Replace 5V regulator

[bob195558]

Hi Salty,

With all the added hardware modifications that have been installed on our 9x Radios,
it is considered to be Essential to upgrade the stock 5V regulator (max output of 100mA) on the stock 9x mainboard,
so that your 9x Radio will be more reliable when using it.

I have selected the Radio Shack LM7805C 5V Regulator which has a max output of 1000mA.
This 1 amp Regulator will give your 9x Radio plenty of power to support all of your hardware modifications and will increases the reliability!

All of the Hardware in your 9x Radio need to have plenty of power (Power: Amperage at 5V),
so that there is no stress, because of low power to any of the 9x Radio Hardware Components.
Like some of the stock 9x Potentiometers are failing after installing some of the hardware modifications.

Bob

[Flaps 30]

Hi Flaps 30,Is this Yellow wire a connection between the two outside Grounds of the 5V regulators?
Or is it for something different and/or do I need to have the two outside Grounds connected?

The yellow wire has nothing to do with the regulator. It is the wire that comes from the processor to feed the haptic modification. The hot glue is there to hold it in place.

The regulator you have is the correct one.

[bob195558]

Hi Everyone!

I just finished my first 5V Regulator Mod and wanted to show several pre-picture, because I feel relieved and good when everything powered up OK!

The backlight is a little brighter then it was with the Stock 9x 5V Regulator.
Which could be, ..... with the new 5V Regulator there is a little higher voltage output then the Stock 5V Regulator
and/or all the components are also able to receive the proper power to function properly now.

I will post more complete info on the procedures that I have done as I have following Flaps 30, 5V Regulator Mod.

There are something's that I did, that are not seen in these Photo's.

Bob

[bob195558]

Hi Everyone,

I have a Problem with the second 9x Radio after doing the 5V Regulator Upgrade Mod.

The Display Screen has stopped working.

Problem second 5V Regulator Upgrade Mod

The Radio is powering up with the new 5V Regulator as the Back-Light is working.
And the Beep Sounds are working when I use the trim switches.
I am not sure, but I think the Radio is booted-up OK.

I do not think any hardware has failed, but I am not sure.
Not Sure, but I think the Screen is the only thing not working.

The first 9x Radio that I did the 5V Regulator Mod to, there were no Problems.
I Think, ..... I am sure, ..... that I have all the connecting plugs connected correctly.
Maybe I should try removing the SmartiesParts Boards to see if the Radio will work correctly with the Stock connections only?

Its late now, and I am not able to think Clearly.
I welcome any suggestions you have, fore I need leave it for now and work on the troubleshooting it more tomorrow.

Bob

Problem with second 5V Regulator Upgrade Mod

SmartiesParts Board Rev 2.4

SmartiesParts Board Rev 2.4 and TelemetryEZ connections

[Spoogy]

Hi,

Just a one dumb suggestion or doubt. If I remember correctly someone mentioned when regulator was changed the brightness of the screen increased.So, might it be that the screen is just so bright that you cannot see fonts (that is possible I know).

If you look from your another radio how to navigate to radio setup and adjust the brightness and try to do that with this second radio at "eyes blind".

Of course this is just a wild guess....

-Spoogy

[bob195558]

Hi Spoogy,

I like your suggestion and I feel dumb for not thinking of it .

Thank You!

And maybe I can connect it to eepe and re-flash a different Contrast setting also.

Thank You again!, I hope and think this is what maybe is happening.

I will give it a try!

Bob

[bob195558]

Hi Spoogy,

I am Sorry to say it did not work.

I was able to connect to eepe with this 9x Radio and change the Contrast Settings, But it did not work.

Thank you for the suggestion, It was a very good suggestion.

I do have a Blue Back-light in this Radio and have had to have the Contrast set at 35 so to see it.
I think the default setting is 25 and I tried many different Contrast settings and none worked.

Still no Display Screen working!

Bob

[jhsa]

Check you have 5V going into the 3.3V regulator and this voltage at the output. That regulator only powers the LCD. Be very careful not to short anything when you're measuring the voltages.

Sent from my GT-I9195 using Tapatalk

[Flaps 30]

I welcome any suggestions you have, fore I need leave it for now and work on the troubleshooting it more tomorrow.

