Gp32 Dead? Stupid Ac Adaptor Thing


R

RichyX

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Joined
Feb 27, 2004
Messages
125
Location
Cork, Ireland
Website
www.projectarse.net
I bought an AC Adaptor today for use with my GP, minidisc recorder etc.
The adaptor is a regulated one with different selectable voltage outputs. It also has adjustable tip polarity.
I plug into the GP with the correct voltage selected, the tip correct (i fecking hope) and all i get is the power light on. So I switch off and switch back to batteries and now there's nothing when I power up. No light, no nothing.

Is my GP screwed? Can she be repaired?

The adaptor didnt work with my MD either so is there a chance it's at fault?

Search and looked through the forums for ages and didnt spot anything similar to my problem. Was sure there was some before so if anyone has the links I'd be very grateful.

thanks
 
im so very sorry, if you used the wrong polarity because thats it, its gone :(

im talkin from past experience, i did the same thing with my 166mhz GP32 FLU on the day before my birthday and had to buy another one.

i really hope yours is reparable, i wouldnt want anyone to go through the same pain i had to. (especially the money side of it <_< )
 
BTW, I've actually set the wrong polarity and voltage on my GP32 FLU tons of times and it never got messed up. But I guess my unit's special :D
 
So there's no way to repair it at all? I would of expected that you could replace some parts and get it going again.
I'm having an expensive summer and it'll be a very expensive college year coming up. Can't see myself being able to afford a new one :(
 
Generally, most devices these days are protected from damage from psus of the wrong polarity, and it should not damage it at all if you dont leave it in for ages. The most likely thing is that it is a fault psu, and it fried your GP with a burst of higher voltage than it is meant to (3v).

Cheap PSUs are notoriously unreliable as to the voltage they output, especially the variable voltage ones...
 
Had it set to 3V. Looking back I'm not so sure about the polarity. The guide on the packaging was a bit confusing. My own fcuk up then <_<

The adaptor is 1200mA with overload protection and short circuit protection, if any of that matters a bit. Its also regulated.
The guy in the shop (respectable place) said that is was a very good adaptor and good for the job. Maybe the 1st time I've ever taken advice from a shop assistant.
 
The fact is, if the Power light came on, you had the polarity correct. LED's won't light with the wrong polarity! Next problem is, what was the voltage? If the voltage was wrong (either because you had the adapter set wrong, or it's a fault adapter) then you could have real problems. If it didn't run your MD either, then it's quite possibly faulty.

Also, those DC adaptor jack sockets are a real pain... when you plug in the DC adaptor, it pushes out a lever which disconnects the batteries. And it's reasonably common for the lever not to go back into place, which means the batteries stay disconnected when you disconnect the DC adaptor.

So: first, get a voltmeter/multimeter and measure the output from the DC adaptor. If it's wrong, get it replaced. Then try it in the GP32 again, and it might work. Also try plugging/unplugging the DC adaptor a few times, to see if the battery disconnect lever is causing problems. Finally, take your gp32 apart and see if you can find anything wrong with the DC adaptor socket. Err, run out of ideas ;)

And let us know how it goes, we never like to hear of dead GP32s!
 
IIRC, when I turned on my GP32 with the wrong polarity & voltage, the light came on for a split second and then went away.
 
Is it usually possible to replace some parts and get it going?

Voltage was set correctly, there's no doubt about that one. I just tried it with the MD again and its working grand.

Was messing around with the adaptor socket and it hasn't sorted things.
There's a good chance we have a voltmeter/multimeter at work so I'll see if I can test it there.
Thanks for all the suggestions.
 
chn posted on Jun 27 2004 said:
RichyX posted on Jun 27 2004 said:
Is it usually possible to replace some parts and get it going?
Click to expand...
When I fried my GP32 by messing up the polarity, I could fix it by replacing the diode in the left circle on this picture:

http://chn.roarvgm.com/gp32/gp32-fix.html

/chris
Click to expand...
Cool! Step in the right direction this. Thanks.
Is it just the diode that needs replacing?

Is it soldered in? Don't have access to an iron these days so that could be a prick.

On a stupid note, how do you get the screws out of the GP?
Been at them for a few minutes with a wee screwdriver but they dont seem to get any looser :unsure:
 
Last edited by a moderator:
really push hard on the screws so the driver stays on the cross and doesnt end up making it look like an allen key screw, it took me a while to get the buggers out
 
mattmagoo posted on Jun 28 2004 said:
really push hard on the screws so the driver stays on the cross and doesnt end up making it look like an allen key screw, it took me a while to get the buggers out
Click to expand...
The screwdriver isnt rounding the screws. It's within the cross but they just turn without getting any tighter or looser. Never had this happen before when taking stuff apart :angry:
 
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