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The Graveyard - Products No Longer Supported => Access Points / Extenders => DAP-1522 => Topic started by: AMPatrick on October 18, 2013, 03:20:45 PM

Title: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: AMPatrick on October 18, 2013, 03:20:45 PM
Re: DAP-1533 probable thermal failures - hello again!

Well I have completed my "after warranty thermal upgrade" of my DAP-1533 replacing the D-Link installed thermal pads with proper heatsinks.  And please do remember the "AFTER WARRANTY EXPIRES" part - doing this will certainly void any remaining D-Link warranty you may have on the unit.

I've gone through three DAP-1533's, all had failed the same way - the DAP-1533 started to run very hot during heavy streaming (HD video - bridge mode - 5Ghz band), the statistics page on the DAP-1533 WEB interface started to show many errors, and then the LAN ports went "dead" and the DAP-1533 was no longer "visible" on my DIR-857 media router...  The three failed units were replaced on warranty (thank you D-Link!).  After the D-Link warranty expired, I installed my "thermal upgrade" on the last replacement unit that D-Link sent me and things have never worked better...

You can find the picture of the upgrade here: http://imageshack.us/a/img13/1039/r1eq.jpg (http://imageshack.us/a/img13/1039/r1eq.jpg)

and it looks like this:

(http://imageshack.us/a/img13/1039/r1eq.jpg)

The smaller aluminum/nickel heatsink on the left side is an H29 size and the two larger ones on the right are H30 size.  The three of them together cost about 45 cents...  I got mine on eBay, but they should also be available from electronic supply stores.  The way I decided what needed to be done was by touching each chip inside of the DAP-1533 while it was streaming HD video and noting the components that I thought were getting too hot.  There were three and that is where the heatsink upgrades went!

The "thermal upgrade" procedure was as follows:

1. Open the unit - there are two screws under two of the rubber feet that need to be removed and then carefully press the "holding clips" on the side of the case and pop off the top.

2. Remove the two D-Link installed thermal pads and underlying thermal tape placed over the two chips on the right side of the unit (see picture).  This was relatively easy for me because the "stickiness" of the thermal tape under the thermal pads was almost nil.  I guess that the heat generated by the underlying chips weakens the glue and since there are no "clamps" holding down the thermal pads, they get looser and looser over time until thermal conductivity is lost and the chips fail.

3. Clean the surface of the chips , the surface of the RF shield, and the bottoms of the heatsinks to insure no residual glue or contaminants remain.  If your heatsinks ship with thermal tape - remove it and clean off any residual glue.  I used industrial isopropyl alcohol 99.99% pure - this is available in most electronic supply stores.

4. Mix up a small batch of JB-Weld epoxy (this has very good thermal characteristics, it is very strong, it can stick ceramic and aluminum together, and it will not degrade with time as does "unclamped" thermal tape).  JB-Weld claims they use "steel" in their epoxy mix - after mixing it is a dark grey color like the chips.  This is probably what gives it the good thermal conductivity characteristic.

5. Place a small "pea" of the epoxy on top of each of this chips and over the chip location under the RF shield.  Be careful not to cover any vent holes in the RF shield that are not already covered by the D-Link heat sink compound underneath the shield.  Be very sparing with the epoxy, since using too much will overflow the epoxy over the edge of the chip when the heat sinks are applied and this would cause problems.

6. Carefully spread the epoxy compound over each chip's surface being careful not to get any down the side of the chip where the compound could compromise the soldered connections or PC board.  The epoxy on the RF shield should not cover any of the open vent holes - only cover the vent holes directly over the RF chip which are already plugged with heat sink compound.  I simply used the bottoms of the heatsinks to spread the epoxy as I was putting the heatsinks down (however I've done this type of thing before).

7. Press the heatsinks onto the chips and onto the RF shield as shown in the picture.  Be sure the ridges are aligned as shown for airflow in case the unit is mounted vertically.  Apply enough pressure to insure that the epoxy is evenly distributed and only forms a very thin layer.  Clean up any epoxy overflow using isopropyl alcohol, toothpicks, and lint-free cloths.

8. Note that the chip nearest the LAN ports is much smaller than the heatsink - so you'll need to be careful with gluing the H30 heatsink onto this chip and not using too much epoxy.  This chip is actually for a smaller H29 size heatsink, but since this is the chip that seems to get the hottest and probably the one that fails, I opted for the larger H30 size heatsink.  Note that this H30 size is the same size as the thermal pad that D-Link used.  This tells me that D-Link knew that this chip runs hot!

9. Let the epoxy cure for at least twelve hours.  Note that you will never be able to "un-glue" the heatsinks from the chips or RF shield, but since these are surface-soldered devices (ie: would not be fixed by an electronics technician) and the DAP-1533 would be off warranty - who cares!

10. Re-assemble the case.


After doing this upgrade, the DAP-1533 runs much cooler.  The heatsinks are "warm" to the touch (whereas touching the original thermal pads was downright hot - too uncomfortable for anything other than a quick touch and ouch! - especially the thermal pad nearest the LAN ports...)

I have been doing heavy HD video streaming over the last week or so and the thermometer that I have on top of my DAP-1533 now reads just a few degrees above room temperature (whereas before the "thermal upgrade" it was over ten degrees above room temperature).  I also note that my DAP-1533 registers zero errors (absolutely none) after this upgrade.  I guess hot chips give advanced warning of failure by generating errors...

I would have opted to buy another media bridge (regardless of manufacturer) if I could have found one that worked as well.  I couldn't find a better performing one so I went to the effort of designing this "mod" to my DAP-1533.  To the folks at D-Link - "Please clean up your act", the DAP-1533 is really an unbeatable unit for as long as it continues to work.

Hope this helps others...
Title: Re: DAP Heat Issues...A Mod (WORK AROUND MOD)
Post by: FurryNutz on October 19, 2013, 11:16:39 AM
Wow Patrick, awesome mod man.  :o Thank you for sharing the detail for any one else who needs this for "out of warranty" modification.

I will certainly make this a sticky and pass this to D-Link for review. I presume this Rev model may or may not see anything like this however we can hope. Seems like an easy fix too. I'll keep this in mind for my 1533.