Check that the track you have cut through doesn't have whiskers on it shorting to the next track.

You should have full supply (battery voltage) on the red wire with respect to the centre pin on the 7805. The blue wire should have +5 Volts on it with respect to the centre pin on the 7805.

The transmitter will work without the Smartieparts board fitted.

[bob195558]

Hi João,

To verify where the voltages values are, I found this picture of the Stock 9x MainBoard,
which have connection points labeled with voltage values.

Are the connection points marked correctly in this Photo?

9x Mainboard

It looks like the 3.3V on the 3.3V Regulator may be marked incorrectly, being it is labeled on the right side of the 3.3V Regulator?

Bob

[bob195558]

Hi Flaps 30, João and all Others,

Before, ..... Very early this morning I did some troubleshooting.

I have another Stock Display Screen from my Sky9x Board upgrade so I tried it and still there is no Display Screen working.
So I feel there is nothing wrong with the Stock Display Screens.

I have looks over this Stock 9x Mainboard and I have not been able to see anything that maybe the cause for the Display Screen failure.
I think my soldering connections are OK.
But maybe, I did something when soldering them, that has caused the Display Screen to Fail.

When I was cutting the board trace that make the 5V connection of the old stock 5V Regulator, I did slip and cut down into the ground trace below.
Do you think I could have pulled some whiskers down and embedded them into the board causing a short?

Here are some Photos which show what I have:

Tried spare 9x Stock Display Screen

I have not checked the board Voltages yet on the Mainboard, I will prepare to do this next.

Bob

[jhsa]

You can measure the tracks for shorts. Make sure you didn't also cut the other track. If all the voltages are there I suggest that you measure all the 5k1 resistors above the processor. Also check that the display is getting the 3.3v. I guess some people are having the same display problem lately.

Joao

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[bob195558]

Hi Joao,

If you can get to a computer to see the photos I have posted , this may help you to see what I have done so far.

I know where the Digital Ground is, off from the Mainboard,
is this OK to use for my Ground connection when checking for the voltages on the Mainboard?
Or should I use the analog ground ?

Can help me to find where the 3.3V should be for the display, I do not know where this is.

Bob

[Flaps 30]

Bob - Have you checked the voltages as per my last post?

The regulator related to the display and other circuitry that needs 3.3Volts is the one that you posted earlier that has the yellow 3.3V text. The pin there is the one on the far right of that chip that should read 3.3 Volts.

As for the voltage in red.. Having 4.2 Volts out of a five volt regulator is seriously incorrect. Tt should be close to 5 Volts.

When I was cutting the board trace that make the 5V connection of the old stock 5V Regulator, I did slip and cut down into the ground trace below.
Do you think I could have pulled some whiskers down and embedded them into the board causing a short?

Best to clean the area with your favourite cleaner which may help you see if anything isn't as it should be.

[bob195558]

Hi Flaps 30, João, and everyone,

I just checked the Voltages and they look OK.

I checked the voltages at the new 5V 7805 Regulator to Digital Ground.
Where I have the Red wire soldered to Left Regulator Terminal, my Multimeter reads: 11.2.8 Battery Voltage, input.
Where I have the Blue wire soldered to the Right Regulator Terminal, my Multimeter reads: 4.9.4 Volts, output from the new 5V 7805 Regulator.

I then checked the stock 9x 3.3V Regulator and at the Yellow Right Terminal my Multimeter reads: 2.9.5 Volts to 3.3.0 Volts, output.
I then checked the center Terminal with my Multimeter and it reads: 4.9.4 Volts, input.

I then went and checked the Old Stock 78L05 Regulator and its voltages are what we would expect them to be, accepted its output trace is disconnected.

I am not sure about the proper way to look for short-circuits and/or continuity between connections when there are CPU's and other sensitive circuit,
that are all assembled together.
I am not sure what to do now to move forward with troubleshooting this display failure.

Bob

[jhsa]

did you try removing the SP board? did you flash the radio lately? measure the resistance of the 5K1 resistors just above the CPU.

