Re: Problems with Alpine 9853, I need the big guns on this guys!

Christopher "Torroid" Ott wrote:
"MOSFET" <ntanner@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message news:v9GdnVeTzOKTBUrbnZ2dnUVZ_hGdnZ2d@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
I'm afraid my year old HU, an Alpine 9853 may be SERIOUSLY in trouble and
although I think repair (or a new one and sell the old one for parts on
Ebay) will be what is needed unfortunately.

BUT, I thought I would run it by you guys because heck, I don't know
everything and maybe there's something else I can do.

First, when you put the faceplate in it fires up just like usual. There's a
CD in there now and it begins to play it at a certain volume, BUT NONE OF
THE BUTTONS ARE RESPONDING. Even the volume control does not work. The ONLY
button that still seems to do anything is the white touch-strip at the
bottom and I can actually switch from CD/Tuner/Aux and sometimes get the
first menu that includes the tilt function). But that's the only button
that does ANYTHING. Also, the little red light at the bottom that blinks
when you press a button is ALWAYS blinking really, really fast.

Now my wife will sometimes spill Coke (the beverage, not the white powder)
on the face plate as the drink holder on a '99 Forester is right above the
radio. Some of the buttons were getting sticky so my first thought was one
of the buttons is stuck like it's always being pushed. So I took the
faceplate apart and cleaned the faceplate THUROUGHLY (I have done this with
EVERY Alpine deck I have ever owned as it is fairly easy) so that all the
button now click as they are supposed to.

But when I put the face back in, the problem persisted despite all buttons
operating correctly. Also, I suppose I should note that I am getting 14.4
volts so it's not a voltage thing.

When it is in the tilted position, it will work just fine sometimes. I
think the problem has something to do with the touch strip because even when
every other button does not work, the touch strip sort-of works. Can that
be damaged by Coke?

Any ideas about a cleaning methodology for that strip or has anyone had
similar problems and found a way to fix it?

You know, I was a little leary of that whole "touch-strip" thing when I got
it (it's NEVER good to be the first user of any new technology as there
almost always seems to inevitably be bugs that later versions refine). I
should have followed my instincts and bought ANOTHER model of Alpine.

Anyway, any help or recommendations would be appreciated.

Thank you,

Nick


Had to look up a photo to see what you were talking about.

First, if there's an LED which lights up when you press a button, and it's blinking really fast, there's a good probability that you still have a stuck button. Even if they physically click fine, it still could be electrically shorted.

Isopropyl alcohol is perfectly safe to clean with, as is distilled water. Soak them if you need to, just be sure to blow it dry (canned air) and follow up with approx 30 minutes of 150ish degree heat to dry it out completely. A toaster oven works fine, as does a regular one. Hair dryer, ect.

I would tend to think that because the glidetouch is working that it is not the problem, however you should try cleaning it with a swab and some isopropyl alcohol too. I can't find any good photos of the HU with the faceplate removed, however it looks like there is a pair of LED's when the face is folded down. Are they a data link to the HU? If so, are they blocked with gunk?

Chris


I second the notion of cleaning the faceplate and the contacts. I had an Alpine in my 2000 F-150 that would start acting funky when I removed/replaced the faceplate, and cleaning the contacts seemed to fix my problem every time.

I installed another Alpine in my 2000 Accord, but it didn't exhibit the same problems as the other one with regards to needing cleaning of the contacts.

Now, if only I could figure out which route to go to replace the radio in my 2007 Accord. I don't want to use the bottom pocket kit, and I heard that the control panel that replaces my dual climate controls screws up every now and again. I guess I will cross that bridge if/when my head unit goes out. Now, if I could figure out a way to put the factory head unit in the bottom pocket......
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