IFD 5 Series & IFD 4 Series Touch Screen GPS/NAV/COM - USB Socket failure

USB Socket failure - Replacement??

Printed From: Avidyne
Category: Avidyne General
Forum Name: IFD 5 Series & IFD 4 Series Touch Screen GPS/NAV/COM
Forum Description: Topics on Avidyne's IFD 5 Series and IFD 4 Series Touch Screen GPS/NAV/COM
URL: http://forums.avidyne.com/forum_posts.asp?TID=2656
Printed Date: 04 Nov 2024 at 4:06pm
Software Version: Web Wiz Forums 12.01 - http://www.webwizforums.com

Topic: USB Socket failure - Replacement??

Posted By: compasst
Subject: USB Socket failure - Replacement??
Date Posted: 04 Jun 2024 at 4:57pm

I just learned that my 2nd 3-year warranty extension expired a few weeks ago in March - and these warranty extensions are no longer being offered by Avidyne as of last fall.

I found part of the USB socket (the insulator block that helps align the USB stick into the USB socket) on my cockpit carpet a couple weeks ago and asked the Avidyne dealer to send the IfD 540 unit in for repair while the aircraft was in his shop for annual inspection and Garmin Servo and mounting bracket swap-out under warranty with Garmin for the GFC-500.

Without warranty available, replacing the USB socket is (ready for this?) $2200!!!

Seriously, Avidyne, don't even think of going down the path of slacking off on customer support like the G-folks have been doing for years and years. I am hearing rumblings from some pilot/users and from at least one dealer who chose to disconnect from Avidyne over declining customer support.

Replies:

Posted By: HenryM
Date Posted: 04 Jun 2024 at 11:18pm

Avidyne has a flat rate for any repairs. It costs the same regardless of what problem they are taking care of.

I had your exact same problem with the USB connector last year. I just got around to getting it fixed. The IFD540 came back last week. I haven't had a chance to fly with it yet. The flat rate charge was $2,576.00 plus $35 shipping each way. My avionics dealer waived the 1 hour labor charge to do their part of the work because they didn't tell me about it up front. They waived it on their own without me asking about it, but put it on the invoice, followed by a credit for the amount. I would have asked about it because I thought the flat rate charge included everything, including the dealer's time to record any settings and remove/replace the unit. I also thought it would include shipping, but it didn't.

I wonder if the ISB connector has an issue. I am normally pretty gentle with mine. I found a little square piece of printed circuit board on the carpet. I didn't realize what it was until a few days later when I tried to update the database and the IFD would not read the USB stick.

Posted By: HenryM
Date Posted: 24 Jun 2024 at 2:33pm

I finally got to fly the plane with the updated IFD. I took off and soon the IFD dimmed. It was so dim I couldn't read it in the bright sun. I was starting to get disappointed at the repair/upgrade.

After a couple of minutes I was able to turn on the autopilot and get close enough to see there was an error message. It said something about low voltage and reduced backlighting. That triggered me to look at my UBG-16 engine analyzer that can also read the bus voltage, and indeed, the voltage was low. My alternator had gone offline. I headed back to the airport and had my mechanic look at the plane. It had come out of annual just after the IFD came back from the factory. Somehow the alternator belt had come off. It wasn't broken. A few minutes and I was back online. My mechanic had not done anything to the alternator during the annual. All a coincidence. Everything seems well now.

I spent a little time getting my iPad to work with the update firmware. I had to turn off some IP privacy setting because the iPad would otherwise connect to the IFDs WiFi, but the IFD would not list it as a device that I could unblock. Once I got that resolved everything works as expected. The autopilot and fuel totalizer work as expected, along with traffic, so all the connections were programmed as before the upgrade. I was offered to get a refurbished unit to be out of service for a shorter time, but I opted to just get my own back to try to avoid any setup issues.

Posted By: compasst
Date Posted: 27 Jun 2024 at 5:34am

I think my Avidyne dealer had a conversation with Avidyne where I had been unsuccessful in coaxing warranty repair. It turns out that the dealer had a record of my request for repair that was within the warranty period even though the warranty had expired by the time space opened up in his hangar to take my aircraft in for annual, Garmin GFC 500 servo warranty replacement, and the Avidyne repair. I have not been advised of any charges (yet), so I don't know the details. The dealer called me yesterday to see if I had photos of the config settings because their worker didn't make any photos before sending in the unit.

It is interesting to me that replacement of the USB panel socket resulted in a loss of all configuration settings and that Avidyne doesn't record these settings or make a backup prior to repair work. I know, it is the responsibility of the owner/operator to make and keep these records (and fortunately, I did have them), but it seems reasonable that anyone touching a box would make certain that the fragile settings are properly recorded. Hey, how about having a way to dump all the settings to the USB - oh yes, that item broke in my case. And I know how to insert the USB, but I found it on the cockpit floor one day.

Anyway, I am glad to get the craft back after a two-month annual...

Posted By: HenryM
Date Posted: 27 Jun 2024 at 8:57am

When you send in your IFD for any repair, they update the firmware. Sometimes that results in loss of configuration data. In my case, I have never lost the configuration due to a firmware update, but you never know. I do have screenshots of all my settings. I need to take them for this latest update, though.

I have also been careful with my USB stick. I found a little green square on the floor of the plane one day and at first didn't know what it was. It was when I later tried to do a database update that it dawned on me where the little square circuit board came from.

USB sockets, in general, are not very robust, even the latest USB C generation. I hope you can get this fixed under warranty. It was extremely expensive for me to do it under a normal service call.