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No remote control? Fixable?

My Philips DVDR, model DVDR3576H (160 GB), only 3 years old, stopped responding to my remote.

Replaced the batteries. No better.

Used the universal remote that doesn't have all the commands, only on/off, numbers, play, stop, etc. No better. That remote still works fine with a tv it's also set up for. (Up for which it's also set.)

Turned the DVDR off for hours, no better. (The remote has nothing to do with any logic circuits that can get confused, anyhow, right?)

Moved the factory remote around 1/2 inch from the IR window and kept the 1 button down for a while and finally got a 1 to show in the channel display. Got a 5 the same way. Can't make an 11, and no other buttons work either.

Could the problem be the thing behind the IR window, which I can probably buy or scavenge and already have one in my used-parts drawer too? Or is it more likely to be some small part on the circuit board?

Is this fixable at a reasaonable price, or even under 100?

Is it fixable by me, who used to fix a tvs fairly successfully before they went to IC's and propietary boards

Thanks.

Background: After 3 years, they are making no improvements to this model and there is no other model quite as good with a digital tuner and harddrive. I use only the harddrive 99% of the time. I don't foresee anything better for years to come, since they concentrate on cable and sat. customers.

IS THERE SOMETHING NEW i DON'T KNOW ABOUT? (The other brand starts with M, iirc. Magnavox?)

I paid 300 or a little more, and 20 refurbished previous models are on ebay new at $205! There's a used one, my model, on ebay at $76 with 4 more days to bid. I could buy one of these and when it breaks in a few years I might be able to use the IR sensor or the board it connects to to repair this current one.

Deep, deep background, that is, unneeded info for the curious. There are a lot of flaws in the design of this, but this is still the best model for OTA, one of the 2 latest models I know of DVDRs with an ATSC tune and hard drive.

But: It doesn't save the program name or description, only the time and channel and length that it was recorded. It doesn't let you look at the program info when you're recording the program. The live info display doesn't show what time the progrram starts or ends, like the set-top box I have does. If program scan includes channel 2.1, it must also include 2.2, 2.3 etc. If you set it to record for two hours, but you have a pre-set recording starting in the middle of that, the pre-set takes preference, unlike my good VCR. And lots of smaller things, all of which could be corrected I think with a firmware upgrade, but they only wrote one firmware upgrade for one big problem at the start, and no more. As to physical stores, these were only sold at Walmart, because everyone else has cable, I guess. (It does permit editing that I will never do.)

There is even a still older model, broken, that he wants 120 inc s&h for parts!!!

Reply to
mm
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If you changed transmitters (remotes) and the problem stayed with the receiver (DVDR) then the problem is most likely with the DVDR, not the remotes.

AFAIK, most IR receivers use pulses (of various encoding schemes) modulating a carrier of something near 38 KHz. If the receiver module has croaked, there are replacements.

Lots of the receiver modules look like

some like

or

While it's best to match the transmitter's carrier frequency with the center of the bandpass on the receiver, the receivers are generally fairly forgiving. That's why the "universal" remotes are effective, too.

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Rich Webb     Norfolk, VA
Reply to
Rich Webb

Replacement remotes are commonly available. Google is your friend:

Probably also available from other vendors, ebay, Amazon, etc.

Find a digital camera. Point it at the remote and press some buttons. Do you see the LED's flash? If not, it's dead. If yes, it's not the remote.

One posting mumbled that it might be the IR receiver:

Since it sorta works with the universal remote, this is unlikely.

You might also have some programming issue as the remote MIGHT support two different DVR's (A/B). See manual for details (I'm too lazy to read it).

Wrong. The A/B problem is common.

$12 to $25 for a replacement remote.

--
Jeff Liebermann     jeffl@cruzio.com
150 Felker St #D    http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
Santa Cruz CA 95060 http://802.11junk.com
Skype: JeffLiebermann     AE6KS    831-336-2558
Reply to
Jeff Liebermann

Well, I can certainly replace this part. I hope that's it. Thanks.

Reply to
mm

If you have access to a 'scope *and* can get to the legs of the receiver module, you may try probing it to see what kind of output you get. The ones I've seen have power, ground, and an open collector output that may or may not have an internal pull-up.

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Rich Webb     Norfolk, VA
Reply to
Rich Webb

Thanks. Both remotes show up in the viewfinder, with a round blueish-red pulsing light when any button is pressed.

FWIW, it was the original remote, that only works with this one device. But except for 2 numbers received once, neither remote has any effect.

Are you distingishing the IR receiver from the rest of its circuit?

The factory remote doesn't support any other device. (Even though it's only a 4 year old design, based on a 7 year old original design.)

Thanks again.

Reply to
mm

Yes. The front end (IR detector, amplifier, BPF, wave shaping) circuit is usually integrated into something like this:

I don't know what's inside the DVDR3576H but it will probably be something similar. You should be able to connect an oscilloscope to the output, and see pulses generated by the remote. You can also take an IR receiver module, and turn it into an IR remote tester. Build up a circuit to supply power and connect to the output to a scope.

However, it still might NOT be the remote, since you can see the IR with a digital camera. I question whether it's the IR detector module since you claim: "Used the universal remote that doesn't have all the commands, only on/off, numbers, play, stop, etc. No better." Since the DVDR3576H works with the universal remote, it can't be the IR receiver. You have a partial contradiction here, which makes little sense.

One remote possiblity is that the remote has drifted in frequency sufficiently to make it unreliable. You would still see the output on the digital camera, but since it's off frequency, it won't control the DVR. Can the original remote operate any OTHER device besides the DVR? You did mention that the universal remote was able to control other devices, so I'll declare that one working.

--
Jeff Liebermann     jeffl@cruzio.com
150 Felker St #D    http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
Santa Cruz CA 95060 http://802.11junk.com
Skype: JeffLiebermann     AE6KS    831-336-2558
Reply to
Jeff Liebermann

"No better" than the factory remote worked. That is, it didn't work. Sorry.

I don't know why I specified what commands the thing had when it worked.

The universal does work fine with a TV that it is also set up for. Maybe that's what misled you.

It was working fine until it wasnt' working at all, except for those 2 singles-digit numbers in the middle of loads of unsuccssful testing. Where I held the button down for a long time, though I've done that too plenty of times without getting anything. Maybe I should hit the thing. :)

No. Only designed for this one thing.

:) Okay, but not for the DVDR.

Reply to
mm

Ok. Then the problem is in the DVR and probably the IR receiver module. Drag out the oscilloscope and dive in. There's probably a test point near the IR receiver module, or just check the leads for data. This should be easy (famous last assumptions).

--
Jeff Liebermann     jeffl@cruzio.com
150 Felker St #D    http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
Santa Cruz CA 95060 http://802.11junk.com
Skype: JeffLiebermann     AE6KS    831-336-2558
Reply to
Jeff Liebermann

On Wed, 29 Jun 2011 21:18:43 -0400, mm put finger to keyboard and composed:

The uP inside the DVDR gets its user input from either the decoded IR stream or the buttons on the front panel.

If one of the buttons were to stick, then that could produce the observed symptoms. Can you still control the DVDR from the front panel?

Alternatively, have you checked for IR interference, such as from your lighting?

Is there a cockroach in the IR window? :-)

- Franc Zabkar

--
Please remove one 'i' from my address when replying by email.
Reply to
Franc Zabkar

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