SDS100 Buyer Beware
- Thread starter bklynrob70
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MStep
Member
Those words from tentbob and Nasby are very descriptive--- "repair quagmire" and CSJ "epidemic". But would not the miscreant scroll knob situation manifest much more quickly--- if fact when first using the radio, rather than appear over a period of time, if in fact the Cold Solder Joint epidemic were a contributing factor?
If the errant scroll knob condition appears over a period of time, it might be attributed to a run of bad parts on particular units. Even if it does occur in different models, Uniden could be sourcing from the same deficient parts manufacturer.
MStep
Member
So true, the SDS series represents Uniden's flagship models. The issue is that flags are starting to fly upside down--- a signal that the "flagships" are in distress.
I just got onto this thread, any updates about it
mine just died from the csj issue , out of warranty and according to the uniden site they dont ship repairs to Canada , haven't found anyone near me willing to touch it so far , not impressed , with the cost of the repair & possible cross border shipping , I might just put that money towards a TRX1 for general use & a unication down the road , the thing that gets me is that from everything I have read the csj thing is real , its a real problem & a real issue that seems like it could happen at any point in the radios life , they should extend the warranty for those specific symptoms , there is no way they dont know about it , I mailed them about mine & got no response , you would think they would want to track the radios experiencing it figure out what batches & how many may be affected etc , but you know what , if they are not interested then neither am I , enjoy the financial donation I made to them & ill save for a unication & be done with it , sorry but its left a bad taste for me , I have a bunch of unidens from over the years loved them all , this sds has been my first issue , & Im not so upset about the radio , its a new thing , stuff happens things fail , Im more disappointed that they are not admitting this is an issue they need to help the customers with , I get its out of warranty , but at least offer to pay half the shipping for csj issues , or something , because that happened at the time of manufacture
palmerjrusa
Member
I'm sure it's not true in all cases.
My SDS100 suffers from a severe case of "jumpy" scroll knob.
Rapidly turning the scroll knob a few times seems to help a little, but the "improvement" is transitory.
I know that I am an old guy, but back when I was in high school, I learned how to solder electrical connections. In the years following, I "build" quite a few Heathkit items, including a 25" color console TV.
I have also repaired cold solder joints in *many* consumer electronic devices over the years. My experience with electronics through the years is if it works for the first 45 days, it'll keep working "forever" so I don't worry about voiding a warranty.
My only point being, it's too bad those traditions and/or hobbies haven't carried through to today's generation. It was fun for me to be able to fix electronics.
I have also repaired cold solder joints in *many* consumer electronic devices over the years. My experience with electronics through the years is if it works for the first 45 days, it'll keep working "forever" so I don't worry about voiding a warranty.
My only point being, it's too bad those traditions and/or hobbies haven't carried through to today's generation. It was fun for me to be able to fix electronics.
America isn't as "electronics-oriented," for lack of a better term, as it used to be. There are no TV repair shops, no tube-testers in the drug stores, almost no kit makers, etc. Actually, there are almost no electronics manufacturers in this country. TVs, DVRs, transceivers, computers, modems, routers, phones, etc. are all Asian-made now.
Now, when you peek into a piece of electronics, there's not much to see. It's all on one IC soldered to a tiny little circuit board. I, for one, couldn't repair something like that if I wanted to. I, too, am an "old guy (77) and I remember the "good old days" but I'm resigned to the fact that that's all relegated to memory status because we'll never see it again, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. I don't have to adjust the vertical or horizontal holds on my TV or wait for the TV to warm up. It's a color TV and I don't need that plastic stick-on screen that's blue on the top and green on the bottom to simulate color. I have a GPS in my air conditioned car that doesn't have throttle or choke knobs anymore. I have AM and FM radio without the Conelrad triangles. That radio picks up signals from maybe 30 or 40 miles away but my satellite radio picks 'em up from thousands of miles away. I can order and pay for a pizza on my way home from the coffee shop. My daughter can call me while I'm driving almost anywhere in the country and it's not long distance. It's routine. You get the idea.
I have my memories but I'm pretty much convinced that I don't want to go back.
