A WARNING TO ALL BEYONWIZ DP-P2 OWNERS

[warkus]

WARNING FOR ALL BEYONWIZ DP-P2 OWNERS – SYSTEM CHECK REQUIRED

** This thread relates specifically to BEYONWIZ DP-P2 OWNERS ONLY and does not affect other models **

INTRO & PROBLEM DESCRIPTION

As many people already know, I diagnose and repair Beyonwiz units. Having repaired a lot of machines now, I have started to see an alarming issue developing with the Beyonwiz DP-P2 that has occurred on a sufficient amount of machines for me to be VERY concerned, and therefore alert people of the problem. “Most” DP-P2 machines don’t seem to be affected by this, BUT it is worth checking your wiz in case, IN PARTICULAR newer P2 machines, they seem to have a greater number affected than the older ones.

The problem (what I have found) is with the PSU inside your wiz. For the majority of units I have seen, the MAINBOARD power cable runs nicely around the side of your PSU unit, and tucks under the corner of your HDD before it connects with your mainboard. This is as it should be. There are 15 wires in the one mainboard power cable, all of which are usually twisted nicely into one loom of cables. All good for those lucky enough to have this setup.

For some units however this is NOT the case. Affected units have the mainboard power cable run DIRECTLY OVER THE TOP of their PSU and down onto the mainboard, with no twisting/looming of the wires. This is a VERY BIG PROBLEM. The cable acts as a virtual blanket for the PSU and super accelerates capacitor failure, it heats up to a point where the cable discolours and “cracks” with excessive heat exposing wires, and also making the cable very brittle / unmanageable.

This is a serious problem, and these units are coming out of the factory like this!!! It is clearly a random issue, as I have seen 2 machines from the same person that he purchased at exactly the same time, with serial numbers very close so presumably of the same batch, and one was run correctly and the other not.

PHOTO’S & DIAGNOSIS

FIRSTLY – you need to understand that in order to check your wiz to see if it is affected, you are going to have to open it up. This therefore means YOU MUST UNDERSTAND THE WARNINGS ASSOCIATED WITH DOING THIS.

1. Opening the Wiz WILL VOID WARRANTY if it is under warranty, once you break the void sticker on the back, you will likely have NO WARRANTY with the unit.
2. Opening the unit means you are exposing yourself to potentially dangerous voltages, so read the warning below before opening the unit.
3. If you are not comfortable with opening the unit, DON’T! Have it checked by someone that has the ability to do it.

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I TAKE NO RESPONSIBILITY FOR WHAT YOU MAY DO TO YOUR OWN PSU OR PVR. THIS INFORMATION IS PROVIDED FOR GUIDANCE ONLY AND IS INTENDED FOR EXPERIENCED USERS WITH ELECTRONICS KNOWLEDGE.

DO NOT ATTEMPT TO OPEN A 240v DEVICE UNLESS YOU KNOW WHAT YOU ARE DOING!

IF YOU ARE ATTEMPTING SOMETHING LIKE THIS FOR THE FIRST TIME – THINK TWICE AND THEN THINK AGAIN!

THE PSU IN THE WIZ WILL STILL CONTAIN VERY HIGH VOLTAGE EVEN WHEN DISCONNECTED – STAY AWAY FROM THE LIVE (HIGH VOLTAGE) SIDE OF THE PSU & STAY AWARE AT ALL TIMES.
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If you wish to check if your P2 machine is affected, do the following…

Remove the Wiz from its home so that it is open and exposed, i.e. not in a cupboard.
DISCONNECT IT FROM THE MAINS POWER.
Open the case of the unit, 2 screws on the side of the case and 4 on the rear edge of the case.
Lift off the lid.

The PSU is located in the left rear corner of the case. You will immediately see if you have a problem or not. Check PICTURES below. PICTURE 1 is what it “should” look like if your wiz is correctly installed. PICTURE 2 & 3 is what you may be presented with, and if so you need to fix it, hopefully before it’s too late. You can see from the last 2 pictures exactly how bad it can get, and the damage it causes. This is NOT an isolated case, it’s one of many, and if left will cook your PSU to a point of non-repair and / or cause damage to your mainboard as well.





