TRX-2: Brand-New TRX-2 Totally Dead on Arrival

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trp2525

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I just finally got around to unboxing and setting up my brand-new TRX-2 that I picked up last week from the Walmart/Ebates deal, and it is TOTALLY dead in the water. The AC adapter is putting out 13.86 volts DC per my test meter but the unit will not power up AT ALL. I tried a reset procedure 2 times that involves disconnecting the power and USB cables from the scanner, removing the front head, removing and re-seating the SD card and then holding the power button in for 30 seconds before reattaching the power cord to the scanner. That didn't work at all. Quality Control in the Philippines must have been asleep at the wheel when this one went by!

Anybody else have any other suggestions to try as Whistler is obviously closed today because of the holiday. I think I may opt to return this to Walmart and have them send me another brand-new one as opposed to sending this to Whistler Repair for repair/replacement. NOTE: This radio must be from an early batch that was manufactured as the serial number is 00015xx and the date code on the back is 6A16 (June 2016) which is when the TRX-2 was released and hit the streets.
 

Bill1426

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Do you get anything on the screen when you just hookup the USB ?
Mine says:
USB Power
Charging Backup Battery

I had an issue when I got mine, it said "Waiting for main unit".. But you can barely read it, cause there was no backlighting..
 

trp2525

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Do you get anything on the screen when you just hookup the USB ?
Mine says:
USB Power
Charging Backup Battery

Bill it just started to display that as I read your post. I "suspect" that the problem here may have been a totally depleted or very low battery from the scanner sitting around for a year since it was manufactured. The scanner will now power on with the battery having some charge on it. I will charge it overnight and run this scenario by Whistler tomorrow to see what they have to say about it.

Thanks for your reply!
 

Bill1426

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The Charging screen never goes away.. When the unit is off and the USB is in, you will always see the Charging screen, unless you turn of the Time Function.. Then you'll see the current time..

p.s. I have the same date code and my S/N is 0017xx
 

Bill1426

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OH, I ended up changing the SD card. The original SD card was the issue I was having from the beginning "Waiting for main unit". I tried formatting it, numerous times.. Grabbed an 8gb Class 10 Sandisk SD (micro w/adapter), did a full format with 32k sectors, and have not had an issue since..
 

2006walt

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I also ordered the Walmart/Ebates unit. Should I leave the unit plugged in all night before powering on? I plugged in the USB cable, nothing is displayed, but again the radio is off..
For reference my S/N is 1503, note another label is taped where you plug in the power, the label reads: 06A16. I wonder is the unit was manufactured in June 2016? Finally any issues using windows 10? I am temped to remove the SD card and plug in the SD card directly to PC to get started.
Thanks all
 

trp2525

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I also ordered the Walmart/Ebates unit. Should I leave the unit plugged in all night before powering on? I plugged in the USB cable, nothing is displayed, but again the radio is off..
For reference my S/N is 1503, note another label is taped where you plug in the power, the label reads: 06A16. I wonder is the unit was manufactured in June 2016? Finally any issues using windows 10? I am temped to remove the SD card and plug in the SD card directly to PC to get started.
Thanks all

FYI I kept my new TRX-2 plugged in to both the AC adapter AND the USB cable all night long with the radio powered off and I have had no problems since. I talked with Whistler scanner support today and they confirmed that a drained down battery in the scanner can sometimes cause "weird" issues like I experienced with not being able to power up the scanner.

It appears that these TRX-2 scanners that Walmart was selling were "older" stock with serial numbers in the 00015xx to 00017xx range from those that have posted here on RR that got in on the deal. I can confirm that my TRX-2 had the original factory release of the CPU firmware which was 2.2 (now at the latest 4.6) and it also had the original factory release of the DSP firmware which was 2.1 (now at the latest 3.1). Whistler scanner support confirmed that there have been no hardware changes since the release of the TRX-2 so getting an older stock unit is a moot point (except for the internal battery possibly draining down while sitting on a shelf during storage).
 

