I put the chip in, replaced the lcd.

hooked up the wires. hook up usb cable.

All i get is "0.00" reading.

If i disconnect tube and touch two wire stogether briefly, i get a chirp and then the "please wait..." message.

i've tried unplugging usb cable and reconnection several times.

restart computer.

took it all apart, removedd chip, replaced it. checked carefully to be sure no bent pins. reassembled everything.

all no help.


Somewhere there was a thread on this i thought, but can't find it.

now what ?

I did that, the "controller" is what i refered to as "chip". I did that first "put the chip in". later I also took apart again, removed and replaced it to make sure no bent pins. I've cvhecked it a thrid time now.

the "dot" is mounted at the bottom near the "IC3"

Is it possible you have the polarity of the leads backwards? Do you have a volt meter you can use to determine which one is positive? And you could check the voltage across the leads at the same time.
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Did you remove the black sponge from the CON2-pins?
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Gruesse vom Saenger

There is no black sponge at the goldpin connector?

If i disconnect tube and touch two wire stogether briefly, i get a chirp and then the "please wait..." message.

This is attiny crash/reset caused by electromagnetic pulse, hard to believe that because of the very low current, but it happens and has been proven by experiments. This doesn't affect normal operation.

now what ?

Remove the 34063 so there will be no high voltage.
Disconnect the tube.
Plug the sensor to the USB, make sure the BOINC app is not running (it may disable the beeper), take the "+" connector and try shorting briefly again, you should hear occasional beeps (not everytime, just randomly). Note: touching the "+" connector is essential during this test.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HYm79jUpcl0

From my own experience (very fresh - today's)
Had 0 all the time, no sound, nothing, but if i lift tube above ground (by hand) all seems to be OK. Value ~0.10 and beeps.
Try this - i'm going to make some more tests. :)
Update: seems i have to touch tube with my finger all the time, doesn't matter position of tube.
:O

To the guys (OK, Basia is probably a girl) having trouble, have you tried putting a smoke alarm on top of the tube? That should give you enough gamma radiation to see something if the sensor is working.

Al.

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To the guys (OK, Basia is probably a girl) having trouble, have you tried putting a smoke alarm on top of the tube? That should give you enough gamma radiation to see something if the sensor is working.

Al.

@TJM
I watched your test video.
Plugging in usb now. Please wait... 0.00, touch wires breifly many times. NO beeps.

Please do the test again, but this time take a wire, find LM358 (the name may be different, look for "358", as far as I remember it's at the center of the board) and short it's first leg to ground a couple of times (the tube "-" connector is at ground level). 358's output is wired directly to PULSE input so the CPU should count.
If you have a multimeter please check if there is +5V at the 358's pin 8.

Flip the PCB over and inspect the copper traces for breaks (discontinuities) with a magnifying glass. Look for cold solder joints too. The soldering on my detector was impeccable but nobody's perfect. If you can find a couple replacements for the two LM358N you can switch them out and see if that gets it working.
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I have unfortunately got the same thing. I got it working very briefly, returned a couple of units then it seems to have stopped once more and I get 0.00.

The alligator clips I have do not fit on very well though. So I'll replace those. And I used 16gauge wire which was actually a little too big. Do you have any recommend parts for the wire/clips at all ?

My tube seems as if it got just a little crushed on one side too. I'm not certain whether this causes any problems - it is not pierced at all.

@Bok

Looks like your sensor started working again a little while ago. The readings looks sensible, but quite 'spiky'.

My bet is a poor connection with the croc/alligator clips. I tried about half a dozen different types (I have a big box of them) until I found a size that gave me confidence in a good connection.

The ones I finally used came from a set of prewired patch leads. For normal use I'd say they were soo small, but in this case they grip really well, and I suspect the teeth cut through any tarnishing on the tube terminals.

Al.

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I've used 6mm fuse clips as an "intermediate" between the tube and the alligators. Perhaps you can see it in the last picture in this thread.

Perhaps one day I will ask someone with an soldering equipment to simply solder some wire to such a clip, but for now it's fine, and nothing lasts as long as a good temporary solution ;)

or
____________
Gruesse vom Saenger

I redid the connections a little, but they are still not very good. I need to rethink it and/or take the advice given here. Electronics and such is note really my forte :)

@Bok

Looks like your sensor started working again a little while ago. The readings looks sensible, but quite 'spiky'.

My bet is a poor connection with the croc/alligator clips. I tried about half a dozen different types (I have a big box of them) until I found a size that gave me confidence in a good connection.

The ones I finally used came from a set of prewired patch leads. For normal use I'd say they were soo small, but in this case they grip really well, and I suspect the teeth cut through any tarnishing on the tube terminals.

Al.

Try the easy solutions first. Clean the tarnish off the brass contacts on the ends of the tube. Fine (400 grit) emery cloth or sandpaper or steel wool will do the job quickly. If you don't have those materials then dip a rag in vinegar then dab it in some table salt to pick up some salt grains then rub the brass with the vinegar and salt. Texas Pete's hot sauce works well too. The high voltage at the ends of the leads should punch through a little tarnish but if your clips/connections are not tight and the tarnish is excessive ya never know. A quick cleanup of the tarnish is easy and it eliminates a possible cause.

I redid the connections a little, but they are still not very good. I need to rethink it and/or take the advice given here. Electronics and such is note really my forte :)

@Bok

Looks like your sensor started working again a little while ago. The readings looks sensible, but quite 'spiky'.

My bet is a poor connection with the croc/alligator clips. I tried about half a dozen different types (I have a big box of them) until I found a size that gave me confidence in a good connection.

The ones I finally used came from a set of prewired patch leads. For normal use I'd say they were soo small, but in this case they grip really well, and I suspect the teeth cut through any tarnishing on the tube terminals.

Al.