SDS200 Hum repaired, but returned

[werinshades]

SDS-200 HUM AS of 8-15-2019

So I started to have more of a HUM noise again after I installed more Tin Foil. So I took the outside black sleeve off of the radio and still noticed the HUM noise. So I started to press more pressure on the inner top sleeve that you can take the top off and the HUM noise really sub-sided...

forums.radioreference.com

Then the original one started by UPMan: SDS200 - SDS200 Hum Reports

Per Uniden Support, it's been referred to Uniden Engineering for follow up. In case anyone is keeping score.

 

[dougjgray]

My s# has an 8 after the Z does that mean the him is coming from a Chinese sping device inserted at the factory lol

Never mind I read it wrong it says made in Vietnam on the tag

 

[doctordialtone]

Chinese sping device

What's a "Chinese sping device"?

I don't get it.

 

[dougjgray]

*Spying

 

[MCode]

Joe...
In ur quotes U left out a very pertinent point...
"As long as a repair or modification doesn’t damage other components.."
Also a crucial part of this is that there is "no deterioration for factory electrical performance specifications...
Including compliance with FCC Part 15 Harmonic/Spurious Radiation specifications.."

Just my $0.02...

 

[werinshades]

Joe...
In ur quotes U left out a very pertinent point...
"As long as a repair or modification doesn’t damage other components.."
Also a crucial part of this is that there is "no deterioration for factory electrical performance specifications...
Including compliance with FCC Part 15 Harmonic/Spurious Radiation specifications.."

Just my $0.02...

But yet, he's still telling people something different.

 

[Firekite]

The hum issue is definitely in the minority of SDS200 owners.

Possibly, but we don’t (can’t) know. You can’t just make that kind of statement by counting the number of users who register an account here and post in this thread. It’s likely that users in a mobile or otherwise noisy environment have it and never even notice it, and so they’re fine anyway. Or that some notice but don’t mind it enough to find this one thread on the internet to complain about it. It’s also a condition that appears to worsen over time, so someone unboxing and saying it doesn’t have any noise doesn’t necessarily mean it will never develop any noise. Neither of us know for that matter exactly how many units are in users’ hands and how many support tickets are opened up with Uniden about it.

If I buy a NEW CAR MODIFY THE ENGINE AND TRANSMISSION THEN DRAG RACE THE CAR AND THE ENGINE FAILS IT IS NOT COVERED UNDER THE WARRANTY ANY LONGER STOP SPREADING FAKE NEWS.

Please stopping with the yelling. Yes, if you do something that causes damage, that damage will not be required to be covered under warranty. But to be clear, it’s up to them to prove that the thing you did caused the problem. If you buy new wheels to replace the OEM ones and your transmission goes out, they can’t claim that you modified the vehicle and therefore all bets are off. If you put in a custom exhaust and your A/C stops working, they’d have to show that somehow the exhaust caused the problem. If you tint your windows and the shifter linkage breaks, etc, etc, etc.

In this case, if you go about modifying the scanner, and that modification causes damage, they’re not liable for fixing it for you for free. For example, maybe you add a ground strap, but that ground strap touched some components and shorts something out. Not covered under warranty. If you go and replace a capacitor or remove a resister on the board, and that causes a problem, not covered under warranty. If you open up the case and write your name in sharpie inside the case, they can’t claim the warranty is forfeit. There are lots of things you can do that wouldn’t invalidate the warranty, as long as whatever you did wasn’t the cause of the issue.

I think the worst case if you do open and modify your SDS200 is that you would likely terminate any FCC certification approved for the device.

I don’t think you’re on the right track. You’d have to modify the fundamental function of the receiver and its components in such a way that it creates new emissions or something along those lines. The mitigation part from Uniden modifies the SDS200 and posed no risk of somehow running afoul of the FCC. Neither does a soldered/bolted ground strap, for that matter.