Thank you again.
Title: Re: DAP Heat Issues...The Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: AMPatrick on October 19, 2013, 05:03:23 PM
You're more than welcome.  The WEB has become a great friend to those of us who are looking to cures for maladies that are not of our making.  I have been often helped by such articles and I am glad to share what I have been able to discover and make right.
Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...An External Fan Upgrade
Post by: FurryNutz on October 23, 2013, 10:30:41 AM
Another suggestion for those not wanting to do this kind of mod or your unit is still in warranty, get a small desktop fan (for vertical DAP placement) or a laptop cooler (for horizontal DAP placement). Place the desktop fan beside the DAP unit, 6" minimum distance from the DAP in vertical position. Place the laptop cooler underneath the DAP unit. Run each fan in low  speeds for low noise operation. Air flow should help keep the DAP unit cool. Some fans are USB so if you are not using the USB connector in back of the DAP unit, plug in the fans USB plug into the USB connector on the back. I suggest and recommend self powered or 110v powered fans if you can find them.

Suggested fans found at Wal-Mart:
http://www.walmart.com/ip/Onn-Laptop-Cooling-Pad/16794998 (http://www.walmart.com/ip/Onn-Laptop-Cooling-Pad/16794998)

http://www.walmart.com/ip/5-Colored-Fan-with-USB-and-AC-Adapter/20567625 (http://www.walmart.com/ip/5-Colored-Fan-with-USB-and-AC-Adapter/20567625)

Other suggested fans maybe listed. Check other sites or supply shops for any general usage fan. Check them out and see what works for you.

Lets keep the DAP-1533 cool.  ::)
Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: AMPatrick on November 05, 2013, 03:39:10 PM
I hope the fan will work.  The "real" issue is the failure of the "glue" on the thermal tape that holds the original "heat pad" onto the "hot" ICs.  Once the "glue" fails, thermal conductivity is lost and the ICs overheat thereby going into a catastrophic "thermal runaway" and then they permanently fail...  Adding a fan will at best only delay this failure, and I suspect by not very much.
Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: FurryNutz on November 05, 2013, 05:57:51 PM
Might chk to see if doing the mod should be a first line of correcting this issue. Most people may not do this. Hope Dlink can do something.
Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: AMPatrick on November 14, 2013, 02:53:19 PM
I hope D-Link does something about the DAP-1533 as well.

In any case, the DAP-1533 does seem to give a warning (more of a hint of impending doom) before it fails.  If you think your DAP-1533 might be running too hot, "open" the DAP-1533 device page on your WEB browser and login as admin.  Navigate to the STATUS -> STATISICS page and look at the error counters.  (You might want to clear/reset these and then login again after 10 minutes or so.)  If the error counters are showing that errors are occurring and that the error counts are increasing faster than you would expect, then you have "a hint of impending doom" ie: thermal failure.  All three of the DAP-1533s that failed on me were showing high error counts before they bricked themselves.

BTW: Since I did my thermal upgrade, I get zero errors - absolutely none - even after many weeks of sustained operation and heavy streaming...
Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: FurryNutz on November 14, 2013, 03:11:13 PM
Thanks for sharing your info Patrick. Hope this will help D-Link to recognize there is a problem.  ::)
Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: FurryNutz on November 27, 2013, 01:30:01 PM
Ok, I took my DAP-1533 cover off. Wow, amazing they used those composite kind of heat sinks for those 2 chips instead of metal heat sinks. I pulled one off and ya, it wasn't fixed to the one chip as well as it should have been. Came off easily. Pulled the other off. Was harder to pull of however it came of with out much force.

I recommend if these 2 sinks can not be removed easily, DON'T remove them. Just put the new metal heat sinks right on top of the composite ones:
http://forums.dlink.com/index.php?topic=56608.msg220927#msg220927 (http://forums.dlink.com/index.php?topic=56608.msg220927#msg220927)

I remembered I had some extra chip set metal heat sinks left over from years back. Found them. I cleaned the surface off with a light wipe of alcohol then pressed the new sinks on. I turned the sinks slightly back and forth while pressing down to make sure the sinks were fixed better. Ya, used the sticky side that came with the sinks so not sure how long the sticky part will last and I'll eventually use epoxy later on. I don't use the 1533 a lot however connected the 1533 to my xbox 360 after closed up the DAP case. I've got it connected on 5Ghz in bridge mode to a DGL-5500 and will do some gaming this week and see how it goes. I should leave the screws out so I can gather some temps direct from the sinks with my laser temp gauge while in operation. Might do that later as well.

I'll post my pics too and experiences soon.

Thanks AMPatrick.

DAP-1533 with cover removed. Two screws under DAP.
(https://image.ibb.co/czhywR/1533_Cover_Off_zpsfad210a7.jpg)

The 3 heat sinks in question:
(https://image.ibb.co/j8ihO6/1533_3sinks_Before_zps9147fce1.jpg)

Removal of the composite heat heat was easy, just gently pull off the two mounted ones:
(https://image.ibb.co/cYQJwR/Removal_zps32973d84.jpg)

New installed metal heat sinks:
(https://image.ibb.co/mXvU36/Installed_Close_Up_zps20e529c7.jpg)
(https://image.ibb.co/fXMQbR/Installed_Close_Up2_zps870bdc78.jpg)
(https://image.ibb.co/b1WQbR/Installed_Close_Up3_zpsee74e505.jpg)



re-covered and installed the 2 screws.

Heat Sink Specs: Similar
High conductivity thermal adhesive tape
Size:14x12x5.5mm
Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: FurryNutz on December 05, 2013, 11:30:27 AM
For those with Amplify DIR-8 Series routers, I did the same thing. The one chip seems to run hot and these composite type heat sinks that are attached don't seem like they are enough.

Mods here:
http://forums.dlink.com/index.php?topic=56608.msg221084#msg221084 (http://forums.dlink.com/index.php?topic=56608.msg221084#msg221084)

http://forums.dlink.com/index.php?topic=56608.msg220927#msg220927 (http://forums.dlink.com/index.php?topic=56608.msg220927#msg220927)

The one chip with the grey looking composite heat sink attached is the one that needs a metal heat sink attached. That's the one that runs the hottest. Don't remove the composite heat sink from the chip, just attach the metal one right on top of it.
Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: Eluder on December 31, 2013, 10:34:09 AM
So my ****tacular DAP-1533 failed for the 4th time (or is it 5th?) for me... even after doing the below mod.
I guess DLink realized they had a horrible product which is why they must have discontinued the product.
I don't recall the heatsinks I used below, but they are BGA type sinks used with aftermarket GPU coolers and used Seksui 5760 thermal tape to secure them, so they can definitely handle the heat this simple access point puts out. Oh well, guess I'm chucking this product in the trash, even though it's under warranty (don't care that I modified it) and I should raise hell with Dlink, it's not worth the trouble.

