Apollo H87 PCB
I had done all of the metal tweezer checks before building and the board was fully functional. I proceeded with building the keyboard and everything went normally. I installed QMK and VIA to flash software and change rgb. Later that same day I was playing Destiny 2 with my friends and the keyboard started sending tons of random inputs and died seconds later. Flashing new software did not prove to be an effective solution. Since the incident VIA no longer identifies the pcb. I tried following a troubleshooting guide to no avail. The reset button did not bring it back to life. I played around with a multimeter to test where it failed. The motherboards and daughterboard were receiving power, but the switch ports were not receiving power. Did I do something to kill the board or was it possibly defective? I was planning on ordering a new pcb soon, but I got told to stop by here just incase.
34 Replies
@Gondolindrim Can you help with this?
I don't understand what you men by "the switch ports were not receiving power"
In any case, this does seem like some sort of hardware failure, how did you troubleshoot and conclude that motherboard and DB were receiving power? Especially because at the factory setting Apollo does not use an USB daughterboard
I was troubleshooting with a multimeter to see where it failed and switches were not recieving power, unless they arent supposed to. There were 2 locations labeled __ daughterboard but i wasnt aware they were not used.
Just means that i confirmed the pcb was dead and i shouldnt waste any more time trying to flash new software
Switches are not supposed to receive power no
They are supposed to receive a pulsating signal which you won't be able to see on a multimeter
Okay i am finally back home and can hopefully address this issue, my board is not functional after the first hour of use. Is there an exchange opportunity and for what possible reason could it have stopped working during active use. If i cannot get an answer here, i will followed up the email that referred me here and look for answers.
On another note i am unsure how this is marked as solved, i have a dead pcb and no answers as to what
Myself I am not involved with the GEON store, I am the PCB designer and I offer technical support
If you want we can schedule a video call and try to troubleshoot it, and I will be happy to offer whatever support I can
It is however interesting that the PCB can be flashed yet does not work after flashing
This means the PCB is somehow alive
If you would like a return or refund I cannot help you as, then again, I am not involved with the store. The store email is the official channel for this — maybe @Pooh is better equipped to help you
i can follow up the email then, thanks for the response
I must also note that your question was responded to and I did await your anwer, yet you only replied almost two weeks later
Hence why the question was probably automatically marked as resolved
ok i will explain the block i am currently at and am unsure how to resolve.
QMK lists the firmware as corrupt and it forces the STM32 DFU device into bootloader. Every attempt to flash new firmware whether that be utilizing the reset button or using a couple tweezers to send multiple keyboard inputs before plugging in to try and force it to accept a new flash is not giving any results. Am i missing a step or potentially testing incorrectly?
You are testing incorrectly
You should not send "multiple keyboard inputs" before plugging in. The only key that could work is Escape. A priori the right way to do this is using the reset button, pressing it for 5s or more
The question is, are you able to flash firmware? Does QMK Toolbox show a "downloading" message with a progress bar up to 100%?
Send me a screenshot if possible
Also, what firmware file are you using?
firmware bin provided by via
attempted reset method mentioned and it is still stuck in dfu
Wrong firmware
That's the revision Gamma firmware. Different MCU, hence why the PCB can't boot
Check the latest one in #apollo87h-project
i tried the bin in #apollo87h-project and tried creating a new bin in qmk configurator. both shoot the same errors
anything else i should know while doing this?
What do you mean you tried creating a new bin?
What errors do they shoot?
I thought the PCB was not working
keeps saying corrupt, any attempt to reset is not working
Ignore that
Does it show 100% flashed?
yes download 100% flash complete
Ok awesome this means flashing is successful
Now you need to clear EEPROM
Now is the time to enter DFU through ESC
Hold escape and plug the PCB, hold it for 10s
PCB should enter DFU
now i have already tried this and have been unable to access the clear EEPROM button, if it is noteworthy to post again it says Device's firmware is corrupt. It cannot return to run-time (non-DFU) operations
and from what ive been seeing, i am stuck in DFU/bootloader mode
The EEPROM button is not supposed to work
Try holding the ESC key like I wrote
i did
i repeatedly get this response and nothing more
Interesting
I can jump in a video call with you and troubleshoot live
I want to see this
If you are available
Also, as I said before, this can be disregarded
This is a problem with the
dfu-util utilityi am avaliable
Sorry I didn't mean now, it's 1AM for me
Can we do this tomorrow or wednesday?
i will likely be around, if needed i can clear my schedule so yes that works
I'll be available tomorrow in about 10-11h from now
Its a bit early in the morning for me but i can make it work if thats the most convenient time scheduling
I can do later too!
That will be my afternoon
does today work?
Yessir
I'll be avail in half an hour or so
let me know when
New board came in and everything is working perfectly, thanks guys 