bulb didn't work on D5100

[Saltcod]

Everything connected fine except for capturing bulb images.Tested cable...no shutter release.Force use serial cable in settings...still no shutter.Attached logs

 

 

Richard

 

Celestron AVX mount

150mm SkyWatcher reflector

Orion autoguider package

Nikon D5100

AC adapter 

Rosenowe's camera control cable

Windows 8.1/PHD 2.2.2a

logfile-[20141019-19h37m53s682]-[3820]-2014-10-19.txt

logfile-[20141019-19h41m58s052]-[1360]-2014-10-19.txt

logfile-[20141019-19h48m44s938]-[4984]-2014-10-19.txt

logfile-[20141019-19h50m44s381]-[2764]-2014-10-19.txt

[astro_gaz]

*****UPDATE*****

I received Richard's (Saltcod) cable a few days ago. Last night and tonight, I had a chance to test it out extensively and so far I have to report I have seemingly resolved the misfire issue.

 

To those who report that BULB  will not work on your shutter release cables that are ordered from me, I need for you to check and ensure that the red "Locked" indication is *NOT* showing on the MC-DC2 cable's hand controller module, when you hook up your MC-DC2/USB cable to your camera. This was the main cause of Richard's misfire.  

The red 'LOCKED' indication is a crescent-shaped sticker placed underneath the rocker slider switch button on the MC-DC2 hand controller, and only shows when the shutter is manually activated and locked (done by depressing the button and sliding it forward with your thumb).

I will be testing his cable out extensively over the next couple nights to eliminate any other possible causes, and to ensure product quality. Once those tests are complete I will reship his cable out on Monday.

 

-Steve

 

 

hi steve ive been having the same issue of late, i can confirm that my hold button is not on as ive taped it to prevent it from happening, it was working fine until the most recent update so i assumed it might be that? im using a nikon D5100

[Saltcod]

Morning guylain,

 

Tested the Bulb issue yesterday and can't figure it out.I tried Steve's instructions on his cable,but no luck...in Device manager(Windows8.1),USB Serial Converter Properties states location Port_#0004.Hub#0005....and in USB Serial Port (COM3) Properties,it states that the port number is #3...the only port that ever worked for me since I recieved the cable.My last encounter with this problem seemed there was the D80 driver conflicting something ...since the file was deleted,everything went fine,beta ver. 2e or 2f.I've attached a few logfiles

 

Richard

 

 

logfile-[20141101-12h06m14s235]-[3020]-2014-11-01.txt

logfile-[20141101-20h37m08s695]-[4500]-2014-11-01.txt

logfile-[20141101-21h36m32s265]-[1108]-2014-11-01.txt

[admin]

Morning guylain,

 

Tested the Bulb issue yesterday and can't figure it out.I tried Steve's instructions on his cable,but no luck...in Device manager(Windows8.1),USB Serial Converter Properties states location Port_#0004.Hub#0005....and in USB Serial Port (COM3) Properties,it states that the port number is #3...the only port that ever worked for me since I recieved the cable.My last encounter with this problem seemed there was the D80 driver conflicting something ...since the file was deleted,everything went fine,beta ver. 2e or 2f.I've attached a few logfiles

 

Richard

 

 

 

So windows assigned COM3 to your cable, right?

 

In BackyardEOS, did you select COM3 as well?  If not that is the issue.

 

Keep me posted,

 

 

[admin]

Morning guylain,

 

Tested the Bulb issue yesterday and can't figure it out.I tried Steve's instructions on his cable,but no luck...in Device manager(Windows8.1),USB Serial Converter Properties states location Port_#0004.Hub#0005....and in USB Serial Port (COM3) Properties,it states that the port number is #3...the only port that ever worked for me since I recieved the cable.My last encounter with this problem seemed there was the D80 driver conflicting something ...since the file was deleted,everything went fine,beta ver. 2e or 2f.I've attached a few logfiles

 

Richard

 

 

 

So windows assigned COM3 to your cable, right?

 

In BackyardEOS, did you select COM3 as well?  If not that is the issue.