(http://imageshack.us/a/img838/7803/vq99.th.jpg) (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/838/vq99.jpg/)
Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: FurryNutz on December 31, 2013, 10:39:36 AM
I wish I could get hold of this 1533. I'm wondering if there is something else going on. After I did the mod, I noticed it's handling well and cooler, however I haven't had a chance to take under great load...

I'm wondering if there could be something else going on with are environment or setup...

After doing a factory reset, is the DAP accessible or is it bricked?

Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: Eluder on December 31, 2013, 10:47:10 AM
I'd be surprised if it's the environment as it's used in a home theatre setting with a pretty good home theatre surge protector. None of my other electronics in the past year in the same room have failed on me (including an Xbox 360, PS3, both sold now, Cisco PVRs, etc).
It's fed HD content to multiple devices (Xbox One, PS4 and WDTV Live HD).

I've had the unit replaced every time via warranty via the advanced exchange method, instead of a repair.
Note, when I checked the stats in the AP, there were no dropped packets, etc.

The device works, it's just the usual issue of the ethernet ports failing on me, every single time.
Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: FurryNutz on December 31, 2013, 10:48:56 AM
ok, so the WiFi works however wired devices fail to connect after a period of time when connected Ethernet? Is this in AP or Bridge mode?

What is the DAP connected too in regards to main host router and devices connected to the DAP? Just need to get an idea here...I'm wondering if there could be something on the LAN side that could be cuasing problems. Only thing I can think of that would cause the LAN ports to fail would be a bad cable, pins touching or a really bad configuration of something or a devices LAN port malfuntion...
Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: Eluder on December 31, 2013, 10:54:42 AM
Correct, it's in Bridge mode and the ethernet port does not light up on my netbook when plugging it in to any ports on the DAP (that's my confirmation that the ethernet ports are toast on the DAP).  Same issue the past 4 times...
Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: FurryNutz on December 31, 2013, 10:58:12 AM
Ok, so do the ports come back after a power cycle and work? I do know that there is an issue with bridge mode and the DAP not passing an IP address from the main host router. This is what i see on mine and thought the first one I bought was bad so I returned it and go another...after talking with D-Link about it they said there was a problem in bridge mode...
Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: Eluder on December 31, 2013, 11:01:48 AM
Nope, they're permanently dead, just tried a reset (using the button on the back of the DAP) and connecting it directly to my desktop PC, no connection to the DAP, ports are dead...
Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: FurryNutz on December 31, 2013, 11:07:42 AM
Dang...leave the DAP unplugged for 30 seconds?

I wonder if there is something on the DAP or one of your LAN devices that could be causing the ports to fail...I've only used 2 devices on mine, Mac Book Pro and a xbox 360 at any one time...I don't have any more then that to connect...So my ports are ok.

What are the devices connected to the DAP normally on the ports?

I might ask D-Link to see if they can pull the one you sent back to them and see if they can find a cause for the ports going on on those units or an unit they got back from you. The only reason ports go bad is bad signals, over loaded maybe or bad cables or devices. Having this experience over 5 of these units with the same failure, there could be someone on the LAN side that's causing it...Honest opinion.  :-\
Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: Eluder on December 31, 2013, 11:16:24 AM
Considering the devices connected to the DAP have changed, I find it hard to believe it's anything, but the DAP.
Keep in mind, the DAP I have now which I modded was never used after receiving it via RMA until after you convinced me to do the easy mod.  With that in mind, before this specific DAP was ever turned on, I had swapped out my Xbox 360 and PS3 to the Xbox One and the PS4, and the only things ever connected to the DAP since its first use have been these two devices.
With every other DAP that failed on me, it was an Xbox 360, PS3 and the WD TV Live unit connected to it.
So that rules out the devices I've connected to it, and I'm not sure how a simple ethernet cable could cause the DAP to fail and only the DAP to fail while every other device connected using the same cables work just fine (ethernet wise).
Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: FurryNutz on December 31, 2013, 11:26:40 AM
Has the WDTV always been connected as well? Even though you changed to new forms of XB and PS, This WDTV is still a constant.

I wish I had more info on who else is using this DAP as from me and AMPatrick. Patrick hasn't reported any issues like this nor have I. I presume if others exhibited issues like they they might have said something here or D-Link knows of the ones that haven't reported here in the forums. My first thought is that something on your system maybe causing this as this seems to be an issue only exhibited by you, and yes, there could be others. It's just that after all these units, same model, the failure is the same. I don't think these models are that bad unless there is a bad batch in your region. I presume there is some level to test before they get boxed so at minimum, these units do work out of the box.

I might ask D-Link to see what other kinds of behaviors might cause LAP ports to go bad...I would like to see if someone would take a look at your prior units to see why the ports failed.

Did you get a different model Bridge yet?
Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: FurryNutz on December 31, 2013, 12:03:27 PM
I've asked D-Link to review this to see if they can offer up some info on any possible other reason why the LAN ports are failing. I hope we an maybe figure this one out.  :-\
Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: AMPatrick on December 31, 2013, 07:54:21 PM
Once a DAP-1533 has overheated and started generating a high error rate, adding the heat sinks probably won't help (even if the DAP still works - it'll only be a matter of time) - the damage will have already been done.  You need to check that the error counters stay at zero after the mod - this tells you that the chips have not been damaged by heat.

I mod'ed my DAP-1533 immediately when I received the warranty replacement unit from D-Link (of course I tested the replacement unit for a couple of minutes first).  So I was fairly certain the replacement unit was in good shape and had never suffered thermal damage.  I did check the error counters to insure they were staying at zero when I did the testing.

BTW: I have a SMART LG Television, a SMART Sony Blu-Ray player, and an Apple TV (v3) plugged into my thermally upgraded DAP-1533 which is being used as a bridge.  Since I did my thermal upgrade, I have had absolutely no problems, everything works, everything runs cool, and the error counters stay at zero even after several weeks of continuous operation.  I never have to "reboot" the DAP anymore - it just "keeps on truck'in".   I use the same ethernet cables as I was using when my original DAPs bricked themselves.
Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: Eluder on December 31, 2013, 11:46:27 PM
@furry, no the wdtv live was never connected to this dap. I kept that separate via its own wifi adapted on my network. The only devices ever connected to this last dap was the Xbox One and the PS4. I know what you're saying furry, and it's an easy failure to reproduce on my side. All I need to do is push a lot of hd content to a device connected to the dap in a short period and the ports will fail. For example if I'm streaming a 1080p video that's over 10gb to my wdtv and I'm fast forwarding for a while, that almost always meant a failure to the dap which points to overheating. What I was doing recently was watching a lot of hd content from Netflix streamed to my Xbox One. Ya, I have a new dap, for some reason I bought another dlink, guess cause it was cheap ($30), the dap-1513. Haven't used it yet though.

