Help please- Wismec DNA200.

[Conanthewarrior]

Hi everyone. I hope you are OK. 

I am quite annoyed today, as my Wismec DNA200 is displaying 'warranty service', and the screen is fading in and out, as if it is struggling to be powered. 

I have a large collection of mods (40+), and out of them all, the DNA200 has had the highest failure rate for me. This will be my third DNA200 to fail, I have four, and one DNA75 in my collection. 

What can I do here? I bought the DNA200 devices on the basis of a good quality board, that will last me a long time. I can't fault Evolvs support, as they did replace the board in two of my other DNA200's that also failed. 

The thing is, I have many cheaper mods that are older, and still function well. I just like being able to use Escribe to set the mod up how I like, but is this a pretty normal failure rate, or have I just been extremely unlucky? 

Any help would be great, as I live in the UK, and as the mod is already displaying warranty service anything I can do myself will be a good idea, as shipping to the USA takes a fair time there and back and costs a fair bit too. 

Thank you all for your help, Conan. 

[Conanthewarrior]

Ok, I have connected to device monitor and the battery voltage is all over the place. 

One is reading at around 3.81V, the second at 3.11, and the third at 1.98V. 

Putting them onto my charger shows them all to be the same voltage level.

Getting very upset with these devices now, if anyone in the UK wants a DNA200 message me and I will give it to you if yet again one needs repair. 

[retird]

You might start a ticket with Evolv.....they can guide you....Evolv has one year warranty on just the board....

Question:   How old is that device as I thought Wismec stopped making that device long ago? 

[Conanthewarrior]

I am pretty sure it is more than a year old easily, but has not had much use at all- probably at most 2-3 days a month in that time due to my other devices and rotation. I was surprised when I checked last how many puffs they had each used- between 2000-8000 puffs. This was a while ago though so could well be double that now for each DNA200. 

I have tried a hard reboot in escribe, still the same issue, and I have tried 2 other sets of married, triple 18650's. 

It is just annoying they are some of my most expensive mods, and I have had a 75% failure rate now, while cheaper mods still are going strong that are 2+ years old (They are only simple mods, but they at least work). 

If anyone has a fix for this, it would be a big help. 

[Conanthewarrior]

I have opened a ticket, I hope I can get some joy, even if it is guidance on how to fix the issue at my end. I will say Evolv's customer service is great as I already have, I must be extremely unlucky though, or is this type of failure rate normal? 
If so, I can't recommend Evolv boards, but I hope I am unlucky as when they do work they work fantastically. 

[retird]

To try to answer your questions:  

I feel your pain.... really..... but I think your failure rate is not normal .... I asked a long time ago about DNA board failure rates for the DNA200's and it was super low compared to average failure rates of massed produced items.... as of 1/11/2016 the failure rate was very low for board specific issues. At that time they had over 200,000 boards in the field. Would you say that a 2% failure rate is reasonable? The failure rate was lower than that as the rate does not count failed batteries or problems caused by the build of the mod. 

My experience:

I have been vaping only devices with Evolv products in them since 2010 (except one which I bought just to test and then sold).  My first device was the Darwin which was made by Evolv in 2010. This device today is still like new and works as good. I have purchased, or made, devices with all of Evolv's products over all these years and had only one failure.  That failure was do to a mistake I made while building a DNA 20.  Evolv replaced that board even though it was my fault.  All of my DNA 20, 30, 40, 25, Kick, Kick2 devices worked until I gave them all away (except I kept 2) when the DNA200 came out.

At the present time I only have the Darwin, a DNA40, 2 DNA200's, and 3 DNA75's and no issues with any of them.... so my experience ranges from devices that are a few months old to a device that is over 6 years old.

Sorry for the long-winded post....hopefully I answered your question...

If you would be so kind to let us know what the outcome is.... may be helpful to others..... THX and I wish you well...

[Conanthewarrior]

It does seem my failure rate is above average- but unfortunately it has still happened. 

I will update with the outcome of my ticket I have raised, out of every manufacturer of mods I own though these have failed the most .

Surely it is not every manufacturer I have bought from that is the issue, as I would expect issues with my other regulated mods (They are my babies- I do enjoy collecting them). 

[retird]

Understand and early on Wismec and Hotcig had to work out a few build issues, as did a few other manufacturers....... it ain't no fun to have a mod that has issues... my hope is that those that read your 75% failure rate don't see it as normal and start saying that Evolv has a 75% failure rate... we all know how social media is....   

[Conanthewarrior]

Oh I don't want that either- I just am annoyed I have been so unlucky myself lol. I love my DNA200's and my 75, as I am a little geeky and love using Escribe to tweak my vape how I like. 

I actually set each profile now with a different preheat and punch, and change the material on the mod as it seems the best way for me to set up my Evolv mods. 

I bought them as long lasting, higher end devices to use alongside my cheaper mods, but have had more trouble with them than the easily replaceable ones

[retird]

I set my profiles a bit different and that's the beauty of the DNA and EScribe..do whatever works for you...  I like "fiddle free vaping" and "geeky"....

