Hi,
I received an answer from the President of pcHDTV. Apparently the
sleeve is that way by design.
His letter follows.
maddog
Forwarded Message
From: Jack Steven Kelliher
To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Subject: Re: pcHDTV 5500 card - Connector comes loose?
Date: Tue, 06 Mar 2007 16:55:03 -0700
Hello,
There is an connector on the card that is not attached but pressure
fit. This protects the connector mounted on the tuner can from damage
if the coax gets pulled. If the connector is not snug we can replace
it free of charge we just need an address to send it to. If the
connect on the turner broke then please email with their shipping
address and I'll send out an new card with return label for the
defective card UPS next day. In the past we found a number of returns
and problems when people pulled or tripped on the coax and bent or
broke the tuner can connector so this design protects it from damage.
Thanks,
Jack Kelliher
pcHDTV, Inc.
On Mon, 2007-03-05 at 09:04 -0500, Jon 'maddog' Hall wrote:
On Mon, 2007-03-05 at 08:14 -0500, Ben Scott wrote:
On 3/3/07, Ben Scott [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
When I went to connect it to the CATV line, the F connector popped
right off the card.
I found that the manufacturer's own product photos show the slide-on
barrel connector extender I mentioned, so this is apparently by
design:
http://www.pchdtv.com/images/image006.jpg
It occurs to me that I can probably fix it
I did send your original comments on to the manufacturer, and given
their past responsiveness, I would expect some type of answer back soon.
It is just that they may be less responsive on a Sunday when some people
are not at work.
If, in the meantime, you would like to return the board and get your
money back on the card, please do not modify it. I have not cashed
your check, and would be happy to return the check to you if you are
genuinely unhappy with the board, but any modifications that you might
do to it might void the warranty
and I would not be able to return it.
I would need all the paperwork, CD, box (well, maybe not the box, but
the other stuff) too, so I could return the board to the manufacturer.
Why the manufacturer didn't do something like this
themselves, I have no idea.
Greater cost in manufacturing. Lack of perception that this would be an
issue.
There are two issues here:
o one is that the barrel sleeve slid off, which could be a defect in
manufacturing and not design. This caused a board failure, which you
experienced. We have yet to determine whether it was a single unit
failure or not. We will see.
o the second is that the strain is put on the solder joints of the tuner
card, which might be undesirable, but has not yet caused a failure mode
that we know of.
Why does everything have to suck so much?
Usually economics, but sometimes just oversight. In this case I would
lean towards oversight, since I would consider this a premium board, and
would be willing to pay a dollar or two more for something ruggedly
constructed.
Regards,
maddog
=
From:
Ben Scott [EMAIL PROTECTED]
To:
Greater NH Linux User Group
gnhlug-discuss@mail.gnhlug.org
Subject:
Re: pcHDTV 5500 card - Connector
comes loose?
Date:
Mon, 05 Mar 2007 08:14:35 -0500
On 3/3/07, Ben Scott [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
When I went to connect it to the CATV line, the F connector popped
right off the card.
I found that the manufacturer's own product photos show the slide-on
barrel connector extender I mentioned, so this is apparently by
design:
http://www.pchdtv.com/images/image006.jpg
It occurs to me that I can probably fix it by replacing the slide-on
connector they used with a screw-on type. That will at least keep the
connector-extender from sliding off the tuner module's connector lug.
I might have to file down the points of the screw-on connector to get
it to clear the hole in the mounting bracket, but that shouldn't be
too hard.
That should additionally let me put a couple of nuts on either side
of the mounting bracket, for strain relief. Right now, any cable
movement is transmitted right to the solder joints of the tuner
module, which is Not Good(TM). Nuts on either side of the bracket,
tightened down to the bracket, should move that stress to the bracket,
where it belongs.
Why the manufacturer didn't do something like this themselves, I have
no idea.
I got this card because their Linux support is supposed to be
outstanding, but I'm obviously unhappy it has such a stupid design
flaw. This hearkens back to a question I posed a few weeks ago: Which
is worse, crappy hardware that's well supported, or good hardware
