More (or similar) 836x overheat issues

[Mach7]

Hello John, Les, Kyle, Trevor, Mick and Bob,

So, the VHF Nav head problem is solved. Leo remote connected this morning and had it fixed in about 10 seconds! So I am back in business

Not sure what the issue was, but possibly a corrupt or incompatible file that the chip would not accept.

It appeared that he had to dig up some old stored files or modify the old ones in order for the firmware update to take hold.

Anyway, the device on my "devices and printers" now says VHF NAV 1 primary and "VHF NAV 2 secondary", as opposed to VHF 1 primary calling itself  'bootloader' which I suspect was a good part of the issue.

Anyway, very happy with Bodnar Electronics customer service, even though this was a special requested build for me, and 100 percent sure I created the issue.

I think these guys can do just about anything if you need something special order.

Ok....so now back to the 836x card overheat issue.....will update on this as my progress continues.

-Jim

[blueskydriver]

Hey Jim,

Glad to hear Leo got you all sorted out. Since you did update the firmware on the 0836x, have you've tried using it yet? Maybe, the problem will be fixed by the update you did and everything will be back too normal. If not, you do have a replacement card coming soon, so hang in there...

Best Regards,

John

[Trevor Hale]

I Knew Leo would sort you out..

I really am glad to see he logged in to help you.  Good on him.

Keep us posted with your overheat issue.

Trev

[iwik]

Jim,
Good to see you are getting things back to where you were.
Had a thought, you seem to be on good terms with Leo, how about
asking him if he could incorporate some logging into the firmware on
the 386x card for the Analogue inputs. If the problem is here then
it may help to pin point it.
Have you ever tried putting all levers connected to analogue inputs to min that is to ground at power up and in idle. This would show if there  is some strange phenomena then it may be a way of isolating the fault.
Les

[Mach7]

Hello Les,

To be honest, over the last 5 years or so Leo has given me so much without asking for anything in return that I would consider that, but only as my last option.

Words cannot describe the admiration I have for Mr. Bodnar, his company, his employees, his customer service, and his attention to detail.

Top shelf for sure..

I still think that the overheat issue has to be derived form the wiring or the pots...but having said that the  update might have solved my issues...time will tell...

I am also forever grateful for the help I am getting here on this forum, it is invaluable.

To answer your question, I have tried different thrust lever and flap/spoiler positions, and the problem is that the overheat does not occur all of the time...just occasionally.

I have arranged my wiring now that I will be able to read the voltage on each pot when it does occur again. Like I said in my last post....I ran it for over 9 hours with no issues whatsoever...restarting the computer and Fs9 over and over and over again.

This aforementioned marathon of troubleshooting imediately proceeded the previous day's overheat situation when the board overheated a handful of times after Fs9 was brought online...My clue to the overheat was the unintentional start of engine 4...followed by a hot chip).





-Jim

[Trevor Hale]

My only concern Jim is that once it overheated the first time, no matter what you do, the damage may have already been done.

Keep us updated please.

[iwik]

Jim,
You said earlier that is started at power up and in idle. So what i was meaning was that if something was occurring on any analogue input then having ALL pots grounding the inputs at the same time this would effectively prevent any strange input signal causing your problem.
I would also make sure you have your meter connected all the time to at least one input. It may take some time this way but as you know this is going to take a little more to sort out.
Keep at it as we are all interested and you will succeed.
Les

[Mach7]

Hello Gents,

Just an update to my problem.

I changed out all the wires from the thrust lever, flap, and airbrake/liftspoiler pots.

All in all about 45 feet of wiring when you take into account the ground, control, and power wires.

I checked all the wires under a magnifying glass and found only one that had insulation removed exposing about 1mm of wire on one side only...it looked as though it might have rubbed up against something sharp as most likely when I was feeding the wire(s) though the simulator.

Anyway, I have not had the chance to do some indepth testing, however I have started the simulator about 5 times so far and it has worked fine.....that is to say no overheats.

Another problem has seemed to vanish as well following the wire change out. As I stated in previous posts, I had to (on occasion) unplug the 836x board before booting up the computer or else it would freeze at the "starting windows" page.

This problem does not occur anymore, and the computer will boot normally with the card plugged in.

I will keep the updates coming

-Jim