 

[radio3353]

Possibly, but we don’t (can’t) know. You can’t just make that kind of statement by counting the number of users who register an account here and post in this thread. It’s likely that users in a mobile or otherwise noisy environment have it and never even notice it, and so they’re fine anyway. Or that some notice but don’t mind it enough to find this one thread on the internet to complain about it. It’s also a condition that appears to worsen over time, so someone unboxing and saying it doesn’t have any noise doesn’t necessarily mean it will never develop any noise. Neither of us know for that matter exactly how many units are in users’ hands and how many support tickets are opened up with Uniden about it.



Please stopping with the yelling. Yes, if you do something that causes damage, that damage will not be required to be covered under warranty. But to be clear, it’s up to them to prove that the thing you did caused the problem. If you buy new wheels to replace the OEM ones and your transmission goes out, they can’t claim that you modified the vehicle and therefore all bets are off. If you put in a custom exhaust and your A/C stops working, they’d have to show that somehow the exhaust caused the problem. If you tint your windows and the shifter linkage breaks, etc, etc, etc.

In this case, if you go about modifying the scanner, and that modification causes damage, they’re not liable for fixing it for you for free. For example, maybe you add a ground strap, but that ground strap touched some components and shorts something out. Not covered under warranty. If you go and replace a capacitor or remove a resister on the board, and that causes a problem, not covered under warranty. If you open up the case and write your name in sharpie inside the case, they can’t claim the warranty is forfeit. There are lots of things you can do that wouldn’t invalidate the warranty, as long as whatever you did wasn’t the cause of the issue.



I don’t think you’re on the right track. You’d have to modify the fundamental function of the receiver and its components in such a way that it creates new emissions or something along those lines. The mitigation part from Uniden modifies the SDS200 and posed no risk of somehow running afoul of the FCC. Neither does a soldered/bolted ground strap, for that matter.

Thanks Firekite. Best intelligent post in a long time here.

 

[KevinC]

Possibly, but we don’t (can’t) know. You can’t just make that kind of statement by counting the number of users who register an account here and post in this thread. It’s likely that users in a mobile or otherwise noisy environment have it and never even notice it, and so they’re fine anyway. Or that some notice but don’t mind it enough to find this one thread on the internet to complain about it. It’s also a condition that appears to worsen over time, so someone unboxing and saying it doesn’t have any noise doesn’t necessarily mean it will never develop any noise. Neither of us know for that matter exactly how many units are in users’ hands and how many support tickets are opened up with Uniden about it.

It's like I posted earlier, I highly doubt Uniden would make a special part, give it away for free and ship it for free it this only affected a small number of units...but I could be wrong.

 

[W6KRU]

It's like I posted earlier, I highly doubt Uniden would make a special part, give it away for free and ship it for free it this only affected a small number of units...but I could be wrong.

I think you are correct. Google finds quite a few pages mentioning SDS200 and hum.

 

[Joe_Blough]

This sentence would apply in the the scenario I mentioned:

"As long as a repair or modification doesn’t damage other components, companies have no grounds to void your warranty, even if you break the sticker seal".

In one of my posts, I used this as an example: If solder heated up, melted and caused a display failure, then I'm sure it voided the warranty.

Thanks for providing all of us the information.
But, if you think you have a good case here go Johnny:

Federal Trade Commission

The official website of the Federal Trade Commission, protecting America’s consumers for over 100 years.

www.ftc.gov

You must be "harmed" in order to file a complaint, not that you don't like a company or it's warranty policy.

Don't forget to add this:

• Details about the transaction: the amount you paid, how you paid, the date

We all look forward to a link or copy of the email detailing your resolution...

The issue was that soldering the mitigation part would void the warranty which is false. I never said damaging the scanner would not void the warranty.

 

[Joe_Blough]

Joe... Once again U are misquoting..

Enter "Apple product liability suits about battery replacement".... into Google.....
Nuff said...

Just my $0.02..

What did I misquote? I never mentioned anything about Apple battery replacement. Please tell me what I misquoted.

But you may find this interesting.

"The FTC reportedly sent letters informing companies of this policy standpoint to six major tech companies "that market and sell automobiles, cellular devices, and video gaming systems in the United States," though it has not revealed the companies it has specifically contacted. But companies like Apple may be affected, considering the extent to which Apple has opposed Right to Repair legislation in the past".

