help

[stonepatterson]

I have a S4000Pro. For the past few days it has been clicking at night. Even when not plugged in. I unplugged all; power, screens, keyboard and mouse. Left overnight. Then plugged everything back. Unit will not turn on. I have not used unit in several weeks (due to out in the field production). Now I need for editing. Unit will not turn on. Help.

[TimKennelly]

Seriously, even when not plugged in?

Besides the fact that nothing should be clicking once unplugged for a while I'd say either a drive going bad or a wire has strayed within range of a fan.

Was the unit moved recently?

When you say won't turn on do you mean at all or it starts and shuts down or the LCD front panel screen starts the process and then hangs?

[LouBruno]

April fools!

Seriously, even when not plugged in?

Besides the fact that nothing should be clicking once unplugged for a while I'd say either a drive going bad or a wire has strayed within range of a fan.

Was the unit moved recently?

When you say won't turn on do you mean at all or it starts and shuts down or the LCD front panel screen starts the process and then hangs?

[CKNewman]

Perhaps characters in a story that Mr. Patterson edited in the past have come back to haunt his editing suite?

[stonepatterson]

Okay, I will try this again. This is not an April Fool's joke or put on.

The S4000Pro unit has gone off before with this loud steady clicking. Caught me totally by surprise the first time. Thought it might be from another piece of equipment. It was not. It comes from the back of the unit.

The first time. I had the unit hooked to a power strip (except furnace, fridge and VTR, all electronics in house are -- so I can turn everything completely off and conserve energy). I turned the power strip off. The clicking continued for about six more hours. Loud. Freaked me out. Towards the end of the six hours the clinking went softer. Then stopped. It was unplugged!

While the S4000Pro was clicking, the unit would not turn on. After the clicking stopped it would.

This has happened several times before. But the unit would always come back on after the clicking stopped. Now it will not.

As per instructions on FAQ, I have unplugged everything over night. Screen outputs through mouse, power and keyboard, everything. Unit will not turn on now... no blue light on the led front. Nothing. Hoped someone would have an idea of what is going on with the unit, because repairs cost a fortune.

Not April Fools, Lou... CKNewman, I have never made a dime @ being being haunted (http://www.hauntedmovie.com) -- I am a very poor filmmaker...

[CKNewman]

It sounds like something in the power supply of your 4000. There is a component used in some circuits called a capacitor that stores a charge and then releases it when needed. If there isn't an actual capacitor in the circuit, it may be that the unit itself is retaining some electricity like a capacitor would and slowly discharging it. If this is the case, a trip to Boulder may be in your 4000's future.

Just for fun, unplug the power cord from the back of your editor, make sure there's no dust or anything else on the plug or power input on the back of the editor, then plug it back in, making sure that the power cord is plugged in firmly to the back of the 4000.

[LouBruno]

The fact that it was connected to the powerstrip leads me to believe that power was being slightly restored and possibly it is a capacitor-but never heard of a 6hr continuation of power.

Does the power strip have a surge protector? Possibly, the power supply had a power surge?

Try booting up again and press "F12" or "F8" on the keyboard-if possible. I am wondering if the BIOS have to be reset and the unit is searching for the proper boot-up sequence.

But, I will put my money on the power supply failure.

[stonepatterson]

I have tried plugging and unplugging and F12 and F8. Nothing. I have had her in a direct outlet too. Dead. The S4000Pro will not start up. Have tried unplugging and re-plugging everything -- screens & USB's -- oh well. She is dead. LOL. This unit has not been moved or anything since it has been sent to me 18 months ago, when it replaced another S4000Pro. The unit is as clean as the day she entered my studio. As soon as Monday rolls around and I can get a RMA # -- she will be on her way to Colorado. I just hate to have to spend $$$ on this unit. I have not used it that much since it arrived 18 months ago -- been concentrating on other projects and writing.
When I find out what killed her, I will happily tell you what they discovered. I just got my Club-Renew, was planning on doing some serious editing starting Wednesday -- have a lot that has piled up over the past year... Until I get this unit back, will have to work on an old Cassie Classic then transfer edited footage to an Apple Pro Mac for DVD-R burning. Yuks.

Thanks for all the suggestions. Wish there had been a solution.

[LouBruno]

Dead. It is the power supply. Make sure, when you get the unit back, you connect it to a UPS-the kind that uses a continuous voltage. I still don't understand why it would hold electric for such a long period of time.

I have tried plugging and unplugging and F12 and F8. Nothing. I have had her in a direct outlet too. Dead. The S4000Pro will not start up. Have tried unplugging and re-plugging everything -- screens & USB's -- oh well. She is dead. LOL. This unit has not been moved or anything since it has been sent to me 18 months ago, when it replaced another S4000Pro. The unit is as clean as the day she entered my studio. As soon as Monday rolls around and I can get a RMA # -- she will be on her way to Colorado. I just hate to have to spend $$$ on this unit. I have not used it that much since it arrived 18 months ago -- been concentrating on other projects and writing.
When I find out what killed her, I will happily tell you what they discovered. I just got my Club-Renew, was planning on doing some serious editing starting Wednesday -- have a lot that has piled up over the past year... Until I get this unit back, will have to work on an old Cassie Classic then transfer edited footage to an Apple Pro Mac for DVD-R burning. Yuks.

Thanks for all the suggestions. Wish there had been a solution.

[TimKennelly]

Lou,

Many units are designed (even cars) to run a fan on capacitor storage after shut down for cooling purposes.

However, as mentioned previously, I believe the S4000Pro due to it's huge external heat sink specifically designed to eliminate fans (and their background noise) should not have this issue.

I no longer have one so cannot check, but the S4000Pro didn't have an exhaust fan located at the power supply location did it?