I almost always vape one type material (ss316L) and it is a pre-made "Notch" coil (Wismec). ... and set the profile with temp (Temp Dominant), wattage, sufficient preheat, punch, duration and material type and create the screen name.

Occasionally I will vape 2 other pre-made coils of different materials (Aspire Kanthal or Ni200) thus 2 additional profiles... (one Wattage dominant the other Temp Dominant).

I only use one type of atty's for the "Notch coil" and one type atty's for the Aspire coils thus always consistent and "fiddle fee"...clean the atty and pop in new coil and add e-liquid.

I also only use one e-liquid brand thus consistent Vg-Pg, again I like "fiddle free"...

Thus I select a profile for the material/coil used and just adjust temp (or wattage) depending on the profile used and only when needed to be different than the default temp or wattage setting.... all my stuff vapes below 40 watts and/or 440F.

[Conanthewarrior]

I must say, I am VERY happy today . 

I received a reply to my ticket, and there was an explanation there is a known issue with the Wismec DNA200's, and a bad connection with the batteries. 

I was advised to remove the door, and batteries, and press down hard on the side of the mod on a hard surface. After doing this, I replaced the batteries- they was MUCH harder to get in. 
At first, I did not think it had worked, but once I got the door back on, which was a bit of a struggle as I must of pressed a bit too firmly, success!

It now works again perfectly, and I am so happy. I didn't have to send my mod to the USA, and it is working again how it should. Thank you Evolv for helping me out, I did not know of this issue with these devices. 

So, a happy ending to this problem

[Conanthewarrior]

Hi everyone, I now know as I posted the issue is due to the connection with the batteries, and I thought I had solved the problem completely, but today I used a different RDA with a build that needs a bit more power than I usually vape at, and even though the batteries are showing as full, the power is reducing and the battery indicator flashes. 

I am trying to fire at 80W, but the power is dropping to around 60-64W. Temperature control is off, so I just wondered if anyone had any tips on getting the connection as solid as possible again? 

Thank you all for your help, Conan. 

[retird]

Your issue seems to be directly related to the design of the device.  You should contact Wismec for a solution.  

[Conanthewarrior]

It does indeed. I will contact them, but I don't expect much from them from what I have heard . 

I adjusted the ground screw today, and after about 30 minutes of fiddling, got it to work. Then when I put the door on, the problems started again. It seems the door stretches the contact points, and leads to poor conductivity. 

I am not sure wether to sand off the rings that act as reverse polarity protection- I have a DNA200 I converted to use dual 18650's, and have been fine using that with no reverse polarity protection, I just make sure to triple check before I put the batteries in they are the right way round. 

[retird]

Good thoughts..... how about just sanding down the door a bit?   just a thought.....

[Conanthewarrior]

retird said:

Good thoughts..... how about just sanding down the door a bit?   just a thought.....

That does seem like a good idea actually, and is probably a better idea than removing the reverse polarity rings just incase I did accidentally have a forgetful moment and put them in wrong. 

I don't have an electric sander though, what is the best way to sand down this type of door? I have a dremel lol, would that work with the correct tool?

[retird]

I suppose you could use a dremel but I never figured out how to make a straight line while using the sanding wheel.  

[Conanthewarrior]

Well luckily I haven't had to do this yet- after the last adjustment, and also adjusting the negative screw, it has been working well!

I haven't changed the batteries though, I have used USB charging, as I have so many mods it isn't an issue waiting for it to charge. 

When the time comes though to change out these HE4's, I may sand the door down, I actually have a garage full of tools passed down to me from my Grandfather (He is still alive, he lives here but I can use his tools), so when I said I didn't have a sander, I meant something I knew how to use lol. 

I think one of the tools is a Grinder/Sander, I just don't know how to use it, so will have to check that out as it may give me a better result than the dremel- the dremel is mine, and I use it for small projects.

[dl12345]

I have a Wismec DNA200 which I have completely disassembled since I replaced the 510 connector with a FDV V4 low profile short connector (which required quite a bit of surgery on a donor RX200 case with a Dremel).  I have desoldered everything and cut down the battery compartment a little to give clearance for the 510, so I am familiar with the internals.

The battery sled design is very poor. Reading your description of what you did to fix it, it's possible that the battery connectors in the top and the bottom of the sled are not making decent contact. The way you describe pushing on the sides fixing the problem seems to point to the brass cup connectors at the back part of the battery sled not making proper contact, as pushing in on the sides will cause the lids on the sled to have less "play" in it and therefore the spring under the cup connectors will force them into better contact with the battery.

The problem is likely with the top connectors. Unfortunately the lid at the top and bottom of the battery sled is only fixed on by a single screw that is located towards the front of the apex of the triangle formed by the lid. If the door and case machining tolerance is machined slightly too loosely, then the back part of the lid won't press down enough. The spring loaded cups at the top are at the rear part of the compartment (the ground connector at the top left rear is one of these), so the most likely candidate for this problem.

