I have a Dell version with a messed-up display (yes I know, "common problem"). As I look at the display, the menus are hosed-up (black vertical bands & whatnot thru them, rendering them mostly unintelligible):

1. The "DELL initializing" screen is perfect
2. The pretty-much-blank Music display is perfect
3. If I squint thru the hash & select "About receiver" I can scroll-down and find a perfect display of the Central address and Receiver IP

My suspicion about all this is that these displays are scrolled-out of a memory buffer, and that my memory is hosed, NOT the display. Some parts of the buffer are perfect, and others are not (and in a consistent way, it seems to me).

So I wonder if I can fix it by replacing the memory chip(s). Can anyone here confirm Where they are, and What they are? I suspect they are the chips behind and to the right of the ribbon as you look at the receiver circuit board from the front side.

Hoping one of the hardware gurus (Hugo I think was one) still appear here once in a while. Maybe someone knows a source for either/both of a board layout pic/dwg & schematic?

Many TIA!

OK as I think some more about those SOP 44 chips, maybe they are simply the buffer for music and not the display. In any case anyone knowing anything about the tech. innards of this thing, please help!

I suppose even with a dead display, I could use this unit with Reza's software--maybe RioPlay also includes a web server...

Thanks Peter for your comments--I'm no hardware expert either, but I'm convinced that the display & connector are fine. It's whatever drives the display that is having trouble, and it's doing so in a consistent way.

I suppose I could prove it to myself simply by swapping the LCD with my working Rio Receiver. But after searching the 'net on the memory chips I've lost enthusiasm for trying to fix the thing (can't find a supplier).

My Rio Receiver had a backlight problem when I got it, which I (amazingly) was able to fix by fabricating a clip for it (another thread here). Someday when it gives-out I'll use the nice Dell display to replace it.

The fact that some of the screens are "perfect" leads me to believe the problem is with the software rather than the hardware.

In case you didn't know, the firmware (Linux + music player + menus + fonts + ...) is downloaded from the Windows server when the Rio first boots up. The Linux boot image file is "C:\Program Files\Audio Receiver\receiver.arf". If the Linux image file is corrupted (say, in the fonts area), symptoms such as yours are possible.

I would suggest that you re-install the Audio Receiver software on your Windows machine, then unplug the Rio's power cord, count to ten, and plug it back in and turn it on (cold boot). Just turning off the power button doesn't actually force a cold reboot. In fact, if you run a lan trace while the Rio is turned off, you'll notice that it is still responding to queries from the Audio Manager on the Windows box!!!!! (UDP port 18678)

No guarantee, but that just might solve the problem....

Quote:
Wait. He says he's got a working Rio Receiver. Meaning, it doesn't have display corruption.

If the receiver.arf file were corrupt, he would see the problem on all the Receivers on his network, not just the one. So it can't be software.

Uh, no, re-read his original post. He doesn't mention multiple Rio's, just the one, with some screens (like the initial logo) that are flawless and other screens that are corrupted. Agreed, if he had multiple Rio's, all loading the firmware from the same place, and some were good but others bad, you'd be correct.

My post still stands as a possiblle explanation of the problem. Even if I AM stupid, it won't hurt to try it.

I suppose there could be a situation where only certain screens would be corrupted if they drew pixels in certain areas that triggered a larger fault in the driver chip, or if the fault triggered only when the overall number of lit pixels crossed a certain threshold. Or maybe the display module responds to some kind of serial data protocol, and it's only failing on certain kinds of functions (like only text functions, or only line drawing functions). I don't know how the hardware of that thing works, I'm just saying software isn't the only possible reason for that behavior.

I do have two receivers, one a Rio, and now this Dell. The Rio has a perfect display, so the .arf is not at issue. The reason I'm convinced the Dell's display itself is OK is that it does make a couple of perfect displays, then as you get into other parts of the menu it becomes unreadable. So I think, unless the driver chips are actually on-board to the LCD, that the display is OK and whatever is driving it is not...

I keep looking for a cheap receiver to buy, so I have a third unit to play with--I am reluctant to take my working Rio out-of-service and risk hosing it up, just to prove my theory about the Dell's display...