@patrick, I did the mod off a fresh rma unit so there was never any usage of the device before completing the mod.
Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: FurryNutz on January 01, 2014, 12:58:42 PM
Ok, after the ports fail, do they recover or does it brick the ports completely?

Patrick, I think the problem on his DAP is that the data flow going thru the LAN ports is failing to handle the flow. Can you check your DAP for any LAN port chip heat? I guess I should open mine and see if there is any other chip visible that maybe needs a heat mod. Let us know if you find anything. I have mine with me however I don't have my temp gun.


@furry, no the wdtv live was never connected to this dap. I kept that separate via its own wifi adapted on my network. The only devices ever connected to this last dap was the Xbox One and the PS4. I know what you're saying furry, and it's an easy failure to reproduce on my side. All I need to do is push a lot of hd content to a device connected to the dap in a short period and the ports will fail. For example if I'm streaming a 1080p video that's over 10gb to my wdtv and I'm fast forwarding for a while, that almost always meant a failure to the dap which points to overheating. What I was doing recently was watching a lot of hd content from Netflix streamed to my Xbox One. Ya, I have a new dap, for some reason I bought another dlink, guess cause it was cheap ($30), the dap-1513. Haven't used it yet though.

@patrick, I did the mod off a fresh rma unit so there was never any usage of the device before completing the mod.
Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: FurryNutz on January 01, 2014, 01:17:20 PM
Patrick, Does one of the other follow chips get warm for you? Maybe Eluder can test this as well.

I see 3 other chips, 2x ESMT and 1x MxIC chip. Not sure if any one of these would be something to look at. I see the 2 black transformer blocks as well. Do these get warm or hot to the touch?

I'll try and run mine here today and see if I can feel anything. I presume that the amount of data flow is cause of concern here.

Once a DAP-1533 has overheated and started generating a high error rate, adding the heat sinks probably won't help (even if the DAP still works - it'll only be a matter of time) - the damage will have already been done.  You need to check that the error counters stay at zero after the mod - this tells you that the chips have not been damaged by heat.

I mod'ed my DAP-1533 immediately when I received the warranty replacement unit from D-Link (of course I tested the replacement unit for a couple of minutes first).  So I was fairly certain the replacement unit was in good shape and had never suffered thermal damage.  I did check the error counters to insure they were staying at zero when I did the testing.

BTW: I have a SMART LG Television, a SMART Sony Blu-Ray player, and an Apple TV (v3) plugged into my thermally upgraded DAP-1533 which is being used as a bridge.  Since I did my thermal upgrade, I have had absolutely no problems, everything works, everything runs cool, and the error counters stay at zero even after several weeks of continuous operation.  I never have to "reboot" the DAP anymore - it just "keeps on truck'in".   I use the same ethernet cables as I was using when my original DAPs bricked themselves.
Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: FurryNutz on January 01, 2014, 02:07:24 PM
I've connected my DAP in bridge mode to my DIR-868L on single mode N 5Ghz. I don't think I have the bandwidth here for doing HD nor do i have my sources for streaming here so I'll have to test this again at home this weekend. Just streaming a movie from netflix is making the 2 main sinks warm however not hot. The 3 chips that don't have any heat sinks on them are cool or luke warm to the touch. No discernible heat felt with these chips nor the 2 transformer blocks.

I presume I need to shove some full HD raw content thru to see what else I can find.

Let me know if you can test this out some Patrick and what your findings or results are. I'll be home this weekend and see if I can drive some content thru the 1533.
Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: FurryNutz on January 01, 2014, 02:11:30 PM
The 1513 will be a good test to see how it handles your devices connected and the HD content. I presume that there could be a possibility that buffering will be seen rather than a DAP failure since the ports on the 1513 are 100Mb and not 1000Mb and the WiFi connection speed maxes out at 300Mb and not 450Mb. So I presume there will be differences seen. Please test this 1513 and let us know your results...very interested to know what happens.


@furry, no the wdtv live was never connected to this dap. I kept that separate via its own wifi adapted on my network. The only devices ever connected to this last dap was the Xbox One and the PS4. I know what you're saying furry, and it's an easy failure to reproduce on my side. All I need to do is push a lot of hd content to a device connected to the dap in a short period and the ports will fail. For example if I'm streaming a 1080p video that's over 10gb to my wdtv and I'm fast forwarding for a while, that almost always meant a failure to the dap which points to overheating. What I was doing recently was watching a lot of hd content from Netflix streamed to my Xbox One. Ya, I have a new dap, for some reason I bought another dlink, guess cause it was cheap ($30), the dap-1513. Haven't used it yet though.

@patrick, I did the mod off a fresh rma unit so there was never any usage of the device before completing the mod.
Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: AMPatrick on January 01, 2014, 10:53:43 PM
When I was doing the testing for which chips were to be provided the heat sinks, I streamed HD video to insure the D-Link was working as hard as I could drive it.  Turns out that the chip connected to the LAN ports was the one that got the hottest - by far - and this is why I used an over-sized heatsink on this chip.  I also noted that DLink used an over-sized thermal pad for this chip.

Because I have epoxied the heat sinks onto the chips, I can't get the chip numbers anymore.  The three places where I glued heat sinks were the ones that got the hottest and caused "an ouch reaction" if I touched them with my finger for too long.  All the other chips and other components (transformers, etc.) were simply lukewarm.

After the upgrade (and with the cover off), all of the chips seem to be at a reasonable temperature when streaming HD video although the three places where I epoxied the heatsinks do run a little warmer - but not hot enough to cause "an ouch reaction" when I touch them.  I can keep my finger on the heatsinks for as long as I want without feeling any real discomfort.

Because the LAN chip is so small, only a very small area of thermal tape would transfer heat from the chip to the heatsink.  This is why I used J-B Weld Epoxy - the thermal characteristics far exceed those of thermal tape.  This epoxy is used to repair cracks in diesel engines!
Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: FurryNutz on January 01, 2014, 10:59:20 PM
So the LAN chip is the one that had the composite chip before that wasn't fixed to the chip well. Ok...
Well I didn't do any HD today however I gamed on it and checked it while gaming, wasn't too warm. I"ll get home this weekend and see if I can stream some HD content.

I'm wondering if using the heat taped version of the metal sinks isn't enough for Eluder maybe? His unit is still failing...maybe we need to visually check his chip placement and fixing of the heat sink to ensure it's getting a good heat xfer...

