We were away for several days over the New Year. On attempting to start the box after our return, I experienced the dreaded YLD, and no amount of repowering (with and without aerial connected) would revive it. Since the YLD was accompanied by a 1-second ticking, as described in this forum, I thought that I was facing a replacement of all the capacitors on the PSU, as others have had to do. I even contacted SatCure about it.

However, after eventually leaving the machine alone for an hour or two, I was finally able to get it to get it to come on, with patchy success and several crashes. At last, though, it returned to full working condition, though it had failed to record a couple of programmes in our absence.

It was very cold in the cupboard where the machine lives (heating turned off and sub-zero outdoors), so I am wondering if that is what caused the malfunction. I am quite surprised if so, because as far as I know, it stays quite warm even in stand-by.

Anyone else experienced anything like this?

The one second interval ticking is usually a sign that the capacitors are on the way out.

I wonder if, in your case, there was a power 'brown out' during the holiday. I say this, because my DHD4000 suffered a 'no lights' incident - at first I thought someone had switched it off. I then put it down to the snow causing a disruption of the power-carrying overhead lines somewhere nearby.

I don't think there had been a power cut, as no other equipment in the house showed signs of that.

This is exactly what my DHD4000 did when the capacitors failed. I bought a new TV and powered the DHD down to move it. When I powered it up, the hard drive spun up and down repeatedly, gaining a little more speed each time it spun up. After a few minutes it was spinning normally but I had to quickly power-cycle it again to get the DHD to notice it.

I had to move the power across later on and went through the same process to get it working again.

Once I'd swapped the capacitors out all was back to normal.

I guess if you had a short power cut the DHD could enter this loop, and depending on how long it took to reach full speed, either operate normally or sit there hung. My guess was the PSU with faulty capacitors couldn't supply enough current for the start-up load but was able to supply enough to keep the drive spinning.

Hi bealebode,

This fits with my experience. I found that the 1 second ticking from the disk drive was because the power supply couldn't deliver enough current to start it properly. It's all a bit marginal and may be affected by the room temperature, etc.

Changing the capacitors may be the ultimate solution. Or keep your fingers crossed if it's OK for now.

tenbob

That is my preferred solution!

Dodgy capacitors work better when they are warm so if the device has been off for a while and they have got cold then, if you are lucky, they will improve a little as the machine gets warmer and might just about work again.

It is working 90% of the time, but that bad 10% is bugging me, so I think I will bite the bullet and send the PSU off for an upgrade at SatCure.

Amazingly quick upgrade of PSU by SatCure/Digifix. Posted to them at noon on Monday, received it back today (Wednesday) at 9am!

All seems well so far; I haven't managed to make the box crash yet.

I'll report the ultimate verdict in a few days, but on the strength of evidence so far, I'd thoroughly recommend this course of action to anyone experiencing similar problems.

The effect you describe is typical. Failed capacitors become worse if their temperature drops a little. Warming them up will "restore" them somewhat and the symptoms may disappear for a while. (In the workshop I have often used a hair dryer to prove this point.)* However, if you do nothing, they will eventually fail big time - usually when it's least convenient.

Note that partial failure of the PSU can cause corruption of data on the Hard Drive or even (in rare cases) destruction of the Hard Drive. It can also do other damage to the electronics. This is why I recommend that you change the capacitors, regardless, when (if) they reach "a certain age" (typically 2-3 years). Consider replacing the HDD as well, because the typical life is 3-5 years.

* I should add that it's best to keep them as cool as possible so they don't fail in the first place! Unfortunately, most of the capacitors (expecially CapXon type) are doomed to fail anyway because they are poorly chosen or faulty when made. But you can prolong their life by keeping them really cool.

Absolutely no problems since the PSU upgrade, so it looks as if it has done the trick. I would definitely recommend the Satcure/Digifix repair; very quick and efficient, £25.

As far as I am concerned, that certainly beats saving a few quid at the expense of three hours' work with inadequate instructions, having to bend tags to fit, and insulating the inside of the lid to prevent contact with oversize capacitors, as others have described.

What and miss (well in my case) the stunned realisation that it actually worked after replacing the capacitors - must admit I had thought I would have a go but was fully expecting to end up buying a new box.

Not going to win any awards for soldering or layout but you can touch the case without electrocuting yourself and it is has been working for months...

With my soldering "skills", the PSU would undoubtedly have ended in the bin, covered in loads of weird silvery lumps!