Vizio Service Port Contact Kills Mainboard

[nanosec]

Just read a story about a fella who mistakenly plugged a USB cord into a USB service port, frying the mainboard.

Two instances to cite:

Scroll to jan 30 jared for actual message

http://www.complaintsboard.com/compl...zio-c6092.html

I purchased a Vizio VS42L FHDTV 10A on 4/9/08. I had been saying nothing but good things about my Vizio experience until now.

This is the situation:

As I was trying to insert a HDMI cable into the HDMI 1 port, I accidentally touched the corner of the male end of the HDMI cable to a port called the "Service Port." The "Service Port" is only 3mm distance from the HDMI port in the back of the TV and when trying to insert the HDMI cable to the HDMI port, from the side of the TV, one could easily see that the "Service Port" is directly in the way of the HDMI port. When trying to plug the HDMI cable in, I accidentally touched the "Service Port" causing my entire TV to shut down. This did not produce a smell or a "pop" noise, but apparently destroyed my TV.



And:

http://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/co..._hdtv_someone/


I plugged a USB cord into the 'Service Only' port and the tv instantly cut off. No popping noise, nothing. Just off and won't come back on.

EDIT: It's this TV: [1] http://www.vizio.com/vo420e.html

EDIT 2: Please upvote this to help a guy out. Hopefully it will gain exposure to the point that someone with experience with this will save my life and my wallet. I would be most appreciative!

EDIT 3: The other end was plugged into a DEAD & OFF Palm Treo smartphone (To charge).


I hope this offers any help to people troubleshooting Vizio televisions.


Vizio is apparently aware of this issue and it's not covered under warranty, however I understand their newer TV's have a cover over this port.

[rayrod81]

Re: Vizio Service Port Contact Kills Mainboard

I saw this too. I guess Vizio doesn't know that 'Service Only' means 'Phone Charging Port' in Kansas. I think it is hilarious when I read these types of posts on the internet. The best part is how people throw a fit when a company won't fix their TV when it is 1 year out of warranty and the problem was entirely their own fault.

[kb48]

Re: Vizio Service Port Contact Kills Mainboard

Mine has a plastic dummy plug stuck in it. But if you did not read the label then it is the same pins and shape as a USB.
The HDMI sockets however are beside it, and not mistakeable, but shocks me that it would blow the set so easily.

Of course my set is still dead, I need a new P/S at least I am hoping.

It has the 5V and processor gets warm to mildly hot, I was able to hit the power key enough that the VIZIO logo stays white but the 5.2 LED at the bottom came on when I hit power button, but since there is no 12 or 24 V from the PS (Or as Vizio refers to it as the DC DC convertor) then I get nothing.

Jumping J1 pin 1 to 3.3V or 5V only cause the main power relay to turn off, and nothing else changes.
So looks like IC(s) on DC DC convertor are bad, as they have no 3.3 or 5V on them as described in the very limited service manual.

The service manual is almost useless for the most part.
Hopefully the $70.00 investment is worth it. Hard to say. I wonder what would happen if one could create a generic 24/12/5V power supply but probably impossible to find one able to supply proper regulation and current demands correctly.

Nobody seems to know how to test out the DC DC convertor on these sets.

[PlainBill]

Re: Vizio Service Port Contact Kills Mainboard

Mine has a plastic dummy plug stuck in it. But if you did not read the label then it is the same pins and shape as a USB.
The HDMI sockets however are beside it, and not mistakeable, but shocks me that it would blow the set so easily.

Of course my set is still dead, I need a new P/S at least I am hoping.

It has the 5V and processor gets warm to mildly hot, I was able to hit the power key enough that the VIZIO logo stays white but the 5.2 LED at the bottom came on when I hit power button, but since there is no 12 or 24 V from the PS (Or as Vizio refers to it as the DC DC convertor) then I get nothing.

Jumping J1 pin 1 to 3.3V or 5V only cause the main power relay to turn off, and nothing else changes.
So looks like IC(s) on DC DC convertor are bad, as they have no 3.3 or 5V on them as described in the very limited service manual.

The service manual is almost useless for the most part.
Hopefully the $70.00 investment is worth it. Hard to say. I wonder what would happen if one could create a generic 24/12/5V power supply but probably impossible to find one able to supply proper regulation and current demands correctly.

Nobody seems to know how to test out the DC DC convertor on these sets.

I haven't seen anyone ask in a coherent manner. For the most part they are fairly easy IF the part number of the controller can be discerned. The DC-DC converter on the main board is more difficult because it's hard to determine connectivity from a picture.

PlainBill