lms 332 screen dim or flickers

Is this the kiss of death for this unit? The screen will become dim, no backlighting, then flickers and now works. Any resets that can be done? It did this when wet, then started working as it dried out.

[jarhead]

Have you checked the wiring?

Checked wiring seems ok. Screen seems to loose backlighting as I can still see images just very faint when this occurs.

[Smitty]

Is the voltage reading at the unit adequate? I know with mine I had to run a heavier ground wire to my fuse block, as it seems the 332 is a bit more sensitive to voltage drops and the bright backlight draws quite a bit of power.

I check the voltage with my DVM, thanks for the tip.

[ffishman]

You may want to try spraying some dielectric grease on the connector.

[Smitty]

Saggys, if/when the unit is working you can also put the screen in "digital" mode and it will show the voltage that the unit is sensing.. Prior to changing my wiring mine was reading under 11v, and would regularly blip or shut down when I started the main engine, keyed the mic on my VHF radio, etc.. Afterwards I'm measuring a solid 12.3-12.5 and no problems at all.

Good luck.

[Sean]

I had a similar problem with mine too.The lighting was flickering and it dropped 70 waypoints in a matter of 5 minutes. It did rain the night before but had never had a problem. It works fine now.

[mbrandt]

I have the same problem on my LCX-25C. I was just getting ready to send it in as it seems to be getting worse. One work around I found when it flickers off, I hit the power button and it goes to the second lighting level. I then turn the brightness up on that level and it is almost the same. Reading this thread I see it looks like a voltage problem. I was suspecting that. It doesn't shut down, just turns off the back light. I use the same gauge wires to my fuse block as the ones on the connector. Do you think increasing this will help? Should I try bypassing the fuse block and wire direct to the battery? I did set it up so I can see the voltage and it flicks off when the voltage fluctuates. As the day goes on, it seems to get better. Just looking for more tips.

[BGunn]

I once had a problem with a unit that was caused by having the wires between the unit, and the hole in the console to tight.
It put just enough stress on the plug on the back of the unit to cause problems. I put a slight amount of slack in the wires and all the problems went away.

Might be worth a try.......