 

Keep me posted,

 

 

Now I really don't understand what you mean.  The log files you sent shows that you have been able to take bulb images so the COM port/cable is working (or was working)

 

2014-11-01 12:08:48,222 [CameraTakePictureOnMessageRecieved] INFO  - CameraPropertyChangedArgs fired: MirrorLock           = '0'

2014-11-01 12:08:48,237 [CameraTakePictureOnMessageRecieved] INFO  - CameraPropertyChangedArgs fired: Tv                   = 'BULB'

2014-11-01 12:08:48,237 [CameraTakePictureOnMessageRecieved] INFO  - CameraPropertyChangedArgs fired: Av                   = '--'

2014-11-01 12:08:48,253 [CameraTakePictureOnMessageRecieved] DEBUG - TAKE PICUTRE ::: Shutter(MANUAL) Av(--) Duration(10.0) Iso(1600) Quality(RAW) Mirror(0) SaveTo(PC)

2014-11-01 12:09:01,287 [33] DEBUG - NIKON EVENT --> OnDeviceOnImageReady(5,type[1]) fired

2014-11-01 12:09:02,412 [36] INFO  - Sending Task 'ProcessCapture' to server for processing

2014-11-01 12:09:02,427 [36] INFO  - Task 'ProcessCapture' was sent to server for processing, response was 'Queued for processing at 2014-11-01 12:09:02 PM'

2014-11-01 12:09:04,459 [Main] INFO  - -----------------------------------

2014-11-01 12:09:04,459 [Main] INFO  - Application state changed: 'ImageCapture'

2014-11-01 12:09:04,490 [Main] INFO  - Imaging session completed successfully

2014-11-01 12:09:04,506 [Main] INFO  - CameraPropertyChangedArgs fired: ImageQuality         = 'RAW'

2014-11-01 12:09:04,506 [Main] INFO  - CameraPropertyChangedArgs fired: MirrorLock           = '0'

2014-11-01 12:09:07,942 [backgroundWorkerPolling] INFO  - C:\Users\Saltcod\Pictures\BackyardTEMP\BackgroundWorker\task-3c9e5192-818a-4c2c-8074-68f8e47bceb9-callback.dat

2014-11-01 12:09:08,598 [backgroundWorkerPolling] INFO  - BackgroundWorker INFO: Return task ProcessCapture(3c9e5192-818a-4c2c-8074-68f8e47bceb9)

2014-11-01 12:09:08,598 [backgroundWorkerPolling] INFO  - LIGHT_10s_1600iso_20141101-12h09m02s318ms.NEF

 

Can you please clarify your issue a second time because it seems to me like BULB is working, your logfile shows evidence of that.

 

Regards.

 

 

[Saltcod]

Yes,I assigned COM3 in BYN... I believe since the second beta version.

[Saltcod]

there was a time yesterday I was able to take a few bulb test shots from 10 to 45 sec....happy that bulb was working,this was early in the day....disconnected and tried later around suppertime...no luck.Tried disconnecting cables and reconnected everything again,no luck...have no issues with anything else....It seems to work fine for a whole night of imaging and the next day could be a totally different story.

[admin]

Yes,I assigned COM3 in BYN... I believe since the second beta version.

 

Settings are not carried over from one beta to the other, you need to reset it for each beta release.

 

Please post a print screen of both your windows com port config and BYE capture plan center.

 

 

 

[Saltcod]

I need to know how to take screen capture..never done it.I just finished trying bulb again but get no response on test cable..when I try bulb,get no shutter and countdown goes but no more shutter sound and abort hangs and freezes

 

Richard

logfile-[20141102-16h57m12s826]-[1060]-2014-11-02.txt

logfile-[20141102-15h20m47s422]-[5004]-2014-11-02.txt

[Saltcod]

Figured out the screenshot.....here is the capture plan and device properties  

[admin]

Thank you Richard.

 

Let's test your cable.

 

1) Turn the camera on and connect your serial cable to the camera.

2) Reboot your computer with the camera still on

 

When Windows start it goes into a cycle of testing all com ports and as a result will open each port which should trigger the camera shutter because it is on and connected using the serial cable.

 

IF YOU DO NOT hear the camera shutter while rebooting it means you have a faulty cable and/or a faulty connection.

 

Let me know what the results are.

