iPod Video 30GB :: No defect; No sound

[tkteun]

Strange issue I've got here...

Since a couple of days my iPod doesn't play any music anymore, but this seems to be a software problem.

Facts:
- Rockbox thinks it's playing a song.
- iTunes thinks it's playing a song.
- Both of them detect a Jack (un)plug event (ie. pause automatically).
- The HOLD switch works perfectly
- I hear the popping sound on a CPU reset with my headphones.
- I hear a small amount of static when I push the volume in the +dB, this is volume related.
- The small buzzer (clicker) works in iTunes (located on the Jack PCB).

- I don't hear music!

Maybe unrelated:
- iTunes crashes on playing a movie.

I wanted to try the video out which should be supported, but I'm a big Apple virgin (this is my first).

• Has anyone seen this before???

I didn't use it for a couple of days until I installed 3.6, now it doesn't work at all.
I've tried production release, current release and iTunes, all with the same problem.

Somebody on the chat said it could be I²S, 'cause it happened on his Philips device.

• Is it true that this device has an I²S DAC next to the CPU?
• Can the status of this DAC be debugged?

I bought it second hand in fine condition, hoping I'd never have to go to Apple care.

I hope it's not a freak event (like my Nokia N900 with a dislodged eMMC BGA chip after 2 days)

[Serenity]

Google around--I seem to remember this being an issue with the iPod Video Gen-5s. If you apply a little pressure to a certain part of the case, the sound may come back. I think another temporary solution was sticking it in the 'fridge for a bit to cool it down.  Something about flaky solder contacts?

It's an issue, but I'm at work and can't spend the time looking for it online.  I gotta run.

[tkteun]

I have got access to a hot air soldering gun for SMDs, you think this is a reflow issue?

Apple screwed up the RoHS for these iPods??

[tkteun]

Okay, today I solved the problem...

Nah, > I < didn't really do that...

I opened it up, took it apart and used the aforementioned hot air gun to heat the circuitry up to a lot of degrees.
I put it all back together neatly and, of course, removed some of the dirt.

Then nothing changed.

After my work I hopped by an Apple store where they put it in a iPod dock.
At first it didn't look like it was going to work, but then he magically got some sound out of it. It was really flaky but it did work.
Then I went to the other Apple store where they connected it to an AV cable, it worked flawless over there (thru the dock connector).

Then I got home and the jack also worked.

The guy in the store said both connectors use the same amplifier, so maybe there was something in the Apple connector which short-circuited both of them?