862 error

[David J Hilsgen]

I have a Dolby dss200 showing a cat 862 error on the screen, it's connected to it NEC 2500 before that problem it had a media block error which I ran the jumper out from the media block then that went away ,and now I got the 862 error anybody have any ideas

[Rick Cohen]

The DSS200 is well beyond the end of its serviceable lifetime. Time to replace it with an IMS3000. Any effort or money put into the DSS200 is wasted.

[Leo Enticknap]

When you write "I ran the jumper out from the media block," do you mean that you reseated out the little 1ft Ethernet cable connecting the "data link" port on the server's motherboard to the cat862's input? If so, the problem could be as trivial as that cable going bad, in which case replace it (doesn't matter if it's a longer one, as long as it's cat5e or better). There is also a similar cable inside the server chassis connecting the back panel header to the board of the cat862 itself. As it comes from the factory, that cable is zip tied into a really tight turn, with the result that they do sometimes fail. I would try replacing that one as well, leaving out the zip tie.

If that doesn't fix it, I would suggest downloading a log package from the server and uploading it to Dolby Log Analyzer. If the cat862 has lost its DCI certificate, then I'm afraid that it's game over and you need a new server (shameless sales plug: the last I knew we did have a used but OK DSS200 in stock: feel free to PM me if interested). But if the log analysis shows the certificate as being OK, it could be fixable.

The problem could also be in the TI board of the NC2500 rather than the cat862.

The DSS200 is well beyond the end of its serviceable lifetime. Time to replace it with an IMS3000. Any effort or money put into the DSS200 is wasted.

Not an option with a Series 1 projector (NC2500). This could be trivial, and fixable for the price of a couple of Ethernet patch cords. However, your broader point is well taken: both this model of server and projector are considered EOL by their manufacturers, and it's just a matter of time before a hardware failure happens that cannot be fixed. About the only viable option if the cat862 is borked and replacing it with used but OK example of the same model is ruled out is a GDC SR-1000 in the Series 1/HD-SDI conversion chassis. This would at least provide the option of taking it out of the chassis and into a Series 2 or later projector, if the projector were to be upgraded later. But there is no way that I am aware of to use an IMS3000 with a Series 1 projector.

[Steve Guttag]

About the only thing, in 2024, that will cause the DSS200 (or DSS220) to be "unserviceable" is the mediablock (either CAT862 for SDI systems or CAT745 for IMB systems). The link cables have caused me enough grief over the years that, given the opportunity, I take a blank cover out of one of the card slots and run a 2-foot jumper directly from the CAT862, out through the hole created by removing the blank and into the link data port of the motherboard.

Now, if you get an "Error Connecting to CAT862" or "Error Connecting to Mediablock" you may have a dead CAT862. If that is the case, then that is curtains for the server. Your last ditch effort is to obtain a copy of the Dolby Software Update Utility program and connect your laptop directly via USB cable (USB-A to USB-B type cable...square to rectangle, if you prefer). If the Dolby software sees the CAT862, you have a fighting chance. You'll need a KDM to perform a software update on it (even if you are just putting the same version back on), and the software version you want to put on. Tick the box that asks if you want to replace all components. This can revive a CAT862 in a bad state. But, you'll be talking to someone from Dolby and/or a technician with the proper credentials to obtain the software, firmware and KDM.

Most every other failure point on the DSS servers, which are Super Micro servers are obtainable still. The most common failure points are the power supplies (a DSS200 power supply will work in a DSS220 but not vice-versa), memory sticks needing to be reseated/replaced, and motherboards. I've had luck in finding both the X7 and X8 versions. You do have to transfer the CPU and memory sticks over and, ideally, run the Dolby BIOS disc so it is configured correctly (plus you get the Dolby splash screen when the unit first fires up).

That said, you are talking about a server that has been discontinued for about 9-years now...so you may be talking about a unit that is upwards of 15-years old, depending on when it was made.

[Leo Enticknap]

Thanks - forgot to mention reflashing the cat862 via USB. If David does that, I've found, like you, checking the "Reinstall all components" box and starting with the "first install" package file increases the chance of success:

image.png

A couple of months ago I used this to successfully revive a cat862 that suddenly stopped playing any audio. My first attempt, without checking this box, didn't work.

[David J Hilsgen]

Thank you so much for the information Leo and Steve, I'll try the cable thing I am using my spare 200 right now ,so I know it isn't the projector causing this. the other items I'll have to get help from a friend of mine that's more tech savvy so maybe we can eventually revive this, it's in a drive-in theater up in Long prairie, Minnesota

[Marcel Birgelen]

However, your broader point is well taken: both this model of server and projector are considered EOL by their manufacturers, and it's just a matter of time before a hardware failure happens that cannot be fixed.