Now, when you peek into a piece of electronics, there's not much to see. It's all on one IC soldered to a tiny little circuit board. I, for one, couldn't repair something like that if I wanted to. I, too, am an "old guy (77) and I remember the "good old days" but I'm resigned to the fact that that's all relegated to memory status because we'll never see it again, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. I don't have to adjust the vertical or horizontal holds on my TV or wait for the TV to warm up. It's a color TV and I don't need that plastic stick-on screen that's blue on the top and green on the bottom to simulate color. I have a GPS in my air conditioned car that doesn't have throttle or choke knobs anymore. I have AM and FM radio without the Conelrad triangles. That radio picks up signals from maybe 30 or 40 miles away but my satellite radio picks 'em up from thousands of miles away. I can order and pay for a pizza on my way home from the coffee shop. My daughter can call me while I'm driving almost anywhere in the country and it's not long distance. It's routine. You get the idea.
I have my memories but I'm pretty much convinced that I don't want to go back.
my old bcd 396t is getting a touchy multifunction knob now , to be fair it has been in service for quite some time now , I know people were kinda not happy when whistler made the knob on top squelch & the button for volume , but maybe the thinking is , that way , with spreading out the interaction between the two & making the button for volume , it would encourage people to set them and leave them alone and help them last a little longer , the multifunction knobs get pushed pulled & twisted in every direction constantly when it has to do everything
I think that's way to soon for that to be happening , & scroll knob lines go through J401 ,...the more I learn about the sds , makes me wonder how many will still be in good shape & functioning in a few years , its a shame It could have been a great radio but I personally have a bad feeling about its future , of course Im biased because im still pissed mine broke with the csj , but time will tell I guess
bucks83
I Remember DOS
I'm guessing they want people to use the computer to program the radio. I cringe every time I turn that knob on the SDS100, feels too delicate for the work it needs to perform.
I just sold my BCD396T when I bought my SDS200, I bought it in 2005. I did have a cold solder joint at some point many years ago. Took me 10 minutes to fix it. Other than that, zero issues and it was working perfectly when I sold it. In fact, the only reason I sold it was besides my home area, most of my quick keys were for states I programed when I took an RV trip... I basically only programmed State and Major cities PD & FD systems. I had to switch by hand (QK) while my wife read me the QK for the state I was entering. The SDS200 eliminates the need for that. It's ideal, for ME.
To each their own. I will turn 77 in a few months from now.
I like convenience, I like my smartphone, I worked as a UNIX System Administrator and Oracle & Sybase Database Administrator for close to 30 years.. So I have no problem with new technologies. But I don't like having to send stuff or take stuff to a repair facility and wait weeks (or months) to get it back, besides having to pay someone to do what I could do anyway.
You're right, today's society is a throw-away society, something breaks, buy a new one. Car needs new spark plugs, take it to a dealer. Etc.
So yes, somethings are easier now, more convenient and so forth.. But spending money and time for something I can do just doesn't make sense to ME.
Your Mileage May Vary. 😊
You are correct that in some cases, the scroll control is the problem. My limited experience suggests it's about a 50/50 split between actual encoder problems and solder joint issues.
My SDS100 had the jumpy scroll knob problem after about 6 months, that got progressively worse until it would scroll without me even touching it. I still had 3 months on my warranty so I warily sent it in on June 1st. UPS said it was accepted by Uniden on June 3rd. After about a week I tried contacting Uniden via email to see if they could give me an repair reference number so I could at least track it's progress. No response. After 2 weeks I gave up & planned on not seeing it for months. Surprisingly, I found it on my porch via FedEx on June 28th. Didn't get to check it until today & am happy to say it seems to be working perfectly again. Much more solid clicking than before, similar to my 436, which has yet to give me any trouble. Still disappointed it needed service after only 6 months, but after a just under 3 week turnaround, hopefully the repair center is returning to normal.
MStep
Member
Three week turnaround? That's practically up there with the parting of the Red Sea. Looks like they screwed up and did something right. But seriously, be happy it happened within the warranty period and that you got your toy back safe and sound. Thanks for keeping us updated and happy monitoring.
Ubbe
Member
Uniden, or I believe its another company doing the actual repairs, doesn't have a tracking system where you can see how the product advance in the que, three weeks left, two weeks left... They only inform at best that it has received your product and the next info are that it has been repaired and are due to be shipped.
/Ubbe
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