jronet Posted February 2, 2012 Share #1 Â Posted February 2, 2012 Advertisement (gone after registration) This is a sad story. I bought the M9 for my Antarctica trip. At photo 194 the camera died. When I downloaded the shots in the evening, photos 194 - 348 were black with some horizontal red lines. I checked the number of actuations when I got home - 461. The camera was NOT exposed to severe temperatures. I was shooting from inside my room with the balcony door open. The unit is off to New Jersey. Carmen was very helpful. I did have four other cameras and we shot over 4k photos. My other units were flawless (V2, VLUX 20, DLUX4 and my fav X1). It is unacceptable that a $ 7,000 cameras would fail after 461 actuations. Can I trust the M9 on future vacations? Should I buy the one year warranty extension - YES. All I can think about right now are the 155 lost photos of Antarctica that I can never replace. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
StephenPatterson Posted February 2, 2012 Share #2 Â Posted February 2, 2012 I'm very sorry to hear about this, and glad that you had other backup cameras. Because there is no such thing as a "Zero Defect" product I carry two M9 bodies. The thought of being without an M9 for weeks or months in China is just not an option for me. Â It is very unfortunate that your new M9 died so quickly, but even NASA never achieves zero defect. Infant mortality in camera sensors is not that unusual, and for this Leica is somewhat at the mercy of their supplier, Kodak. The only solution is having a backup. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
250swb Posted February 2, 2012 Share #3 Â Posted February 2, 2012 Bad luck but its good you had some other cameras. As an M9 can have maybe 150 actuations on it from the factory you can't have used it much before your trip started. Â Steve Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ralf Posted February 2, 2012 Share #4 Â Posted February 2, 2012 This is a sad story. I bought the M9 for my Antarctica trip. At photo 194 the camera died. When I downloaded the shots in the evening, photos 194 - 348 were black with some horizontal red lines. I checked the number of actuations when I got home - 461. The camera was NOT exposed to severe temperatures. I was shooting from inside my room with the balcony door open. The unit is off to New Jersey. Carmen was very helpful. I did have four other cameras and we shot over 4k photos. My other units were flawless (V2, VLUX 20, DLUX4 and my fav X1). It is unacceptable that a $ 7,000 cameras would fail after 461 actuations. Can I trust the M9 on future vacations? Should I buy the one year warranty extension - YES. All I can think about right now are the 155 lost photos of Antarctica that I can never replace. Â Â Sorry to hear about this, glad you had a back up. In as much as I love my M9, I would never ever go on such a trip (or an important shooting) without a back up. I reluctantly do it with Nikon gear occasionally, so far never had a problem. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
colonel Posted February 2, 2012 Share #5 Â Posted February 2, 2012 this is very sad I have never had issues with M8 or M9 I do hear the same things occasionally on dpreview about even the best of nikon's and canons (eg. the period where sensors were falling off 5D mounts due to faulty glue!) Â I do hope you have luck in the future Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
efix Posted February 2, 2012 Share #6 Â Posted February 2, 2012 Solution: get an MP. http://www.redbullillume.com/insight/news/leica-mp-captures-north-pole-expedition.html Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jankap Posted February 2, 2012 Share #7 Â Posted February 2, 2012 Advertisement (gone after registration) This is sad, of course. Good you had spare cameras with you. Â Didn't you chimp in the evening, to see if your shots of the day were ok? The problem can also be the memory chip, namely. Jan Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
digitalpowershot Posted February 2, 2012 Share #8  Posted February 2, 2012 working temperature of the M9 is 0°C to + 40°C! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobertW Posted February 2, 2012 Share #9 Â Posted February 2, 2012 Solution: get an MP.Red Bull Illume - Â Nice link....it provides some sensible information on bagging your camera to protect it from the moisture! I do that already when in Canada when it gets cool to prevent condensation from occuring inside the camera or outside. Its the inside stull that you really need to prevent.... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jager Posted February 2, 2012 Share #10 Â Posted February 2, 2012 Aye, so sorry to hear. I can certainly imagine the disappointment. As to your question "can I trust the M9 on future vacations?" I would say most certainly, with the two caveats already mentioned above: Â Chip-based equipment of any sort always has a small percentage of infant mortality. That is going to happen regardless of the quality control measures that a manufacturer takes. The solution is to never purchase (or electronically modify) stuff just before you go on a big trip or important gig. Use your new camera (or computer or phone, or whatever) long enough to get it past that device-infant-mortality point. Â And always have a backup solution - which clearly you did. Â I expect NJ will square away your M9. I hope your going-forward experience will be much more positive. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted February 2, 2012 Share #11  Posted February 2, 2012 working temperature of the M9 is 0°C to + 40°C!  Leica should take better parts for lower and higher temperatures. Otherwise digital Ms will be only "Nice-weather-cameras". Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
matlep Posted February 2, 2012 Share #12 Â Posted February 2, 2012 Leica should take better parts for lower and higher temperatures. Otherwise digital Ms will be only "Nice-weather-cameras". Â I am sure that if it said -40 to +40 people would still complain. Especially Leica owners in Russia seeing -42 below zero yesterday. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted February 2, 2012 Share #13 Â Posted February 2, 2012 I am sure that if it said -40 to +40 people would still complain. Especially Leica owners in Russia seeing -42 below zero yesterday. Â There might be some difference photographing only 2 or 42 degrees below the factories suggestions... What about other High-Tech-Equipment? No outdoor computers working in Canada? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlanG Posted February 2, 2012 Share #14  Posted February 2, 2012 working temperature of the M9 is 0°C to + 40°C!  He said the camera was not exposed to severe temperatures. I recently was on a ski trip and got into a discussion with one of the on mountain photographers who shoots speculative images of people while they are skiing. She used a DSLR and said that she never had a problem at any temperature but does keep spare batteries in her inside pockets. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