Eluder, can you post some pics for us on what it looks like? Also did you apply a heat sink to the composite one or did you pull that one off? Did it pull off easily if you did pull it?

Patrick, can you do the same so we can see what yours looks like? I'm curious on size of your sinks.
Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: AMPatrick on January 01, 2014, 11:11:07 PM
Here is the picture of my thermal upgrade:

(http://imageshack.us/a/img13/1039/r1eq.jpg)

The two larger heatsinks on the right are an H30 size.  The smaller heatsink is an H29 size.
Heatsink adhesion method: J-B Weld Epoxy
Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: FurryNutz on January 01, 2014, 11:14:30 PM
Thank you Patrick....I'm curious now to see Eluders Mod. I believe mine are the same size as yours. I used the heat tape that came with them to attach. Definitely runs cooler to me however I need to stream some heavy HD and test again.

Thank for your info. Hope we might help Eluder out to find out why his are failing. I'm hoping it might be just that, a heat xfer issue and we need to make sure his sinks are attached correctly.

Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: Eluder on January 02, 2014, 09:47:53 AM
I have a link to my mod in my first post about the failure in this thread. Note for the bigger chip I affixed two sinks to it since the ones I had were a tad small for it. They were however the right size for the other chipset and they were all affixed with seksui 5760 thermal tape. It's too late to do anything with this dap now though. Once it fails it fails and becomes nothing more than a paper weight.   
Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: FurryNutz on January 02, 2014, 09:50:40 AM
So after the lan ports fail it's bricked for good?

Doe AP mode work any?

Can you post a pic of your after mod look?
I found it. I wonder if the larger sink should have been attached to the top most chip. I believe that the one that gets hotter the most.

I do agree, these shouldn't have to be modified to handle heat dissipation for HD thru put content. I still wonder why yours is failing and Patrick isn't seeing this issue...  ???
Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: FurryNutz on January 02, 2014, 11:33:34 AM
Eluder, D-Link has told me that they are going to review this and have a look.

If you have an RMA and or Case number for theses, Please PM me this info so I can forward it to them. The more info and history they know, will be helpful. Maybe we can help get you a working unit or at least figure out what is going on with your situation since so far, it seems to be locally to your system for now.

We look forward to your info.

Thank you.

I have a link to my mod in my first post about the failure in this thread. Note for the bigger chip I affixed two sinks to it since the ones I had were a tad small for it. They were however the right size for the other chipset and they were all affixed with seksui 5760 thermal tape. It's too late to do anything with this dap now though. Once it fails it fails and becomes nothing more than a paper weight.   
Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: AMPatrick on January 02, 2014, 03:59:13 PM
I used J.B. Weld epoxy to mount the heatsinks - far better thermal conductivity.  If the LAN chip gets too hot too fast, the thermal tape will not transfer the heat quickly enough to the heatsink (which would remain cool until after the DAP-1533 bricked itself)...  The epoxy adhesive does not suffer this problem.  Maybe that is why mine is working better than Eluder's ???
Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: Eluder on January 02, 2014, 08:12:47 PM
Furry, sent you 2 cases related to the DAP-1533 failures, both with the same issue.

I used the DAP-1513 with my WD TV live earlier this evening for some HD content, no issues so far, but it's far too early to tell since I haven't pushed any massive HD content through the pipe yet.

I'm not holding my breath with D-Link here since they haven't been very helpful when calling support, never offering to do more than just replace my failed units or dig into why it's happening etc, but hey, maybe you'll have some luck and be able to provide some actual assistance.

Patrick, I understand what you're saying that the epoxy is better, but if it's still failing with my mod, then how the heck was D-Link expecting the original pad they used to dissipate heat to actually work?
Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: FurryNutz on January 02, 2014, 08:22:12 PM
Thank you Eluder for this info...I hope that D-Link will review your information and I've asked them if they can pull our failed units to see what the failure is and maybe find a cause. I know your in Canada however we are in the same Region so lets see if USA can help with at least something in your region. One suggestion I'll ask about, if we get some info, maybe a model swap for a 1525 or something different. Depending upon what they find and if any other information is needed, I hope they can find the cause or let see if we can come up with a alternate solution. No guarantees however lets see how it goes. Test your 1513 out and I'll put my 1533 on tomorrow and do some streaming with HD and take temps with mine. I'll forward my results to D-Link as well. I've also asked them to look at the 857/827 routers as well as we seem to be seeing users posting about heat issues as well.  ::)

Please be patient.

Thank you.
Furry, sent you 2 cases related to the DAP-1533 failures, both with the same issue.

I used the DAP-1513 with my WD TV live earlier this evening for some HD content, no issues so far, but it's far too early to tell since I haven't pushed any massive HD content through the pipe yet.

I'm not holding my breath with D-Link here since they haven't been very helpful when calling support, never offering to do more than just replace my failed units or dig into why it's happening etc, but hey, maybe you'll have some luck and be able to provide some actual assistance.

Patrick, I understand what you're saying that the epoxy is better, but if it's still failing with my mod, then how the heck was D-Link expecting the original pad they used to dissipate heat to actually work?
Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: Eluder on January 03, 2014, 09:47:51 AM
Thanks Furry, the problem with support is that when I call, it goes to India, not sure if it's the same for US support.  No offense to the folks in India, but they're not trained to handle anything special and simply give canned responses and open an RMA for you.  That's all they'll do, and that sadly is not enough for my situation, which is why I gave up on the DAP-1533.  Funny enough, I originally bought the DAP-1525 and DAP-1533, gave the 1525 to my bro in law, and he's had no problems with it.  Maybe I should have kept the 1525 and life would have been different, oh well.

BTW, I have a DIR-857 and haven't seen any major issues with it, have to reboot once in a blue moon maybe, but it's been fairly stable, and performance from it is pretty good.

Anyway, I'm around if you guys need more info from me or anything.

Thanks for the help.
Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: FurryNutz on January 03, 2014, 10:05:09 AM
Understand man. I'll pass this along and hope that we can help get you some support from our side. I'll keep you posted. Thank for hanging in there.  ;)
Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: FurryNutz on January 03, 2014, 03:34:25 PM
Just FYI, I did some testing with my 1533 and 857 today. I attempted to stream HD content from at least 2 devices and SD content from on other. I saw 2 failures in 2 of the 3 devices not getting an IP address. I presumed there was a loss or connection issue on the DAP. The 3rd device maintained as it kept streaming. Power cycling the DAP resolved my connection issue on the 2 devices and then continued testing. LAN ports were or seemed functional after the power cycle as I got IPs on the devices afterwards.

