NEC NC900 dead/faulty IMB slot.

[Alan Gouger]

I have an NEC NC900 coupled with a GDC SR-1000. Apon a recent boot-up, the SR1000 did not light up, no flashing LEDS, completely dead. I swapped out the IMB with another known working SR1000 and I am getting the same result. This points to a defective IMB slot. The projector is of course long out of warranty. Does anyone repair these? I am clueless where to start with this.

[Leo Enticknap]

Does the ICP light up as it should? What error message(s) does the projector present?

If the ICP lights up and the only error messages relate to the IMB (or more accurately, the lack of one), my immediate suspicion would be of the projector's motherboard. If it were the card cage power supply, I would expect the ICP and the CPU board to be out as well, thereby rendering the projector completely dead.

The projector is certainly repairable - NEC still offers full parts support for this model. Dissecting a 900 to replace the motherboard is a nontrivial task - half a day to a day of tech time. I would suggest getting a tech in, who starts by pulling and reseating all the relevant connections, and then goes on to replace the motherboard if that doesn't fix it. A log file from the projector (in particular, the event log section and the voltages listing) could shed some more light.

If you need help finding a qualified tech in your area, feel free to PM me. My co-worker at the shop maintains a list of techs we have working relationships with throughout the country, and I'm sure that he'd be able to help.

[Mark Gulbrandsen]

First thing to check is if the settings for the IMB slot have been selected and that the IMB slot live. One does this in the setup software when you select which IMB you are installing in the projector. I put about 30 900's in and once the lamp issues were fixed by Ushio, they have become real workhorses.

[Marcel Birgelen]

First thing to check is if the settings for the IMB slot have been selected and that the IMB slot live. One does this in the setup software when you select which IMB you are installing in the projector. I put about 30 900's in and once the lamp issues were fixed by Ushio, they have become real workhorses.

According to the other topic Alan started, the IMB doesn't light up at all. Even without the proper configuration on the NEC side, the IMB should at least be powered, but I guess it's worth a try.

[Mark Gulbrandsen]

Seems to me NEC does that based on using an internal or external media block.IE, both types can not be active at the same time and for good reasons.

[Leo Enticknap]

I could be wrong, but my vague memory is that if you set the option slot setting to "nothing in there," it kills power to the slot. If you change IMB/IMS model in an NC900 (e.g. pull a cat745 out and replace it with an IMS3000), it's sometimes necessary to set the option slot to "nothing in there," boot the projector, put it back into standby, set the option slot to "IMB," and then reboot it again, before it'll let you marry the new model. It's been a while since I did this, but if my memory is right, then no lights appear on the new unit while the projector is booted with "nothing in there" set.

All that having been said, Alan's original post gives the impression that this SR-1000 had been working OK in the projector, and then suddenly, without that setting having been touched, the power to the option slot was dead. If so, that says to me that we're looking at a hardware fault as distinct from an incorrect configuration setting.

[Marcel Birgelen]

It looks like the configuration was OK, but we probably all experienced the odd configuration flips on stuff that previously worked. Memory can go bad and can experience bit-flips even without going bad by being hit by something like a cosmic ray or solar flare activity for example.

I could be wrong, but my vague memory is that if you set the option slot setting to "nothing in there," it kills power to the slot. If you change IMB/IMS model in an NC900 (e.g. pull a cat745 out and replace it with an IMS3000), it's sometimes necessary to set the option slot to "nothing in there," boot the projector, put it back into standby, set the option slot to "IMB," and then reboot it again, before it'll let you marry the new model. It's been a while since I did this, but if my memory is right, then no lights appear on the new unit while the projector is booted with "nothing in there" set.

If there is circuitry on the backplane to individually power on/off cards in the cage, it may be as well this circuitry that has gone bad.

[Alan Gouger]

It looks like the configuration was OK, but we probably all experienced the odd configuration flips on stuff that previously worked. Memory can go bad and can experience bit-flips even without going bad by being hit by something like a cosmic ray or solar flare activity for example.

That seems to be the case here. For some strange reason after swapping several SR-1000s with no result I put back the original SR-1000 and everything started to work again allowing me to perform a remarriage and I am good to go. This makes me worried I cannot trust this machine. Not sure if an extended warranty is worth consideration, any input on this is appreciated.

Thank you.

[Alan Gouger]

Duplicate post, please delete.

[Mark Gulbrandsen]

The first thing I'd do is treat the contacts along both halves of the IMB. No need to use an.exaess of this stuff! Spray both halves of the contacts and insert and remove the IMB several times. Best contact cleaner ever.

