Topic: Sony PCM-M10 Set Clock FIX / WORKAROUND

[wipeman]

A poster on this forum (kleiner Rainer) seems to have worked out the "set clock" issue. I take no credit for this fix but want to share the fact that my own unit has had its problem fixed by doing this.

Until last week I was getting "set clock" every time I powered on. In this user's post they observed that the internal battery (that stores the clock setting) is only charged when the unit is switched on. When the unit is off, the internal battery discharges and the clock setting is lost.

This post estimated that the unit would have to be left on continually for 30-40 hours for a full charge of the internal battery. Once fully charged the internal battery should persist settings for 2000-3000 hours.

I left mine on (with the "hold" button set) and the unit went to sleep after 10 minutes or so. I then left it over the weekend in this state (NB on battery power). I then woke the unit up (no demand for the clock to be set) and then switched it OFF (properly) for a week to see whether the issue had gone away. It has!

So if you're getting "Set clock" on a regular basis, what you seem to need to do is just leave it switched on for 30-40 hours:
- If you use it every day then just leave it on hold (and let it sleep) when you're not using it as opposed to switching it off.
- If you use it only occasionally then one time when it is being stored leave it on sleep for a few days rather than switched off.

When this has been done you should then be able to turn the recorder off for extended periods without getting the "set clock" when you turn it on again.

Thanks again to kleiner Rainer for working this out and saving us the mild frustration of having to set the clock when we switch on what is otherwise a fantastic little recorder.

If you're having this "clock set" problem at the moment please try this on your own and report whether it goes away.


PS can I just mention the following:
- I noticed very little battery drain from having it in the "sleep" state rather than the "off" state for a few days.
- Having the recorder on "hold" means it is super-fast to wake up and record with.
- I assume that leaving it switched on while on mains power would also power the internal battery (I fixed my own using battery power). The key thing seems to be to leave the unit switched on while the internal battery charges.
 

[darby]

I have owned (2) M10s for the past year or more and always let them fall asleep
and have not had this "so called" clock issue... makes more sense now

[morst]

so leave it on and plugged into the wall for 2 days, and you're good for months? haha, no wonder I never had the problem, i use mine a lot.

[F.O.Bean]

**knocks on wood**

SO FAR I haven't had any clock issues, and when I buy another one I am just praying it won't have that issue as well

[audBall]

I have owned (2) M10s for the past year or more and always let them fall asleep
and have not had this "so called" clock issue... makes more sense now

So, you always leave yours "asleep" without turning it off, regardless of how long it will not be used?

Does this cut into battery life at all (not that 2 AA's are a big concern)?  I like to keep batteries disconnected and removed from my devices when not in use.  Do you (or anyone else) feel this is an issue with the M10?

[darby]

I have owned (2) M10s for the past year or more and always let them fall asleep
and have not had this "so called" clock issue... makes more sense now

So, you always leave yours "asleep" without turning it off, regardless of how long it will not be used?

Does this cut into battery life at all (not that 2 AA's are a big concern)?  I like to keep batteries disconnected and removed from my devices when not in use.  Do you (or anyone else) feel this is an issue with the M10?

I run NiMH in them now and put in fresh batteries when I record a show (or set of shows)
I was using alkalines at first, but didn't care about battery life because of how long they last in the M10
I guess I record often enough to not worry about leaving in the unit
possibly in the future I will take them out, if they are going to be sitting for an extended period of time
and if I have to set the clock it really won't be a problem worth whining about

[stevetoney]

**knocks on wood**

SO FAR I haven't had any clock issues, and when I buy another one I am just praying it won't have that issue as well

You did something different than I did then.  Before I sold that one to you Bean, I'd have to reset the clock every single time I turned it on.  In fact, I was the original person that asked the question about this annoying clock reset issue after I first got the M10.

Funny that it took this long to figure it out, but I'm glad someone finally did!

[spyder9]

Secret to fixing the clock issue:

1) Don't reset during initial bootup.  Skip clock reset and go directly to main screen

2) Drill down and change clock through the menu options.

That's it, and you're as a good as gold.    I own 2 of them and no longer have a problem with the clock. 

I've even switched from Alkaline and NIMH mid-show, and the clock held true.   

 

[wipeman]

Secret to fixing the clock issue:

1) Don't reset during initial bootup.  Skip clock reset and go directly to main screen

2) Drill down and change clock through the menu options.

That's it, and you're as a good as gold.    I own 2 of them and no longer have a problem with the clock. 

I've even switched from Alkaline and NIMH mid-show, and the clock held true.   

I don't think you're correct that this is a general solution - I tried this myself and it didn't fix it.

When I was trying to work out what was going on I tried several things like this and none of them worked. The only thing that worked for mine was to leave the unit switched on for an extended period as in the suggestion at the start of this thread.

When you set the clock yourself from the menu did you then go on to use the unit for some time afterwards? i.e. was it switched on for a while?

[ts]

Secret to fixing the clock issue:

1) Don't reset during initial bootup.  Skip clock reset and go directly to main screen

2) Drill down and change clock through the menu options.

That's it, and you're as a good as gold.    I own 2 of them and no longer have a problem with the clock. 

I've even switched from Alkaline and NIMH mid-show, and the clock held true.   

I don't think you're correct that this is a general solution - I tried this myself and it didn't fix it.

When I was trying to work out what was going on I tried several things like this and none of them worked. The only thing that worked for mine was to leave the unit switched on for an extended period as in the suggestion at the start of this thread.

When you set the clock yourself from the menu did you then go on to use the unit for some time afterwards? i.e. was it switched on for a while?

I don't think spyder followed the thread(s). His solution does not work for this problem. Fortunately so far rainer's does.