My cat flipped out and kicked my Mark II 60 off my counter last night. It landed flat on the bottom as if you'd dropped a book on the floor. It doesn't boot and there is something loose floating around inside. Is there a fuse or some other component that may have become unseated? Also, if I open it to check will I void my warranty? And does it matter - I don't imagine that cat damage is covered under warranty?

If it is dead, can I just move the hard drives to my backup unit? I have a Mark II 30 that is just sitting there for just this eventuality, but it has little stuff on it. What are the implications of just swapping drives? Do I need to flash the latest OS on the 30 before I swap drives (the backup is on an older version) or is it all on the drives? If I open them I assume I void the warranty, but I'd rather pay for a repair than live without a unit. Also, what is the mechanism for getting service? With SonicBlue's recent problems am I better off calling Britain directly?

Thanks for your help!

Joe

PS - anybody want to buy a dead cat?

First things first! Don't panic, a cable may have come loose when it fell. Open it and check it before you panic!

Connect the serial cable and use a terminal emulator (eg. Hyperterm) to observe the kernel boot sequence.. post the results.

-ml

It doesn't boot and there is something loose floating around inside. Is there a fuse or some other component that may have become unseated?

No, but there is a breakable glass piece that it might be. Have you opened it to look and see what the rattling piece is?

By the way, with electronics, if you've got something rattling around inside, it's never a good idea to apply power until you know what's rattling. If the rattling thing is a loose screw or something similar, you can short out the electronics if it touches the wrong things.

When and from where did you buy your empeg? I thought that all warranties would have expired by now, with the possible exception of those bought from carplayer.com.

Tony,

You hit it right on. The broken piece is the small glass bulb (led?) that sits on the lower right hand side of the display beneath the volume knob. That was what was rattling. What is that, and would it being broken have stopped the unit from working?

So I took the drives out and tried to swap them into my spare 30, but it won't boot. It hangs at the RIO splash. Do I need to reload beta 13? This spare box was not at 13. I assume that some of the kernal is burned to the Empeg and not on the drives, and it is not booting because of that. Is there anything else that is necessary to get it to recognize both drives? (The unit I moved the drives to was a 30, I put the entire drive carriage in from my 60.)

What do I do to get the other one fixed?

You guys are a great help. Thanks again!

Mark,

What COM settings do I use - I am getting gibberish when I do this?

Usually it's 115200-N-8 for an AC powered player.

The small glass "bulb" (more frequently called 'nipple') is used in the manufacturing process of the display as the vacuum is being drawn through it. Once the proper level of evacuation is reached it is melted shut.

So when the nipple breaks off, the display is again filled with air and won't work. It has to be replaced. According to earlier posts, Noritake who is the manufacturer don't make it anymore (unless they get a 100+ or so order) , stocks seems to depleted. I don't recall what the spare part situation is for the display at the official support, so contact them to find out. If you can find the display elsewhere, the actual replacement procedure isn't very difficult if you have decent soldering skills.

Part number for the display has been posted on the board, so do a search. Same for more discussions about the perils of broken nipples

/Michael

AFAIK, support do have stocks of the display. email carsupport@sonicblue.com.
The display is 75UKP (including fitting). Shipping from US-NL and back is probably going to be around 75UKP again.

If you're near Boston, I can do the replacement for you for $25. You'd need to buy the display from support first.

Darn it. I did the same thing! I have the dreaded broken nipple problem also! Argh! I just emailed support to ask about buying a replacement display. I may take you up on your generous offer Genixia...

Or is there anyone in the Bay area that's able to fix it?

- Thanx
- Jon

Genixia - I am in Woburn during the day. I will look into getting the display when support opens tomorrow and I will give you a shout. Send me an email with your contact info. Thanks.

A general question - why couldn't I just swap drive carriages from my 60 to my 30? Even after I flashed the 30 with rev 13 I couldn't get it to recognize the drives. Are there jumpers or something for a move from 30 to 60?

Thanks

Joe

There's a Hijack menu entry for one/two drives..

Mark, I used to see this option but I don't anymore .. is there some way it might be turned off on my player or perhaps it does this automagically now?

If you don't see the option, then don't worry about it.. When Hijack sees two drives, it removes the option to prevent misguided mischief.

Cheers

Magic!