[Leo Enticknap]

Amen to that, Brother.

In terms of Alan's situation, it sounds like a poor connection had something to do with it. Agreed completely with Mark (in fact, it was Mark's evangelizing about it that prompted me to buy my first can of the stuff) that giving the PCI contacts on the SR-100 board the DeOxit treatment has lots of potential benefits and pretty much no downsides. I do fear, however, that this could be symptomatic of a failing card cage motherboard. If it happens again, I'd suggest considering having the motherboard replaced if you plan to keep the projector in service.

As for an extended warranty, I don't know how NEC handles bringing a projector back into warranty that has dropped out of coverage. Barco/Cinionic do not make this an attractive option: at various times and in various situations they required you to pay the missing years up front, and/or send their tech out to inspect the machine (at your expense) before selling you a new warranty. In short, they want to discourage you from keeping an older projector on life support, and encourage you to buy a shiny new one. A warranty is an insurance product: the older the projector, the higher the risk. The two most expensive parts that they could be on the hook for are the ICP ($5k) and the light engine ($20-40k, depending on the model). Because of its soldered on battery, the risk of an ICP dying in a 10-year old projector is a near certainty. So, unless the projector has been kept continuously in warranty since new (in which case, you will already have paid as much if not more than the cost of replacing a big-ticket part as a one-time purchase), reactivating the warranty ain't gonna be cheap.

The NC900 is a pretty old model - it was the first small, portable Series 2. As I'm sure Mark will be quick to point out, they have a relatively good reliability record if they are well maintained. As against which, if they do go wrong, some parts replacements can require a lot of tech hours, and the issue exists as to how long parts support (e.g. lamps) will continue to be available.

For all these reasons, I'm retiring one (still working) from service on Tuesday and replacing it with an SP2K-9C. it's nine years old, and, like a car of that age, the owner would prefer to replace it just before it enters the final, high maintenance period of its service life.

[Steve Guttag]

Leo, NEC's traditional policy for extended warranty is that if you want to start it up again in year 5, you still have to pay years 3 and 4 in addition to 5.

As for Barco, I think your statement is more than misleading. Barco/Cinionc's continuing policy has been one of a "Health Check" (to ensure no pre-existing conditions) so yeah, you have to pay a relatively low fee (significantly less than a year of warranty for most any model and a certified tech as to certify the projector is in proper condition (or magically, they'd be on the hook for bad light engines or ICPs...etc.). That call takes as long as a C-Maintenance...which should be done annually anyway. They let you rejoin extended warranty without paying the years skipped. So, on year 5, you can start back up on year 5. They now offer (substantial) multi-year discounts too. Since Barco/Cinionic does not break down the light engine very far (the integrating rod is separately serviceable but not much else), one almost has to get the extended warranty unless one can afford to keep a light engine about and they have REALLY jacked those prices up (though now have an RX program for them). Lastly, if one gets a Laser Light Upgrade, they let you push the entire projector's warranty out to 13-years. So, if your projector is 6-7 years old, it could be merely at "half-life," in terms of warranty support.

[Leo Enticknap]

I've handled two instances in the last couple of years in which Cinionic has required years skipped to be paid as a precondition of reactivating a warranty, and several in which, AFAIK, they have not: so this appears to be a decision that is made on a case-by-case basis rather than a one-size-fits-all policy.

Lastly, if one gets a Laser Light Upgrade, they let you push the entire projector's warranty out to 13-years.

That is a major sale (not just a parts sale) on which they likely make a similar margin to that of a new projector, and so is effectively consistent (as is their jacking up the cost of one-time parts purchases) with my belief that their pricing strategy is designed to encourage replacement rather than repair/maintaining in service once a projector reaches a certain age. I don't blame them, and from their perspective, that approach makes sense: the longer they have to provide parts and expertise/support service for a model while a small number of older survivors remain in use, the higher their overheads. But it creates challenges at our end.

[Sean McKinnon]

I don't know if the SR-1000 has this "feature" or not but I have run into this issue with IMS2000's and an NEC NC900 that on a reboot the server doesn't always get the message to power on and you have to stick a paperclip into the reset switch hole and force it to power cycle. Not sure at all if this helps as I don't have much GDC experience.

[Steve Guttag]

Sean, I have NEVER run into that on an IMS2000/NEC900 situation. NEC does do a "standby mode" on the IMS, but that is about it. Now, if the IMS2000 is told to shut down (as opposed to standby or reboot), THEN, the projector needs to power cycle as well to wake it back up.