(PICTURE 1)





(PICTURE 2)





(PICTURE 3)



REPAIRING AN AFFECTED UNIT

EASY IF - it has not caused problems as yet and there is no damage to the PSU or mainboard power cable, NOT SO EASY IF - it has caused damage.

For those that have blown capacitors and / or mainboard power cable damage, you will need to get your PSU repaired. You can follow the iP100 PSU repair guide on the forum to repair the PSU and then depending on the state of the mainboard power cable you may need to heat shrink some of the wires if they have melted or shorted on the heat sink of the PSU, before following the rest of the repair below… Whatever you do, DO NOT BEND THE WIRES in an attempt to twist / loom the cable into the correct shape WITHOUT using a heat gun or hair dryer (as below), as otherwise some of the wires will “crack”, as the heat makes them VERY brittle and hard.

If your PSU looks ok and you have caught it in time - OR - you have completed repairs as above, then it’s time to re-route the cable. To do this, use a HAIR DRYER or HEAT GUN (on low) to gently heat the mainboard power cable up where it connects to the PSU, and thus making it soft and manageable. This should be done with the heating device about 20cm - 30cm away from the cable until it is soft enough to bend and mould into shape. Don’t overheat it, or the plastic will burn or melt, and that's bad! You want the cable warm, and you will feel it soften straight away, so do all the twisting you need to do while it is still soft and warm, as once it cools down it will harden again. Make sure its soft before twisting.

Where the MAINBOARD power cable connects to your PSU, you will need bend the wires down towards to base of the case, and then put about 3 twists into the cable, and shape it into a single “loomed” cable as per PICTURE 1 above, then tuck it under your HDD power cable and under the edge of the HDD itself, then re-work the connector to make it fit properly onto the mainboard.

It sounds hard, but it’s actually very easy – AS LONG AS the cable is soft and manageable (HEAT=WARM). Hard & brittle cables will crack and expose wires VERY EASILY. You have been warned.

So that’s about it really, in summary NEVER EVER should the mainboard power cable be installed over the top of your PSU. This will super accelerate the destruction of your PSU big time and ultimately may kill your wiz.

Finally, remember that when removing the MAINBOARD PSU CONNECTOR from your MAINBOARD, there is a CLIP on the connector, push it in first before attempting to remove it off the board or you can break the socket / connector.

Those that are NOT confident in doing this mod themselves, ASK FOR HELP, do not attempt it if you are not confident.

Thanks
Mark

[peteru]

Mark,

Thanks for the heads up. I just checked mine and it's all as it should be. I guess the worker that assembled my unit followed the process correctly.

[Half Round]

Thanks Mark,
Another one saved before damage occurred (it is the backup machine).

[prl]

Hi, Mark.

I finally got around to checking our P2. Mainboard power cable was correctly installed tucked under the HDD power cable and under the corner of the PSU board.

[grampus]

Thanks Mark,
Another one saved before damage occurred

+ another one

[Paul55]

Thanks Mark,

About 15 months ago (June 2012), I picked up a brand new DP-P2 from JB HiFi for $250. Didn't need it, but couldn't pass on the 'bargain'. I never even took it out of the box - just put it in the cupboard as a 'spare'.
I saw it in the cupboard and remembered this thread, so decided to check it as it's now out of warranty LOL!!
Sure enough, it is one with incorrectly placed wiring. Very easy to fix as everything was still soft and pliable.
In case it's any use to others, the serial number ends in A00544

[Patanjali]

Can the loom be seen through the lid?

If the P2 has the lid vent holes in the same place as the P1, then shining a light directly through those holes may be enough to indicate whether [the reflections off] those white leads are in the right place (initially going to the left away from the PSU) or not (going towards the front over the PSU. MY P1 is not in an accessible place to check.

It would certainly be the best way to check an in-warranty unit, in which case one could get it fixed under warranty (potentially unsafe to use = not fit for purpose).

[harold]

i can just make out that mine is ok through the vents

[warkus]

To any degree of accuracy no you cannot see through the vents properly enough to be sure you are not affected, due to the position of the power supply.

