Any Ideas What Problem Could Be? (Video Camera)

[Matt Frame]

Hoping somebody can point me in the right direction as to what the issue may be.

I own a Sony FDR-AX100 4k Camcorder and I obviously made an error in removing the bottom plate where the tripod thread mount is.

Here is what the plate looks like:



My tripod threads are a bit stripped so I removed the plate to get a better look at the problem. I didn't observe anything disconnecting when the plate was removed. Here is a super low res (apologies) photo of what the plate looks like removed:



The wiring clearly is power related as it connects to the battery area, DC in, USB in.

Since removing (and reattaching) the plate, the camera will not turn on. Totally dead. Won't power up when battery installed, won't power up when DC plugged in nor with USB. The indicator light that shows 'battery charging' when DC plugged in does not turn on.

Any ideas what I did when removing the plate?

Huge thanks in advance for your help.

Matt.

 

[Gryd3]

Not going to lie... those picture are absolutely horrible.
You may have accidentally disconnected the wires. It may be as easy as plugging them back in, but would most likely require additional work to take the unit further apart.

 

[davenn]

Not going to lie... those picture are absolutely horrible.

agreed ... it's totally impossible to tell if you have done any damage or not

You may have accidentally disconnected the wires.

or ....
possible damage to the cable caused by pinching between case parts or a case screw has penetrated into a cable

 

[Matt Frame]

Thanks all for your replies. Agreed on the utter uselessness of the photo. I'll upload a higher quality pic in an hour or so. Cheers!

 

[Matt Frame]

So, I looked closely at the wires and they seem to be in good condition. Here is a higher res photo of what the removed plate looks like. Any suggestions would be great, thanks.

 

[Gryd3]

7 Screws in total were removed and the plate came off?
It looks like it was merely a cover, and that the tripod or other mount will still thread correctly into the camera with the large threaded hole beside the orange ribbon cable.

I see no signs of damage, and no additional slack on the wires at the bottom. Perhaps this is merely a coincidence... You say you get no indicator lights or life of any kind on the camera?

 

[Matt Frame]

I see no signs of damage, and no additional slack on the wires at the bottom. Perhaps this is merely a coincidence... You say you get no indicator lights or life of any kind on the camera?

Thanks for your reply.

It's possible that it's a coincidence but I have had the camera for almost 2 years and worked perfectly...up until yesterday. I removed the plate on Saturday night and come Sunday morning the camera will not power up.

There is a Power/Charge indicator light that illuminates when camera is plugged in via DC IN or USB in but it doesn't light up any longer when plugged in, with or without the external battery in place.

 

[davenn]

what about when the cover plate is left off ?

you didn't try and screw in the tripod attachment screw with the cover plate off ?
just wondering if the screw has gone too far through and damaged the circuit board ... check the PCB at the bottom of that hole for damage ... bright light and magnifier

Dave

 

[Matt Frame]

what about when the cover plate is left off ?

you didn't try and screw in the tripod attachment screw with the cover plate off ?
just wondering if the screw has gone too far through and damaged the circuit board ... check the PCB at the bottom of that hole for damage ... bright light and magnifier

Dave

I think you may be onto something but even when looking with a bright light and magnifier it's really hard to see for sure. I'll need to get access to the board but I haven't a clue how to do that. I can't find any repair manuals or schematics for my camera model, the FDR-AX100.

Any suggestions?

 

[davenn]

I'll need to get access to the board but I haven't a clue how to do that

have only opened a couple of camcorders, they were both a real adventure LOL ... interlocking plastic lugs, screws in oddball places and all different sizes

if you do decide to fully open it up, take some photos as you go and stick them into MSPaint and annotate what sized screws came from where etc
that has saved me so much grief in the past

Dave

 

[Matt Frame]

have only opened a couple of camcorders, they were both a real adventure LOL ... interlocking plastic lugs, screws in oddball places and all different sizes

if you do decide to fully open it up, take some photos as you go and stick them into MSPaint and annotate what sized screws came from where etc that has saved me so much grief in the past

Dave

Ok, will embark on the adventure tomorrow and post an update. Just f If there is damage or cracking to the PCB is it possible to have repaired or will it need to be totally replaced?

Thanks again for your help!

 

[Gryd3]

Ok, will embark on the adventure tomorrow and post an update. Just f If there is damage or cracking to the PCB is it possible to have repaired or will it need to be totally replaced?

Thanks again for your help!

Depends on the extent of the damage..
If the board is cracked, we need to look at what traces / components are affected.
On simple 1 and 2 sided boards, this is easy... on multi-layer boards, this is difficult because some of the traces are sandwiched between layers and cannot be seen.... :s
Once we can tell what has been damaged, you can embark on repairing the traces, or running alternative traces with some thin wire.
That... or you find a used one on-line, buy it, and use it for parts.

 

[Matt Frame]

Depends on the extent of the damage..
If the board is cracked, we need to look at what traces / components are affected.
On simple 1 and 2 sided boards, this is easy... on multi-layer boards, this is difficult because some of the traces are sandwiched between layers and cannot be seen.... :s
Once we can tell what has been damaged, you can embark on repairing the traces, or running alternative traces with some thin wire.
That... or you find a used one on-line, buy it, and use it for parts.

Ok, fingers crossed I can get to it easily and that the damage isn't too severe. I'll update. Thanks!

 

[Matt Frame]

Well, fight goes to the camera.

Spent 4 hours carefully removing screws (30+) and taking notes but in the end was unable to get to the circuit board without danger of doing some serious damage. Guess I'll see what an authorized camera repair person has to say but looks like it's the end of the road.

Oh well. Got good use out of her so there's that I s'pose...