 

[doctordialtone]

 

[werinshades]

The issue was that soldering the mitigation part would void the warranty which is false. I never said damaging the scanner would not void the warranty.

IF an issue occurred and it was determined that an "unauthorized modification" caused damage to the scanner then yes it would void the warranty. This is true with anything you purchase...electronics, household appliances etc. We shouldn't be encouraging those owners to take that risk unless they consider themselves as an "expert" at electronics.

To hopefully put an end to this barrage of the same complaints, let's review what we know so far:

"Some" owners reported a humming/crackling sound on the SDS 200. While some returned it, others dealt with it. Keep in mind, this isn't occurring on all the SDS 200's.

Uniden (UPMan) offered a free "mitigation part" that would "reduce, but not eliminate" the issue. You Tube video showing the procedure.

In addition, a firmware update was released and a setting was added "Audio Off Time" which used in conjunction with the mitigation part eliminates a larger percentage of the noise. UPMan's Wiki has further explanation.

Threads were started reporting the noise has returned despite the installation and some started "squeezing" their scanner claiming it resolved the issue, but later reported it did not. Some added foil/copper tape to resolve the issue.

In this thread a post from a member (who claims he has alot of experience in electronics) actually "soldered" the mitigation piece and now reports the noise is completely gone. (We haven't seen a video supporting this yet).

Uniden Support posted that he reported that the noise has returned post-mitigation installation to Engineering for follow up and is awaiting a response.

Did I miss anything?

 

[Joe_Blough]

Joe...
In ur quotes U left out a very pertinent point...
"As long as a repair or modification doesn’t damage other components.."
Also a crucial part of this is that there is "no deterioration for factory electrical performance specifications...
Including compliance with FCC Part 15 Harmonic/Spurious Radiation specifications.."

Just my $0.02...

I never said warranties are not void if you damage other components. That's like saying someone said the DMR upgrade costs $50 from Uniden and you saying they left out the fact that the DMR upgrade does not include the ProVoice upgrade. Two completely different things.

It's common sense. Guess what. If you saw the circuit board in half but don't damage other components it's not covered by the warranty.

The entire point brought up was that soldering the metal mitgation part, or even opening your SDS200 would void the warranty. I provided numerous links posting proof that this is not true, yet several people here continue to say I was wrong without providing any proof or sources. Then when someone else said I am correct they then tried to compare apples to oranges to save face. You can open, repair, and modify your device without voiding the warranty.

Please explain how actually reducing or eliminating him deteriorates "factory electrical specifications or complaiance with FCC PART 15 Harmonic/Spurious Radiation specifications".

First of all Uniden doesn't publish a spec on the hum. Second of all soldering the hum mitigation part In fact it improves the the FCC compliance.

 

[Joe_Blough]

Possibly, but we don’t (can’t) know. You can’t just make that kind of statement by counting the number of users who register an account here and post in this thread. It’s likely that users in a mobile or otherwise noisy environment have it and never even notice it, and so they’re fine anyway.

Please stopping with the yelling. Yes, if you do something that causes damage, that damage will not be required to be covered under warranty. But to be clear, it’s up to them to prove that the thing you did caused the problem. If you buy new wheels to replace the OEM ones and your transmission goes out, they can’t claim that you modified the vehicle and therefore all bets are off. If you put in a custom exhaust and your A/C stops working, they’d have to show that somehow the exhaust caused the problem. If you tint your windows and the shifter linkage breaks, etc, etc, etc.

In this case, if you go about modifying the scanner, and that modification causes damage, they’re not liable for fixing it for you for free. For example, maybe you add a ground strap, but that ground strap touched some components and shorts something out. Not covered under warranty. If you go and replace a capacitor or remove a resister on the board, and that causes a problem, not covered under warranty. If you open up the case and write your name in sharpie inside the case, they can’t claim the warranty is forfeit. There are lots of things you can do that wouldn’t invalidate the warranty, as long as whatever you did wasn’t the cause of the issue.


