Anyone Willing To Unbrick F100(B)

[Ashzakk]

Hey guys, I have just found my mint condition GP2X F100 Mark II and decided to fire it back up but unfortunately it is suddenly bricked beyond my repair capabilities, is there anyone out there who would be willing to unbrick it for me. I realise that these things are probably obscure by now but Im located in Australia and these things are impossible to find down here let alone someone to fix them so any help would be much appreciated. I am willing to post item if thats what it takes, I just want it back in working order.

Problem Description: Unit boots up into White screen and slowly fades into colored lines and thats where it stays. This is not a battery problem because I have power supply and 2600 Nimh batteries and both do the same thing.

Cheers Guys

 

[gp2.eXe]

Hmm hmm... no, that doesn't sound much like a brick, because usually a bricked unit doesn't attempt to boot at all, plus a GP2X doesn't "suddenly" brick without trying to upgrade the firmware or mess with the NAND... sounds more like power failure. Are you sure both your batteries and power cord are not faulty?

Another likely cause is the power switch, sometimes it wears off and doesn't make enough contact for the current to flow sufficiently. Try making a bit of pressure on the switch or moving it around, that's what works with mine. I know because my unit does the same thing, but I have batteries only.


Now regarding the possibility of a "sudden" brick: Did you try messing with the firmware in anyway?

Hope this helps

 

[Ashzakk]

Hmm hmm... no, that doesn't sound much like a brick, because usually a bricked unit doesn't attempt to boot at all, plus a GP2X doesn't "suddenly" brick without trying to upgrade the firmware or mess with the NAND... sounds more like power failure. Are you sure both your batteries and power cord are not faulty?

Another likely cause is the power switch, sometimes it wears off and doesn't make enough contact for the current to flow sufficiently. Try making a bit of pressure on the switch or moving it around, that's what works with mine. I know because my unit does the same thing, but I have batteries only.


Now regarding the possibility of a "sudden" brick: Did you try messing with the firmware in anyway?

Hope this helps

Hi, the unit itself has not been used for quite a while and the last time it was used it worked fine, but when I went too boot it up for the first time yesterday it just came up with the white screen and colored lines. The batteries are brand new and fully charged and as I said I also use a power supply which doesnt fix it either. I was under the impression that the colored lines were a power problem but I cant see where its going wrong.

 

[gp2.eXe]

Indeed, colored lines indicate a power related issue. But since you can assure that you have a trusty power source the problem could lie somewhere in the circuitry. Again, the only piece that fails and can be easily tweaked into working correctly is the power switch, but if I am not mistaken some internal chips tend to deteriorate as well. (Tried searching the wiki but had no luck finding info)


Edit: Just checking, surely the power source is the same you always used?

 

[Ashzakk]

Indeed, colored lines indicate a power related issue. But since you can assure that you have a trusty power source the problem could lie somewhere in the circuitry. Again, the only piece that fails and can be easily tweaked into working correctly is the power switch, but if I am not mistaken some internal chips tend to deteriorate as well. (Tried searching the wiki but had no luck finding info)


Edit: Just checking, surely the power source is the same you always used?

Yep same power supply, i dont know if this will help but when I use the power supply or the batteries the Green power light on the unit is extremely dim, I dont remember it being so dim, in fact its so dim I can only see it in a dark room, could this be a sign that the unit has a power failure somewhere. Should the light be easy to see?

 

[gp2.eXe]

Ah, yes, it's definitely power failure, the light should be very bright even in the day. It only dims if it's not receiving enough current.

Edit: Well, maybe not "very" bright but certainly visible.

Edit 2: Here's what happens with mine: when I touch the switch during boot, sometimes it causes the unit to fail and get a corrupted image, but if I don't apply some pressure to the switch, it displays the colored lines without booting at all. This only happens with one of my pairs of batteries. Also if I move randomly the switch I notice that the power indicator dims and brightens, so I know what to do with mine.

Your issue could be somewhere else, but it's the first thing to start tampering with.

 

[Ashzakk]

Ah, yes, it's definitely power failure, the light should be very bright even in the day. It only dims if it's not receiving enough current.

Edit: Well, maybe not "very" bright but certainly visible.

Edit 2: Here's what happens with mine: when I touch the switch during boot, sometimes it causes the unit to fail and get a corrupted image, but if I don't apply some pressure to the switch, it displays the colored lines without booting at all. This only happens with one of my pairs of batteries. Also if I move randomly the switch I notice that the power indicator dims and brightens, so I know what to do with mine.

Your issue could be somewhere else, but it's the first thing to start tampering with.

