HD300 blue light but no video output

[dinki]

Hey guys. I recently acquired an HD300 that is not working. The former owner told me that it wasn't working but couldn't tell me what was wrong with it. The blue light comes on when I plug in power, but I get no video signal via HDMI. I do not have a breakout cable to see if it outputs via component/composite.

I tried the 'hold back button on power on' to see if I could force it to come up. I know that some HD300 owners have had power supply issues. Does this sound like it might be the case here?

I have not connected it to my network yet to see if I can telnet/ssh in. Is there a way to diagnose the video out problem if I am able to get into the box over the network?

[tmiranda]

I don't know if by default it will output HDMI, I know it will output composite. I'd really try to get a breakout cable to check. If you can't find one PM me your mailing address and I will send you an extra I have.

[wubdich]

Might been an option to push "Video Out" button on remote once oder multiple times to switch output resolution.

[dinki]

Thanks for the tip. I had tried that and did not see any output.

Does this sound like a power supply problem? It is really weird that the led lights up but nothing really happens. I'm hoping to connect it to my LAN today to see if it is booting.

[dinki]

I just plugged in my network cable and while the blue light is on, the lights on the network port are not lit. Any ideas?

[dinki]

I left the box plugged in for about 20 minutes and when I came back the case was really hot.

[wubdich]

In my point of view this seems to be an hardware issue - unfortunately I have no idea how to fix it.

[PulsedPower]

Originally Posted by dinki

I left the box plugged in for about 20 minutes and when I came back the case was really hot.

It could be a power supply problem if the supply is putting out the wrong voltage or excessive ripple. Can you check the output of the power supply AC and DC voltage with a voltmeter? The DC should be within ~0.1V, the AC should read in the mV scale.

[dinki]

Here's an update. I got an HD300 breakout cable and still no video.

Originally Posted by dinki

I left the box plugged in for about 20 minutes and when I came back the case was really hot.

I've done some searching and folks were complaining that working HD300s were really warm so I'm thinking that this might be the case with this unit.

I tried power on/off and the box just stays on (blue led lit).

I'm at a loss as to what to do next. I'm thinking about either finding or buying a 12V 2A power supply so I can rule that out as being the problem. Other than that it would probably mean cracking open the case and checking the components to see if I can find any visible problems.

Any thoughts?

[PulsedPower]

Do you have access to any test equipment (oscilloscope, multimeter, soldering iron, etc)?

I could walk you through some of the common troubleshooting steps.......

[nyplayer]

Originally Posted by dinki

Here's an update. I got an HD300 breakout cable and still no video.



I've done some searching and folks were complaining that working HD300s were really warm so I'm thinking that this might be the case with this unit.

I tried power on/off and the box just stays on (blue led lit).

I'm at a loss as to what to do next. I'm thinking about either finding or buying a 12V 2A power supply so I can rule that out as being the problem. Other than that it would probably mean cracking open the case and checking the components to see if I can find any visible problems.

Any thoughts?

I got a laptop cooler for my unit attached it to the USB outlet in the back.. when the blue light stays on I remove the power adapter from the back of the unit wait a minute the re-insert it this only happens to me when a video is not playable corrupted.

[dinki]

Originally Posted by PulsedPower

Do you have access to any test equipment (oscilloscope, multimeter, soldering iron, etc)?

I could walk you through some of the common troubleshooting steps.......

Yes. I don't have an o-scope, but I have MM and soldering iron. It would be great if you can offer some guidance.

Originally Posted by nyplayer

I got a laptop cooler for my unit attached it to the USB outlet in the back.. when the blue light stays on I remove the power adapter from the back of the unit wait a minute the re-insert it this only happens to me when a video is not playable corrupted.

I've never owned a HD300 before this one. Is the blue light not supposed to be on?

[nyplayer]

Originally Posted by dinki

Yes. I don't have an o-scope, but I have MM and soldering iron. It would be great if you can offer some guidance.



I've never owned a HD300 before this one. Is the blue light not supposed to be on?

Yes it should be on when in use... but when you power it off sometimes it will not power off and the blue light stays on. When you poweroff it should be RED.

[dinki]

Okay.. Yeah, mine is on at all times. Does not respond to remote key presses.

[nyplayer]

Originally Posted by dinki

Okay.. Yeah, mine is on at all times. Does not respond to remote key presses.

Then you have to remove the power cord ...if it is not responding .... That is usually caused by a corrupted file ... are you by any chance using a HD Homerun prime or ota?

PS I am lazy so I attached the Power plug to an outlet with an off and on remote.

[PulsedPower]

[QUOTE=dinki;566443]Yes. I don't have an o-scope, but I have MM and soldering iron. It would be great if you can offer some guidance.


Okay, first thing is to use the MM and measure the output of the power cord, both AC and DC.

[dinki]

Originally Posted by nyplayer

Then you have to remove the power cord ...if it is not responding .... That is usually caused by a corrupted file ... are you by any chance using a HD Homerun prime or ota?

PS I am lazy so I attached the Power plug to an outlet with an off and on remote.

I'm not sure I follow. Are you saying I have corrupted firmware? I don't even have the box connected to my network.

[QUOTE=PulsedPower;566449]

Originally Posted by dinki

Yes. I don't have an o-scope, but I have MM and soldering iron. It would be great if you can offer some guidance.


Okay, first thing is to use the MM and measure the output of the power cord, both AC and DC.

Adapter is outputting 12V.

[nyplayer]

[QUOTE=dinki;566460]I'm not sure I follow. Are you saying I have corrupted firmware? I don't even have the box connected to my network.

Originally Posted by PulsedPower

Adapter is outputting 12V.

Forget everything I said if you are not even connected to SageTV. Unless you are connected to Sage and have the latest firmware then I really cannot help.

[PulsedPower]

The blue light on the front of the unit should blink anytime a button is pressed on the remote, if it doesn't then I'd guess that the firmware is failing to boot up.

Since the power supply looks okay, and nothing is obviously burnt, the next thing to check for is cracked solder connections (usually caused by stressing the connectors by bending the cables plugged into the box). Check the capacitors for signs of bulging (they should have relatively flat tops). Also look at where the bottom of the capacitors touch the board for signs of blackened discoloration (the cap can leak out its dielectric fluid and it will corrode the pcb and short traces together). There will be voltage regulators on the pcb as well, checking them for correct voltage is another step (you'll have to look up the part number on each one and see what voltage output to expect).

[dinki]

Originally Posted by PulsedPower

The blue light on the front of the unit should blink anytime a button is pressed on the remote, if it doesn't then I'd guess that the firmware is failing to boot up.

Thanks for all the info. I have not had time to probe around the board yet. Can you tell me if there is a way to reflash the firmware via USB or if there is some sort of internal reset procedure?


I've attached a couple of images I took with my phone. Chances are they are too low resolution to be useful though.