I don’t think you’re on the right track. You’d have to modify the fundamental function of the receiver and its components in such a way that it creates new emissions or something along those lines. The mitigation part from Uniden modifies the SDS200 and posed no risk of somehow running afoul of the FCC. Neither does a soldered/bolted ground strap, for that matter.

Firekite, thank you for your post of reason and common sense. This has all been said before with proof including links but when they are proven to be wrong or passing out incorrect info, rather than admit their error or lack of knowledge on the subject, they keep coming up with other unrelated things or excuses. They know they are wrong but can't stand that it was proven.

 

[Joe_Blough]

But yet, he's still telling people something different.

It was really sad when you were posting incorrect information. That could be blamed on ignorance but now you have resorted to outright lies. When did I say you could damage components and not void the warranty ? When did I say soldering the mitigation part would make the scanner go out if FCC Part 15 regulations?

 

[Joe_Blough]

View attachment 74395

Hahaha. Those who are proven wrong alwways run away from the facts.

 

[werinshades]

It was really sad when you were posting incorrect information. That could be blamed on ignorance but now you have resorted to outright lies. When did I say you could damage components and not void the warranty ? When did I say soldering the mitigation part would make the scanner go out if FCC Part 15 regulations?

Let's await the official word from Uniden whether this "soldering fix" is an authorized modification before you (who still doesn't own an SDS 200) advises others to solder the mitigation part. What you consistently fail to quote is the Uniden warranty which is legal until proven otherwise:

The warranty is invalid if the Product is (A) damaged or not maintained as reasonable or necessary, (B) modified, altered, or used as part of any conversion kits, subassemblies, or any configurations not sold by Uniden.

If someone decides to perform a modification and it damages the components or display etc., you're telling all of us here that this does not void the warranty? If you perform a modification and have no reason to send it in for repair, then no one knows a thing.

But I will call you out when you're providing incorrect information and portraying yourself as an owner who performed one of these modifications and advising unsuspecting owners warranty information. You mentioned it again with a link on the other thread to the "soldering modification post", so yes the train of misinformation continues.

 

[Joe_Blough]

IF an issue occurred and it was determined that an "unauthorized modification" caused damage to the scanner then yes it would void the warranty. This is true with anything you purchase...electronics, household appliances etc. We shouldn't be encouraging those owners to take that risk unless they consider themselves as an "expert" at electronics.

To hopefully put an end to this barrage of the same complaints, let's review what we know so far:

"Some" owners reported a humming/crackling sound on the SDS 200. While some returned it, others dealt with it. Keep in mind, this isn't occurring on all the SDS 200's.

Uniden (UPMan) offered a free "mitigation part" that would "reduce, but not eliminate" the issue. You Tube video showing the procedure.

In addition, a firmware update was released and a setting was added "Audio Off Time" which used in conjunction with the mitigation part eliminates a larger percentage of the noise. UPMan's Wiki has further explanation.

Threads were started reporting the noise has returned despite the installation and some started "squeezing" their scanner claiming it resolved the issue, but later reported it did not. Some added foil/copper tape to resolve the issue.

In this thread a post from a member (who claims he has alot of experience in electronics) actually "soldered" the mitigation piece and now reports the noise is completely gone. (We haven't seen a video supporting this yet).

Uniden Support posted that he reported that the noise has returned post-mitigation installation to Engineering for follow up and is awaiting a response.

Did I miss anything?

If you stick a piece of dynamite in the scanner and light it and it blows up it voids the warranty but no one was talking about that.

You did miss some things.

Several people said modifying or even opening the scanner would void the warranty.

A person posted numerous links with proof that opening, repairing, or modifying the scanner would not void the warranty, that it is illegal for manufacturers to say it would, and that the FTC has sent out warning letters to several companies telling them their warranty policies are illegal.

Several people were embarrassed to be proven wrong so instead of being thankful for being enlightened with the correct information which could be helpful to them, they stated bringing up other things that were never said and trying to make it look like they were right but failing miserably in the process.

Someone said soldering a grounding strap or the mitigation part to essentially eliminate the hum would deteriorate the specs and increase spurious emmissions under FCC Part 15.

Someone posted that the above was more inaccurate information.

That should do it.