I had a DISH Hopper streaming a HD movie from Blockbuster, Boxee Box streaming raw BD file from my DNS and my Mac Book was streaming Netflix, then switch to a MP4 and raw DVD files on the DNS. I moved the Hopper to a DIR-685 streaming raw DVD. After that, DAP seemed to maintain connections and didn't fail.

Heat was kind of warm, ready 103F on heat sink and 104 at board level right next to ship and xformer block.

I'm curious if streaming too many HD devices is a cause of failure when using default composite heat sink or mod.
I also notice that the WiFi connection speed was only 270Mb on the 857 so I presume this played a roll as well as I think I should be seeing 450Mb. Distance was 15-18feet.

Anyways, I've passed my test results to D-Link in hope this will help with information.
Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: FurryNutz on January 12, 2014, 12:30:08 PM
And for curiosity, I bought a DIR-835 from fleabay on the cheap, as it's a close twin to the DAP-1533.

I removed the cover and of course the same composite heat sink is there. I removed the heat sink and looked at the bottom of it and noticed that not the entire surface of the chip was imprinted on the sticky part, rather two faint lines so I presume that heat xfer from the IC chip would probably have the same problem as the 1533.  ::)

I went a head and attached a new metal heat sink and will run some tests on how warm it gets.

I took mod pics for the record:
Before
(https://image.ibb.co/ceg2O6/DIR835_Before_Mod_zps9c8e4056.jpg)


835 and 1533 side by side
(https://image.ibb.co/iaAwi6/DIR835_DAP1533_Sideby_Side_zpsc68251a5.jpg)

After
(https://image.ibb.co/c3bDVm/DIR835_After_Mod_zpseb398f22.jpg)
Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: FurryNutz on January 20, 2014, 01:55:16 PM
So just FYI, I opened up my DIR-835 after going online with it yesterday. I ran some basic test and nothing streaming video or testing wireless. I looking at the temp of the one chip that I applied the heat sink mod too. After connecting the rest of my wired LAN devices after the router was up and running with my 24pt Gb switch, I took a temp and I got 125-130F on metal heat sink. I took a temp of the one little chip to the left of the modded chip and saw 110F. I thought, Hmm, lets put a sink on it as that seemed a bit high. I believe the the reason for the high temp on these chips was due to all the activity of connecting all at once, the rest of the wired devices and the router and getting all the IPs handed out and everything coming online. I checked today and the temps were about 95-100F on the main hot chip. Everything is running ok though. This is a new router with the mod so I presume and hope that this will last longer. I presume that just using the default Mfr heat sinks just may not be enough and the other chip to the left of the hot running chip probably needs to be modded for a heat sink as well to be safe.

Web Site Specs for the DIR-835:
Operating Temperature
30º to 104º F (0º to 40º C)
(https://image.ibb.co/bCudwR/DIR825_Mod2_zpsddfc8cee.jpg)
Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: Eluder on February 20, 2014, 07:36:45 PM
Just wanted to add that I've had zero issues with my DAP-1513 in the same environment that I had my DAP-1533 now for nearly two months.  So it's pretty evident that there was a major design flaw in the DAP-1533 which caused it to fail so many times for me.  Oh well, now I know to avoid D-Link products with my next network build...
Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: FurryNutz on February 21, 2014, 07:09:28 AM
Agree that there is a bad flaw with the heat dissipation and heat sink on the 1533, however not all D-Link products have this problem.
Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: Eluder on February 22, 2014, 09:03:46 AM
That's absolutely true, but after sales service is often the most important thing, and D Link should have made an effort with me to rectify the problem considering how many times I had to RMA the DAP-1533, but they didn't, so they've lost me as a customer.
Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: FurryNutz on February 22, 2014, 10:14:00 AM
Good luck in your endeavours.

That's absolutely true, but after sales service is often the most important thing, and D Link should have made an effort with me to rectify the problem considering how many times I had to RMA the DAP-1533, but they didn't, so they've lost me as a customer.
Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: FurryNutz on February 28, 2014, 08:53:20 AM
Here, this will take care of any router/DAP heat issues:
http://www.coolermaster-usa.com/product.php?product_id=10068&product_name=V8%20GTS (http://www.coolermaster-usa.com/product.php?product_id=10068&product_name=V8%20GTS)

LOL  ::)
Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: pcrupp on March 24, 2014, 08:44:40 PM
I was looking into getting the DAP-1533, but was curious if the thermal issue had been fixed in production Or should I avoid it and find a different one? I'm no stranger to modifying things, but I prefer not to buy something that requires it to function properly.
Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: FurryNutz on March 25, 2014, 07:27:43 AM
Do you still have your DIR-857?

What wireless modes are you looking to use? Bridge or AP?

It's unfortuneate that the heat sink isn't affixed to the chip fully. I bought a 1533 new in box off ebay a few months ago cheap and it had the same issue. I don't know how old the 1533 was though.

We believe thats the only problem. After doing the mod, the DAP is very stable.  ::)

I agree, you shouldn't have to mod any thing to make it work right. The DAP works right out of the box, it's when under heavy load after we presume over time that the problem will present itself, since the heat sink isn't fixed to the chip good enough, that the DAP will begin to fail.

It's a shame too, other than this issue, it's a great companion to the 857 router. I took mine with me last year for xmas holiday travel and used it as a bridge with my 868L for playing xbox. Works great.

Let us know what WiFi modes your looking to use in a DAP and we can recommend something. There are a few solutions out there...maybe consider a slightly Moded DAP-1533? Hehe.
I was looking into getting the DAP-1533, but was curious if the thermal issue had been fixed in production Or should I avoid it and find a different one? I'm no stranger to modifying things, but I prefer not to buy something that requires it to function properly.
Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: pcrupp on March 25, 2014, 06:20:23 PM
I am still using my DIR-857... and love it  :D

I plan to use it as a Bridge. I want to setup my home theater better (receiver, bluray, smart TV, xbox). I also have aspirations of setting up a media center so I can access all my dvd's from anywhere on my network. Those are all stored as .vob files on a TVIX 6620 right now, but really want something better.

That said, my family is streaming more and more content and I'm just trying to optimize my setup. I'd love to run a hard line, but I can't (yet  ::) ). I tried the powerline product... that didn't work worth a lick. So I figured I'd try the DAP-1533. Worst case is i get an AP out of the deal... or a burnt out 1533  :o

P.S. Thanks for the quick response.
Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: FurryNutz on March 26, 2014, 07:17:09 AM
Hmmm...well depending if your looking to use the 1533 as a bridge and I presume if your going to connect just those devices to the 1533, that would work. I would recommend running a wired when you can. What is the distance the bridge would be from the 857?