Ok, im currently at work and dont have the unit with me but I will definately have a play around when I get home. Would it be worth grabbing a multi meter and checking the current from certain areas???

 

[gp2.eXe]

It would be a good idea, though I wouldn't be too sure of what to look for

 

[Ashzakk]

It would be a good idea, though I wouldn't be too sure of what to look for

Thanks for all your advice, i'll keep you posted on my progress

 

[gp2.eXe]

NP mate. Glad to be of help so far.

 

[darionapole]

weird indeed, as far as i can see in my f200b the batteries holder and the power hole aren't what you would call high quality......both tend to do bad contact (or no contact at all some times)
as for the baterries holder, if it's starting to show the cupper, you should try applying a thin layer of solder which won't oxide like the cupper.
and as for the power hole, i used som dw40 and the played with it, plugin and unplugin the adapter's plug till it worked (arround 1 or 2 minutes)

hope it helps

 

[Ashzakk]

weird indeed, as far as i can see in my f200b the batteries holder and the power hole aren't what you would call high quality......both tend to do bad contact (or no contact at all some times)
as for the baterries holder, if it's starting to show the cupper, you should try applying a thin layer of solder which won't oxide like the cupper.
and as for the power hole, i used som dw40 and the played with it, plugin and unplugin the adapter's plug till it worked (arround 1 or 2 minutes)

hope it helps

Hi thanks for the info, the unit itself is pretty much brand new so there is no corrosion at all so i doubt thats the problem, the official gp2x cases do a good job keeping out the moisture. Like i said the problem persists with both battery and adaptor so thats what has me thinking there may be something more technical wrong with it......but i'll do some testing and see what I come up with.

 

[Ashzakk]

Ok so ive tried everything your said and still nothing happens just get the colored lines.....got me stuffed!!!!

 

[Ashzakk]

Ok very strange development......now I dont even get the colored lines, I had a fiddle around with some of the buttons etc and now i just get a complete black screen, dont know what ive done.

 

[gp2.eXe]

:blink: Black screen with both batteries and adaptor? Now it's starting to get weird...

Okay, this is strange... it could be that something internal has detached from the motherboard (this usually happens with a chip labeled LTSK, which controls voltage conversion), try gently shaking the unit to hear if there's any rattling inside. However this is just a hypothesis... and I hope it's not that because it would be a real pain to repair...


I assume you haven't opened up the case yet to check the internals?

 

[EvilDragon]

Try to use a power adaptor with 4,5V.
It won't kill a working GP2X, but if that makes your GP2X work again, then it's the LTSK that's fried.

 

[Ashzakk]

:blink: Black screen with both batteries and adaptor? Now it's starting to get weird...

Okay, this is strange... it could be that something internal has detached from the motherboard (this usually happens with a chip labeled LTSK, which controls voltage conversion), try gently shaking the unit to hear if there's any rattling inside. However this is just a hypothesis... and I hope it's not that because it would be a real pain to repair...


I assume you haven't opened up the case yet to check the internals?

I opened up the case last night and everything seems to be securely fixed in, cant see any problems whatsoever, power switch looked to be working fine too. As before I im still getting the dull power light but now Im getting no screen at all. Its a complete mystery to me.......surely if there is some sort of power to the unit then I would get something on the screen, i dont even really know how to test to see where the power is going, I suspect that the dull power light is a warning that something isnt quite right with the unit. Can anyone give some instructions on how to test where the power is going or how to test how much current is getting through?

 

[Ashzakk]

Try to use a power adaptor with 4,5V.
It won't kill a working GP2X, but if that makes your GP2X work again, then it's the LTSK that's fried.

Hey thanks evildragon, I never thought of doing that as I was afraid I would cook the unit. I'll give that a go and keep you guys posted.

 

[Ashzakk]

Try to use a power adaptor with 4,5V.
It won't kill a working GP2X, but if that makes your GP2X work again, then it's the LTSK that's fried.

EvilDragon you are an absolute genius, I got a 4.5V adaptor and straight away the Gp2x light went from dim to bright and it started up into the main menu so it seems that the LTSK is screwed. Next question, is it able to be fixed? Also can you confirm if I continue to use the 4.5v adaptor with the unit will it damage it in some way or is that ok? What I have been doing is booting the system using 4.5volts then when I get too the main menu drop it back too 3 volts and it doesnt seem to have a problem.

 

[___]

Yes, this can be fixed by replacing the power regulator. It's a risky task though and you need a steady hand. So if you are no good at soldering, I would recommend trying to let someone do it who has professional experience. A replacement LTSK costs a couple of cents only.

http://wiki.gp2x.org/wiki/External_power_supply#Caution_.2F_First_Aid