Function 5 freeze on AOR 8600 MK2

[dd367]

Hello,
When I press function then 5 on my AR8600 MK2 it freezes and none of the buttons will work and I cannot even turn it off with the power button, I have to unplug it for a short time to get it back on. Everything else works just fine. I have tried a soft reset but it doesnt fix the problem. Does anyone have any ideas? Is there a hard reset? thanks

 

[AOR-262]

@dd367 -- If you look on page 73 of the user manual for the 8600 Mk2, look for the section heading "7-9-5 Deleting all select scan channels".

You can of course delete individual SEL-SCAN channels but in your case I think it be best to delete them all--if there are any SEL-SCAN Channels.

If that doesn't work, try doing a SOFT RESET -- to achieve this:

Press and hold the 'CLEAR' key while powering On the AR8600 to soft reset the microprocessor should the AR8600 appear to behave strangely... no memory contents will be lost.

 

[dd367]

Thanks for the info but that didnt work. Is there a hard reset on the circuit board or anyway of reinstalling the firmware?

 

[AOR-262]

If you press 'FUNC' and then press and hold the 'PASS' button (you'll see the word 'FUNC' in the top left of the screen) -- if there are no SEL-SCAN channels your display should look something like:

SEL-SCAN 00
------ ------ . -----
---------------------

If there are any SEL-SCAN Channels then delete them all.


Check also the Bank Size hasn't been altered or messed up somehow. To do this: Press the 'FUNC' key and then Press and Hold the 'SCAN' button.

Your display should read something like:

M-BANK A/a
A:
a:
A:50 a:50

The only other suggestion I can think of is to backup all your Memory Banks to a Memory Card such as the 'EM8200' or use a program such as ARCTRL86 to backup your Search & Memory and then manually wipe all your Search & Memory Channels and then perform another 'Soft Reset'.

 

[AOR-262]

-- By the way, if your press 'FUNC' and key '5' and there are no SEL-SCAN channels, you should hear the receiver beep at you. If it doesn't, check your 'BEEP' setting in the Configuration Menu. Press 'FUNC' and '7' to access the Configuration Menu. The first setting will be 'BEEP OFF' or 'BEEP xx'. Use the tuning dial to set the 'BEEP' to 01.

Now go back and press 'FUNC' and '5'.

If it now beeps at you -- the receiver should be ok? If it still freezes as you say, might be time to email AOR for a request for them to have it back.

 

[dd367]

Thanks for your suggestions. I deleted all the memories but pressing function then pass freezes it just the same as pressing function then 5. other than that everything else works as it should which make me wonder if its just a software problem. is there any way of reinstalling the firmware or a hard reset? I see on the schematic there is mention of reset but I not sure how to do it , probably shorting the reset pin to ground? and even if I did it may make it worse if I cant reinstall the firmware myself. It looks like I will be sending it off to AOR.

 

[AOR-262]

I think your best bet is to email AOR with the problem and give as much information as possible. It'll help them with a possible solution. Don't mention circuit board schematics or they'll think you've been nosing around inside the unit. You will get a reply from AOR. I've emailed them many times and they've always come back with a reply within a few days.

Make sure your power supply is outputting the correct power. If your using a genuine AOR PSU for the 8600 Mk2 you're ok. If not the unit must have 12-15v DC @800mA max and must be regulated.

Good luck.

 

[dd367]

Thanks for your help. I will post back here if I find solution.

 

[dd367]

Update:
I managed to get into the receiver menu function 5 and function pass after filling all the memories banks using arc8200/8600V2 software and then using aor86ctrl software I can view the select channels but I there appears to be one select channel in bank a00 which cannot be deleted. if I try to delete it from the receiver menu using function 9 it freezes, with aor86ctrl it gives error GD%%<CR> when trying to delete the search banks , GD is the command for deleting all select channels. I want to try to connect to the receiver via the command line but I just get a blank screen. it is set to serial com 4 using putty. What is the correct method of connecting to the AR8600 with command line? There appears to be no info in the manual, just a list of the all the commands. Thanks

 

[AOR-262]

Whilst the following workaround doesn't resolve the issure of not being able to physically access certain functions of the 8600, accessing the 8600 via remote commands can be tried. Use of Terminal Emulation software such as Windows HyperTerminal can fully control the device.

Set the device to Memory Recall Mode. You screen should look something like this:

M.RD NFM 12.5k
a00 999.9999

To delete the selected Memory Channel send 'MQ<CR>'
(Memory Channel 'a00' will now be erased)

To delete all memory channels in Bank 'a', send 'MQa%%'

Each command comprises of two upper case letters (header) along with options as required. All
commands use ASCII code which MUST BE IN UPPER CASE (except for the arrow keys and
remote ID command (^A) which are non-printable and use the control codes of ASCII). A terminal
program running on a computer should be set to: 4800, 9600 or 19200bps to match the AR8600,
DATA 8-bit, STOP 2-bits, PARITY none, XFLOW on.

