DiyLightAnimation
Hardware => Lynx EtherDongle => Lynx Conductor => Topic started by: dpitts on November 15, 2012,
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I have read all threads on conductor problems. This is what i have done already.
1. I have checked and rechecked files names. They are correct length and all are there.
2. I have tested continuity between CF card holder and board all pins are connected and no visible solder bridges.
3. I have reformatted the card several times to Fat32.
4. I have tested two etherdongles and both worked with ED firmware.
5. Light is lit on mp3 module.
6. Software states "Not Connected". The computer time does not even increment on GUI.
The conductor keeps disconnecting and reconnecting in a loop. It most likely is resetting like in other threads. The two common reasons for this are bad files or CF card problems. Neither seem to be my problem.
I am at a loss and very frustrated but I am not giving up. I have a slave board but that one had most pins disconnected so i decided to use the board that had all pins connected for my conductor but now i have this problem.
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Pic of cf card pins and files. I used an mp3 before. This is a pic of card files when I used none.mp3.
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The pins look good but take a small jewelers screwdriver or toothpick and very gently push against the pins, if they move they will need to be re-soldered.
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The pins look good but take a small jewelers screwdriver or toothpick and very gently push against the pins, if they move they will need to be re-soldered.
They do not move and each one has been checked for continuity.
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try adding at least one real mp3 file
Rick R.
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try adding at least one real mp3 file
Rick R.
I have done that many times.
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try adding at least one real mp3 file
Rick R.
I have done that many times.
make sure the show (schedule) has the seq file and real mp3 selected
recreate the three files. Show, Schedule, Password after the format with the mp3 and seq file already on the CF.
once I had a bad show and it gave me an error.
Rick R.
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try adding at least one real mp3 file
Rick R.
I have done that many times.
make sure the show (schedule) has the seq file and real mp3 selected
recreate the three files. Show, Schedule, Password after the format with the mp3 and seq file already on the CF.
once I had a bad show and it gave me an error.
Rick R.
Just for thoroughness I did all the above steps again. Still not working.
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Sorry I just re-read your first post looking for clues.
"Not Connected" could be a communication problem. How are you connecting your EDC to your computer? Directly with a Cat5 cable or though your home network? Does the display change on the control panel with the CF out of the EDC?
EDC = EtherDongle/Conductor
Rick R.
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Sorry I just re-read your first post looking for clues.
"Not Connected" could be a communication problem. How are you connecting your EDC to your computer? Directly with a Cat5 cable or though your home network? Does the display change on the control panel with the CF out of the EDC?
EDC = EtherDongle/Conductor
Rick R.
I have tried connecting it to network and directly to computer. The display does not change at all.
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Video of ethernet connector activity on conductor.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nbj67Jwgym4&feature=youtu.be
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You say that you have tested 2 Etds. Have you tried the conductor on both Etds. How about a bad cable?
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You say that you have tested 2 Etds. Have you tried the conductor on both Etds. How about a bad cable?
Yes. I tried the conductor with two ED's. Both work great with ED firmware but not with conductor firmware. The wire is good.
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Can someone send me a known good .seq and mp3 file to test.
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PM sent for the files
Rick R.
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PM sent for the files
Rick R.
I used your files but i hate to say, it is still not working.
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Its still a communications problem. If the software could talk to the conductor and it was having a problem then you would see Card Error but since its Not Connected then the two are not talking
If you change the firmware back to etherdongle can you make lights blink?
If you can then we know you have communications problem and the next thing to look at is your router and or computer (firewall, anti-virus ,etc) since the conductor has to talk back to your computer.
Rick R.
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Its still a communications problem. If the software could talk to the conductor and it was having a problem then you would see Card Error but since its Not Connected then the two are not talking
If you change the firmware back to etherdongle can you make lights blink?
If you can then we know you have communications problem and the next thing to look at is your router and or computer (firewall, anti-virus ,etc) since the conductor has to talk back to your computer.
Rick R.
Yes I can make lights blink with both etherdongles.
When I load conductor firmware and connect conductor directly to computer the network connection of the computer continuously goes up then down in a loop. I have the firewall turned off and I do not use virus protection. The conductor is resetting all the time. If it were a firewall/access problem you would think the connection would be stable at the least. I have tried it on two computers no luck yet.
In addition I am runninga static ip on computer.
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I have both the computer and the EDC on a linksys 5 port switch that connects to my router. The computer gets it ip address from the router.
When I tried a direct cable my computer and EDC windows kept turning on and off the ethernet port.
So for me the best setup is to leave the computer on the network and just connect the EDC to one of my ethernett switches.
Rick R.
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The conductor going Up and Down makes me think that the PIC (when the Conductor is mounted) is getting insufficient voltage and rebooting, then connecting, then voltage dropping again.
I'm not sure what pin(s) that Vcc is on the PIC but if you could check it with a voltmeter, see if it is fluctuating in time with your Ups and Downs.
