Electronics help, please

John Pelz · From: Kettering, Ohio, USA

This may seem a tad bit off the wall, but there are plenty of folks here at the Forum w/all kinds of knowledge on many subjects, so I thought I'd float this:

Would anyone like to help me, via e-mail, diagnose & hopefully fix a crapped-out DVD remote control? It might be a good idea if any kind soul who might volunteer had a broadband internet connection, as I can e-mail pix of my specific situation, parts involved, etc.

This remote control pooped out a week or so ago. I then bought a "universal" replacement at Wal-Mart, but none of the program codes work w/my Daewoo DVD player. (The small print on the package states: "In rare instances it is possible that a special model from one of the listed brands won't work with this remote control." Of course I had to have one of the exceptions!) Tonight, figuring that I couldn't make the remote control any less functional than it already is, curiosity got the best of me and I took the remote apart to see how things looked inside.

Imagine my surprise when I found that the remote consisted simply of 3 capacitators, 1 resistor, 1 IC chip, and one other electronic part, labelled "Q1." The thing looks pretty simple, and I thought that if someone could just tell me how to troubleshoot the various parts, then perhaps it'd be possible to salvage this remote control.

I think it might be best to do this one-on-one via e-mail, so as to not waste forum space on a non-steel gtr. related matter -- and to avoid asking all my idiot-questions in public!

I know what caps & resistors are, and have done some very basic soldering work on my guitars & in making my own patch-cords, so I'm not totally in the dark knowledge-wise. And even though my DVD remote control could very well be ultimately beyond repair or not worth the expense of replacing an individual part, even if I could just learn something in the process, that'd be great.

Kind of a goofy idea/project, but I thought it was at least worth floating the idea here. I would imagine that perhaps a half-dozen "do this" (you) & "okay, I did that" (me) e-mails (all much shorter than this message, I'm sure) over a handful of evenings or so should do the trick. Any takers?

Jack Stoner · From: Kansas City, MO

Without a schematic of the unit and some test equipment, more than a volt/ohmmeter, you are shooting in the dark.

If the custom IC chip is bad, you would have to go back to the manufacturer - if you could even get one - and the price may be more than just buying a new remote from them.

Dave Boothroyd · From: Staffordshire Moorlands

I would strongly suspect that it is not an electronic expert you need, it's a programmer.
The chances are that your chip contains a processor and a memory, and the problem is not with the components but with the instructions they are following.
Soldering skills will not help.
Q1 would normally be an inductance, though knowing that is not much use either.
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Cheers!
Dave

[This message was edited by Dave Boothroyd on 25 January 2006 at 05:31 AM.]

John Daugherty · From: Rolla, Missouri, USA

What do you mean by "pooped out"? Does anything work on the remote, just some of the buttons or what? Since IR remotes are such low power devices,it is very uncommon for a component to fail. The most common problem other than a dirty keypad is..... batteries installed backwards or corroded battery connections.
Jack is correct in the fact that you can usually buy a remote from the manufacturer cheaper than you can buy the parts.

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www.phelpscountychoppers.com/steelguitar

Ray Minich · From: Bradford, Pa. Frozen Tundra

1. Make sure batteries are fresh (don't assume!!!!)
2. Make sure batteries are installed correctly and that the terminal slips are clean and making good contact.

I have a Fisher remote that had a spring clip that made the electrical connection between the + and - of the two batteries. My daughter changed the batteries and lost the clip down into the couch without telling me. "Dad, this thing wont work!!!" That was a research project that finally had a happy ending.

3. Let the thing set w/no batteries in it for a few hours (I have a Zenith remote I have to do that to when it starts misbehaving)
4. Find someone with an IR detector to see if the remote is generating codes (I have a little $20 thing that goes on to the BNC connector on a Scope that lets me see the pulse...).
5. Find someone with a Universal Remote that "learns" from other remotes by copying the pulse, and see if it sees yours.

Greg Cutshaw · From: Corry, PA, USA

Go to Remote Central click here and you will get all the help you need. If you go with a Radio Shack JP1 remote, you can manually enter all the codes for your unit key by key or use Excel to download the codes for your unit to the remote. Click here for the JP1 database. There are also advertisers on both of those forums that sell OEM remotes for around $6. One of those site is 1800Remotes.

Greg

[This message was edited by Greg Cutshaw on 25 January 2006 at 12:22 PM.]

John Pelz · From: Kettering, Ohio, USA

Thanks for the replies, everyone. Altho I've got a multimeter & my dad's test-equipment, it sounds like this isn't as easy as simply testing the components, especially, as I gather from some of the info in these helpful responses, individual component failure is not likely the problem here.

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