I then checked the stock 9x 3.3V Regulator and at the Yellow Right Terminal my Multimeter reads: 2.9.5 Volts to 3.3.0 Volts, output

Might be a bit too low?? Use a magnifier glass, or even better take a good resolution picture and check for blobs of solder.. sorry, this is all I can think of for now

João

[bob195558]

Display FAILURE after doing 5V Regulator Mod
Hi João,

Did you try removing the SP board? Did you flash the radio lately? Measure the resistance of the 5K1 resistors just above the CPU.

Yes I did remove both SP Board made no difference.
Yes I Flash all the 9x Radios with SVN: er9x-r809, VERS: V1.101-Mike, DATE: 22. 01.2014, TIME: 19:08:41, MOD: FRSKY NT.
I have not Measure the resistance of the 5K1 Resistors just above the CPU because I was not able to understand what you need me to do there.
Did you mean the little things that have 512 on the top of them?
Not sure how and what, this part is all about.
Are you saying that the top of the CPU circuits are feeds the Display Screen?
I have little understanding how the display works. I do want to understand how it work.

I think there some good photos to show what I have done and they show my soldering.

Looking over the soldering connections I think they look good.
The first 9x Radio works with no problems and this one I did the same procedures as I did with the first 9x Radio.

Bob

[jhsa]

do you have companion installed on your computer? If so, connect your radio to the computer, go to companion, burn menu, fuses, and then click on READ FUSES. Not on any other. just read fuses. then post the results here. I wonder if when you flashed the radio the fuses got changed somehow.

João

[bob195558]

Hi João,

Did not work in Companion9x.

I got this message: (AVRDUDE executable not found)

I tried.

Bob

[Flaps 30]

It does look that all is well with the modification. But

I then checked the stock 9x 3.3V Regulator and at the Yellow Right Terminal my Multimeter reads: 2.9.5 Volts to 3.3.0 Volts, output..

My TX reads 3.3Volts on the regulator output. The schematic I have shows the regulator to be a 6206A - 30 (3.0 Volt regulator). My TX (which may be a later version than yours) has a 6206 - 33 which is a 3.3 Volt regulator. Seeing that your TX was working fine (assuming that you have the '30' version fitted, then the fault is not in that area.

I am not sure what to do now to move forward with troubleshooting this display failure.

Start with what João has mentioned. After that it is worth a look around to see if anything has come loose or maybe a piece of wire, solder splash or copper swarf from the cutting operation has got somewhere it shouldn't... Worth giving the TX a shake

[bob195558]

Hi João,

I played around with it and was able to get the companion9x working some.
I was using Companion9x for my Sky9x Radio but have not looked at it for some time because I been using eepskye.

Here is the READ FUSES Info from Companion9x:

READ FUSES from Companion9x / Display FAILURE after doing 5V Regulator Mod with my FlySky 9x Radio

or
This is Screen Shot pasted in a Word Document

With eepe it seem to be able to do everything as if the Display Screen was working OK.
The Radio seems to be working correctly, but no Display Screen.
It dose not make sense to me, But there has to be a reason for it not working.

Bob

[jhsa]

Bl***y tapatalk. Can't see your pictures. Will get to a computer soon.

Joao

Sent from my GT-I9195 using Tapatalk

[ShowMaster]

I'm glad you can't see them with tapatalk either! I see some and others show a broken frame? If i go to RCG in tapatalk I can upload pictures as well as see them all. Only in this forum using tapatalk I can't? Rob has looked at his forum settings and feels there're ok so I'm not sure what's going on.
I just access this forum directly now if I want to see every picture or upload one.



Sent from my iPod touch using Tapatalk

[jhsa]

Fuses look ok.. It is a Hardware problem then..
well, something is causing the problem, we just have to find out what that problem is..
To the right of the little 5V regulator there are some small resistors with "0" marked on them. the should be just jumpers. zero ohm resistors. Please check they are ok as I think the 3.3V (or 3.0V) pass through one (or maybe both) of them before going to the LCD. Also please measure the resistors above the CPU. the ones marked "512". they should measure around 5.1k (kilo ohm).
There is also a remote possibility that the CPU is damaged..
Another idea.. check there are no very little blobs of solder shorting pins of the cpu together. that is very easy to happen. You can pass a sharp blade between the pins, to remove any possible blob of solder.. be careful not to cut any trace.