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I do not have a switch I run the EDC directly in to the router and I have connected directly to computer too. I have set my computer to DHCP and static. Still no glory. Should I go buy a switch. Is that really needed. Again the EtherDongle code runs perfect on my setup.
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Again the EtherDongle code runs perfect on my setup.
Even with the Conductor mounted?
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The conductor going Up and Down makes me think that the PIC (when the Conductor is mounted) is getting insufficient voltage and rebooting, then connecting, then voltage dropping again.
I'm not sure what pin(s) that Vcc is on the PIC but if you could check it with a voltmeter, see if it is fluctuating in time with your Ups and Downs.
The resetting happens with both of my functional ED's when I flash them with Conductor firmware.
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Again the EtherDongle code runs perfect on my setup.
Even with the Conductor mounted?
I will check.
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The conductor should work without being connected to the computer. If you disconnect the ethernet cable, does the conductor start your show and control your lights? If not, I would say the issues is in the conductor. If it will play the show, then the issue is in your ethernet connection.
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The conductor should work without being connected to the computer. If you disconnect the ethernet cable, does the conductor start your show and control your lights? If not, I would say the issues is in the conductor. If it will play the show, then the issue is in your ethernet connection.
I am just trying to connect to EDC to try and see that the clock is good and shows are indeed scheduled. Without setting clock for the first time I would not know if it was set for correct time and date. I may be waiting a long time to see if show starts without knowing the time is correct.
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Again the EtherDongle code runs perfect on my setup.
Even with the Conductor mounted?
etherDongle code works great with conductor mounted.
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I am no expert since I haven't gotten mine going yet but your firewall on the pc might be a problem. I got the same not connected signal that you are getting then turned off the windows firewall and the norton firewall and started getting the card reader error. That is where it is stuck at this point.
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I am no expert since I haven't gotten mine going yet but your firewall on the pc might be a problem. I got the same not connected signal that you are getting then turned off the windows firewall and the norton firewall and started getting the card reader error. That is where it is stuck at this point.
As stated in previous post. No firewall is active and i do not hav e virus protection.
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OK. I reflashed it again and continued to dig deeper. The GUI after a few seconds states RTC error. I Wiresharked the output of Conductor and Conductor is outputting a packet from 192.168.1.155 to 255.255.255.255 from dialpad-voice1 port (well known port 2860) to port SDT(5568). This broadcast packet has some text "RTC" in there. It comes in right before GUI states RTC error. Would this stop Conductor from communicating and reset?
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When you direct connect the EDC and Computer have you tried a cross over cat5 cable?
When you connect the EDC to the router have you check if there are settings on the router blocking it? Also when connected to the router I assume that your reset your computer to connect to the router
I doubt you need to buy a switch since physical connecting to the router would be the same as connecting to a switch.
Pretty sure something is blocking communication from the EDC back to your computer.
Rick R.
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OK. I reflashed it again and continued to dig deeper. The GUI after a few seconds states RTC error. I Wiresharked the output of Conductor and Conductor is outputting a packet from 192.168.1.155 to 255.255.255.255 from dialpad-voice1 port (well known port 2860) to port SDT(5568). This broadcast packet has some text "RTC" in there. It comes in right before GUI states RTC error. Would this stop Conductor from communicating and reset?
The Conductor is not able to talk with the Real Time Clock (RTC). This is what it is saying. check you have the RTC module soldered well and it is the correct direction. Then make sure the battery is in corrrect.
RJ
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OK. I reflashed it again and continued to dig deeper. The GUI after a few seconds states RTC error. I Wiresharked the output of Conductor and Conductor is outputting a packet from 192.168.1.155 to 255.255.255.255 from dialpad-voice1 port (well known port 2860) to port SDT(5568). This broadcast packet has some text "RTC" in there. It comes in right before GUI states RTC error. Would this stop Conductor from communicating and reset?
The Conductor is not able to talk with the Real Time Clock (RTC). This is what it is saying. check you have the RTC module soldered well and it is the correct direction. Then make sure the battery is in corrrect.
RJ
Thanks RJ for clarification. I touched up and verified orientation and battery. Still same problem. Would RTC error stop all further data being sent out? If RTC module is bad can I leave it in there and make the unit a slave?
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The conductor should work without being connected to the computer. If you disconnect the ethernet cable, does the conductor start your show and control your lights? If not, I would say the issues is in the conductor. If it will play the show, then the issue is in your ethernet connection.
I am just trying to connect to EDC to try and see that the clock is good and shows are indeed scheduled. Without setting clock for the first time I would not know if it was set for correct time and date. I may be waiting a long time to see if show starts without knowing the time is correct.
I forgot you need to synch the clock first. I believe it does start at some default value when you first put the battery in, but it would be much easier to be able to synch it.
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Dave...
