Camera Died

[Rick]

I'm curious to see if anyone else has experianced this problem. I was doing some product
photography for a client last night when my S2 beeped at me about 3 times and died. My
batteries are fresh and the camera was plugged into an Ac adaptor, so power to the camera
was not an issue. I let the camera sit overnight and put another set of new batteries into it
but it is completely dead. Luckily I have some authorized service centers close to my office,
and will be bringing it in for service today. I will update this thread as I get new information
on the problem.

[Tom V]

I assume you took out the CR123 batteries too.

When you use the AC Adapter, you are supposed to remove the CR123 batteries. Leaving the CR123 batteries in discharges the CR123 batteries. I don't know if discharging the batteries is the worst that happens, for all I know, the dual power sources may be overpowering the circuitry, causing some internal cooking. You can also take out the AA batteries while using the AC Adapter. The S2's peculiar battery/AC Adapter restrictions lead me to believe that the S2 electronics may be very delicate.

When shooting with studio strobes, I always use a Safe-Sync Voltage Regulator on my sync cord. It reduces flash sync voltage to a safe 6V, protecting the camera’s delicate electronics from the possibly high voltage a power pack can produce. I even use it on my all-mechanical shutters with my 4x5 camera.

Here is a link to a Safe Sync H-Prong Voltage Regulator:
http://www.calumetphoto.com/syrinx/ctl?PAGE=Controller&ac.ui.pn=cat.CatItemDetail&ac.item.itemNo=CG1125&ac.catTree.detail=y

Other ways to kill a camera include the way my brother-in-law killed one. He decided to check to see if film was correctly loaded in his underwater camera (Nikon Action-Touch) - while he was under water. When he realized that water was in the camera, he quickly shut the back, but it was too late. Dead camera.

I 1976 I dropped my Minolta SRT 102 in Lake Superior (not the deep end) and recovered it 10 seconds later. It took 2 days to dry out before it worked again. It worked for about 1 year before the corrosion finally killed the SLR. The indestructible Tamron 70-220 f4 zoom it was attached to never even flinched.

[Rick]

Tom,

If you are ever in So. California I owe you the biggest steak dinner money
can buy. I had the CR123A's in. I removed them and plugged in the AC
adaptor and it WORKED!!!!!

Where did you find out about the battery removal? I read every piece of info
that came with the camera and never saw any mention of taking the batteries
out when using the AC adaptor.

Thanks Again!

Rick

[Tom V]

I looked to see where it says to take them out, but I could not find a specific instance where it says you MUST take them out. My manual does mention taking the CR123s out in conjunction with the AC Adapter on page 99, and 108. My manual does mention the use of the AC Adapter in several places without suggesting the removal of the CR123s.

There are several posts in these forums that mention how fast the CR123s drain while the camera is using the AC Adapter.

The first time I took mine out was to clean the CCD, and that is a peculiar thing to do, removing batteries, pressing button combinations, etc. It just stuck in my head that I should remove the CR123 whenever I use the AC Adapter.

I'll be over tonight for that steak!

[Topngu]

Is it good idea to modify Quantum bat to use for "AA" and CR123
at the same time?
Any input...?welcome...
before i blow up S2...!do we have 1 year Warr...?:confused:

[BobMc]

There seems to be conflicting info on removing the lithium batteries. On page 99 in the manual it says to remove them when using the ac adaptor but in the notes below it says the lithium batteries are still used when the ac adaptor is connected and also the flash will not work without the lithium batteries.:confused:

[teski]

I would call Fuji before using the Quantum setup. There were some posts early on at dpreview.com about the Quantum frying the S2. Here's a link:

http://www.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1020&message=3243741

Teski

[teski]

...I butchered your name in my reply.

Teski

[surfworx]

Greetings,

I've also heard a MB-16 or 19 can be used instead of the CR123's. I'll try this when the warranty runs out on the camera, but the CR123 thing really is a hassle.

I find the AA's work less efficiently if there are no CR123's in. The camera will operate (minus flash) without the CR123's but it chews the AA's more.

Derrick
www.surfworx.com.au

[turbo-944]

The MB-16 is a great solution to the CR123 issue. With the MB-16 you only need an extra set, or two, of good NMHI AA's. I just came back from a wedding and, for the first time, didn't change any camera batteries after over 1000 frames. I use NoMemPRO 1800ma NMHI's, they are great. The mb-16 does require some fitting to depress the cr123 sensor pins in the body. To get further instructions look at the dpreview.com fuji forum and search for mb-16. There are a couple of approaches to this fitting, but the general concensus seems to be shaving down the plastic shipping cap that comes on the mb-16 to provide the proper alignment of the terminals that replace the 123's and depress the sensor. No reason to wait for your warranty to run out, because the only modifications are to the MB-16(about a $70 part). The voltage provided is the same as provided by the CR123's. The toughest part of the whole process is removing the CR123 battery door, and this procedure is detailed in the documentation provided with the mb-16. As a note, for people with big hands, the mb-16 really makes the grip of the S2 feel much better.

Dan.:) :D :cool:

[surfworx]

Dan,

Sensational reply, my only real misgiving about the MB-16 was that perhaps you can shoot too much, possibly overheating something in the S2. I guess that goes down to my lack of knowledge of the intracacies of the S2.

In the long run it will win hands down, so I'm already making enquiries as to where I can get an MB-16.

Thanks again,

Derrick
www.surfworx.com.au
:eek:

[turbo-944]

Derrick,

Glad to help... the mb-16's are available thru most camera houses that carry nikon. I got mine last week from Adorama, and I think it was $ 69 plus shipping. I wouldn't use the camera without it, now that I've got it. If there's anything else I can help with, feel free to ask.

Dan.:) :D :cool:

[Wolfgang S.]

I've found an hint in the german instruction manual. Page 99/captur 6: ... please remove the Lithiums, when using the AC-Adapter ...

Regards

Wolfgang