It is in a different location to the P1, running down the side of the unit and not in the back corner.

You would still want to open and check to be safe. If someone with an in warranty unit opened there machine up and found the cable running over the top, 2 things come to mind... Firstly in the first 12 months it's not likely to have cooked yet so simply re-routing the cable should solve the problem, and secondly if it has cooked, then due to the fact that this is a clear manufacturing/assembly defect I would be arguing strongly for repair / replacement under warranty through the importer or your states consumer watchdog,

Mark

[arww]

I bought a refurbished DP-P2 from Dealspace in July, so out of warranty.
Just removed the cover and the cable bundle was across the top of the power supply.
Now re-routed as shown in Warkus's photo.

Thanks Warkus !!

[asteele]

Hi, I just bought a new DP-P2 2TB from Dealspace which arrived today... I decided to break the warranty seal to check the PSU cable, and the cable was coming across the top of the PSU- which means it needed to be fixed up right away - so I am glad that I have been able to check and fix it.

Rather than needing to heat the cables up with a hair-dryer etc, I found that the cables were nicely warm the unit having been running for a few hours beforehand

Also, those people at DealSpace did say that the unit would be upgraded to the current software version - which it wasn't... but no matter, that was easily fixed up too.

What a pity that they are still sending out new units with badly routed PSU cables though!

[Cannulator]

My sister had a refurbished DP-P2 that crapped itself late last year after little use. Perhaps this was the cause. Investigations afoot!


One other thing, before you think that opening a case voids warranty, that one is a furphy. A hard drive is a replaceable item. A sticker is not a contract.

Australian consumer law now lasts beyond any factory warranty for a reasonable period of time.

[Gully]

One other thing, before you think that opening a case voids warranty, that one is a furphy. A hard drive is a replaceable item. A sticker is not a contract.

As long as you or the person doing it knows what they are doing. Otherwise it will be hard to maintain that position.

[Cannulator]

Of course I agree,

Over what time frame should this damage occur or is it a 'how long is a piece of string' timeframe?

[slider34]

If you really feel that removing the sticker voids the warranty you can still view the PSU to mainboard cable that is flat as a tack over the PSU by shining a light through the holes in the top cover.

It is distinguishable as harold had identified

White wires travelling up and to the rear from the PSU connector.

If you look on an angle through the top front holes with a strong light source from another angle. The difference between a flat and twisted cable could be identified from the direction it takes out of the PSU for the following reasons;

1. If the wires go straight up and head to the rear of the PSU front it's probably not twisted and is going to pass straight over the PSU capacitors as warkus has described. You will be able to make out the base of the unit (a grey colour) for the complete front edge of the PSU card clearly as all the wires have passed to the rear.

2. For the wires to be routed forward of the PSU and under the Hard Drive to the Mainboard they should have an anti-clockwise twist out of the connector to permit strain relief on the PSU. If you can see this method you may also see the wires pass under the corner of the hard drive on it's way to the Mainboard.


I checked my DP-P2 2TB model after being a victim of constant freezing and 'HDD check required' notices and quickly identified mine was a victim also.

My DP-P2 is still under warranty but with a 2TB hard drive it takes some times to copy your unwatched programs to an external device before it getting wiped by the repair centre.

As a side note has anyone ever thought of hooking up one of those cheap USB powered fans to the port at the back. As long as it runs under 500ma it would be a good solution to overheating. You could even by a 5VDC compact fan unit to do the same job with a little bit of extra tinkering.

[peteru]

Welcome to the forums (at least as a contributor).

If you really feel that removing the sticker voids the warranty you can still view the PSU to mainboard cable that is flat as a tack over the PSU by shining a light through the holes in the top cover.

I wouldn't worry about the sticker too much. DTC are pretty good about these things. As long as you have not been careless and caused obvious damage to the unit by ripping it open and doing silly stuff, things should be fine. Then again, some things are not so clear cut - in this instance, trying to reroute a cable that has been heat damaged could cause the insulation on the cable to completely disintegrate. If that happens, I can see how DTC may be inclined to invoke the sticker clause and tell you that now the problem is yours. If in doubt, call them. Tell them you are concerned about A. or B. and ask them what you should do.

