I'm just wondering if anyone has experience in disassembling a ZWO cooled camera and doing any service or repairs, and if so, what to expect.
I have an ASI1600MM Pro camera which I purchased new a little over a year ago. I used it for months with no issue, everything worked fine. However, back in October, about 8 months after purchase, I started having problems with the sensor. I was getting weird interference patterns, which got progressively worse until the camera was completely unusable. I contacted the retailer who contacted ZWO on my behalf, they asked me to ship it back to them as ZWO would have to service it.
I sent it off to them and after 4 months, I finally received my camera back. They had to replace the sensor as the old one was defective. Unfortunately, right out of the shipping box, there were major issues with the camera. The sensor was now working fine, however the camera would not cool. The light came on, the fan worked, but the cooling percentage would increase from 0% to 90% without the temperature changing, then it would shut down and disconnect itself. I tried isolating the power supply, tried different power supplies, with no difference. After troubleshooting I have concluded that it looks like ZWO completed a major service of my camera but failed to test it to confirm it was in proper working order before shipping it back in disrepair.
I have since contacted the retailer again multiple times, however have only received one response from them indicating that ZWO "would not engage" with them on the matter. The retailer has now gone silent as well. It seems at this point I'm stuck with a broken, defective camera, which ZWO is refusing to replace or repair despite the fact that it appears they caused the latest issue during their prior service.
My choice at this point is to use the camera uncooled, or attempt to try and figure out what the problem is and fix it myself. Both options are unappealing, however I would really prefer to have a camera that functions properly. I'm a relatively handy person, I have completed a full spectrum modification on DSLR camera in the past. It would be intimidating, however if it's possibly just something inside that didn't get reconnected during service, it may not be too bad.
Thoughts?
I have an ASI1600MM Pro camera which I purchased new a little over a year ago. I used it for months with no issue, everything worked fine. However, back in October, about 8 months after purchase, I started having problems with the sensor. I was getting weird interference patterns, which got progressively worse until the camera was completely unusable. I contacted the retailer who contacted ZWO on my behalf, they asked me to ship it back to them as ZWO would have to service it.
I sent it off to them and after 4 months, I finally received my camera back. They had to replace the sensor as the old one was defective. Unfortunately, right out of the shipping box, there were major issues with the camera. The sensor was now working fine, however the camera would not cool. The light came on, the fan worked, but the cooling percentage would increase from 0% to 90% without the temperature changing, then it would shut down and disconnect itself. I tried isolating the power supply, tried different power supplies, with no difference. After troubleshooting I have concluded that it looks like ZWO completed a major service of my camera but failed to test it to confirm it was in proper working order before shipping it back in disrepair.
I have since contacted the retailer again multiple times, however have only received one response from them indicating that ZWO "would not engage" with them on the matter. The retailer has now gone silent as well. It seems at this point I'm stuck with a broken, defective camera, which ZWO is refusing to replace or repair despite the fact that it appears they caused the latest issue during their prior service.
My choice at this point is to use the camera uncooled, or attempt to try and figure out what the problem is and fix it myself. Both options are unappealing, however I would really prefer to have a camera that functions properly. I'm a relatively handy person, I have completed a full spectrum modification on DSLR camera in the past. It would be intimidating, however if it's possibly just something inside that didn't get reconnected during service, it may not be too bad.
Thoughts?