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GerryS · (This post was last modified: 06-21-2022 12:36 AM by GerryS.)

SOLVED

Good evening everyone. I'm sorry to bother you all with this, but I've gotten no response from Swiss Micros and I'm very frustrated. Back in 2019/2020 I bought a DM-41X. It worked great except the USB disk would not show up on my Win10 PC. I tried to fix it then but with no tech support and unable to find any information on this issue, I gave up and lost interest.

Yesterday, going through You Tube, I ran across the 2020 HHC presentation on the updates to the 41X. I pulled out my 41X and ran into the exact same problem, no USB disk. I thought the new firmware might resolve the USB Disk issue. I tried a couple of USB cables which made no difference and out of desperation, I dug up a longer USB cable and the USB disk appeared on my laptop! So it appeared to be the cable. But after a couple of connects and disconnects, the USB drive stopped showing up again. To add to the troubleshooting, I also have a DM-42 and it too doesn't send a USB disk to my PC.

Here's what is weird. I went ahead and did a firmware upgrade on the 41X using the bootloader procedure (what a complicated process) and it worked! So now I have DMCP_flash_3.20_DM41X-2.1 firmware installed but it didn't fix the USB Disk problem.

I'm thinking there is a hardware issue with the DM-41X and DM-42 but both calculators work fine otherwise. I have reformatted and tested the USB memory and it all reports on both machines as fine with no bad blocks.

If anyone has a suggestion, I'm all ears. I'm thinking of trying a new USB cable to see if that makes a difference, but I'll have to go out and buy some.

Thank you for your time and suggestions,
Gerry

cdmackay · 06-07-2022, 12:50 PM

hi Gerry,

There's a well-known issue that the USB socket on these calcs may be a bit too far recessed, or too deep, or alternatively that the plastic around the socket protrudes too much. The end result is that some USB cable plugs don't make proper contact in the socket.

This can lead to the PC not seeing the disk or, worse, it disappearing during activity, resulting in its corruption (after which it may not appear at all).

Not all USB cables are the same: if you compare yours, you may find that some have longer plugs than others. Find one with the longest plug, and try that.

Another thing people have tried is to carefully shave some plastic away on the USB cable's plug (not the calculator), to in effect make the plug longer.

Your issue may not be related to the above, but it's worth ruling out, first.

trojdor · (This post was last modified: 06-07-2022 11:19 PM by trojdor.)

CDMACKAY is certainly correct about this.

I had to modify a USB cable by filing off a substantial amount of plastic/rubber material (at the calculator end) to allow it to fit and work properly. It's now dedicated for the SM calculators I own.

Otherwise, like GERRYS, the cable wouldn't work consistently...and it would appear as if there was a hardware problem with the calculator.

If you use a good light and look very closely, it's easy to see/fix the problem.

mike

**rprosperi** · 06-08-2022, 02:25 AM

Another way to solve this problem is to use a micro-USB cable with an extra-long tip; here's one that is cheap, easy to order and works reliably:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B013CX6XO8

GerryS · 06-12-2022, 05:50 PM

Great, thank you for your responses. I found an old cable in my car and tried it and this one works but only on my Macs, not on the HP laptop with Win 10. I had read about the micro USB being recessed too far so I took the back off of both the 41X and the 42, but it made no difference. The two macs that I now get a USB disk are a very old Mac Pro (Early 2008) running OS version 10.11.6 and my year old M1 MBP running Monterey 12.3.1.

It's a very strange and inconsistent issue and I'm afraid that the USB disks will stop working unexpectedly. I've ordered 3 of the USB cables suggested by Bob to see how this affects this issue. Also, I do have a Dell XPS 9710 laptop but the SSD died in it over a month ago. I requested repair but they couldn't find parts, so they have shipped me a refurbished unit that has just arrived. I will give that a try as well.

Thanks again,
Gerry

GerryS · 06-17-2022, 06:49 PM

Just a follow up on this issue. I got the new cables from Amazon and I get my USB Disk reliably on both my Macs and the Dell XPS with Win 11 Pro.

Thank you all for your help,
Gerry

**rprosperi** · 06-17-2022, 08:14 PM

(06-17-2022 06:49 PM)GerryS Wrote: Just a follow up on this issue. I got the new cables from Amazon and I get my USB Disk reliably on both my Macs and the Dell XPS with Win 11 Pro.

Thank you all for your help,
Gerry

Great news, glad the issue is solved, and also thanks for posting that this solution worked, it's useful for folks searching in the future with the same problem.

Suggestion: Edit the original message at the top, adding "[SOLVED]" at the end (without the quotes) so readers can know to look here for a solution to this problem.