mmradman Posted February 2, 2012 Share #15 Â Posted February 2, 2012 This is a sad story. I bought the M9 for my Antarctica trip. At photo 194 the camera died. When I downloaded the shots in the evening, photos 194 - 348 were black with some horizontal red lines. I checked the number of actuations when I got home - 461. The camera was NOT exposed to severe temperatures. I was shooting from inside my room with the balcony door open. The unit is off to New Jersey. Carmen was very helpful. I did have four other cameras and we shot over 4k photos. My other units were flawless (V2, VLUX 20, DLUX4 and my fav X1). It is unacceptable that a $ 7,000 cameras would fail after 461 actuations. Can I trust the M9 on future vacations? Should I buy the one year warranty extension - YES. All I can think about right now are the 155 lost photos of Antarctica that I can never replace. Â Can you please explain one thing; have you taken your M9 to Antarctic straight from the shop or did you run some test sessions before your trip in order to familiarise yourself with the camera and flush out any potential bugs. Â Considering logistics of getting there and lack off pretty much anything except fresh air and penguins you are supposed to make sure things you bring with you actually work (cloths, shoes, cameras, etc). It was no doubt painful discovering you were lugging deadweight all along but how much putting blind faith in your M9 contributed to such a disappointment. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted February 2, 2012 Share #16 Â Posted February 2, 2012 Changing the battery during snow and ice storms or even rainy weather isn't a pleasure with a digital M. A separate electricity supply might be very helpful, when the battery could remain in a warm pocket. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
hydeca Posted February 2, 2012 Share #17  Posted February 2, 2012 I bought the M9 for my Antarctica trip  The M9 was a bad choice for Antarctica (i.e. below the manufacturers recommended minimum operating conditions). If your dealer knew you were buying it to use in Antarctica its the dealer's fault; the dealer should have known the camera is not suited to that environment.  A film M body would have been a better choice. The batteries for my M6 TTL are rated for -30C and even if the battery failed I could still use the camera.  Interesting article on using an MP at the North Pole: Leica MP survives -40°C temperatures during 60 days trek on the North Pole | Leica News & Rumors Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
mmradman Posted February 2, 2012 Share #18  Posted February 2, 2012 The M9 was a bad choice for Antarctica (i.e. below the manufacturers recommended minimum operating conditions). If your dealer knew you were buying it to use in Antarctica its the dealer's fault; the dealer should have known the camera is not suited to that environment. A film M body would have been a better choice. The batteries for my M6 TTL are rated for -30C and even if the battery failed I could still use the camera.  Interesting article on using an MP at the North Pole: Leica MP survives -40°C temperatures during 60 days trek on the North Pole | Leica News & Rumors  Read OP camera failed at room temparature.  Most good DSLRs are rated 0 to 40 degrees (see user manuals) but acrually work well at lower temp. In fact sensor, CCD in particular, should work better at lower temp, it is the battery capacity that suffers from negative Celsius. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
gjames9142 Posted February 2, 2012 Share #19 Â Posted February 2, 2012 My M9 went down after a couple of days -- the card reader. It took a few months for the shutter to fail. I realized the extent of quality control when the brightline preview lever -- something I never use -- fell off without my even noticing it. For me the problem is the best backup is another M9 body. Unless the Nex7 or the new Fufilm Pro 100 can deliver superior files suitable for 24 inch prints. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
bocaburger Posted February 2, 2012 Share #20  Posted February 2, 2012 Can you please explain one thing; have you taken your M9 to Antarctic straight from the shop or did you run some test sessions before your trip in order to familiarise yourself with the camera and flush out any potential bugs. Considering logistics of getting there and lack off pretty much anything except fresh air and penguins you are supposed to make sure things you bring with you actually work (cloths, shoes, cameras, etc). It was no doubt painful discovering you were lugging deadweight all along but how much putting blind faith in your M9 contributed to such a disappointment.  Not to diminish your very valid point about pre-testing new equipment before a trip (one which I've read in countless travel photo guide and other how-to articles), but unless he made 194 test shots he still wouldn't have known there was a problem. And maybe there was an iffy internal connection and the problem came as a result of vibration or a jolt while en route.  My M9 arrived with a poorly-adjusted rangefinder, the sort of issue that definitely should have been caught by QC. I adjusted it myself (it wasn't just the infinity adjustment, the gain was improperly set also) but since then the camera has functioned perfectly through thousands of shots. Does that mean I can rightfully expect it to perform flawlessly on my next trip, and should get pissed at Leica if something goes haywire? If I get diarrhea on the second day of my trip, should I chew out my physician who said I was fit as a fiddle before I left? Unfortunately, I don't have a good solution for a backup to my health. My cameras, that's easy. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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