R8000

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I jumped in on the Walmart deal as well. My TRX 2 has been fine. S/N 00017xx.

Hopefully yours turns out to be OK. I love mine. Wish I had bought two !
 

trp2525

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Just as a followup to my original post, I have been having intermittent bizarre problems/issues with my TRX-2 since I received it. As posted, my TRX-2 initially would not power up out of the box and that problem has also re-occurred. I have also had more than one occasion where I have had no audio volume whatsoever from the internal speaker even though the radio was receiving transmissions normally.

When I again had no audio volume this morning, I decided to initiate an exchange with Walmart.com. They will be sending me a new replacement unit (to my local Walmart store) and have issued a FedEx return label for me to return the problem TRX-2 to them.

I believe the problem here is the way Walmart.com's fulfillment center shipped my original TRX-2 to me. The Whistler factory scanner box was simply placed in a manila shipping envelope and that's how it was shipped to the store! Who knows how many jolts and jabs this factory box (with no additional protection) took on its 2-day trip across the USA. I believe a perfectly working scanner may have been ruined/damaged because of sub-standard shipping methods chosen by the fulfillment center.

I specifically requested proper boxing/packaging of my replacement TRX-2 but Walmart.com told me there was no way for them to request that from their fulfillment center. They have no mechanism to communicate with whoever is filling the order which in and of itself is ridiculous. As a result I will again be at the mercy of whoever packages and ships my replacement order. Fingers crossed on this one...
 

Bill1426

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I believe the problem here is the way Walmart.com's fulfillment center shipped my original TRX-2 to me. The Whistler factory scanner box was simply placed in a manila shipping envelope and that's how it was shipped to the store!

Mine was shipped the same way.. I had them open the envelope before I took the item. Just to see if the TRX-2 box looked damaged..
 

2006walt

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What is the return and exchange policy at Walmart for the TRX-2? Also is there an 800 number to arrange for return or replacement? Mine was also shipped in that manila envelope. I was shocked to see that envelope. Seems stupid to ship in an envelope. However, I also had Walmart open the envelope and the box did not appear to be damaged..
..
 

trp2525

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What is the return and exchange policy at Walmart for the TRX-2? Also is there an 800 number to arrange for return or replacement? Mine was also shipped in that manila envelope. I was shocked to see that envelope. Seems stupid to ship in an envelope. However, I also had Walmart open the envelope and the box did not appear to be damaged..
..

The 800 number for Walmart.com is 1-800-966-6546. On the "My Account" page at Walmart.com it said that I had up until September 30th to return my TRX-2 that I ordered on June 25th. I don't know if the exchange period is also that long.

I would not have initiated an exchange simply because of the manila shipping envelope if I was not having intermittent issues with my TRX-2 over the past 2 weeks. I have talked with Whistler scanner support and they could not offer a definitive reason or explanation for all of my issues. They said that perhaps I was getting a bad connection between the front head and the radio and that could be causing the intermittent lack of audio but they couldn't be 100% sure. They did say if the problem(s) persisted returning the TRX-2 to Walmart for a new unit would certainly be a reasonable solution.

The other issue to contend with here is the possible loss of the Ebates rebate depending on how Walmart.com processes this exchange in their system. If they process this as a "return" and then a "new purchase" that could nullify my initial purchase order number and cancel my rebate. I have already been in contact with Ebates regarding this and they stated to contact them if that happens. YMMV
 

cistercian

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I also ordered the Walmart/Ebates unit. Should I leave the unit plugged in all night before powering on? I plugged in the USB cable, nothing is displayed, but again the radio is off..
For reference my S/N is 1503, note another label is taped where you plug in the power, the label reads: 06A16. I wonder is the unit was manufactured in June 2016? Finally any issues using windows 10? I am temped to remove the SD card and plug in the SD card directly to PC to get started.
Thanks all


My TRX-2 sn is 1507...I got it last week from amazon for 476 dollars. The seller was efremalex. They said it was out of stock but would be in stock in about a week...and the price seemed very good.