I have a working EtD+Conductor working on my system... If you want, I can bring mine over to help eliminate the network issues... Just let me know :-)
Dan
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Dave...
I have a working EtD+Conductor working on my system... If you want, I can bring mine over to help eliminate the network issues... Just let me know :-)
Dan
That is very kind of you. I am going to turn my slave into a conductor tomorrow. I think the RTC unit is bad on my conductor. So I have purchased the parts to make slave a conductor. If i still have problems I will let you know.
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Yes if anything is wrong the unit will send out the error message and restart. It will repeat with a delay between until the issue is resolved.
RJ
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Thanks for all of your help yesterday. I hope you all have a great 2012 Christmas show.
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I'm anxiously awaiting the continuation of this thread since I'm in the same boat.
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dpits and cavu2u, if you get a chance, could you post a photo of your RTC as connected to the Conductor board?
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I had my RTC mounted correctly. I mean the pins are labeled and the "Batt Side up" is also helpful. I do not think you can match the pins if it is in backwards and keep module in rectangle.
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I believe I chased this same problem all afternoon. Using a proven Etd the Conductor would cycle and no connection to the control panel. If I would power the conductor with no CF card the control panel would display a card error, computer time would display but no conductor time. The magic jack green and yellow leds would cycle like in the posted video. If I would insert the CF card the control panel would read "not connected", magic jack would continue to cycle. I then replaced the RTC, reflowed all of the solder joints on both the Etd and the conductor but no change. Next I decided to redo the CF card.
1. Formatted the Card in my computers card slot
2. Using Windows Explorer copied my sequence to the CF card. Copied music to the card also.
3. Started the control panel and selected the card from the drop down (bottom of control panel)
4. Clicked on password and created password
5. Clicked on Create Show, New show, added sequence and music to show and saved.
6. Clicked Create Schedule, setup everyday at 7, selected show, repeat until 10:30 and saved.
7. Ejected the card properly and put in the conductor.
8. Opened the control panel and entered password
The cycling stopped and everything worked as it was expected to.
I think if you get the card error without the card in the conductor things are working properly. I needed to go through the proper steps to setup the CF card with the sequence, show and schedule.
Hope this helps.
Scot
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Well your problem seems different then mine because I get the "RTC Error" from Conductor. I get my new RTC module tomorrow. Although I have followed those steps many many times before.
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Today I replaced the RTC module and the unit is now working fine. Thank you to all that helped me out.
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Dang... All that effort!! Glad it's working!!!
Dan
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Today I replaced the RTC module and the unit is now working fine. Thank you to all that helped me out.
Good effort! Glad to hear that you have it going now.
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My conductor has been working fine but had a strange issue tonight.
The conductor program kept disconnecting. I would manually start a show, and then it would stop after a few seconds. I disconnected the ED and the next time it powered up I got an RTC error message. I have never seen any of these issues before.
The problem only occurs when connecting the mini-audio to my FM broadcaster. If I disconnect audio, it works. If I connect iPod headphones it works.
I finally swapped out my audio cable I use to connect to the FM transmitter and it again works. I have no idea why the one audio cable causes the issue.
So, if you are having this issue, try to disconnect your audio cable. Curious if anyone else is able to repro this too.
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It sounds like you might have a short in that audio cable.
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Can someone send me a link to Mouser for the RTC? Mine is acting the same as in this thread. :'(
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Can someone send me a link to Mouser for the RTC? Mine is acting the same as in this thread. :'(
https://www.sparkfun.com/products/10160 (https://www.sparkfun.com/products/10160)
Denny
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Thanks. $20 ouch.
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Is there anything I can test before I try to mount this new part?
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Try removing the battery. For some reason mine only works when battery is not installed or inserted no more than half way. When I install it all the way in the battery holder the unit misbehaves.
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I put sockets on my boards. I can remove either PCB and replace it with out any problems.
Rick S
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Pictures travailan?
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Try removing the battery. For some reason mine only works when battery is not installed or inserted no more than half way. When I install it all the way in the battery holder the unit misbehaves.
This is on your 2nd RTC?
Maybe I don't understand the build instructions but does there need to be space between RTC and the pcb? I installed it and the chip on the rear is sitting on the pcb.
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These are the instructions for the clock module- "Space the unit so when you solder it to the PCB it is level with the PCB as it will stand up off of the PCB." Is this what you meant zwiller?
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Yes, confused. It's level with pcb, but it doesn't "stand up off the pcb". I would have to use a spacer and maybe need longer pins too.
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I put connectors between each of the two boards and the conductor board, just in case for some reason, I would need to remove one of them or move them to another board.
Rick S
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Replaced the RTC and it's working! Of course, after some drama with my firewall and disabling wifi... Installed the same way as before.
Great job on the write up guys, you fixed mine. <res.
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Pictures travailan?
Here are the pictures of the boards installed with sockets.
Rick S