Do remote control IR transmitters often go bad?

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Personally never had that happen until now. The remote for my Yamaha receiver stopped working. No IR signals are being output from it. Bought it new 1.5 years ago. Used it once or twice (the remote), and then it sat in the drawer untouched for 1.5 years. Now dead.

Does it happen often that these IR transmitters go bad? Just a fluke I guess. Will try to get Yamaha to replace it under warranty...
 
Yup. Threw out the first set of batteries, thinking they were dead, but no corrosion. Installed a second set and still no go. That's when I realized it's not the batteries.
 
not trying to be insulting but did you check the batteries to make sure they were good, and inserted correctly?

I've never had a remote go bad from sitting.. a few have had worn out buttons eventually.

and the IR receiver is not obstructed in any way?
 
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I had a similar situation happen and turned out my new alkaline batteries had a dud causing the device to not work at all. I pulled out my digital multimeter and it wasn't putting out any voltage. A fresh alkaline 1.5v cell starts at over 1.6v resting. Some devices stop functioning around 1.10v.
 
It is rare that an IR transmitter circuit would fail while not being heavily used. Has it been dropped over the years even though you don't use it?

If it were me I would open it up and find the cause of it not working - because I like tinkering and my electronics background. Dig in!!
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I tested the batteries with volt meter... they are fine.

The remote is just not turning on its IR transmitter when you press any of the buttons (using the old camera trick there).

It was never dropped. It just sat in the drawer for 1.5 years.


As for opening it up... I'll wait for Yamaha to respond. If they'll send me a new one without asking for the old one back, then I'll open it up. Not that I'd know what to do once I did...
smile.gif
 
Originally Posted By: lugNutz
It is rare that an IR transmitter circuit would fail while not being heavily used. Has it been dropped over the years even though you don't use it?

If it were me I would open it up and find the cause of it not working - because I like tinkering and my electronics background. Dig in!!
smile.gif



I agree, once Yamaha gets back to you, open it up and inspect the circuit for any bad solder joints. I can't imagine it's the IR transmitter going bad, more likely a bad solder joint somewhere.
 
I've never had an IR transmitter in any of our remotes to go bad. And we have two young children at home and a dog who likes to chew. Fill in the blanks there. They've been durable for us.
 
Originally Posted By: EdwardC
I can't imagine it's the IR transmitter going bad, more likely a bad solder joint somewhere.

Yes, that is certainly the more likely scenario.
 
If Yamaha doesn't want to replace it, just take a BFH to it! lol, that should fix her up!
 
Haven't you purchased enough free after rebate remote controllers over the years? Of course, they won't have all the functions of the Yamaha.
 
Originally Posted By: Vikas
Of course, they won't have all the functions of the Yamaha.

Yeah, that's the thing. I do have a universal remote that covers most of the basics, but there are a couple of extra buttons on this factory remote that I could use sometimes. Otherwise, it's a trip from the couch to the TV stand to push the button on the receiver, but that is unthinkable in this day and age.
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No big deal either way. Just a small inconvenience. I'm hoping I'll hear back from Yamaha soon since the 2-year warranty is still in effect.
 
IR led's are about as solid as things get. I've got remotes that are older than me that have been seriously abused that still work. My guess is that something else happened internally with the remote, either corrosion from high humidity (not too likely) or some other component just failed.
 
If you point the remote control at a digital camera you will be able to see the IR flicker on the camera view screen when you push a button on the remote. Digital cameras are sensitive to infra-red.
 
Originally Posted By: Rick in PA
If you point the remote control at a digital camera you will be able to see the IR flicker on the camera view screen when you push a button on the remote. Digital cameras are sensitive to infra-red.

As I mentioned earlier, I already did that, and that's how I determined that the IR diode does not work. But thanks. New remote is on its way to me, supposedly.
 
Originally Posted By: Quattro Pete
Originally Posted By: Rick in PA
If you point the remote control at a digital camera you will be able to see the IR flicker on the camera view screen when you push a button on the remote. Digital cameras are sensitive to infra-red.

As I mentioned earlier, I already did that, and that's how I determined that the IR diode does not work. But thanks. New remote is on its way to me, supposedly.

33.gif


Side note: Please allow 4-5 weeks for processing and delivery.. lol.

It's a good thing you don't use it often.
 
Originally Posted By: Rick in PA
If you point the remote control at a digital camera you will be able to see the IR flicker on the camera view screen when you push a button on the remote. Digital cameras are sensitive to infra-red.


hehe before we had digital cameras, I used to use an AM radio
 
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