No regrets, I love it and it is running in the shack right now!
 

trp2525

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Mine was shipped the same way.. I had them open the envelope before I took the item. Just to see if the TRX-2 box looked damaged..

...Mine was also shipped in that manila envelope. I was shocked to see that envelope. Seems stupid to ship in an envelope. However, I also had Walmart open the envelope and the box did not appear to be damaged..
..

In addition to your 2 postings I also have a friend of mine who also received his TRX-2 shipped in an envelope so that makes a total of 4 (including myself) that I am aware of. I believe that I am the only one who is having continuing issues like intermittent no audio from the scanner's speaker. Of course I have no way of knowing if I just received a defective unit or if something was damaged internally during transit because of the poor packaging/shipping methods used.

After multiple phone calls and emails to Walmart.com I was finally able to speak with someone from Walmart who actually was able to provide me with further information. I was told that these scanners are being sent out directly from a Whistler Distributor and NOT from a Walmart warehouse. That information disturbs me even more knowing that a distributor of expensive and fragile electronic equipment like the TRX-2 would have the gall to ship out brand-new merchandise in such a substandard and slipshod manner. Personally I believe it's all about the bottom line and saving money by not using extra boxes and package cushioning material to ship out these scanners properly. Remember to always "Follow the money."

Edit: The location of the Whistler Distributor where these TRX-2 scanners are coming from is Oklahoma City, Oklahoma per the Walmart package tracking information.
 
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Jon22

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Mine came in an envelope too.
As for the packing and shipping, it probably came out of a fulfillment company. The few dozen scanners and radar detectors they had made them a "Whistler Distributor" as far as Walmart is concerned.
Hammer or scanner, it doesn't matter. Put it in anything that it will fit in and ship it. And if there's extra space in the box or whatever, fill the space with "something".
Amazon fulfillment monkeys are no better.
Jon
 

trp2525

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This is a followup to my original and subsequent posts in this thread for those who may be interested in the outcome. I picked up my replacement TRX-2 from my local Walmart store yesterday and it was shipped in a manila envelope again! This time the envelope had really taken a beating and it had cuts/tears in the envelope exposing the Whistler scanner box inside. The replacement came from Oklahoma (to Massachusetts) via FedEx Ground while the original scanner had come by FedEx 2-Day Air. That may account for the extra "handling" that took place with my replacement package.

Needless to say I was not going to accept this tattered replacement package but took it home to take pictures of it. I had already been in contact with Walmart Executive Customer Relations since last Friday (07-14) regarding this matter. I reached out to them again and I explained my new predicament. They listened and appeared to be willing to make the matter right-with a little prodding on my part.

They ended up contacting their distributor/supplier of the TRX-2 in Oklahoma and had them overnight me a replacement TRX-2 direct to my home address and requested that it be shipped in a box. That new unit arrived this morning via FedEx Overnight and it was in fact in a shipping box! The Whistler box was in excellent condition inside of the shipping box and I was a happy camper.

I got my new TRX-2 all set up and it's working perfectly. I have had no error codes, power-up issues or audio volume issues like I had with my first unit. This new replacement unit was much "fresher" stock compared to my original order. The serial number is 00024xx and the manufacturing date code is 04A17 (April 2017).

Walmart Executive Customer Relations also issued two call tags for UPS to pick up my 2 scanners (original and first replacement). UPS showed up this afternoon and the scanners are on their way back to Walmart.com. My only concern now is that those 2 returned units get credited properly to my account so that my credit card on file does not get charged for the 2 replacement TRX-2s.

Overall I am satisfied with the end result. I have to be honest that it took a LOT of effort and perseverance on my part to make things happen as they did. Finding phone numbers and email addresses to escalate a matter to corporate/executive level is difficult as they are not readily available to the consumer. YMMV
 
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