After Install Pot 1 on Turnigy 9x Erratic!!!!

[glidetune]

Alright I'll start by saying I bought a 9xtreme board in early November and didn't get around to installing it till mid December.

I installed the 9xtreme board as per instructions on a FlySky 9x and everything worked perfectly except for two things.

One: The transmitter stick gimbals were not stable when not being moved. Some of the axises were jumping around by about one unit. This didn't worry me too much cause I had read the 9x pots were not terribly high quality.

2nd: and more important, the top potentiometer on the left side of the transmitter would register full off or full on, but when turning from full off to full on, the bar indicator on the screen would wildly jump back and forth erratically, almost the entire range of the potentiometer. (I did do a calibration to see if this would fix the issue, but it didn't help.)

Originally, I thought there was a problem with my specific transmitter so I had my friend send me his brand new, Turnigy 9x. I made sure everything including the pots functioned on it and then pulled everything out of the first transmitter and installed the 9xtreme into the new one. When I turned it on the same exact thing happened. Realizing the low likelihood of the exact same defect being present in two different transmitters made me think either I incorrectly wired it or the board / FW might be defective. How would you guys recommend I address this problem?

Any input greatly appreciated

[jhsa]

It might not help the pot but it will help the sticks. Worth trying.
To enable the hardware menu please turn the radio ON while holding the left horizontal trim to the left.
Then go to Radio Setup/ Hardware, and change Filter to "OSMP". See if that helps..

João

[MikeB]

Is the bar indicator to which you refer the vertical one between the two square boxes showing the stick positions?
This is an unusual problem as the pots are still read by the original processor and the position passed digitaly to the 9Xtreme.

Mike.

[nickpsar]

Then go to Radio Setup/ Hardware, and change Filter to "OSMP". See if that helps..

Thanks João that trick helped me a lot. Now all the values in the first screen are stabilized. Sticks are not jumping any more

[jhsa]

This seems to be quite common with the 9xtreme.. Mine does the same and there were some more reports.
What about the pot? did it also get better?
João

[glidetune]

Yes mike, its the bar you're talking about. The right two bar indicators for pots 2 and 3 work perfectly. The left one is all over the place. I tried the turning the radio on with the left horizontal trim held left and it didn't seem to do anything. I could still access the hardware menu and filter setting even when I turned it on without the trim. Am I doing something wrong?

Thanks for the tip jhsa, it did seem to help with the sticks pots a bit. They still jump just not as much.

[MikeB]

Please go to the DiagAna display and look at the value to the right of A4. This is the raw analog to digital value for the POT1.
The value is in base 16 (hexadecimal). This means each digit goes from 0 to 9, then A,B,C,D,E,F before going back to 0.

It should start from something close to 0, and then increase as you turn the pot up to 07FF. Does this jump around?

Are you still running the original firmware that was shipped on the 9Xtreme?

Mike.

[glidetune]

Yes, I am running the original firmware that came with the board. "V.1946-Mike" is what the version tab in the menu states is currently flashed. In the process of removing the 9xtreme from the first radio I broke the usb header and cable so I currently cannot update. I fired an email off to steve and am working on a replacement currently.

I went in to DiagAna display and checked what you said. A1 - A4 are the "stick pots" in my radio and they work just fine. A5-A7 are the three pots that move the vertical bars on my radio ( A5 being the one that is malfunctioning) A6 and A7 work just like you said. A5 however, registers -100 or 100 (or corresponding hexadecimal) properly but anything in between is not stable and does not display proportionally to where the pot is located.

[MikeB]

The -100 to +100 are values after processing. I need to know if the (hexadecimal) number between A5 and the -100 to +100 is also behaving erratically.

Mike.

[glidetune]

yes on a5, they are both behaving erratically

[MikeB]

I can't think of a reason for your problem. All three pots are handled in the same way, the position being read by the original processor and passed to the 9Xtreme.
I could build a special test version of ersky9x with some debug in to help locate the problem. Since, in order to flash this, you need to be able to update the firmware, I suggest you first update to the latest release of firmware anyway.

Do you have eepskye installed? You use this to update the firmware.
Both eepskye and ersky9x are here: http://www.er9x.com/.

Mike.

[ReSt]

I would at first simply swap the middle wire of two pots and check if the error moves or stays at the original pot.

Reinhard

[bob195558]

It could still be a hardware problem even though you see it on two different 9x radios.
The parts used to build these 9x radios are the cheapest part they can find and still work a little (pots).
I have work with many 9x radios and many times the same parts I find do fail on other radios.
Be good to check the hardware is working properly.

Bob B.

[jhsa]

It might not have to do with the problem, but it is worth to inspect the back side of the 9xtreme board for shorts, specially between pins of the connectors.. If it does the same problem on 2 different radios chances are that the 9xt could have a problem..
I know the 9x radios are cheap, but coincidences are rare..

João

[glidetune]

Awesome replies everybody! I really appreciate all the help. I probably won't be able to test the board till monday, but i'll keep ya posted with my results. Steven is helpping me with hacking the usb connection through email so I should be able to flash the latest FW soon......

PS: One question, If the pots were working on the radios before I installed the board, wouldn't they have to be wired right?

[MikeB]

Yes. This is a very odd problem as the pots haven't been re-wired at all. They all still go to the original board and are read by the original processor.

Mike.

[jhsa]

All of them?

João

[MikeB]

I've now checked the connectivity. P1 and P2 (the pots on the top of the radio) connect to the original board via the 12-way cable between the 9Xtreme and the original board. My guess is one of these connections is to good.
P1 uses the third pin from the 'processor' end of the connector.
You might try checking the connectivity of this.
As this cable carries the battery power, before the switch, this should be done with the battery disconnected.

Mike.

[glidetune]

Thanks so much mike, that's exactly the kind info/diagnostic advice I'm looking for. Sorry if this question is super basic but just to clarify , check conductivity from where this input goes in to 9xtreme with multimeter? I haven't done much diagnostics so i don't fully know all the basic theory. Like one probe on the third pin from the 9x main board 12 pin wire and the other where it comes onto the 9xtreme?

[MikeB]

Remember to disconnect the battery.
Set the P1 pot to a mid position (if at an end you connect the pot wiper to an end connection as well).
P1 goes in to the 9Xtreme on the 12-way connector at the end of the board on pin 3 (pin 1 is closest to the gimbal).
Check this connects to pin 3 on the 12-way connector that plugs in to the original board. Pin 1 is closest to the side of the case.

Mike.

[glidetune]

what is the pot wiper?

[Daedalus66]

It's the center connection, the moving part that slides on the resistive element.