Also there is a mod for the 857 as well...  ::)

If your family seems to be streaming more media via WiFi, you may need to get a better WiFi AP to help handle the streaming load.

One suggestion, kind of extreme however in your case, maybe beneficial...Install 2 DIR-868L or 865Ls on the back end of the 857. Use one as the new main Wired AP for both 2.4 and 5Ghz. Turn OFF the 857s WiFi radios. Please the 2nd DIR as a bridge for the media LAN devices. This would bring better streaming handling for those WiFi devices and you'd have a bigger bridge pipe for the heavier .vob file streaming and such from the wired media devices connected to the bridge.

I tested this out a while back with my 865L and 868L. They are the only ones that could stream raw BD files with out buffering during playback. VOB files wouldn't see any glitches at all. BD files are much more data intensive so I did see some minor bufferings during play back. I tried same files on 5Ghz N mode on the 857 and the BF files are just too big for N mode to handle. Even at 450Mb WiFi Speed. VOB files were good and seamless in play back.

Since you seeing more streaming in the family and want better performance, I would recommend using AC mode for any bridging and streaming to those wired devices for seamless playback while other stuff maybe going on.

What is this TVIX device? NAS or some media server? I just got into a DNS NAS device earlier this year. I moved all my media files off a Windows 7x32 File server PC to the NAS. While I didn't really see alot of issues while using the File Server, having the NAS now simplifies things more. I have 1x2Tb drive thats just for raw BD and VOB files thats rotating. It lets loaded and when everyones done viewing, files are deleted. Any VOB favorites get burned to disk. I haven't entered into the BD burning world yet and for the most part, don't see a need to at this point.

Also if you don't have one already, ensure you use a external Gb network switch in between the 857 and all other devices. This helps especially when streaming between the client and the media server source and eliminates having to go thru the router which isn't needed.
Some suggestions to review and think about.

Let us know your price point...the 1533 could still be an option as well...I found mine last nite.  ;)

Let us know what you think...
Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: motherfo on March 26, 2014, 02:30:17 PM
Just to add:

http://www.amazon.com/Arctic-Silver-Ceramique-Premium-Compound/dp/B0007Y836W/ref=sr_1_sc_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1395868610&sr=8-2-spell&keywords=ceramicique+2+arctic+silver (http://www.amazon.com/Arctic-Silver-Ceramique-Premium-Compound/dp/B0007Y836W/ref=sr_1_sc_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1395868610&sr=8-2-spell&keywords=ceramicique+2+arctic+silver) Arctic Silver Ceramique is usually good enough for attaching heatsinks to ram.   I've used this for Videocards.

If you want a stronger hold, you'd need to use Epoxy like originally mentioned or this non-conductive adhesive:

http://www.amazon.com/Arctic-Alumina-Thermal-Adhesive-Tube/dp/B0009IQ1BU/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1395869164&sr=8-1&keywords=Arctic+Alumina%E2%84%A2+Thermal+Adhesive
 (http://www.amazon.com/Arctic-Alumina-Thermal-Adhesive-Tube/dp/B0009IQ1BU/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1395869164&sr=8-1&keywords=Arctic+Alumina%E2%84%A2+Thermal+Adhesive)
Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: FurryNutz on March 26, 2014, 03:00:04 PM
Thanks MotherFo, Ya I presume the Arctic Silver would be good...For Horizontal DAPs...when in Vertical, user s needs to apply some forum of glue to keep the new heat sinks for sliding off.  ::)
Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: pcrupp on March 26, 2014, 07:29:10 PM
My Wifi connection itself is pretty good. I like to use InSSider to measure that.

I'm my living room... where the wifi is used the most, my connection hovers around -50 to -54 dbm (5 ghz). If I switch to the 2.4 ghz, it's typically -36 to -40 dbm.

When I'm right next to the DIR-857, 5 ghz is -32 dbm and 2.4 is -24 dbm.

Firmware 1.04 QoS Mod?? I was looking at that the other day. I might try that out.

Thanks for the feedback on the 2 DIR-868... but I don't think I'll go that route.

A TVIX 6620 is a Media player/center and tuner in one. I needed a tuner for my Projector... and wanted a media player/server so it worked out. That was a few years back. I also have a DNS-323, but that thing is so old, it just doesn't perform well compared to today's standards. I still use it... but for file storage and backups (not media).

Good note on the Gb switch... I have a couple of them.

I think I might try the DAP-1533, it seems like it would be worth trying. I can get some heat sinks from work  ;D

Thanks.
Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: FurryNutz on March 26, 2014, 07:37:44 PM
No there is a heat sink mod for the 857 and 827 routers which I was referring too.

If your ISP uplink speed is less that 2Mb then the QoS mod is not recommended. You can give it a try if you want too...Thats not official FW and is not supported by D-Link.

There is a new un-opened DAP-1533 on ebay...

Let us know what you get...
Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: motherfo on March 27, 2014, 07:27:26 AM
Thanks MotherFo, Ya I presume the Arctic Silver would be good...For Horizontal DAPs...when in Vertical, user s needs to apply some forum of glue to keep the new heat sinks for sliding off.  ::)

Ceramique should hold. It is generally stickier.  Regular Arctic Silver would probably slide off. :)
Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: FurryNutz on March 27, 2014, 07:38:05 AM
I can hear the clink of the sinks falling off now. (Shuddering at the thought)  ::)
Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: AMPatrick on June 15, 2014, 06:13:27 PM
Well, another DAP 1533 just bit the dust on me (the one I originally installed the thermal upgrade on that I used to start this thread).  All the ethernet ports went dead again - same symptoms as the first four that bricked themselves.  I was streaming HD via my AppleTV when the DAP 1533 decided that it had enough and decided it wasn't going to work anymore...

Furry - you are welcome to my bricked DAP-1533 if either you or DLink want to examine it...  Just let me know.  And this time, only the ethernet ports failed - I can still connect to the DAP 1533 via wireless to check configuration and status.  Interesting...  Seems the problem lies in the ethernet portion of the circuitry.  The RF pieces and the controller (WEB services and other CPU functions) seem to work...

The marketplace now seems to have a number of other 5Ghz media bridge / extender combo units available.  I have just started streaming with a NetGear WN2500RP (which can be configured for bridge mode only operation).  So far so good.  It won't do 450mbps (as advertised for the DAP1533), BUT it might survive longer in service than does the DAP1533.
Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: FurryNutz on June 16, 2014, 10:22:32 AM
Dang...This was in Bridge mode? I presume the switch to AP mode the LAN ports are still hosed?

