Sound problem on 2011 Ultimate FX sound card

[jvidamins]

If the swing sensors are not wired properly it will cause major problems. I normally just replace the existing swing sensors with the ones from TCSS and wire them back in the exact positions they were in to start with. The clash sensor I normally move as close to the blade as possible. Have you tried a board with the factory sensors and just wire up the necessary components?

@carthrancore - Yes, it will fit in a 1.25" sink tube.

Both boards I fried I put in 2 swing sensors, where there was only the one before. I've only used the Vader and Anakin sabers, which both have the same card, but each has the swing sensor in a different location. Each location is actually labeled on the board as "Vader" and "Anakin". What I did was put one TCSS swing sensor in each of these locations, both perpendicular to each other, hoping to get better response.

Here are a few pictures to illustrate what I'm talking about...

Before swing sensor swap:
Ultimate FX Board-Side 2.jpgUltimate FX Board-Side 1.jpg

After swap with 2 TCSS swing sensors:
Mounted Swing Sensors.jpg

Maybe this has been my problem. You've never tried that Wade? I'll try this one with just one swing sensor in the position the board calls for and see how it works.

So you don't wire the clash sensor to the board? How do you fasten it to the hilt?

[Jay-gon Jinn]

Do the Vader and Anakin sabers sound the same? If so, it might be that the board has two different fonts on it, and it fried because of the two swing sensors activating two fonts at once. The differing location for the stock sensor may act as a sewitch to tell the board what font to play depending on what saber it was going to be installed in. Just guessing here?

As for fastening a clash sensor to a hilt, if you were to ask four different people how they do it, you'll likely get four different ways. you can mak a pcb using some perf board and then glue that in the hilt or just glue the sensor to the sidewall of the hilt, and I'm sure there's other ways to do it as well.

[Rhyen Skytracker]

Yep, Jay Gon is correct. I use perf board and hot glue to mount the clash sensor to the hilt just below the heat sink. For sabers where the swing sensors are not accurate enough I do the same thing. Use perf board and wire them in series perpendicular to each other and then attach that just under the clash sensor or either put all 3 on the same perf board. I just solder the 2 wires from where the swing sensors to where the existing swing sensor used to be. If I were you I would try it with out changing the sensors first to see if it works properly and if so then you have narrowed down your problem.

[jvidamins]

Ok, that's what I'll do. As a side note, I just bought my third Ultimate FX saber (Vader version), opened it up, and found a completely different soundboard!!! I'll post pics when I get back home. It's much skinnier - similar to the Obi-Wan econo board. It only has one place to mount a swing sensor, and the clash sensor looks identical to the TCSS clash sensor. Also, the whole board is mounted to the blade. Hopefully, it'll be easier for us all to use (and fit).

[jvidamins]

Ok, here is the new board I found in the Vader Ultimate FX saber I bought 2 days ago at a Walmart. The pics below are comparing it to a Vader UFX I bought a week or so ago. The one on the bottom is the new one. Has anybody seen or used this new one yet? Any thoughts?

New Ultimate FX Board 1.jpg New Ultimate FX Board 2.jpg

[jvidamins]

It depends on the power supply and LED that you use wheather you need a PNP transtor or not. If you use a 3.7V single Li-Ion with a green or blue LED you will need transistor. It depends if you are happy with the blade brightness or not. But if you do use a transistor, be sure to use the correct resistor too. It is hard to tell with out looking at the set up in person to tell what went wrong. Do you have any close up pictures of the wiring? Also, the wire grounding out on the LED star can cause major problems too.

@Rhyen, I'm getting ready to try this for the 3rd time and am going to follow all your (and everyone else's) advice, including adding a PNP transistor to my setup. However, when I compare the 2010 econo-board diagram (with the transistor) to this board, I can't figure out how to wire up the PNP transistor. I'm guessing the right leg must still be the positive coming from the battery/charge port. Also guessing the middle leg still goes to the LED +. The left leg is throwing me off. On the 2010 econo, you tie the 3 LED -'s together and take them to the left PNP leg and leave the LED + going nowhere (unless you use an accent LED). But the 2011 UFX board has 5 LED +'s that you tie together and just 1 LED -. Where would these go?

[Rhyen Skytracker]

The LED - from the sound board will go to the left pin on the PNP transistor. The LED + are not needed from the sound board. A PNP uses a - on the base to trigger the connection between the collector and emitter of the transistor. A NPN uses a + to trigger the connection between the collector and emitter of the transistor. That is the main difference between the PNP and NPN transistors. Now when you have a case where you need a + to go to the transistor base you will know which one to use. (NPN)

[jvidamins]

The LED - from the sound board will go to the left pin on the PNP transistor. The LED + are not needed from the sound board. A PNP uses a - on the base to trigger the connection between the collector and emitter of the transistor. A NPN uses a + to trigger the connection between the collector and emitter of the transistor. That is the main difference between the PNP and NPN transistors. Now when you have a case where you need a + to go to the transistor base you will know which one to use. (NPN)

You're the man @Rhyen! Thanks so much for the quick reply! Hopefully my 3rd time's a charm.

[jvidamins]

The LED - from the sound board will go to the left pin on the PNP transistor. The LED + are not needed from the sound board. A PNP uses a - on the base to trigger the connection between the collector and emitter of the transistor. A NPN uses a + to trigger the connection between the collector and emitter of the transistor. That is the main difference between the PNP and NPN transistors. Now when you have a case where you need a + to go to the transistor base you will know which one to use. (NPN)

Ok, I temporarily wired everything up using a bread board before soldering. I got everything to work WITHOUT the TIP 42 PNP Transistor, but was only getting 667 mA. So, I wired everything up for the transistor, but nothing would turn on. I unplugged the battery + to kind of "reset" things, tried again, but still nothing. I triple checked and I have everything wired according the the following diagram I made up. What I am I doing wrong?

2011 Ultimate FX Wiring Layout-2.jpg

[jvidamins]

Bumping cause i didn't see my last post in the "new posts" section, so I'm guessing nobody saw it. I need some quick help. Thanks!