Smithbuilt Posted November 14, 2015 Share Posted November 14, 2015 (edited) To chain the controllers together, do I have to go in and out of the control board? I have a bad RJ45 jack on a board in the middle of the chain. one side is good, but the other jack is intermittent. Wiggling it will break the signal. is there a way I could put a splice or a splitter on the line at that board so I don't need the second jack? Or any other way around this? I know I could re-configure the chain to put this at the end, but that will not be convenient at all. And I can't just swap this with the last controller, after this is 2 CCR and a CBM24. This board is a CTB16.Any wise advice will be appreciated. Tomorrow is start up day, I don't have much spare time Thank you, Edited November 14, 2015 by Smithbuilt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Santas Helper Posted November 14, 2015 Share Posted November 14, 2015 I would suggest using that controller at the end of the chain. Then there would be no worries.Why would putting it at the end of the chain be inconvenient? Just change the ID and poof, it's done. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bizywk Posted November 14, 2015 Share Posted November 14, 2015 I built a custom splitter from qty:3 cat-5 cables out of necessity and it worked, but I was certainly pressing my luck and I don't recommend it. It only worked for me because of the extremely short distance I had to go. Check the intermittent jack for dirt, moisture or foreign material. You can try to reflow the solder joints if you're good with a soldiering iron. Otherwise, I highly recommend contacting LOR. They're PROs at this. Strain relief is the key to avoiding this issue. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smithbuilt Posted November 14, 2015 Author Share Posted November 14, 2015 I will put at the end of the chain if I have to, but to do this will require a new cable of close to 100ft. Now my controllers make a circle around the yard and none cross a pathway down the middle. To get this bad on at the end I will have to run a line backward to the last controller and then work back from there. I can't swap this board with any other after it because any after it are different boards. I was hoping there was a simpler fix. I'm guessing others have had similar problems at some time. Thank you Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Santas Helper Posted November 14, 2015 Share Posted November 14, 2015 Well like Bizywk, I did something years ago and it worked all season long. Some may not recommend it but it does work. Get a cat5 cable and and cut it down to a pigtail length, like a foot or so. Strip each strand of the insulation. Now get another short piece of cat5 cable and strip each strand on that one like you did the first one (another pigtail). Twist each of the same color strands together. red to red, blue to blue, brown to brown and so on. Use electrical tape on each twisted strand to protect from touching and from the elements. Now get a cat5 connector to attach the longer cat5 cable to the next controller. The signals will split and go both directions, just like a splitter. I did this back in 2006 and it was for very long runs going both ways. I had 11 controllers on each side spread out over hundreds of feet. It worked flawlessly all season. All I can say is if you want to try, go ahead. But your results my vary. Let me know if you have questions and good luck. Tom Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
plasmadrive Posted November 14, 2015 Share Posted November 14, 2015 I just used a three way RJ45 adapter with a very short cable feeding the controller. The other two where in and out. RS485 allows for some stub length and at the speed LOR network goes, the stub length is actually pretty long over all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Santas Helper Posted November 14, 2015 Share Posted November 14, 2015 I just used a three way RJ45 adapter with a very short cable feeding the controller. The other two where in and out. RS485 allows for some stub length and at the speed LOR network goes, the stub length is actually pretty long over all. A three way RJ45 adapter. Didn't know they existed. Good idea from our "Christmas Light Fight" guy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ebuechner Posted November 14, 2015 Share Posted November 14, 2015 They don't sell three way splitters locally. But if you're still in a pinch I can walk you through making one from parts you get from Home Depot or Menards. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
msturtz Posted November 16, 2015 Share Posted November 16, 2015 On a CTB16PC, there are three jacks, one of them is an RJ11. As I understand it, you only *need* the RJ45 if you're powering the next device down the line (eg, easy-light-linker, input-pup, etc - NOT a controller), which most of us don't do real often, or from the PC to the first controller (the dongle needs power? I'm not 100% sure on this one). You might just try an RJ11 phone cable from there to the next controller, thereby not using the bad connector. If you have a bad solder joint, it might be an easy fix if you're good with a soldering iron (meaning, if you can put together the kit). Just get to the bottom of the board (which may require removing the heat-sync's -- which might actually not be quick, but it isn't complicated), and inspect the pins under the RJ45. Heat up your iron and re-flow any that look questionable. Worst case, if it's a kit, LOR guarantees them, I bet they'd send you another RJ45 if you asked. -Matt- Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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