Raymarine ST4000 LCD Display sporadically showing garbage

[patrickkidd]

Hello! I have an Raymarine ST4000 control head that shows garbage every now and again. I read somewhere in an old forum that pushing on the face of the unit solves the problem, which it does. But I can't keep my hand on the case all the time, so does anyone know a way to fix this? I tighten the two mounting bolts mounting the unit to the cockpit wall but no dice.

Thanks!

 

[seadaddler]

Have you checked the wires going to it,maybe bad connection or
some thing loose,look on Ebay for a replacement.
Nick

 

[patrickkidd]

Wires are good. I will also add that the unit functions perfectly otherwise. Good tracking, etc. it appears to just be a (common) problem with the LCD display which works when you press on it.

 

[Bosman]

I am dealing with these kind of issues frequently with type of industrial instrumentation that uses LCDs. Problem is caused by poor connection between LCD and the mainboard. Your local electronics repair shop (radio repair shop, yes I know these are scarce these days) or a friend with some solid soldering skills should be able to troubleshoot the unit.

 

[Joe A]

In many cases the LCD connections are not soldered. There can be metal impregnated rubber strips that bridge the many electrical connections from the LCD to the main board. Pressure makes the connection therefore the connections can be subject to tarnish or corrosion. You may be able to disassemble the unit and clean the connections. Be careful not to break any of the small tabs that hold the parts in place. In the event that the display has become mechanically compromised you may be able to shim the LCD to hold the connection tighter. As Nick said look at Ebay. There are LCDs for sale and the adds include some diagrams.

 

[Bosman]

There can be metal impregnated rubber strips that bridge the many electrical connections from the LCD to the main board.

Agreed!

 

[patrickkidd]

Ah great. I'll check the connections then. Glad to hear there is a possibility that it is not internal to the LCD.

 

[DougM]

Same problem with a C Series MFD... Sometimes it boots up no problem, other times nothing but vertical multicolored lines. Tapping on the screen causes it to,come to life.

Kind of makes one wonder about overall mortal failure in the middle of Lake Michigan one day.

Never want to toss out charts, compass, and backup GPS...

 

[Bosman]

Service manual: http://www.ganssle.com/jack/st4000.pdf
Looking at this eBay auction here http://www.ebay.com/itm/Raymarine-A...D&orig_cvip=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2557, you can see details of the LCD screen. Connection is made by two elastomeric "legs", likely similar to this photo: http://www.zaxisconnector.com/images/lcd-compressed.jpg Service manual does show two elastomer strips in diagram section 1.2

Good luck!

 

[patrickkidd]

Service manual: http://www.ganssle.com/jack/st4000.pdf
Looking at this eBay auction here http://www.ebay.com/itm/Raymarine-Autohelm-LCD-for-ST4000-or-ST5000-DIY-replacement-NEW-part-/151812147847?nma=true&si=nvTNA4X7v21mEA5c4VMDcCLiXUo%3D&orig_cvip=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2557, you can see details of the LCD screen. Connection is made by two elastomeric "legs", likely similar to this photo: http://www.zaxisconnector.com/images/lcd-compressed.jpg Service manual does show two elastomer strips in diagram section 1.2

Good luck!

Thank you for the excellent research. However, this display is for the grey st4000+ and I have the original black st4000 which has a much smaller display with only a few small 0-8 led digits.

 

[Bosman]

Take it apart and take a peek ;-) Could be similar arrangement. Post photos if in doubt or PM me.

 

[patrickkidd]

Take it apart and take a peek ;-) Could be similar arrangement. Post photos if in doubt or PM me.

Yes, will do. Thank you so much.

 

[Ron20324]

[QUOTE="] Same problem with a C Series MFD... Sometimes it boots up no problem, other times nothing but vertical multicolored lines. Tapping on the screen causes it to,come to life. Kind of makes one wonder about overall mortal failure in the middle of Lake Michigan one day. ...[/QUOTE]

Doug, my C80 did the same thing, but the lines came in from the right side. Looked like a bar graph. Sometimes okay, sometimes not. I could not depend on it, so bought one off EBay. I missed one that went for 800-something. I'd have gone to 900, but was not home when the bidding closed.

 

[patrickkidd]

The st4000 control head I started this post about eventually stopped turning on and would just send out one long, constant beep sound until I killed the power. If I left it for a day or two it would start working again, then a few days later refuse to turn on again with the long beep sound, and so on.

I eventually found a used st4000 control head, compass, and remote control on eBay for $220, which had a working display and seemed to work well out of the box. I got nervous because this one froze a couple of times the first day out only, and started working again once I turned it back on. It hasn't done this again. However, after working well for a few weeks it is now doing the same thing as the old control head - refusing to turn on and just sending one constant beep until I kill power. Voltage is good, nothing in the manual about this.

Thoughts? Anyone else have experience with this behavior?

Thanks!

 

[Chief RA]

PA: I can't improve on the tech advise you have received so far. Cleaning and gentle re-tensioning of connectors should provide the reliability you need. Vibration of the unit is also a possible problem. If possible; use a sponge or equivalent inside unit to press against the mother board. Not only will it act as a vibration dampener, it will also hold your connections tighter.
Chief

 

[patrickkidd]

Interesting, OK. I'll give that a shot. I was able to tear apart both of them when I did the switch and can see what you mean about the connections. I hope that's the problem....

 

[Chief RA]

PA: Use a can of contact cleaner and also a simple pencil eraser to clean contacts. Good Luck! Chief

 

[Ron20324]

If still a problem, I suggest unplugging any other gauges if they are also on the SeaTalk chain. One of my gauges was, I figured, sending S.T. data when it eas not supposed to be, and stepping on the time frame of other gauges. Bought a new one and all was well.

 

[patrickkidd]

So after tearing this unit apart again, all the contacts are very clean and the board is in excellent shape. The fact is that the unit is just finicky about when it wants to turn on. Sometimes it's the third flip of the switch, sometimes it's the first. Sometimes it seems like it will never turn on. Each time it doesn't turn on the speaker will send out a constant tone. All this is occurring even with the board out of the casing, compass and drive disconnected, and good voltage.

The only variable I can see here aside from a damaged board is something with my 12VDC current, like some kind of noise or something. But I'm no expert there. Or maybe a capacitor on the board doing something funky. The weird part is that both units did the same thing.

I'm stumped.