Cold Bot-1

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jobiwon

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Cold Bot-1
« on: 24 May 2023, 06:20 pm »
Still struggling with this BOT-1.  Put a CD in and and start a rip and as usual the eject button on the MM disappears and the Pi loses control of the BOT.    Unplug it and wait around 4 or 5 days and try again as sometimes that works.  Try this technique several times and no luck, over a period of about a month.  Plug it in and the little green power light flashes intermittently and the eject button never appears.  CD stuck inside   :roll:

When it works, green light glows solid. 

I am wondering does it have something to do with temperature as unplugging it and letting it sit seams to make it work sometimes.  So I take just the BOT into the garage and put it on the cold concrete and let it sit overnight as it got pretty cool out that night.  Bring it back in and plug it in and badda boom the eject button appears and I get out my CD  :thumb: and unplug.

Does something in this thing not like running and normal operating temps?  :scratch:


gbaby

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Re: Cold Bot-1
« Reply #1 on: 24 May 2023, 06:23 pm »
Still struggling with this BOT-1.  Put a CD in and as usual the eject button on the MM disappears and the Pi loses control of the BOT.    Unplug it and wait around 4 or 5 days and try again as sometimes that works.  Try this technique several times and no luck, over a period of about a month.  Plug it in and the little green power light flashes intermittently and the eject button never appears.  CD stuck inside   :roll:

When it works, green light glows solid. 

I am wondering does it have something to do with temperature as unplugging it and letting it sit seams to make it work sometimes.  So I take just the BOT into the garage and put it on the cold concrete and let it sit overnight as it got pretty cool out that night.  Bring it back in and plug it in and badda boom the eject button appears and I get out my CD  :thumb: and unplug.

Does something in this thing not like running and normal operating temps?  :scratch:

I would not agonize over this unit, but rather, I’d buy the dbpoweramp ripper and get hassle free, quick ripping with the cover art.

jobiwon

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Re: Cold Bot-1
« Reply #2 on: 24 May 2023, 06:34 pm »
Yeah already looked into that and got a method set up but I sure would like to know what is wrong with the dang thing

B   ought it
O  h no it doesn't work
T   trashed it

I would be F'n pissed if I paid retail for this thing.

whydontumarryit

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Re: Cold Bot-1
« Reply #3 on: 26 May 2023, 12:16 am »
Yeah already looked into that and got a method set up but I sure would like to know what is wrong with the dang thing

B   ought it
O  h no it doesn't work
T   trashed it

I would be F'n pissed if I paid retail for this thing.

HAHA! That was clever. Not as clever as taking advantage of the 5 yr transferrable warranty (including return shipping) to get the unit serviced or asking the more than approachable members from Bryston on this forum directly for advice about your problem.

dick

James Tanner

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Re: Cold Bot-1
« Reply #4 on: 26 May 2023, 11:40 am »
Hi Job

Sorry just saw this.  The BOT was really designed as a CD player not a ripper.  I know we tried to develop it as a ripper as well but were not very successful.
I have ask Chris to comment as he designed it and the software but at this point I would not recommend it as a ripper.

best
james

unincognito

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Re: Cold Bot-1
« Reply #5 on: 26 May 2023, 01:51 pm »
Still struggling with this BOT-1.  Put a CD in and and start a rip and as usual the eject button on the MM disappears and the Pi loses control of the BOT.    Unplug it and wait around 4 or 5 days and try again as sometimes that works.  Try this technique several times and no luck, over a period of about a month.  Plug it in and the little green power light flashes intermittently and the eject button never appears.  CD stuck inside   :roll:

When it works, green light glows solid. 

I am wondering does it have something to do with temperature as unplugging it and letting it sit seams to make it work sometimes.  So I take just the BOT into the garage and put it on the cold concrete and let it sit overnight as it got pretty cool out that night.  Bring it back in and plug it in and badda boom the eject button appears and I get out my CD  :thumb: and unplug.

Does something in this thing not like running and normal operating temps?  :scratch:

Hi,

Sorry to hear your having difficulties with your BOT-1, would it be possible to post a picture of the BOT's rear?  I'm curious if its one with a first generation or second generation board, knowing might help us come to a conclusion.

Chris
« Last Edit: 26 May 2023, 05:01 pm by unincognito »

jobiwon

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Re: Cold Bot-1
« Reply #6 on: 26 May 2023, 09:27 pm »
Thanks for responding Chris.  We had a few email exchanges regarding my BOT.   You logged in remotely and everything looked ok in MM But we didnt get a resolution.  I suspected the power supply but I dont think that is it.  I think its the unit.   Somthing internal.






R. Daneel

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Re: Cold Bot-1
« Reply #7 on: 28 May 2023, 02:49 pm »
Yeah already looked into that and got a method set up but I sure would like to know what is wrong with the dang thing

B   ought it
O  h no it doesn't work
T   trashed it

I would be F'n pissed if I paid retail for this thing.

Hi!

