Is a U61 Error with Panasonic DVD Recorder Fixable

[wolf01]

My Panasonic DVD Recorder DMR-ES15 is two months beyond the one year warranty period.

I've had no problems until yesterday when this began :

Every time the unit is turned on I see "Hello" on the display screen, shortly followed by "U61".

The operating instructions say "U61: There was a power failure or the AC plug was disconnected while the unit was on. The unit is carrying out its recovery process. This process restores the unit to normal operation. The unit is not broken. Wait until the message disappears."

But in my case, after a brief period of "sound blips" I get this message on the TV screen :

"Self check failed. Press ENTER, then the unit will open the tray and power off automatically. If this message appears frequently, please refer to the Product Service section in the operating instructions."

I've tried unplugging the recorder and after several minutes replugging - doesn't help.

The Panasonic web site says that to get approved Panasonic service I would need to go 177 miles to Chicago (I live in Indianapolis).

Has anyone owning this or similar model had this trouble? Is it fixable?

One year and two months is a very short lifetime for a DVD recorder that has been only lightly used, and never abused.

[Trollheart]

Don't know if this will help, but could be worth a try...

(Note: this is a quote. I didn't do this myself, so don't ask me any questions about it. Just thought it might be something you could look at...)

I took out the 4 screws holding the DVD drive top in place. And then moved
the drive head mechanism back (pushed it towards the back of the unit).

I then plugged the power in, turned it on, and amazingly there was no more U61 error.

I test the unit this morning again and everything seems to work properly again!