My DP-P2 is still under warranty but with a 2TB hard drive it takes some times to copy your unwatched programs to an external device before it getting wiped by the repair centre.

DTC will generally not wipe your HDD when you send your unit in for repairs. Of course, you can not rely on having it come back with all your stuff intact, but if you stick a note to the unit itself that asks not to delete the contents of the HDD, you have a pretty good chance of getting your DP-P2 back with all you stuff on it (and maybe a few extra recordings if they needed to test things.

As a side note has anyone ever thought of hooking up one of those cheap USB powered fans to the port at the back. As long as it runs under 500ma it would be a good solution to overheating. You could even by a 5VDC compact fan unit to do the same job with a little bit of extra tinkering.

Yes, a few people with enclosed cabinets have done just that. The beauty of having a fan running of the USB port is that it only operates while the unit is running.

[Shadowdharma]

Thanks to Warkus for the warning. As some others suggested for those of us who don't have the skills or desire to crack open the DPP2 case, I shone a torch from both above, and then below the unit, through the vent holes. Looking at an acute angle from back-to-front through the rear left top holes it is possible to see the wires in question... At least if they are twisted and running under the HD as they should be with correct installation. Checked mine (bought 2009 or 2010), and luckily it appears clear that the white wires are twisted and packed correctly under the corner of the HD. However, it is almost impossible to see directly above the PSU , so any errant wires would not be noticed this way. That said, as they are bundled it should be the case that they are either all installed correctly, or all are not installed correctly. i.e. if some are, all are.
This means the reason for my EPG lockups and blank grids must be for other reasons. Clearing the EPG cache seems to fix the problem temporarily... but not for long. I don't use the Wiz, so don't think that the issue. I have noted some concerns expressed by Warkus on this and other forums about some DPP2 HDs, but before worrying about the HD, I have optimistically installed the latest firmware, reformatted and re-scanned all channels to see if the bugs are fixed. So far so good... If all else fails I will buy a new unit with more memory (my DPP2 in the 500G HD)... tempted by the new Topfields... but Beyonwiz has something pretty special with their user interfaces for those who just want a PVR rather than a multi-function media center. If it comes to it I'll have to do some research.
Whats's the word here on the newer Beyonwiz PVRs?
Tnx again to everyone for their suggestions.

[prl]

Hi Shadowdharma, welcome to the forum.

I see you tried to do have paragraphs in your post, but it's clearer if you a have a blank line between paragraphs in a post.

Code: Select all

A blank line between paragraphs.

Makes the paragraphs stand out better.

Without that.
It's a bit crowded.

displays as:

A blank line between paragraphs.

Makes the paragraphs stand out better.

Without that.
It's a bit crowded.

The Preview button on the post entry page lets you see what your post will look like before you post it.

[prl]

... Whats's the word here on the newer Beyonwiz PVRs? ...

There's a whole area of the forum dedicated to them.

You could start by looking at Is Beyonwiz T3 right for me?

The T3 has a completely different user interface from the DP series Beyonwizes, and it is very much a multifunction device. It is really new from the ground up: new hardware, new firmware. Much of the firmware is publicly available, and user contributions to the firmware are welcome. The main app is written in Python and C++.

[Jjmans]

Hi, this original post shows a link to the psu repair guide "You can follow the iP100 PSU repair guide on the forum to repair the PSU", but the link no longer works. Can anyone help with providing this repair guide?

Much appreciated
Johannes

[prl]

Hi, this original post shows a link to the psu repair guide "You can follow the iP100 PSU repair guide on the forum to repair the PSU", but the link no longer works. Can anyone help with providing this repair guide?

Hi Jjmans, welcome to the forum.

Is Beyonwiz IP-100 MODEL PSU Repair - UPDATE 28-01-2013 in this are of the forum what you're looking for?

If Warkus doesn't fix the link in the next few days, I'll fix it.

[Jjmans]

Hi Peter
Thanks, this is what I was after.
Regards
Johannes

[prl]

A bug in the handling of attachments in the forum software prevents me (or Warkus) from editing that post without making a mess of the embedded images. So unfortunately I'll have to leave the broken link as-is.