I'm not sure whether this would work, but since it is simple it's worth a try. Cut and fold a piece of paper (as many times as you can and still have it fit in) and wedge it between the battery sled and the top of the case - the paper should only cover the part of the sled at the rear contacts as the screw at the front is good enough to keep the lid firmly in contact with the front connector. This would help to force the back of the lid down and compress the spring more so that there is greater force exerted on the battery. You need a T6 to loosen the screws on the top and bottom of the case in order to be able to remove the battery sled.

[black lace]

I dont have this mod so forgive me if i'm suggesting what may sound like rubbish but for what you have described it sounds like you wont be reguly removing the batteries,, so why not strip out the sled and either convert to a lipo or tape together your batteries then solder and wire them together in series and either glue them in or place and pack them in, i remember when that mod came out and i think it was "xevape" put some shots of its innards up and said he was going to strip it out and convert to lipo.. and rewire because it didnt look duty enough, and i think you have confirmed that..

[Adri]

I tried contacting Wismec support once.
They were very helpfull initially, but after confirming a problem, Wismec didn't want to ofer any guarantee.
I was told to contact the vendor, since Wismec only deals with vendors or distributors, not end users.
The vendor then wanted me to go through the whole process of proving the problem again and in the end denied warranty.

Good luck with Wismec.

[black lace]

I can only suggest when buying anything of value allways try and get it as close to home as you possibly can and do a face to face transaction, then when things go wrong you can tackle it face to face...

[Conanthewarrior]

dl12345 said:

I have a Wismec DNA200 which I have completely disassembled since I replaced the 510 connector with a FDV V4 low profile short connector (which required quite a bit of surgery on a donor RX200 case with a Dremel).  I have desoldered everything and cut down the battery compartment a little to give clearance for the 510, so I am familiar with the internals.

The battery sled design is very poor. Reading your description of what you did to fix it, it's possible that the battery connectors in the top and the bottom of the sled are not making decent contact. The way you describe pushing on the sides fixing the problem seems to point to the brass cup connectors at the back part of the battery sled not making proper contact, as pushing in on the sides will cause the lids on the sled to have less "play" in it and therefore the spring under the cup connectors will force them into better contact with the battery.

The problem is likely with the top connectors. Unfortunately the lid at the top and bottom of the battery sled is only fixed on by a single screw that is located towards the front of the apex of the triangle formed by the lid. If the door and case machining tolerance is machined slightly too loosely, then the back part of the lid won't press down enough. The spring loaded cups at the top are at the rear part of the compartment (the ground connector at the top left rear is one of these), so the most likely candidate for this problem.

I'm not sure whether this would work, but since it is simple it's worth a try. Cut and fold a piece of paper (as many times as you can and still have it fit in) and wedge it between the battery sled and the top of the case - the paper should only cover the part of the sled at the rear contacts as the screw at the front is good enough to keep the lid firmly in contact with the front connector. This would help to force the back of the lid down and compress the spring more so that there is greater force exerted on the battery. You need a T6 to loosen the screws on the top and bottom of the case in order to be able to remove the battery sled.

Hello, thank you for your helpful reply. 

I may of described my fix wrongly, I do not squeeze the sides of the mod, I have to remove the door and then press down, squeezing the top and bottom of the mod together, which bends the top portion of the mod slightly and makes the batteries tighter to insert/ remove. 

The piece of paper idea seems great though, I will definitely try this as it sounds as if it will move the connections the correct way with my issue. 

I am sure I have a T6 somewhere, I will dig it out and then try this. Thank you for your help. 

[dl12345]

Adri said:

I tried contacting Wismec support once.
They were very helpfull initially, but after confirming a problem, Wismec didn't want to ofer any guarantee.
I was told to contact the vendor, since Wismec only deals with vendors or distributors, not end users.
The vendor then wanted me to go through the whole process of proving the problem again and in the end denied warranty.

Good luck with Wismec.

I had a similar experience. I have bought a Wismec RX200 and a DNA200. On both of the devices, the 510 connection became stuck in the "down" position. On the RX200, the thread was badly tapped and eventually stripped itself.

They denied warranty in both cases. In the case of the RX200 they even went so far as to accuse me of using a Smoke TFV4 which they said had a long and unsupported connector. I don't own a TFV4.

Eventually I cannibalised the RX200 for parts - I cut down the front portion of the case by using a dremel to remove the 510 mount under the top of the lid then drilled a larger hole and fitted a new FDV V4 510. I also took the sled out of the RX200 and used it for the DNA 200, which required cutting it a bit so the 510 connector's nut didn't impinge against it. The board and battery contacts, front faceplate and battery cover came from the DNA200, so I now have a bastard child of a RX200 and DNA200 Releaux that functions much better than the original due to the far superior 510 connector.

When I sent Wismec a photo of the 510 and asked how come two devices had the same problem, they implied user error. So no, not impressed with their after sales service. I had even requested that they send me a new 510 connection which I would fit myself and they refused point blank.

As a general rule, the mod manufacturers sometimes take some serious shortcuts. In particular, I don't understand why they insist on putting such poor quality 510s in. It's such an important component that it sure makes sense to spend the extra dollar or so to put in a decent quality part.

[John la]

Almost a 190 000 puffs from my hcigar vt200