Strand Console Not Powering Up

[photoatdv]

****MOVED TO A NEW THREAD*****

A little tangent about the Strand consoles. We have a dead one-- one day we came in and all that happened when we turned it on was a couple of leds came on. No monitors, no response from the lights or LCD screens. So we know power supply is good and monitors/ video cards are good. That pretty much indicates a motherboard or processor issue, correct? That is what we were thinking. However recently I remembered some (maybe all?) of the ports on the back of it were loose.

So, are the ports connected to the motherboard like on a computer or is there a cable connecting them? And is it possible that a connection came loose causing it to not work?

Another question, if it is the processor (we have reason to belive that is more likely than the motherboard-- practically none of our Ops EVER shut it off correctly (despite lectures from me), could we replace it with the same kind from a computer? If so how hard is that? I have taken a computer repair class, but we always just replaced the motherboard and processor at the same time. Thank you.

[Darthrob13]

Step 1. Determine the type of Strand console. I suspect you have either a 500 or 300.

Step 2. Find you local service center and call them.

The motherboard in a 500 or a 300 is becoming a bit of a rare bird now that they are over 12 years old. Try walking into a regular computer store and asking for a 5 1/4 inch floppy drive or disks for one.

[adude23]

Give strand a call!
They'll help you out,
If you do have a 300 you'll probably realize it's discontinued now so as has been said finding parts will be hard (not to mention expensive) plus you could stand for a LOOONNNGG wait on certain parts!
As i said give Strand a ring and they will be more than happy to sort you out!

Support/Field Service Contacts | Strand Lighting - A Philips Group Brand

^^Link ^ to ^ strand ^ support^^

[photoatdv]

The reason I'm asking is that we can't have Strand fix it. The school and teachers have been very clear that we are not putting any money into getting it fixed. It is a 430 (from what I understand there were only a few thousand of those made and the line was discontinued 10+ years ago) so parts would really be hard if not impossible to find.

Also the ONLY thing this console would be used for is a backup (which is why the won't spend any $ on it). Some recent issues with our main console have made me realize the need for a backup. I am hoping that there is some way for us to fix it as a spare.

[Darthrob13]

Try a few hundred...and yeah...10 years at least.

The reliability of this console will only potentailly increase proportionally to the amount spent on it....therefore, nothing spent = no more reliability.

Short of having someone look at it that truly knows what they are doing (not just a computer person, but a console person) anything that is done is risking turning the whole thing into a summer home for pidgeons.

[gafftaper]

There are no free solutions to your problem. It seems to me your best bet is to call your local Strand Repair shop and ask them if they will crack it open and give you a free estimate of what it would take to repair it. Maybe you will be lucky and it's something that can be replaced cheaply.

[adude23]

My suggestion is that to guarantee your console to be working again you MUST get a qualified tech who knows what they're doing otherwise for all the time and effort it's worth the only other option is, is to buy a NEW console.
If it's only going to be used for back up you don't have to go all out. . .
Just weigh up the short and the long of it. .
1 side - hunting around for parts, fitting, still not working etc.
other - Just getting a new desk and being done with it!
Is what i would do in this situation

[Sony]

Honestly, from my personal experience, it's way out of warrenty so no need to worry about voiding it. I would take it apart and try to see if anything is loose or obviously damaged. Remove and reseat all ribbon connectors as well as cleaning any corrosion you find. You don't really have all that much to lose and you say you are adept with computers so this shouldn't be too hard for you. If all else fails then I would take it in to get repaired by a qualified Strand technician, I doubt you would be any worse off otherwise.

[FMEng]

Originally Posted by photoatdv

****MOVED TO A NEW THREAD*****

A little tangent about the Strand consoles. We have a dead one-- one day we came in and all that happened when we turned it on was a couple of leds came on. No monitors, no response from the lights or LCD screens. So we know power supply is good and monitors/ video cards are good. That pretty much indicates a motherboard or processor issue, correct? That is what we were thinking. However recently I remembered some (maybe all?) of the ports on the back of it were loose.

Let me give you a little electronics 101. Just because an LED or two lights up does not mean the power supply can be ruled out as OK. It's very common to have several different supply rails, so it might have lost one while others are OK. It is also possible for the supply voltage to be out of tolerance or very dirty, preventing the microprocessor from running but the LED can still light up.

The power supply would be the first place I would look. Chances are it is an off the shelf switcher that can be sourced from an industrial electronics vendor. If you troubleshoot the console, please remember there are LETHAL VOLTAGES INSIDE.

[photoatdv]

That is a good idea about the power supply-- we generally rule it okay on computers though if it comes on because there is a safety feature on most where it will not come on unless it is supplying the motherboard. Don't know if that would be the case with a lighting console, so its definately worth grabbing the fluke before I start messing with other stuff. Assuming that it is simular to a computer power supply-- I'm not near the console right now-- or is it an external one on the Strands-- I have a large supply of power supplies in the computer shop, co we wouldn't even have to buy one.

The reason we aren't going to Strand-- we even have a guy who said he'd look at it for free-- is that they are not willing to put ANY money into it and the guy said he'd donate labor, but not parts.