 

[dd367]

Thanks for the info, I tried to connect using windows powershell but I dont really know how to connect and enter the commands.
the following appears to open a connection but after that no commands are recognised so I must be missing a basic step?
PS C:\WINDOWS\system32> $port= new-Object System.IO.Ports.SerialPort COM2,9600,None,8,one
PS C:\WINDOWS\system32> $port.Open()

and if I try using putty simply opening serial com2 I just get a blank screen and if I type it just shows question marks.

 

[AOR-262]

I would skip the idea of trying to use Windows PowerShell as you'll need to understand the basics of device communication and you'll also need to write a script for the commands to run. If you are not using Windows XP then I would suggest you take a look at the link below and use an alternate Terminal Emulation program or follow the instructions on how to copy the Windows XP HyperTerminal program to run on other Window versions such as Windows 7, 8.1 and 10.

https://helpdeskgeek.com/windows-7/windows-7-hyperterminal/[/B]

It would seem as if you only need a Terminal Emulator so that you can make use of a workaround due to your device freezing. This will work as per my message #10. Don't forget whatever Terminal Emulator you use, you must set it up as per the requirements of the 8600 which are 9600 bps, DATA 8-bit, STOP 2-bits, PARITY none, XFLOW on.

 

[dd367]

Thanks for the info, I already tried connecting with putty which is an alternative to the old hyper terminal which I remember well in windows xp. "putty is shown in your link", with puty I can easily add a serial device and set it com 2, 9600 bps, DATA 8-bit, STOP 2-bits, PARITY none, XFLOW On BUT I just get a blank screen and if I type a command I just get question marks. I must be missing something very basic because the ability of connecting to the radio is working fine as arc8600 and aorctrl software connect ok to the serial port. the AOR manual doesn't give any further info they just show the list of commands not the method of connecting.

I received a message from AOR "shown below" but it doesn't mention the serial terminal method. I tried what they told me on the radio itself but it freezes, I did say I would send the radio to them but they think its just a matter of clearing all the memories. If I could just learn how to connect via terminal I might just be able to clear out the defending corrupt data.

Message from AOR

If AR8600 is behaving strangely such as locking up or powering down unexpectedly, it may be suffering from corrupt data (programmable data or system data or both) due to a power glitch (a.c. supply interruption, battery low etc).

The corruption can affect the search bank, memory bank (or channel) or indexes such as pass list of select scan list. Instead of the data reading (for example)123.450 MHz, it will attempt to read 123.zv0 MHz... as the corrupt data is not recognised, it causes the AR8600 to 'crash'.

Try deleting & over-writing search banks, pass lists, select scan lists etc.

AOR Japan.

 

[AOR-262]

What cable are you using? RS232 straight or USB to RS232?

Also do the Send/Receive settings on your 8600 match your Terminal Emulator?

 

[dd367]

its a USB to RS232.

 

[AOR-262]

Send the command 'AT'. The reply back should be either 'AT0' or 'AT1'.

What do you get back if you send the command 'AT'

 

[dd367]

typing AT sends back AT0, I tried a few commands but many show just a question mark.

MQ<CR> does nothing and neither does GD%%<CR>

is it normal that the terminal doesnt show what I type?

thanks

 

[AOR-262]

From what you've said, there doesn't seem to be anything wrong with you sending/receiving to the device. The 8600 will respond with a '?' if it doesn't recognize the command you've sent or you've incorrectly send a command with an invalid parameter.

If you send a GD%% command -- the device will not return any result. That is correct. But the GD%% command will release the memory channel marked as a select scan.

There is no reason why you cannot now do what you initially set out to do.

 

[dd367]

It appears to send some commands OK but the confusing thing is when I type something it doesn't show any text on the screen. and sending GD%% freezes the radio. at first I thought the terminal was not working at all specially as I cannot see what I am typing and often I get a question mark its a little confusing. I will get back to AOR and tell them my findings, perhaps the problem is hardware as it appears to be impossible to delete memory select channel a00. Thanks for all your help.

 

[AOR-262]

Some commands sent do not return a result -- such as action commands like GD%% (which seems to have gotten you confused).

The ability to see each character you type depends on the Terminal Emulator you are using. There maybe an option with your Terminal Emulator to allow characters typed to be echoed on screen or not.

The 8600 will appear to be frozen because it is in RS232 mode which is indicated by a dot with a circle around it on the top right hand side of the display. The physical keypad does nothing unless you press the 'ENT' key or send the command 'EX' which is Exit RS232.

If you send the command 'MRa00' and then 'MQ' that will wipe Memory Bank 'a00' and remove it. If after sending those two commands you can still see Bank 'a00' the only other possibility is because Bank 'a00' is protected.

If so, send the command 'MRa00' 'PC0' 'MQ'.