Sony CECH-ZED1U Playstation 3D LED TV - Two Red Flash

[Mckitrick]

Re: Sony CECH-ZED1U Playstation 3D LED TV - Two Red Flash

This is great news!

My set is currently working, or at least it was as of an hour ago. It's been dead off and on and I'm not sure what combination of shenanigans has been bringing it back from the dead each time.

For sets like mine, can the problem really be eeprom? That seems like a permanent problem, not an intermittent one.

Yes! I think the eeprom is flakey or maybe gets worse with time/heat/age. With that in mind, what I *think* might be happening is that sometimes it delivers the right code on startup and other times it sends the wrong code. This could also explain why sometimes leaving it off for months seems to magically "fix" it. It's probably just completely random but people have assumed it heals with time/cold/planet alignment, etc. etc. Kinda reminds me of the "Alligator repeller" I have in my shoe. There are no alligators around so it must be working, right?

[xhonzi]

Re: Sony CECH-ZED1U Playstation 3D LED TV - Two Red Flash

It can't be completely random. When mine starts, it will start every time for a week or two. Then when it won't start, it won't start during 100 successive retries.

Don't get me wrong, I very much want you to be right... I just don't want to get my hopes up.

[snehal]

Re: Sony CECH-ZED1U Playstation 3D LED TV - Two Red Flash

@Mckitrick
Hats off to you...

Great Work.

I wonder how should I fix mine... I live in India (Asia)

[Mikercana1]

Re: Sony CECH-ZED1U Playstation 3D LED TV - Two Red Flash

McKitrick
Do you think that you can program new eeprom and ship them to me?
I reside in Canada, that would save me the trouble of ordering eeproms and programmer.

Let me know

Mikercana1

[snehal]

Re: Sony CECH-ZED1U Playstation 3D LED TV - Two Red Flash

It also has a service connector.

@McKitrick
can you try something like copying the bin file in a usb device and etc etc.,

I guess the port is meant for firmware recovery or something.

[arunningpir8]

Re: Sony CECH-ZED1U Playstation 3D LED TV - Two Red Flash

It can't be completely random. When mine starts, it will start every time for a week or two. Then when it won't start, it won't start during 100 successive retries.

Don't get me wrong, I very much want you to be right... I just don't want to get my hopes up.

You my friend need to read up on floating gate transistors

It is very possible to see the intermittent results with a bad EEPROM, the bigger question then being is if this is bad circuit design or bad firmware design.

In any case great work Mckitrick!

[xhonzi]

Re: Sony CECH-ZED1U Playstation 3D LED TV - Two Red Flash

You my friend need to read up on floating gate transistors

Apparently!

It is very possible to see the intermittent results with a bad EEPROM, the bigger question then being is if this is bad circuit design or bad firmware design.

Thanks for saying that, I can dig it. As long as it makes sense to your smarties, I am on board for an eeprom fix. I just wanted to make sure it made sense.

[domedew]

Re: Sony CECH-ZED1U Playstation 3D LED TV - Two Red Flash

Hey Mckitrick...

If you got the solution to this, may I suggest purchasing a bulk new EEPROM chips and programming them... test them, then sale them to the rest of us that have the know how to replace the chip, but not flash an EEPROM !

I personally am interested in one !!

Thanks... You Rock !

Hi Guys,

Ok, I've ordered a programmer from eBay (TLS-866) because I have a few of these TV's I want to fix. One is working and the rest have that dreaded blinking light of death.

Here's what I've tried:
1. Copying the Serial EEPROM from the known good set (I had to desolder the chip to be able to read it).
2. Copied the info to a brand new (thanks digikey) serial EEPROM Macronix 25L6406E and installed it in a bad set.
Result: NO LUCK! Same blinking light of death

On the bad set, when I removed the serial eeprom and tried to read it, it came up with chip ID FF FF FF instead of C2 20 17 which is what it should identify itself with so in the case of the bad set it definitely had a pooched eeprom but replacing it didn't work.

Other things I've tried:
A. Holding a blank EEPROM in the known bad set and trying to boot it
B. Using the tv set as a toboggan because I'm in Canada
C. Googling til my eyes were sore

I'm really curious to know what shopjimmy does to fix these things!! I was hoping after reading this thread that it was the serial eeprom. I even went so far as to order the programmer from China/eBay. What happened to @kornwood and @jgramos?!

[Mikercana1]

Re: Sony CECH-ZED1U Playstation 3D LED TV - Two Red Flash

I am from Canada as well, I wouldn't not mind going through the process of reading eeprom and programming a new one, it is never a lost experience.
But I do not currently have a reader/programmer that will read this type of eeprom, 1980 technology that I have.

To buy a new unit to repair qty 3 unit, just is a waste of money.

I would be willing to put that money towards eeprom already programmed that are guarantied working.

I am willng to buy 3 eeprom already programmed at a price that would take the account of one's time deriving the fix etc.