I am sorry to hear this even though it doesn’t surprise me one bit. The BOT-1 started as a project to add CD playback and ripping to the BDP-1 and -2. At that time, Chris Rice who developed the project, was experimenting with a conventional 5.25’’ ROM drive installed into a full-size 17’’ chassis. Later they switched to a laptop-size miniature ROM drive and half-width chassis because the expenditure of material on the chassis was unrealistic. James Tanner said so himself, I remember that clearly.

While I will admit that adding CD playback to a BDP was a project worth considering, Bryston did it in such a poor way that it made the project obsolete before it even came to the market. While they made no attempt to hide that they were using a commercial computer ROM drive, that certainly didn’t prevent them from charging an absurd amount of money for it. Worse than that actually, what they actually delivered was a half-product, one that a serious company should not be releasing or even considering of releasing.

So, you may ask the question why it doesn’t work but Bryston won’t be able to answer it. The reason is quite simple: they didn’t make any of the relevant components inside. For this reason, there is no way they can trace the problem, let alone find a solution. However, it’s fair to say that there are precisely zero small boutique manufacturers with the necessary expertise to create a computer ROM drive. It is nothing to be shamed of, it is how industry operates. If I’m a large company that distributes electricity and need a large transformer, I simply buy it from Siemens or Končar. I don’t need to build one or even know how to build one as there are companies that specialise in such business.

That being said, what I do find shameful is any company repackaging what is essentially an unbelievably low-tech product and trying to cash it in. I’d expect such things to happen from Goldmund but I wasn’t expecting it from a proper engineering company like Bryston. Perhaps they were trying to recoup the expense of software development necessary to add CD playback to an existing platform, since any ROM drive can be used with a BDP, I don’t know. But it doesn’t change my mind that it is preposterous and the very notion an expensive piece of audio gear has a ‘ROM drive’ should be met with strict scrutiny and prejudice. Demand quality for your money!

Cheers,
Antun

James Tanner

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Re: Cold Bot-1
« Reply #8 on: 28 May 2023, 04:52 pm »
Antun

I really recent that you accused our company of ripping people off. This was a project that Chris approach with all due respect for our customers which were asking for a CD/Ripper.
We price products based on our cost plus the overhead needed to continue on.

james

R. Daneel

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Re: Cold Bot-1
« Reply #9 on: 28 May 2023, 09:39 pm »
Antun

I really recent that you accused our company of ripping people off. This was a project that Chris approach with all due respect for our customers which were asking for a CD/Ripper.
We price products based on our cost plus the overhead needed to continue on.

james

Hi James!

First and foremost, I am not accusing you or Bryston of anything and I most certainly did not use the term ‘ripping off’. It is not a part of my vocabulary. My comment is strictly a critique and isn’t pointed towards anyone.

Second, I know a thing or two about engineering so don’t think for a second I am trivialising anything that you do. If I were, I would not be your customer, because Bryston would then seem like ‘every other’ HIFI business, not a company that does its due diligence when designing these things. The fact remains though, BOT-1 is 1400 €.

I am sorry if you resent my comment (or even me), but I do always speak my mind and never with a hidden agenda or malice – what you read is what I mean. Critique doesn’t equal ‘against’, dear Sir, we are not politicians and should know the difference between the two.

As for Mr. Chris Rice, I don’t even know where your comment regarding him comes from. You can be assured that I have nothing but respect for this gentleman. He went above and beyond the ‘call of duty’ one too many times and I do know how valuable and vital such (few) people are. I just hope others know it too. His responsibilities are many and his time is limited, none of which is his fault. Because I remember every single post I have ever read on AC, I can also tell you I was there to read Chris’ post the day he got the prototype working. It was way past midnight. When you cannibalise a sentence and pull words out of context, they lose meaning. In point of fact, I mentioned Chris as the person who designed the product, nothing more.

I’d also like to say I am somewhat surprised at the defensive position you’ve taken. If we were in the aerospace industry, manufacturing instruments to be used in the cockpit of a commercial airliner, we would not be having this conversation. The product would either work as it was designed to or would be considered broken - there is no in-between! No airliner will be ever equipped with an instrument that has not passed all the tests and/or has not been approved and certified by appropriate agencies. But in luxury and entertainment industry, including HIFI, the ‘in-between’ is the customer, I.e. me and others like me. Negative feedback should be a useful resource to anyone and I’m sorry you don’t see value in it.

Cheers,
Antun

unincognito

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Re: Cold Bot-1
« Reply #10 on: 29 May 2023, 04:32 pm »
Thanks for responding Chris.  We had a few email exchanges regarding my BOT.   You logged in remotely and everything looked ok in MM But we didnt get a resolution.  I suspected the power supply but I dont think that is it.  I think its the unit.   Somthing internal.






That unit appears to be running a first generation mainboard and the distinction being when we introduced the barrel jack connector we also changed the circuit design to use a low noise switching regulator from the linear design used in the BDP-1 power supply design, meaning the inefficient linear regulator used could be overheating and shutdown (ie no signs of power until the unit has had a chance to cool down).  If you're up for it I'd like to offer to have the unit brought back to Peterborough, for modification and testing.  I'll need the BOT itself and the power supply, you can either message me privately on audiocircle or contact our support staff, I'll let Mike and Adam know in advance.

Chris