Hi,
I’ve got a black screen now on my GC3 for a few days, can you guys reset/cycle the panel remotely or do I have to unmount and pull the power out?
This has been the first issue after updating the FW to get the wifi fixes, I see the last FW fixes a black screen issue but can’t remember what version of FW I flashed up to. I’ll post those details when the panel is back.
It looks like the GC3 is not currently signaling with Alarm.com. Are the button lights on and do any expected chimes work? Your panel may not be powered.
As it is not currently signaling you would need to power cycle locally by unplugging the plug-in power supply, then opening and unplugging the battery. Wait two minutes, then plug in the battery followed by the power supply.
Check the wiring at the power supply and panel while performing the reboot. Be sure wires did not come loose. Any luck?
The GC3 buttons on the right both light up as expected and go off when zones are not ready, but there are no chimes or tones, the screen is black and its lost all comms with the alarm.com app.
So the panel is clearly powered, but no one is home.
I’ll cycle the power later.
Jason,
Things are not looking good. I’ve restarted the unit as you described. All the wires were well in place, nothing was loose. There is nothing happening on the screen at all, its black, looks like the backlight is possibly on. No boot screen or anything when power is connected.
The two buttons on the right still work, the lower one still shows when the system is ready to arm, opening and closing our back door makes it go on and off so the wired connection to the TAKE module and wireless back to the panel is working.
Whats the next step?
Just to be sure, the battery was unplugged as well, correct?
Try unplugging the battery and just boot with the power supply, leave the battery unplugged.
Also, if no result from that, it would be good to test the actual voltage at the panel. How long is the power cable run?
If the power is roughly the expected 14VDC, then my guess is that this is either a software or hardware display fault. It looks like this panel is on the latest firmware. We will reach out to 2GIG to see if there are any known concerns/fixes.
Did you have any power outages or storms around the time this occurred?
Hi Jason,
Yes the battery was unplugged too. There were no power outages or storms, power run is about 30ft.
Voltage at the panel from the power supply is 14Volts.
On startup with no battery attached the results are the same, I’ve taken a short video to show whats happening. it starts, screen backlight comes on, screen seems like its doing something then goes black with the backlight on, both buttons on the right flash and then stay on.
In looking at the forum, this thread has a user thats posted a video too of exactly the same symptoms… https://suretyhome.com/forums/topic/2gig-gc3-black-screen/ . As per that thread, I’ve tried the power on with both buttons held for 20secs, but as per that other user, it had no effect at all.
I’m a software engineer with an electronic engineering degree so am game for any form of debugging you or they want to do. I’m very keen to hear what 2Gig have to say, loosing over $350 of kit after just 2 years of very light service is a scary prospect.
Best regards,
Gordon
IMG_0448.mov (1.3 MB)
We will contact 2GIG and see if there is anything specific they would suggest regarding troubleshooting, and we will update here.
If you have reaction from the panel buttons when sensors are activated, there is more than just power functioning, but it is still a little difficult to point to a cause definitively.
It is strange, but possible I suppose, that this is a software error, but I wouldn’t look there first. Another possibility might actually be a power/capacitor issue in the panel I think.
Let’s pull some items unnecessary to boot (and that are not currently working) to try to isolate any shorts. Power down the panel fully, then try the following:
There are two speaker/mic connectors on the right side of the panel, with black and red wires. Unplug both of those. You may need to use needle nose pliers to get a grip on the connector. I wouldn’t recommend yanking on the wires themselves.
Remove the cell sled from the panel.
Power up the panel, battery first, then power supply. Does it boot?
BTW, we are forwarding the video you attached to 2GIG to assist with troubleshooting. Thank you for posting.
Hi Jason/Warren,
I took off both of the red and black connectors and took out the cell sled. Started the panel, no change, its the same as before and as documented in the video.
Gordon
BTW if anyone else ever needs to take off those connectors one side has a locking pin, put a thin plastic tool in between the two halves and they will pull off very easily vs having to yank them.
2GIG believes this to likely be hardware related, and there is not a lot that can be done to test without sending it in to the manufacturer, unfortunately.
Have you tried a hard reset yet? Try the steps below:
Note that a hard reset Will default panel settings and sensors, so for all readers, be sure to exhaust other steps first during troubleshooting before resetting.
Hi Warren,
Ok, did all that, the buttons behaved exactly as per your instructions.
However still no change in the boot behavior or the screen.
What the deal with sending the panel to 2GIG, will they exchange, fix it etc? Can you send contact details and the process please.
What the deal with sending the panel to 2GIG, will they exchange, fix it etc? Can you send contact details and the process please.
No, this would not be with the expectation of fixing the panel. It is just to indicate that 2GIG may be able to diagnose the failure responsible, but would not be able to walk a user through that type of diagnostics. If the panel is not currently under warranty a replacement or repair would not be available, unfortunately.
Warranty period for the GC3 is 1-year. If not under warranty a new panel would be required currently.
3.1.2 firmware reportedly addressed a frozen display bug, although I don’t think the bug they are referencing affected any other systems (sound, cellular sled, etc.). I am waiting for more info from 2GIG on that at the moment. It looks like this panel was on 3.1.2 though at the time of the failure, correct?
I don’t see the point in sending the panel off to 2GIG if they are not going to fix it.
Right now, I’m not exactly happy, spent north of 350 on a panel that’s failed after 2 years for no clear reason, why would I double down and buy another one now if no one will stand behind the product that you and they are selling?
I certainly understand frustration if a device failure occurs, especially if it is the panel. Of course the panel would be replaced or repaired (suretyDIY always replaces) when under warranty. Outside of the manufacturer warranty period this is typically not an option.