You can contact me on private message if you have a fix for this.
Mike

[CorehaCk]

Re: Sony CECH-ZED1U Playstation 3D LED TV - Two Red Flash

I'm in if we can get these working by replacing a chip. I'm willing to pickup a reader/flasher too! I'm in the states so I guess it shouldn't be that bad. Will replacing the eeprom be a permanent fix of could the new eeprom suffer the same fate?

[tedjar]

Re: Sony CECH-ZED1U Playstation 3D LED TV - Two Red Flash

The main problem is we have yet to find anyone with a working one who is willing to share the EEPROM data with the community. Until we have that, this whole effort is dead in the water.

As best we can tell so far, there isn't a good reason for the EEPROM to fail. It's not getting corrupted (indicating a software defect) but becoming physically unreadable. Being that there are vendors on Ebay and places like ShopJimmy that will repair these without any noticeable changes to the boards, the best guess is they simply had a run of defective EEPROM chips which simply fail on their own and replacing them fixes the issue. We don't have any data yet to suggest that repaired boards will fail again.

I would also like to remind anyone new finding this thread that soliciting private business transactions via PM or posts is against the rules of the forum. Additionally, Mckitrick does not seem to be currently active on the forums or responding to requests.

[ben7]

Re: Sony CECH-ZED1U Playstation 3D LED TV - Two Red Flash

The EEPROM chips usually have a typical life of 100,000 erase/program cycles, so if these TV's are writing to them quite often, then that could be reducing the life of the chips!

[justme06]

Re: Sony CECH-ZED1U Playstation 3D LED TV - Two Red Flash

This is good news.

@Mckitrick Congratulations! Any chance you could please post the working bin file for the rest of the community to try? It would be super awesome.

Thanks.

[kornwood]

Re: Sony CECH-ZED1U Playstation 3D LED TV - Two Red Flash

I received a dump via email
and flashed it with spipgm
verified and soldered it in
and still no luck I have a 2nd
one of these I'll get out later
and try to dump it and see
I wasn't able to read the first one
but that was using a black cat
this spipgm uses 4 resistors 3 power
wires and a ground and 2 a a batteries
I used a old laptops lpt port
just so people know you don't need to buy
a piece of hardware to read and flash it
just a couple bucks at radioshack
if I can read it I'll share it if it's the same
as I received via email

[justme06]

Re: Sony CECH-ZED1U Playstation 3D LED TV - Two Red Flash

@kornwood

Hope the next one goes better for you. I am waiting for my eeprom chip to come in and are eager to try and report back too.

However even if your other chip cant be read, would you mind posting the bin file you had emailed for the rest to compare with? (I don't have one myself yet)

Thanks

[snehal]

Re: Sony CECH-ZED1U Playstation 3D LED TV - Two Red Flash

I guess shop jimmy and ebay service are just using the service connector on the board (USB Port) to flash / recover the firmware. No soldering, removing EEPROM etc.,

People who gained access to working bin, might have learned the recovery procedure.

It's also stated as service connector in the manual and it would not have protected by a plastic clip if it was meant just for charging the 3D glasses.

[CorehaCk]

Re: Sony CECH-ZED1U Playstation 3D LED TV - Two Red Flash

It's also stated as service connector in the manual and it would not have protected by a plastic clip if it was meant just for charging the 3D glasses.

I tend to agree with snehal about the usb port. I think there must be some magic bin file somewhere that will work, we just need to find someone willing to share. I know it's a long shot but could a bin file from a similar Sony monitor work, or are these screens a one of a kind? I haven't been able to find anything that could match spec wise.

[snehal]

Re: Sony CECH-ZED1U Playstation 3D LED TV - Two Red Flash

It might be a sharp LED with SONY Playstation Branding...
I am not sure but it can be one of Sharp Aquos LED Displays.

[tedjar]

Re: Sony CECH-ZED1U Playstation 3D LED TV - Two Red Flash

Multiple people have reported that the chip itself has failed and must be replaced. If the chip can no longer physically be written to/read from in a standalone programmer then it must be replaced. No magic can be done through the USB service port to fix failed hardware....

[justme06]

Re: Sony CECH-ZED1U Playstation 3D LED TV - Two Red Flash

Hmm. Still no posters of the bin file? I have a programmer coming next week, and know of where I could possibly borrow a hardly used and still working unit if nothing appears by then.

I do a fair bit of computer repair (jacks, connectors, caps ect,) but haven't yet desoldered a chip that I hope to have still have working after. Normally I help program software instead of hardware...

I am worried of frying the working eeprom when taking it out. (Only have one shot) Any tips? I am assuming I couldn't properly read it with jumpers while still on the board.
It does not look like the eeprom is in pin holes so little chance of the board lifting I think.
My soldering gun is selectable for 2 wattages.

When I pop it out I will post what I get. I am a little annoyed at Sony at this time. I missed warranty by a day and a half because couldn't get through call center on boxing day! There is a posting on the TV's FAQ sony usa site that now admits this as a known problem and says to send it in for repair - if under warranty.

Will be more than happy to contribute what I can to a shared fix