 

Reagards,

[Saltcod]

My laptop has 2 USB3.0 and 1 USB2.0.I don't use hubs or USB extensions.I had both USB cables from camera connected,camera on and rebooted computer several times changing the placement of Steve's cable and upon reboot...no shutter sound

[admin]

My laptop has 2 USB3.0 and 1 USB2.0.I don't use hubs or USB extensions.I had both USB cables from camera connected,camera on and rebooted computer several times changing the placement of Steve's cable and upon reboot...no shutter sound

 

You issue seems hardware related, the shutter should have opened upon reboot as Windows cycle through each com port.

 

Have you contacted Steve?

 

Regards

[SteveRosenow]

He has, and I'm awaiting his response from my reply. 

[admin]

He has, and I'm awaiting his response from my reply. 

 

Okay, his issue is odd.  His log file does indicate that he was able to do bulb at least one time <_>

 

 

[SteveRosenow]

He has, and I'm awaiting his response from my reply. 

 

Okay, his issue is odd.  His log file does indicate that he was able to do bulb at least one time <_<

 

 

Indeed. And that's what perplexes me as well.

I have taken the liberty of taking his cable back as a means of investigating the issue and hopefully I can find out whether or not it was a USB port on his end or if there was an issue with the cable itself (read: an errant electrical contact in the MC-DC2 end of things or in the USB plug itself).

I am investigating the possibility of completely removing the MC-DC2 hand controller but leaving its cable in future releases. I have a few prototype designs in the works right now to eliminate it. 

Unfortunately, it might increase production costs a bit. <_<

 

[Joe_B]

For what it's worth, I received my cable from Steve yesterday and spent a bit of time with it, initially having no luck connecting my D7000 at all, but ultimately getting things to work. As soon as I started using Steve's cable, I was unable to connect my camera at all for some reason. My camera connected just fine using the USB cable alone, but for some reason it wouldn't connect when using Steve's cable at the same time. I followed the instructions to the letter, but in the end, I found that I was just not waiting long enough... i.e., 10 seconds wasn't enough in my case. I later noticed the green light on my camera would turn on and stay on as if it was writing to the SD cards or being accessed by my PC, and it was taking about a minute for it to turn off and be "ready" to connect, for lack of a better description. When I waited about a minute before connecting in BYN, the light would turn off and Steve's cable then worked perfectly.

 

Today, I also realized I had a couple dozen old RAW files on the secondary SD card, too. After clearing those out, I did in fact only have to wait about 10 seconds (if not less) instead of a minute for my camera to be ready to connect. Just thought I'd share my experience in case it helps anyone else. Long story short... waiting for that green light to turn off before connecting was all I had to do, and that was directly affected by how full my SD cards were at the time, too.

[SteveRosenow]

It should be noted that in the interest of full disclosure, these cables are built and tested on a Nikon D5100. The camera I test these on is my own personal camera that I also use for my photography business and it has so far accrued over fifty thousand shutter clicks. 

Each cable gets a thorough four-hour test in BackyardNIKON under the equivalent of a full-night's AP run.

In all of the cables I have built so far (about 2-3 dozen), I have had only two issues crop up in production which resulted in BULB not firing, and those issues were resolved before I shipped them. The test rate I am at with regards to successful tests on first hookup to my camera is usually around 99.5%. 

In this instance, I have opted to examine his cable. That will tell me if it's either the cable or his camera - or his camera's USB cable (that can also be the cause - I use a cable with gold-plated terminals, which is rock solid in build quality and I have not experienced any issues).

I should be expecting his cable back in about a week. We shall find out one way!

 

 

 

[SteveRosenow]

One other thing to check and this can also affect connectivity and functionality - make sure to ensure your USB cable's port as well as the MC-DC2 shutter release port is free of dust and debris. 

 

[admin]

Everything connected fine except for capturing bulb images.Tested cable...no shutter release.Force use serial cable in settings...still no shutter.Attached logs

 

 

Richard

 

Celestron AVX mount

150mm SkyWatcher reflector

Orion autoguider package

Nikon D5100

AC adapter 

Rosenowe's camera control cable

Windows 8.1/PHD 2.2.2a

 

Which cable are you using?  A DSUSB or straight serial cable?

 

Regards,

[admin]

Everything connected fine except for capturing bulb images.Tested cable...no shutter release.Force use serial cable in settings...still no shutter.Attached logs

 

 

Richard

 

Celestron AVX mount

150mm SkyWatcher reflector

Orion autoguider package

Nikon D5100

AC adapter 

Rosenowe's camera control cable

Windows 8.1/PHD 2.2.2a

 

Which cable are you using?  A DSUSB or straight serial cable?