The same can be said about the projector and probably about the audio controller too. We're living in a harsh reality, where a lot of those places simply can't afford to replace their essential workhorses and since there is no more support on this hardware, if anything fails, they face a potential existential crisis...

[Leo Enticknap]

This is why I now deliver a little sermon to a customer as I complete the installation of something that is shiny and new: this thing has a designed service life of ten years (assuming that all the recommended maintenance is done on time), and therefore I would suggest writing down its value over this period, and planning to replace it at the end. You may get lucky and get a few extra years out of it, and if you're happy with it and it still works, there is no reason to retire it at the end of that period for the sake of it. But by the time that decade is up, to protect your business, try to get yourself into a financial situation whereby you can replace it at any time if you need to.

[Frank Cox]

Post-pandemic, a lot of smaller theatres don't make enough of a profit to make a tens-of-thousands of dollars expense doable. If the projector quits they're probably closed.

[Leo Enticknap]

I do understand that, which is why we'll always try to come up with an innovative solution if an independent or nonprofit comes to us with an end-of-support projector or server that is having problems. A lot of the time we can come up with a solution for a small fraction of the cost of a new projector, but there is an element of kicking the can down the road. Writing down a projector over a decade potentially means having to put $5-10K a year away for its replacement (although the writedown can be offset against tax, unless you're a nonprofit), which, if you're operating on razor thin margins, could be impossible. But we can at least make customers aware of the equipment's likely reliable service life: a lot, I've found, simply were not, and expected their NC2500 or DP-100 to last as long as the 35mm projector it replaced.

[Steve Guttag]

With rare exceptions, I've found that the projectors can safely be presumed to last 10-15 years (typical practice has been for projector parts to be available 10-years after the last date of manufacture by the three DLP companies) and all three offer warranty plans to get you to 10-years with a known expense (for the parts). Barco, with their LLU, offers a means to kick that out to 13-years...but with the significant added expense of the LLU upgrade (laser).

Servers, on the other hand, I've always proclaimed them to be a 5-7 year investment. They live on the technology of computers and their life cycles overlapped with the particulars of the cinema industry. Dolby caps their warranty at 5-years (and it is cheap to extend it from factory 3 to a full 5-years), GDC allows for a 10-year warranty on the SR-1000 that is cheaper than buying another server within that 10-year period. Barco will let you warrant the ICMP out to 10-years (right along with the projector or as a stand-alone) too. So, as Leo notes, 10-years is becoming the safe number to tell people of its life-cycle. I should note that while these companies offer extended warranties that, often, all one has to do is make the "yearly payment," one is often rewarded by investing in multi-year warranties and buying up-front as that locks in the price plus...when a product gets discontinued, so does the option for an extended warranty. That is, if you are buying a warranty each year, hoping to get to 10-years (or even 5), if that product gets superseded/discontinued, often the offer for extended warranty is removed as the manufacturer will need to keep stock to support the units already in the field that they may have sold warranty for that will need to be there for many years to come.

I still would say that servers are the more volatile of the technologies. We are seeing 10-12 year life spans on most servers but as you cross that 10-year mark, the number of server failures for one thing or another is increasing, significantly.

I think an issue with projectors may be the cost of the repair when a light engine goes down versus the cost of a new projector. How much do you want to invest in a 10-15 year old projector that will be worth less than the money you spend on it if you were to try and sell it used? The various companies have different costs for their parts with Barco definitely at the high-end of the scale and NEC, often at the low-end (sometimes for the exact same part, like an ICP or Enigma where you can really do an apple-to-apple comparison.

Another aspect to all of this may be, sort of like the film equipment, as one removed failed equipment, harvesting its parts that still function well to keep other equipment going. If your server goes down due to a mediablock, the motherboard, memory, CPU, power supplies and so forth can be transplanted into another server. Likewise for a projector. If a light engine goes down, it still has a collection of expensive boards in it, fans, power supplies...etc.

[Leo Enticknap]

Agreed totally. This is why (a) we try to keep some of the more widely sold Series 1 and early Series 2 models in the shop as parts donor machines (e.g. one that was retired because one of the TI interface boards failed, but the light engine is still OK), and we have a lot of demand for these projectors from independents and small chains that want to have their own parts donor projectors in stock, and/or a spare known good server. Of course that strategy will only work if they keep on top of battery maintenance, e.g. powering the server up for a few days every couple of months in the case of a DSS200/cat862.