I've asked D-Link if they'd like to inspect the unit. I'll let you know. Sorry it failed again.

Was there a heat sink on the LAN port switch chip? I know there was one chip that got hot that I believe I put a heat sink on as well.


Well, another DAP 1533 just bit the dust on me (the one I originally installed the thermal upgrade on that I used to start this thread).  All the ethernet ports went dead again - same symptoms as the first four that bricked themselves.  I was streaming HD via my AppleTV when the DAP 1533 decided that it had enough and decided it wasn't going to work anymore...

Furry - you are welcome to my bricked DAP-1533 if either you or DLink want to examine it...  Just let me know.  And this time, only the ethernet ports failed - I can still connect to the DAP 1533 via wireless to check configuration and status.  Interesting...  Seems the problem lies in the ethernet portion of the circuitry.  The RF pieces and the controller (WEB services and other CPU functions) seem to work...

The marketplace now seems to have a number of other 5Ghz media bridge / extender combo units available.  I have just started streaming with a NetGear WN2500RP (which can be configured for bridge mode only operation).  So far so good.  It won't do 450mbps (as advertised for the DAP1533), BUT it might survive longer in service than does the DAP1533.

Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: AMPatrick on June 16, 2014, 02:13:13 PM
Hi Furry,  To answer your questions about my newly bricked DAP 1533:

1. My DAP 1533 was operating in bridge mode when it decided not to work and it was in the middle of streaming HD Video through my Apple TV.  I only use bridge mode.  I had three devices connected to the ethernet ports: an SMART LG TV, a SMART Sony Blu-ray player, and an Apple TV media player.  Now all four ethernet ports are "dead".  I tested each port using a laptop computer and the response I get from MS Windows when I plug in an ethernet cable and enable the wired port is "Ethernet cable unplugged".  As I said, the RF circuitry and the controller (WEB services and other CPU functions) in the DAP 1533 continue to work.  I can still wirelessly connect to it to interrogate status and set configuration.  Only the ethernet LAN ports failed.

2. When switching to AP mode and re-doing the wired ethernet cable test, I get the same result - "Ethernet cable unplugged" on all four ethernet ports.

3. Yes, I did have a heat-sink glued onto the ethernet chip that originally ran very hot.  I guess my heatsink upgrade wasn't good enough!  I'm not sure what it would take to "fix" this problem short of redesigning the circuitry (probably using a different ethernet chip).  Is DAP-1533v2 hardware a possibility or is this product at end-of-life (with D-Link simply walking away from the problem)?

Next steps?
Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: FurryNutz on June 16, 2014, 02:29:40 PM
Was the DAP vertical or horizontal position?

Can you take a pic of the chip that you think is the issue? Even with the heat sink on it.

I'm wondering if maybe the heat sink and also air flow isn't enough and maybe some forced induction air is needed. The case is based off the DIR-655/DGL-4500 and there isn't many air vents top and bottom to handle the heat dissipation IMO. So even though you put a different sink on it, air flow is important.

Pestering D-Link with this issue and seeing that the new DIR-880L, they said that the new router shouldn't have the heat issues as seen with the 857/827 routers since it's using the same case, how the case is bigger and the bottom is perforated more and they used all metal sinks in it.

As for a follow on to the 1533, i don't know. I presume IMO that there won't be since new DAPs are out in the wild. However thats me. I wish they would or could do something for the 1533, it's not a bad AP besides this heat issue.

If I hear something back from D-Link I'll let you know. I trust that you've done all testing and that the DAP is just toast. I would recommend that you phone contact them anyways, you might get another or ask for the DAP-1650 or something comparable. If you get another 1533, do the mod and this time, out a laptop fan cooler under it in horizontal position.

Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: AMPatrick on June 16, 2014, 02:57:11 PM
Hi Furry, To answer your questions:

1.  The DAP-1533 was in the horizontal position when it failed.  I keep the plane of the DAP-1533 aligned with the plane of my D-Link DIR-857 media router for maximum signal strength.

2. You can find the picture of the heatsink upgrades here: http://imageshack.us/a/img13/1039/r1eq.jpg (http://imageshack.us/a/img13/1039/r1eq.jpg)

and it looks like this:

(http://imageshack.us/a/img13/1039/r1eq.jpg)

3. I suspect the failing chip is the topmost one (under the heatsink) nearest the ethernet LAN ports (nearest the "1122" transformer part).

4. My DAP-1533 is out of warranty (I put the heatsinks on it after the one year warranty on my very original DAP-1533 expired).  This was the third (or fourth) replacement unit I got from D-Link (all of them bricked themselves in the same way).  As I understand, the warranty is effective from the purchase date of the very first unit...  On the positive side, because I purchased the DAP-1533 using my credit card, the credit card company extends the warranty an additional year and I look forward to getting the original purchase price back from the credit card company.  So the bottom line is that the year and a half of service that I got from my four DAP-1533s will not cost me anything other than the frustration that I had.  Also I am fairly sure that D-Link will have made no profit with me (as they did send me three replacement units) - serves them right!
Title: Re: DAP-1533 Heat Issues...A Thermal Upgrade Mod
Post by: FurryNutz on June 16, 2014, 05:14:05 PM
Ok, heres what I got. I forgot that your from Canada. Apparently there maybe differences between the Canadian and U.S. versions of these units as the lab here in the USA can't reproduce this issue. You and one other have reported this issue and you both are from Canada. There hasn't been any reports or contacts here in the USA reporting of this issue. D-Link USA has forwarded this on to D-Link Canada. Even though we are in the same region, the USA office can't do anything since this issue is in Canada since I they are there own entity with in the D-Link realm. Seems to be that this issue is with the Canadian HW for some reason. D-Link USA can't do anything more.

It would be interesting to see if a USA unit would fail on your system.
Was this DAP loaded with FW from the Canada site or the USA site? I wonder if there could any any differences in FW.  ???

Well, I think it best that you recover the warranty via your CC if thats possible and move on. Not sure what the differences are between the HW on these units what what the failure leads up, however I presume it's heat related. As far as these units are concerned, they hit EOL in Canada and support will end towards the end of this year. Sorry that you had to go through all this. Not all D-Link products are like this. I have enjoyed all of there products and feel they are a good company. I hope you'll find something new to replace the 1533 that works just as good and better.

I recommend that users in Canada having these units and exhibit this problem should get ahold of D-Link Canada and get into a new one or ask D-Link Canada if a different DAP model can be exchanged for the DAP-1533.