Pearl does not boot

Hello all,

I´m MIchael and I´m using a pearl for recording and streaming HDMI sources.
It has worked without any problems so far.
Last Friday, I noticed that I could not call the web interface anymore.
I tried to restart the Pearl and noticed the following.
Power LED lights for about 15 seconds and then goes off again. The display stays black. And nothing happens anymore. But I see that the two LEDs on the network jack are still flashing. I also see the network switch that a device is connected. But I can not ping it.
I tried to cold boot as it is described in the manual, an also I contacted the support. They wrote me:
I would recommend you try disconnecting the power adapter, both from the Pearl and from the wall. Then let it sit for 10 minutes before reconnecting and trying to power up again. Hopefully it was just a minor power fluctuation that caused the issue, and letting it sit will drain the capacitors to correct the issue.
But it did not help:

Does someone have any ideas what I can try?
If not I have to sent it to my dealer cause of warranty.

Regards
Michael

Michael,
If the steps suggest by the support team have not helped, we could be looking at a larger issue and an RMA for warranty is recommended.

Hello GeorgeHerbert,

unfortunately I had to realize that the Pearl is no longer covered by the warranty. As I read, only 12 months warranty on the Pearl, but mine is now 19 months old.
I am from Germany and am not sure how to proceed. Can I trust a $ 6,000 device that fails after such a short time? I was very excited about the features and the quality.
What options do I have left?

You hear after switching on how the hard drive starts, after a short time it makes then the plate comes to a halt and the PowerLed switch off.

Best regards
Michael

If the unit is out of warranty, a repair is still possible, there would be a cost for an out of warranty repair.
The same RMA process would be followed, filing a request using the online form, once approved sending the unit to our labs in Canada. After we have tested/diagnosed the problem, we will quote the cost of repairs.
The RMA Request form can be found here: https://www.epiphan.com/support/rma-request/

Hello,

can you estimate approximately what the cost of a repair could be, some
manufacturers have flat-rate repair prices? do you offer something like
that?

Regards
Michael

Unfortunately we cannot provide a estimate without testing the unit to know exactly what parts maybe required.

Hallo Michael,
rechne damit das dein Pearl mindestens 3 Wochen unterwegs ist nach Kanada. Etwa 10 Tage davon hängt er im Zoll fest. Zurück dürfte es ebenso lange dauern. Der Rückweg war bei mir schneller, in 3 Tagen war das Gerät (Webcaster X2) wieder bei mir. Das Gerät war noch unter Garantie und ein Neugerät wurde aus Holland verschickt. Achte darauf das du alle Zollangaben etc. genau so machst wie von Epiphan angegeben, sonst gibt es Probleme.

Hallo JohnnieW,

danke für die Info.
Also ich fasse dann mal kurz zusammen.
3+X Wochen Versand nach Kanada
Y Tage für Erstellung Kostenvoranschlag
3+X Wochen Versand zurück
Bedeutet Minimum 7 Wochen Unterwegs mit ungewissem Ausgang :frowning:
Klingt nicht sehr erfreulich.
Für mich/uns war dieses Gerät genau passend, Aufnahme und Streaming für 8 Clients.
Hab nun nach einer Alternative geschaut die aus PCs Grabberkarten etc besteht:
Vorteil, Flexibler im Fehlerfall, Kostet weniger als die Hälfte
Nachteil: Hoher Aufwand beim Einrichten

Mal schauen wie wir uns entscheiden, aber zufriedenstellend ist es nicht nach 19 Monaten

Michael

Hello GeorgeHerbert,

I have some news.
After many unsuccessful attempts to turn the device on, I managed to bring
it back to life.
But I can’t proceed a disc check, it says unable to unmount data…
Will it help to use the remote control feature?
Something should be wrong, or?

Regards
Michael

This further suggests a possible disk issue, I would still recommend doing an RMA so we can take a deeper look and investigate.

Hab mittlerweile bei einem Pearl (wir haben ca. 10 Stück im Einsatz) auch das selbe Problem. Ganz schlimm ist es bei den Vorgängern dem Lecture Recorder X2 gewesen, da hatten wir von ca. 25 Stück nach knapp 2 Jahren ca. 10 defekte. Ist für diesen Preis eine Frechheit bzw. einschicken vom Gerät ebenfalls der Wahnsinn…
Wir sind derzeit ebenfalls auf der Suche nach alternativen, da die Geräte technisch zwar Ideal für uns sind, jedoch von der Zuverlässigkeit/Service eine Katastrophe für diesen Preis sind.

LG Manuel

Hallo Manuel,

da stimme ich vollkommen zu. Um den Preis muss und darf man eine längere Lebensdauer erwarten.

Der Pearl, war für unsere Anwendung zwar ideal, aber was hilft es wenn die Haltbarkeit und der Support nichts taugen.
Wir haben nun auf eine reine PC Lösung umgestellt:
PC1 mit Capturekarte und OBS zum Streamen
PC2 mit Capturekarte und OBS zum Aufnehmen
PC3 mit Linux, nginx (rtmp) und ffmpeg (ffserver), stellt uns die notwendigen RTMP und RTSP Streams zur Verfügung… ffserver wird zwar nicht mehr weitergeführt, aber in der Version für uns ausreichend.

Zar nicht ganz so flexibel, aber für unsere Zwecke ausreichend, das zum halben/ ein Drittel des Preises, und wenn
einer einen defekt hat, recht unkompliziert zu reparieren bzw, kann man PC1 und 2 gegeneinander tauschen… nur einen anderen Button drücken :smile:

Michael

=================
Das Ganze in Englisch über google translate :smiley:

Hello Manuel,

I totally agree with that. For the price must and can expect a longer life.

The Pearl was ideal for our application, but what good is it if durability and support are no good?
We have now switched to a pure PC solution:
PC1 with capture card and OBS to stream
PC2 with capture card and OBS for recording
PC3 with Linux, nginx (rtmp) and ffmpeg (ffserver), provides us with the necessary RTMP and RTSP streams … ffserver is no longer continued, but in the version sufficient for us.

Tsar not quite as flexible, but sufficient for our purposes, that for half / a third of the price, and if
one has a defect, quite straightforward to repair or, you can exchange PC1 and 2 against each other … just press another button: smile:

Michael

Manuel, Michael,
Sorry to hear you have had issue with some Pearl units, if you have any details or support case #s you could share with me directly, I would like to look into it for you.

Generally speaking, Pearl has been an extremely reliable system for us, with a return rate well below normal industry standards. It is certainly unfortunate if that has not been your own experience.
With the evolution and changes in Pearl-2 we have an even more reliable system then even the first generation Pearl.

Let me know if there is anything I can do to assist.

Hi GeorgeHerbert,
As mentioned above, it is not worth our while to send the device to Canada for service. The cost, downtime and unpredictable output are not worth it. In my view, the hard disk has a damage, because a check disk issues an error message.
As a technician, I would trust me to replace the hard drive if I would be provided with a suitable operating system image available.
At the moment we are still running the Pearl but with the PC version as a backup in the background (which runs very stable and does not lag behind the quality of the Pearl)
Unfortunately I have to say I am disappointed with the shelf life and can not recommend it.

regards
Michael

P.S. Perhaps you want to know where the Pearl is running in a fixed installation :wink: