtlasOCAP-1056B01, RCA-RCRP05B and enjoying the ride |
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The Robman Site Owner
Joined: 01 Aug 2003 Posts: 21271 Location: Chicago, IL |
Posted: Sun Oct 03, 2010 10:23 pm Post subject: |
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I just happen to have a can of spray contact cleaner and I love the stuff, it's great for all sorts of things. It's especially good for getting the residue from stickers off of things! So anyway, as I have the stuff, I think it's great for cleaning PCBs. For the button sheets, I would stick with water and a toothbrush, and maybe some soap.
As for the PREV button, by all means scrap away any stuff that's there, but be careful not to scrap away the trace itself. I suspect that there is a break in the traces for that button. As the button is working now, there's probably no need to "fix" it, but in the event that it did need fixing, you can buy a paint that is conductive which comes in a pen-like dispenser especially designed for fixing traces on PCBs. _________________ Rob
www.hifi-remote.com
Please don't PM me with remote questions, post them in the forums so all the experts can help! |
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ElizabethD Advanced Member
Joined: 09 Feb 2004 Posts: 2348
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Posted: Sun Oct 03, 2010 10:37 pm Post subject: |
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Thanks, Rob. Will try as you say. Let's hope I can close it up when all done.
Which of these 2 big items under the LCD is the RF thing and which is the modem? One of my 8910s became a rattle, so I suspect something is dangling there. _________________ Liz
Tweeking 8910, HTPro/9811, C7-7800, 6131o, 6131n, AtlasOCAP-1056B01, RCA-RCRP05B and enjoying the ride |
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