Hypnocube 4Cube Instructions v 6.5, December 2013
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Appendix 3: Troubleshooting
With just about every problem, you should first make sure that the lattice wires are not shorting! There’s even
been a case of a completely non-responsive cube (power problem, right? – that’s what we thought too) because
every ground wire was shorted!
Nothing happens when the cube is powered on:
Make sure that the power jack is connected with the proper polarity.
Make sure that the power switch is properly soldered.
Make sure that PIC is soldered properly.
If you have a voltmeter, check to see if you are getting 5V out of the regulator (one of the big capacitors is a
good place to check.) Lack of power suggests something is wrong with the power jack or switch. If you are
getting 5V, then odds are there are one or more shorts on the PCB or lattice wires (particularly with the
Darlington IC and the ground wires.)
A particular LED doesn’t light:
Make sure that the LEDs leads are soldered properly. One color not lighting suggests that that color lead is not
connected. If none of the colors light, it’s likely the ground lead.
It is also possible that the LED was either damaged, defective, or oriented improperly (the last one you can
definitively check by looking for the flat spot on the side of the LED.) If all other LEDs look fine, and the
solder connections are good, the LED may need to be replaced.
An entire row of LEDs doesn’t light:
Make sure the row’s ground wire is not shorted to another wire in the lattice.
Make sure that the ground drop wire for that row is soldered properly, both at the cross wire and at the PCB.
Make sure that the Darlington IC is soldered properly.
Make sure that PIC is soldered properly.
An entire column of colors doesn’t light:
Make sure that the column’s drop wires are not shorted to another wire in the lattice.
Make sure that the drop wire for that color is soldered onto the PCB properly.
Make sure that the register IC, the resistor chip, and the diodes for that color are all soldered properly.
Make sure that PIC is soldered properly.
A row of LEDs is lighting when it shouldn’t be:
This can be caused by a damaged/defective LED or a backwards LED in the lattice. Usually this is accompanied
by the offending LED also not lighting properly.
Check for shorts in the lattice, particularly between the offending row’s ground cross wire and a column wire.
The cube goes through the test sequence fine, but then acts erratically:
Make sure that the USB module is soldered properly.
Make sure that PIC is soldered properly.
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