Help: Igniter2 saber - blade light remains on in idle mode

[jediaryeh]

I'm embarrassed to post what is likely a very simple fix (at least, I'm hoping so)... But this is driving me crazy!

My son was playing with a lightsaber with an Igniter2 card.  I heard the retraction sound, but when he gave me the saber, the blade light was still on, although by all indications it was in idle mode.  When I pressed the main button, it went into normal active mode.  But once I pressed the main button to go back into idle mode (the retraction sound plays), the main light remains on!

I inserted the kill key which turned off all the lights (accent and main).  When I removed the kill key, the default activation sound triggered (as normal), the accent lights went on but the blade light also turned on! 

I read through the documentation on the Igniter2 card but couldn't find anything about this issue.  I could access Saber Apps (holding the saber upside down and pressing Aux) but didn't find anything in there that was helpful

It's kinda cool to have a flashlight mode with the lightsaber, but I can't figure out how to get things back to normal.

Any help would be most appreciated!!!

[Sandpeople are people too]

I'd message Naigon, and see what he says, either here, or off his Igniter? - Naigon's Electronic Creations page

[naigon]

In order of likelyhood, this issue is because:

1. The connection between the board and TruDrive is missing or the soldering isn't secure.
2. There is a short in the LED circuit itself
3. The MOSFET of the TruDrive was damaged
4. There is a component missing from the bottom of the main board near where it hooks to the TruDrive
5. The CPU has been damaged for that specific pin

Can you hook up the LED directly to a battery, and make sure all channels work independently? If so, then re-do your connection between the main and truDrive. Then if the issue still persists, take the LED that is staying on and move it to a different channel - if it still stays on you have a problem with the LED circuit, otherwise it is with that TruDrive/MOSFET channel.

[jediaryeh]

In order of likelyhood, this issue is because:

1. The connection between the board and TruDrive is missing or the soldering isn't secure.
2. There is a short in the LED circuit itself
3. The MOSFET of the TruDrive was damaged
4. There is a component missing from the bottom of the main board near where it hooks to the TruDrive
5. The CPU has been damaged for that specific pin

Can you hook up the LED directly to a battery, and make sure all channels work independently? If so, then re-do your connection between the main and truDrive. Then if the issue still persists, take the LED that is staying on and move it to a different channel - if it still stays on you have a problem with the LED circuit, otherwise it is with that TruDrive/MOSFET channel.

Thank you very much for your insights!  Unfortunately, I can't get deep into the saber's internals myself - given this diagnosis, I'll return it to the smith for servicing.  Hopefully your insights will make this a quick turnaround. 

Thank you once again - it's much appreciated, sir!