Flex 6600 crash

Pat N6PAT

A waste overall.

fyi...the majority of the solar power you capture in a battery would normally radiate back into space. Now that captured power will be used instead to run electronics, lights, etc which in turn produce heat.

There's no such thing as a free lunch.

Dwayne_AB6A

A few dollars a year Pat. It just sitting there on receive.

Pat N6PAT

I never mentioned money.

N8AUM

About 15yrs ago I tried to find out if its better to turn things off or leave equipment powered on, never did find a straight answer. It use to "bother" me that every place I worked for the lab equipment was NEVER turned off. Over the years I learned and experienced equipment failed more often when powered off. Unless I don't plan on using something I turn it off and pray it works when I hit that power switch.

Pat N6PAT

If you have to worry about something failing every time you turn it off then maybe it's time to buy more reliable equipment.

Do you leave your car running all the time?

N8AUM

Whats better than Keysight ? and NO I do not leave my car running all the the time, got better things to do than changing oil and bearings since they are not designed for that. Do you disconnect the battery on your car car when not in use ?  

Pat N6PAT

Do you really have so little confidence in your radio that you're afraid of turning it off for fear that it may not work when powered up again? If that's the case then why would you buy it in the first place? 

Would you buy a TV that you thought would fail if powered down? Of course not. Then why the concern with your radio?

Patrick

Hardware on/off is not the problem.  Most are related to software.  Or systems of inter operating of software....

Pat N6PAT

If the software becomes corrupt then a factory reset will correct it. That's exactly why there is a factory reset option provided.

Also , I would recommend backing up the settings files on a regular basis as the Flex (at least my Flex) has a history of those files becoming corrupted and unless you have a backup you'll end up having to recreate all the CAT ports.

Don't forget to export your profiles as well using the provided option.

Dwayne_AB6A

Pat - Do you have anything constructive to add? All you do is criticize how others operate their gear. Thermal stress from off to on can be a factor that shortens the life of equipment.. Whether we choose to leave our stations on or not is our individual choice and has nothing to do with the the crash issue.

Pat N6PAT

I'm sorry if you don't care for my observations. I just find it very strange that someone would think their radio would fail if powered off and that's what my comment was about.

It's your radio. Do what you want to do.

Dwayne_AB6A

Ed - I live and breathe computers all day long and have this advice...
1. You need Flex's assistance to identify the type of crash. RAM and Flash issues have symptoms that should be accessible to Flex and it can quickly be determined if a hardware issue.
Meanwhile...
2. The environment can be a factor... You confirmed RF and Grounding is not an issue as receive only  so that leaves power and network. See if you can correlate the crash to a time of day or night and any environmental factors such a big freezer turning off or on. Move the radio over to a UPS or a different power supply. Lastly, as I suggested earlier, isolate the radios network... Just disconnect the network cable after you finish up at night and leave the radio running. 
At 12AM daily, there is a "****" in my house as the city turns off a pumping station just up the hill - It primarily affects water pressure hence the crake, but there is a brief power tweak as well. I have a big 50A power supply and all my equipment seems to ride through this event without issue, I could appreciate it being a factor for me which I am aware of.

Bill -VA3WTB

I understand what N8AUM is saying, he is not talking about fearing his radio will not start up next time, he is only saying that it is true turning off electronics and back on again is stressful on the any device. How ever I should point out that you can turn your radio on and off for many years without it failing. It is unclear by leaving it on how much if any benefit is seen.

Pat N6PAT

Is a TV considered electronics? Yes. Do we leave our TV on 24/7? No. Is an AM/FM household radio electronics? Yes. Do we leave that on 24/7? No.

I just find it interesting how perceptions differ when the electronics relates to a ham radio vs any other electronic component.

As I said, it's your radio do what you want to do with it.

73

Dwayne_AB6A

Can't let it go can you? Help me out Pat... 

Why is there a little red light on the bottom of my TV screen?

How come when I press my remote control button on my TV, it is instantly on, yet when I unplug it and plug it back in, it take 5-8 minutes to "start up"?

N8AUM

It will be interesting to find out what is causing the failure. Electronics can be funny, My brand new Maestro got corrupted while upgrading firmware and FRS took care of it. One mode that I like to operate is WSPR so it's on 24/7 except when storms are near. The great thing about the 6600 is that while it's doing that I can also enjoy listening to SW or anything else I want. Hopefully FRS can log into Maarten's radio and figure it out. 
PS, TV's are a tad cheaper so if mine craps out, no great loss LOL

N1DZ

I want to thanks everyone for their help and input. Also thanks to FRS support.
The problems I encountered are all me not understanding the complexity of this radio.
I decided to move on and will sell my 6 months old Flex 6600 for $3400.00.
Anyone interested please contact me.
Tomorrow it will go on QRZ.

Greetings Maarten