 

Regards,

 

Okay, I see you have Steve's cable.

 

Are you sure your selected the correct COM port in BYE?  It must match the COM port Windows has assigned your cable.

 

Regards,

[Saltcod]

Yes I assigned the right com port in BYN

[Saltcod]

I've always used the same Com port number since I got the cable.This happened last weekend and then the following day..it work fine,it's not a constant problem just intermittent.I doubt I'll be out again tonight but tomorrow I'm sure everything will work fine, lol

 

Richard

 

 

 

[admin]

Yes I assigned the right com port in BYN

 

Have you tried contacting Steve?  The serial cable function in BYE/BYN is a simple OPEN/CLOSE command.

 

When you boot Windows it goes into a test cycle and opens up all serial connection.  Plug your cable and turn the camera ON... then reboot your computer... do you hear the shutter open at least once? 

 

If it does not trigger the shutter at lease once you either have a bad cable, a bad connection, or a bad serial port configuration.

 

Keep us posted,

[Saltcod]

I'll check that out in the morning ....keep you posted

 

 

[Saltcod]

I setup in the house this morning(cold out there!)Connected everything as usual.Microsoft assigns Com port 3,which is what I select in BYN.I did shut down computer,connected cables and turned camera on...restarted computer and no shutter release....computer restared for a few minutes,turn camera off then on....bunch of shutter releases,opened BYN,D5100 connected and Bulb worked like a charm .Maybe Microsoft took a nap last night!

 

Richard

 

Celestron AVX mount

150mm SkyWatcher reflector

Orion autoguider package

Nikon D5100

AC adapter 

Rosenowe's camera control cable

Windows 8.1/PHD 2.2.2a

[astroman133]

Richard,

 

Something does not seem right with your setup.

 

You should be able to connect the camera to the PC and turn the camera on.  Once Windows has recognized the camera and the COM port for Bulb exposures you should then be able to start BYN and connect it with the camera.

 

How are you verifying the COM Port?  Are you using the Windows Device Manager?  If so, you should be able to plug and unplug the Bulb cable from the PC and see the COM Port appear and disappear from the devices list.  Of course, while you do this, BYN should not be connected.

 

 

[Saltcod]

Hey Guylain,

 

I don't know if this helps but in this morning's log files with bulb working...I noticed the text 'ProcessOrphan' but in last nights logs,where bulb wouldn't work...only 'ProcessCapture' no 'ProcessOrphan'.Here is this morning's log

 

 

Richard

logfile-[20141020-09h13m11s881]-[3332]-2014-10-20.txt

[Saltcod]

Hey Rick,

 

Yes I use Device Manager,and my Com port appears and disappears when I unplug and plug the Bulb cable

 

Richard

[admin]

Hey Guylain,

 

I don't know if this helps but in this morning's log files with bulb working...I noticed the text 'ProcessOrphan' but in last nights logs,where bulb wouldn't work...only 'ProcessCapture' no 'ProcessOrphan'.Here is this morning's log

 

 

Richard

 

The 'ProcessOrphan' means a image is being downloaded without a capture plan, it is orphaned as in not associated to a plan in BYN.  This occurs when you press the shutter release on the camera for instance.  A picture is taken without an active plan in BYN.  BYN sees the image and download/display the image and it marks it as an orphan image in the log files.

 

Glad it is all working for you this morning.

 

Regards,

[SteveRosenow]

*****UPDATE*****

I received Richard's (Saltcod) cable a few days ago. Last night and tonight, I had a chance to test it out extensively and so far I have to report I have seemingly resolved the misfire issue.

 

To those who report that BULB  will not work on your shutter release cables that are ordered from me, I need for you to check and ensure that the red "Locked" indication is *NOT* showing on the MC-DC2 cable's hand controller module, when you hook up your MC-DC2/USB cable to your camera. This was the main cause of Richard's misfire.  

The red 'LOCKED' indication is a crescent-shaped sticker placed underneath the rocker slider switch button on the MC-DC2 hand controller, and only shows when the shutter is manually activated and locked (done by depressing the button and sliding it forward with your thumb).

I will be testing his cable out extensively over the next couple nights to eliminate any other possible causes, and to ensure product quality. Once those tests are complete I will reship his cable out on Monday.

-Steve