We are still researching this with ADC to see if there are any obvious or otherwise signs of a cause. Unfortunately it cannot be directly replicated and it isn’t a known condition at ADC, but we will update here with any further findings. Unfortunately if a hard factory reset does not work, there is not likely any way to resolve though.
Just to confirm, after the reset attempt do the face buttons react to sensors the same way they did before?
It doesn’t look like there was ever confirmation from the user in the other similar case that was reported (that you linked above) but unfortunately it looks like all sensors and devices show an installation date after the last post.
This means that the Panel was either successfully reset using the buttons, or a new one was programmed using the same module. (Likely a new panel as the user indicated a reset failed)
Hi Jason,
I tried contacting 2GIGs support, it was a very disappointing experience. No troubleshooting help, no option to replace or repair, they just pointed me back to you.
Here is the full chat with them so others can see just how much support they can expect…
12:52:54
Gordon Fortune
I have a 2gig gc3 panel that the screen went black on when in service. It won’t show anything on the screen even after power cycle or reset.
12:53:12
Steve has joined chat
12:54:01
Steve
Hi Gordon, who is your alarm monitoring/installing company?
12:54:16
Gordon Fortune
Alarm.com via suretydiy
12:55:46
Steve
It sounds like a hardware failure on this panel. If you recycled power and defaulted back to factory with no resolution you’ll need to replace the panel. How long have you had this panel?
12:56:00
Gordon Fortune
Just 2 years
12:56:05
Steve
You
12:56:33
You’ll need to contact the company you purchased it from for a replacement or further assistance.
12:57:45
Gordon Fortune
suretydiy are saying its out of your warranty. I’m not happy at all having spent in excess of $350 for a product that lasted 2 years.
13:01:07
Steve
I’m sorry about that. You’ll need to contact them for further assistance. They can probably provide options and/or a replacement panel.
13:02:39
Please contact us again for any additional assistance needed. Thank you for contacting Nortek Technical Support. Have a great day Gordon.
13:02:42
Steve has left chat
I do understand frustration, however, if it is an item beyond its warranty period there is not much else that can be given by the manufacturer in this case. They would be able to help with resolvable conditions but once you get to fully factory resetting the panel, there is no standard further troubleshooting step.
2GIG would not directly handle warranty claims. Warranty process is handled through the vendor/distributor (in this case it looks like the panel was purchased through us, so suretyDIY).
We are likely looking at hardware failure here, or a short on the board.
I am curious if the reset actually otherwise occurred. The sensors would be wiped from the panel but since it is not currently signaling we could not verify that remotely. From above, after the factory reset attempt do the face buttons react to sensors the same way they did before?
I’ll test to see if the lights still respond later tonight.
if it is an item beyond its warranty period there is not much else that can be given by the manufacturer in this case.
So try to see it from my perspective, I bought in good faith a very expensive panel almost as soon as it was eventually released to the market. It’s now faulty, and I agree its outside of the 1 year warranty. However the distributer and the manufacture are saying:-
I don’t feel this level of service or commitment to your customers really backs up the expectation that they will now spend another $300 to roll the dice to see if the new one works out, where in 13months I could be back in the same boat.
So try to see it from my perspective, I bought in good faith a very expensive panel almost as soon as it was eventually released to the market. It’s now faulty, and I agree its outside of the 1 year warranty.
I understand. The expectation is of course problems will not occur, but in rare cases they do. I do see from the user perspective because this is not something unique to the industry. The failure of hardware outside of manufacturer warranty is frustrating.
There is no further troubleshooting you can do, its a HW issue so its basically just discard it now
There is no further standard troubleshooting available beyond factory reset in most cases, no. In most cases, a security technician would not open and try to diagnose further because the problem in this case is not likely a modular component. Replacement of the panel is the next step.
There is no option for repair
A repair outside of warranty would have associated costs. The biggest limitation is probably that the labor to diagnose and possibly repair issues without a known cause such as this would likely rival or exceed the cost of a panel. In the worst case, no repair may be possible anyway.
There is no option to try replacing parts or subsytems
There are limited modular parts to replace, and parts like the display are not kept individually. Suggesting parts to replace would be mostly a guess, but this strikes me as a short on the panel board. If there are extra parts available, our customer service team may be able to help.
Mr Customer, just buy a new panel of the same model and hope you have more luck next time
I understand hesitation, you’ve purchased one GC3, and one GC3 has failed so your only experience has been that. I understand that is frustrating. The model of panel you wish to purchase is ultimately up to you.
We’ve seen this as an unresolvable error now twice. That is out of all GC3s I’ve worked with, locally and through DIYer systems. ADC does not have any ticket history regarding this as a known issue, over probably tens of thousands of accounts, so it happens no more frequently elsewhere. I can’t say it will never happen again, of course.
We’ll continue to work with 2GIG to ensure that if there is a preventative solution that it is addressed. I do not at this time have further troubleshooting suggestions for the panel as it is. I’ve sent this to our customer service team however to look into and see if there are any further options regarding parts. I have asked that they email you Tuesday on any possible options.
Jason,
To follow up on the reset, the panel, post reset attempt, still reacts to the state of our backdoor, so I would have to say despite the quick flashing light sequence its not really reset. I’ve tried the reset process several time now with the same result.
Is there any other method to reset the panel, inter switch etc.?
To follow up on the reset, the panel, post reset attempt, still reacts to the state of our backdoor, so I would have to say despite the quick flashing light sequence its not really reset. I’ve tried the reset process several time now with the same result.
Thank you, I assumed this was the case but wanted to confirm. This is helpful for 2GIG to look into.
Is there any other method to reset the panel, inter switch etc.?
I am still communicating with some engineers and will triple check, but I do not believe so. You can of course access a factory default option in the menu but that is not an option here.