Puck Problems again!

[Nigel]

I'm having problems with my 1090 Puck again. It runs for anything between a few hours to 5-10mins and then powers off (orange light goes off). The Puck is directly connected to my PC with a USB cable. All the USB power settings are disabled. I'm running Windows 7 64 bit, and installed some Windows updates recently. 

Any suggestions of what I might try would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

Nigel

[Anmer]

When did the problem start again?

Looking back on previous posts it appears to have gone away when you changed the USB cable connection?

[Nigel]

It started again yesterday. It has been fine since before Xmas using the active USN extension between the original USB cable supplied with the Puck and my PC. It restarts when I remove the USB from the Puck and plug in again. It might be coincidence but I installed a Windows 7 update yesterday. I've checked the power management settings to the USB as you suggested last time and they all remain disabled. It's puzzling because it ran overnight without a problem and then has been intermittent during today, stopping after 10-30 mins but then runs for an hour or so.

[Harpic]

May be nothing to do with the problem.
But I noticed that there was two USB updates yesterday, whilst my lappy was updating Windows Updates.

FTDI - Other hardware - USB Serial Converter A
FTDI - Other hardware - USB Serial Converter B

Mike Knows I'm a bit of a Dunce when it comes to computers
As I say might not be relevant.

Harpic

[Anmer]

Hi Nigel

Is your PC a desktop or laptop?

[Ian K]

I've had a similar problem twice in the last few weeks, I found that there were zero contacts and found no orange & green light on the puck, reconnecting the usb solved the problem but unsure why it is disconnecting ?

[David Ryan]

I also have this problem.
I use my puck for my travels it is normally just left running collecting data  and has run for days with my net book plugged in to the mains or on its battery if I am moving. Then for no apparent reason it will drop out with no visual warning so I still have lights on the unit and my net book says it is still connected but nothing on my radar.
If I unplug my usb cable and reconnect straight away it starts picking up aircraft it is real frustrating and I find myself doing this on a regular basis just in case as I am not always in a position to check if it is still working.
I have run my net book with my older sbs1e and it has never dropped out so it must be the puck not my net book or usb lead.
My experience is I can not trust the puck to be left alone without supervision and certainly it will not go on my next holiday as I normally  leave it running in the apartment while I relax by the pool or walk down the beech  just in case I fail to read of a lander as I cannot be certain anymore that the puck would be working.

David Ryan

[Anmer]

Welcome and thanks David.

I don't have a Puck so have no personal experience but judging by the responses here there may be a problem.

Chris Taylor (official Puck distributor and 1st Line Support) seems noticeably absent from here these days.  And I emailed him on another topic a few days ago and he hasn't replied.  Maybe he's away or he doesn't want to be associated with the forum anymore?

I'd email him a link to this post but he may ignore me.  Perhaps give him a call and ask for his input?

Taylor Made RF Limited
Elstree Aerodrome
Hogg Lane
Borehamwood
Hertfordshire
WD6 3AW

Phone: 01923 884670
Monday to Friday 09:00 to 17:30
Email: sales@tmrf.eu

[Nigel]

Thanks for all the responses. Funnily enough, after posting the topic yesterday evening it has run for almost 24 hours without a problem and then suddenly just dropped out. My PC did the USB Serial Converter updates on Monday evening but the problem started just before that.

Anmer - I'm running it off a desktop PC

I've bought a couple of antennae from Chris Taylor so I may try and contact him about the problem.

Thanks again, I'll continure monitoring, and if anyone thinks of a possible solution please let me know.

[Anmer]

One last comment is that USB can be interrupted by local surges, such as halogen lights or cell radio masts.

[David Ryan]

If it was the usb then it would affect my sbs1e but that runs fine.
My puck ran all day today until 1800 then dropped out 4 or 5 times in 30 mins. Each time I Un plugged the usb and then back in in less than a second or two and it re-connected after that it's run nearly 3 hours
With out a problem.

David Ryan

[Anmer]

Another thought is the drivers may be an issue.

Perhaps a Windows update has updated the original ones?

[IanH]

Assuming the drivers are the same as for USB connection of SBS-1, the latest ones are here:

http://www.ftdichip.com/Drivers/D2XX.htm

Or as Mike has pointed out before, there is an older version that comes with BS - run CDM20814Setup.exe 

[Chris-G0WTZ]

Is it the original grey Puck lead?
Some leads do not have a long enough metal plug causing drop outs!

[Anmer]

Some leads do not have a long enough metal plug causing drop outs!

Does that mean that the USB port on the Puck is not to spec?

If the supplied lead needs to be replaced, how can we be sure the replacement is going to work?

And is this an issue for the current Pucks?