US vs Euro Phatbox in Audi with display flicker

[Slartibartfast]

I've had an ongoing problem with my PB installation in my Audi RS4 in that the CD and Track number readout on the head unit jump about every 30 seconds or so and the audio playback occaisionally (once per track on average) stutters for a millisecond. I was reading on an RS4 forum (www.RS246.com) about a flat battery problem caused by the user's PB not shutting down sometimes. They seem to think that there is a Euro version of the PB that uses slightly different comms drive levels between the HU and the PB, and that there is a mod available to convert one to the other. Now my PB did indeed come direct from the US to the UK and I suffer the same battery and flickering display/audio problem, so does anyone here know of this hardware mod? I am an experienced electronics engineer so I can source and fit most components without any trouble. Below is the link to the Audi forum but here is the specific text I was talking about, do any of you guys have any ideas?:-

http://rs246.com/index.php?name=PNphpBB2&file=viewtopic&t=51751&postdays=0&postorder=asc&highlight=RNS-E&start=30&sid=06f65014d543a040d2c5c07d685fdd4d

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If I remember correctly, you have the RNS 4 Navigation system fitted. Is the PhatBox a Euro spec unit, or US spec? When the PhatBox is playing, do you get brief, irregular interruptions to the sound, and do the track/time figures on the HU flicker? If so, it just could be the PhatBox/Nav combination which is causing your problem.

Over a period of two years, the battery in my RS6 would go flat in the space of 48 hours. This happened about three of four times. On other occasions I could leave the car for three weeks and it would start perfectly well. I concluded that, because the well-publicised problem with control communications between HU and PB, sometimes the PB just didn't receive the 'power down' command.
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and

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Apparently, the US market HUs use a slightly different voltage level on the data comms between HU and CD changer compared to the Euro spec units. If you use a US spec PhatBox, the data comms are not totally reliable. The symptoms on my installation was that there were breaks in the sound at irregular intervals, also the track number/time display on the Nav+ would jitter (momentarily displaying spurious digits) and very occasionally the battery would become drained within a period of 36 hours (usually it would hold up for at least three weeks). Typically, the break in sound would occur at least once in five minutes, the display jitter would occur several times a minute.

The PBs officially imported into the UK were/are modified to meet the Euro spec. There are options of modifying the US spec PB - one involves the changing of a surface mount chip, another involves a s/w mod together with swapping wires in the interface cable.
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What do you think, does anyone know anything about this?
Thanks!

[timps]

There is a technical work round  on this link  I think its mainly for VW but sounds like your problem.

http://4130-products.com/step/Phatbox/

It might be what your looking for.
Then again ......
Craig  

[judb]

interesting.. I wonder what firmware files he is distributing..

too bad his site sucks and the contact page along with most others is returning a 404..

I'd like more details about the mod hes doing as perhaps that has something to do with the mod to make other stereos work with the phatbox? hmmm (the newest phatboxes with the "extra chip" I mean)

[timps]

I must admit the site was working a lot better when I first visited about 8 months ago.

I guess he's lost interest

As far as the contact page he seems to like postcards .

[sbingner]

I just sent him an email, let's see if he has any cool info for us