João

[bob195558]

Hi João,

Thank you for the info.

I did not know that the 512 labeled Resistor are used as a Safety Fuse and will blow if there is a short.

I think I understand better to what may have happened as I was excited with my first successfully 5V Regulator Upgrade Mod,
I may not have not cleaned the debris from the board good enough before powering it up, causing a short somewhere.

I will start with this troubleshooting soon and post the results.
Thank You!

Bob

[bob195558]

Hi João,

The two small zero ohm resistors to the right of the Stock 5V Regulator read as follows:
With the 9x Radio powered up I read 3.3.0V on both sides of each zero ohm Resistor Labeled: (0).
The 3.3 voltage was very stable and did not vary any, I believe the previous reading of 2.9.5V was an error on my part.
I also rechecked all the previous connection voltages and they were all good as before.

Next I measure the roll of 13 Resistors above the CPU that are marked with 512 on the top of them.
With the 9x Radio not with any 12V battery powered to it, I set my Multimeter INNOVA 3300 to: 20K ohm setting
and reading Left to Right the Resistors values:
1: 0 / 2: 5.1.0 / 3: 5.0.5 / 4: 5.1.0 / 5: 5.0.7 / 6: 5.0.5 / 7: 5.0.9 / 8: 5.0.5 / 9: 5.0.5 / 10: 5.0.9 / 11: 5.0.8 / 12: 5.0.9 / 13: 5.0.9

The first Resistor on the left has failed, Should I replace it?

I do have an older Stock 9x Radio mainboard that I believe I may have fuse brick over a year ago,
I have not been able to understand the procedures that I would need to do to restore it to working order.
I have no problem borrowing parts from it to help restore my LCD screen.

Bob

[MikeB]

I'm slightly concerned that your meter has 2 decimal points showing. Is it possible it is the meters way of indicating it has a low battery?

Before you change the resistor try to inspect it, and the board around it to check there is no possible solder causing a short across it. You have soldered a wire to the capacitor just beside it so something may have got on the resistor. Also, check the resistance from the "via" hole at the end of the resistor to ground. It should be about 10K. The same applies to all 13 vias in fact.

Mike.

[bob195558]

Hi Mike,

No its been this way from the beginning.
This model Multimeter is not rounding up or down its reading.
Its shows the next decimal point reading instead of rounding it up and down.
Other have questioned this also a year ago.
And back then, I was not sure also, so what did, was to go to the manual and this multimeter is OK. Its what it dose.
You can round the reading up and/or down as it would be proper and drop the second decimal point.
Like if the reading is 5.0.9 ohm you would be rounded it to 5.1 ohm.
I could round the reading manually and then it look more normal.
I do not know if this INNOVA 3300 Multimeter model is more accurate when showing a more precise reading,
but when I checked it to other meters it was OK.

Add Edit update: If I use this odd china Multimeter, I will round the reading so they will be normal Multimeter readings.
And if I take a photo I will use a normal Multimeter so that we are seeing and understanding the same readings easier.
I appreciate your questioning this odd china Multimeter.
When I purchased it, I did not know it had this extra decimal point built into it.

Bob

[bob195558]

Hi Mike,

Before you change the resistor try to inspect it, and the board around it to check there is no possible solder causing a short across it.
You have soldered a wire to the capacitor just beside it so something may have got on the resistor.
Also, check the resistance from the "via" hole at the end of the resistor to ground. It should be about 10K.
The same applies to all 13 vias in fact.
Mike.

I did not check the little Brown not labeled Resistor next to the larger Yellow Capacitor where I soldered the Red wire to which is the 12V battery voltage input supply.
Could this be a problem when all the regulator voltages are all reading correctly around the 5V regulator?

Should I check more of the Resistor Safety Fuses?

Bob

[jhsa]

If the resistor reads zero then it might be shorted. Mike is right. Look for something near that resistor. A while ago, after I replaced the processor on my radio, I checked all with the multimeter before I powered it up and I found one shorted capacitor. It turned out to be a very small blob of solder shorting it. Couldn't see with the naked eye but took a picture and then I saw it. The cap is the same size as those resistors. I think you're getting close

Joao

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