Revised July 2, 2012
NOTICE:
THIS FIELD NOTICE IS PROVIDED ON AN "AS IS" BASIS AND DOES NOT IMPLY ANY KIND OF GUARANTEE OR WARRANTY, INCLUDING THE WARRANTY OF MERCHANTABILITY. YOUR USE OF THE INFORMATION ON THE FIELD NOTICE OR MATERIALS LINKED FROM THE FIELD NOTICE IS AT YOUR OWN RISK. CISCO RESERVES THE RIGHT TO CHANGE OR UPDATE THIS FIELD NOTICE AT ANY TIME.
Revision History
Revision Date Comment
Products Affected
Products Affected
Problem Description
The identified Amplifier and Nodes could fail due to a third party component device that was manufactured improperly. While these components may pass our manufacturing testing and tuning environment, their field reliability is compromised due to this latent manufacturing defect. Only some products with a manufacturing date code between March 15th, 2012 and May 1st, 2012 will contain the affected components.
Background
This component defect has been confirmed by our supplier as being a high potential failure. The failure mode of this component is such that their failure will result in a complete failure of the amp or node they are in.
We have defined the affected component lots and have segregated them from our factory production. We have sorted through all In Process and Finished Goods inventory to remove any products that contain the affected components as of May 1st, 2012. We are currently working with the remaining component inventory to address the product replacement required for previously shipped units.
Problem Symptoms
The exact nature of the failure is unclear at this time, but projected impact could include overheating of the faulty component and eventual shutdown of the entire unit causing a total loss of gain and signal through all ports of the amplifier module.
Workaround/Solution
The recovery plan is to replace the affected units with the new product. Once the affected units have been identified, a replacement order can be placed by working with Customer Service and Sales. Lead time for the affected product will depend on the exact configuration of the product affected. However, Cisco has secured additional material and ramped production to cover the anticipated demand.
How To Identify Hardware Levels
Any of the products identified by the PIDs listed in the Products Affected section that were manufactured between March 15th and May 1st, 2012 could contain the affected components. The pictures below will help you locate the serial number and date code for any units you may possess. Use these pieces of information to identify the units that will need further screening for the affected components. If your units do not fall within the specified date range (March 15th and May 1st), you can ignore this field notice.
Each customer will be provided with a list of serial number of the affected units. Any product that has a serial number on this list will need to be screened to see if it contains the affected component. This screening involves removing the Forward EQ (EQ 1) of the RF amplifier module for all of the GainMaker Amps and GainMaker nodes except the GM 4 Port Node, and inspecting the component for its manufacturing origin (See photos below noting where the component is located and how to identify a good component from a bad one.). Simply stated, a good component is one that has very legible markings on it and a bad one has very faint markings. Any units with a manufacturer's date code after May 1st are not affected by this field notice. These units will have only known good components installed.
What is a list of bad component lot numbers?
Lot Number (BAD) 31473-AB
31473-AC
31473-AI
31473-AJ
31473-AK
32486-AA
32486-AB
How to Locate the Product Serial Number
Where to Locate Component and Determine if it is Good (Legible Markings) or Bad (Faint Markings)
For More Information
If you require further assistance, or if you have any further questions regarding this field notice, please contact the Cisco Systems Technical Assistance Center (TAC) by one of the following methods:
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