I just recently bought a used Mark 1 which was working great except the fact of a missing sled so I'll have to fabricate something for the car unless someone has one around (even if it's beat up).
Well, needless to say the only way to play it without the sled is with the RCA's and the barrel power connector.

So last night I was hooking up an extra power source for home so I wouldn't have to bring the power supply to and from work and it seemed to work well.
But now my Empeg is giving me problems powering up because apparently the plug I used at home was the wrong size.
Now it will only power up if I press on the plug from the side while it's inserted into the unit.

Since I'm at least the third owner of this unit I assume that I don't get any of the original warranty so I opened it up to investigate.
The problem seems to be with the negative contact in the barrel jack.
I seem to get continuity from the connection to the case full scale but only half continuity between the contact and it's solder leg. Yet if I touch the barrel of the plug to the case the unit powers up.

Can anyone on the empeg team give me an idea what to do?
I've wanted one of these since Hugo first got it started up. Now I finally got one and I killed it in a week. :((

Steve

Sounds like the power connector has been overstressed at some point; the part is very easily available (2.1mm PCB mount power jack) if you feel like changing it.

Alternatively, you could try using a pair of tweezers (or similar) to try and bend the negative contact (the spring part) at the bottom of the connector up a bit so it makes good contact again.

Hugo

I'm kind of afraid to pull the whole thing apart for fear of breaking it.
Pulling the drive out was a no brainer but ripping that circuit board off of the chassis along with the display boards scares me especially after I read about how easy it is to damage the display boards.
BTW that is a very ingenious shock mounting system, Hugo. I like it alot.

Steve

The main board is a pain to remove on the mk1, but can be done without touching the display board. The main issue with the display board is that it's easy to plug the display connector in 1 row off on the connector, which blows (surface mount) fuses.

You could send it back to us for repair, but the cost of shipping (if you're not in the UK?) outweighs the cost of repair by quite a lot... though if you bought a sled from us (if we have some mk1 ones left - we may have a few in a "need repair" state, which is better than building your own from scratch!)

Out of interest, how come it doesn't have a sled?

Hugo

I am the third owner ( I Think). I bought it from a guy on ebay.
He said he was selling it because he has come into financial need, but according to him he said he also bought it on ebay about 6 months ago and it didn't come with the sled or the serial cable. It had everything else the manual said it should though.

I would definately be interested in any sled that would fit the Mark 1, whatever the condition. Rob told me that there wasn't anymore though. He lied?
Anyway I would rather have a used one than modify this Sony sled I have. Especially since I tried to order the plug from Farnell and it looks like they don't ship to the USA. At least it wouldn't let me complete the order with a US address.

Also is there anything special I should know about hooking the unit up through the serial port? Setting, etc.?
I have a 25pin null modem cable that I tried to use with 25 to 9 pin adapters and emplode won't recognise that it is there. Is there a serial driver that I need?
I think I definatley need to upgrade the software, it is using version .89 I think.

Oh. When I'm ready for an extra HD (only 4G at the moment) any special thing I need to know other than less than 14mm thickness?
Oner more thing (This is it I promise) I use a CNC router at work so I'm going to try to make a clear fascia (only around the display, IR, and indicator) since the displays actual color matches my Lincoln Mark VII LSC's dash lights exactly. I noticed there is some kind of special coating on the inside of the lens over the IR. Is it a filter of some sort? What can I use if it is a filter on the new one?

Steve

I would definately be interested in any sled that would fit
the Mark 1, whatever the condition. Rob told me that there wasn't
anymore though. He lied?

I think they've previously also said they might have some, in need of repair.
It might be that they do, might that they don't.

Also is there anything special I should know about hooking the
unit up through the serial port? Setting, etc.?

115200, 8N1, no flow control Make sure it's not a crossed over cable.
Also see the FAQ on How do I use Hyperterminal with the empeg?

Is there a serial driver that I need?

Not that I know of

Oh. When I'm ready for an extra HD (only 4G at the moment) any
special thing I need to know other than less than 14mm thickness?

Unless you simply replace the 4G you need an extra IDE cable - apprx
10cm (4") long, with the small connectors. Make sure to insulate the
metal plate the disk mounts on. Depending on type of drive you might
need to raise it slighty by adding washers. This is all in the FAQ
for How do I upgrade my empeg's hard disk? .

I'm going to try to make a clear fascia (only around the
display, IR, and indicator) since the displays actual color matches my
Lincoln Mark VII LSC's dash lights exactly. I noticed there is some
kind of special coating on the inside of the lens over the IR. Is it a
filter of some sort? What can I use if it is a filter on the new one?


Looks like a filter to me, probably IR. If empeg would say what type,
most good photo shops should be able to supply you.

If you ever do this, let me know what you'd want for one.
Thanks to clumsy me dropping my unit, this board and the nice guys at
empeg, I now have one of each colour and would love to try a clear one.

/Michael

We have some mk1 sleds downstairs; these are faulty returns I believe, and as such the wiring may not be complete. BUT - it has the metalwork and connector, which will help you a lot.

I'm not sure what the position is on direct sales from empeg at the moment though, which might not be helpful. Rob is the person to ask, really... rob?

Hugo