NO CARD error with 007

[hoppyman]

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Do the update with NO lens fitted

[Justalex]

10 hours ago, alan.y said:

So the camera is unusable? Have you tried using a CF card instead?

I don't think this helps at all, but a loaner S 007 Leica gave me had trouble detecting the SD card and often started with the red light "No Card" error. Usually after a few minutes (but sometimes not even after 10 minutes), it'd recognize the card and start working. Generally, once it recognized the card, it'd work just fine if it didn't go to sleep. But if it went to sleep there was a chance I'd get the "no card" message again. I tried different cards, removing and reinserting, turning off and on, etc., but I think the problem was really just random--part of the thrill and fun of S ownership, as you well know. Each of the four S 007's I've used had unpredictable electronic issues and software bugs. 

By the way, I was just going through your thread again on GetDpi earlier today and am pleasantly surprised to know that you've stuck with the S.

Thanks for your post. I'll need to look around for a CF card. However even if it does work it suggests there's something wrong with the camera.

As for sticking with the S... I no longer use it for work. I use an A7RII which hasn't had a single problem in 18 months!

2 of my lenses were returned to Germany for calibration The camera has been back twice and needs to go back for a third third time for a sensor replacement. While there, they they need to fix a flare problem and now something appears to be wrong with the electronics. Not to mention I'm onto my second battery charger and my 3 batteries have erratic charging. Sometimes indicating a full charge while on the charger but no charge when put into the camera.

I've done trying to talk with Leica. I'm letting my lawyers take the matter from here...

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[Justalex]

8 minutes ago, hoppyman said:

Do the update with NO lens fitted

Sorry. I forgot to mention that I tried without the lens. No luck unfortunately.

[hoppyman]

There are two owners only in this particular thread reporting that no card issue. It doesn’t appear to be a widespread issue based on that? I can’t offer any further suggestions than I have already done sorry. That was the fix for me following a firmware update issue. However you are now reporting multiple issues with camera, lenses, battery charger and batteries and leaving  it to lawyers so I don’t think forum suggestions are going to help further. Good luck

[dritz]

I'm the original poster. I don't mean to beat Leica with a stick because they did something I genuinely appreciated: a subsequent out-of-warranty hardware failure resulted in them providing a brand new S007 in the box (which took 3 months).  In the end, I owned an S007 for 18 months, and it was in repair for 6 month.  So, while I hugely appreciated receiving a new kit I feel that I deserved a new kit. Further, I decided that the anxiety of ownership wasn't worth the extra image IQ (over my SL and M10).  The IQ is there, but I don't think the recipients of my prints see it -- their expectations are camera phones. So, I have sold the S007 camera and have kept some of the lenses for the SL.

Leica has gotten plenty of money of from me over 18 years: other than the internal revenue service (taxes), they have been the largest recipient of my income. I'm probably (embarrassingly) not alone in the mal-distribution of income.  So, they should go above and beyond to make their customers happy.  We commit to them, and they should be committed to us.

I'm still a raving fan of their image quality and the handling experience of their equipment.  We can hope that reputational damage arising from the perception/experience of the S system hopefully is isolated just to that system and, more importantly, that the SL and M systems continue to be robust and reliable platforms for the creation of images.  An M10 with a 35-lux and 75-cron is quite the pleasure kit!

I forward to more image-making and less equipment anxiety.

[alan.y]

1 hour ago, dritz said:

I'm the original poster. I don't mean to beat Leica with a stick because they did something I genuinely appreciated: a subsequent out-of-warranty hardware failure resulted in them providing a brand new S007 in the box (which took 3 months).  In the end, I owned an S007 for 18 months, and it was in repair for 6 month.  So, while I hugely appreciated receiving a new kit I feel that I deserved a new kit. Further, I decided that the anxiety of ownership wasn't worth the extra image IQ (over my SL and M10).  The IQ is there, but I don't think the recipients of my prints see it -- their expectations are camera phones. So, I have sold the S007 camera and have kept some of the lenses for the SL.

Leica has gotten plenty of money of from me over 18 years: other than the internal revenue service (taxes), they have been the largest recipient of my income. I'm probably (embarrassingly) not alone in the mal-distribution of income.  So, they should go above and beyond to make their customers happy.  We commit to them, and they should be committed to us.

I'm still a raving fan of their image quality and the handling experience of their equipment.  We can hope that reputational damage arising from the perception/experience of the S system hopefully is isolated just to that system and, more importantly, that the SL and M systems continue to be robust and reliable platforms for the creation of images.  An M10 with a 35-lux and 75-cron is quite the pleasure kit!

I forward to more image-making and less equipment anxiety.

Adopting an almost elegiac tone as you do here seems the way to go to make legitimate complaints about Leica that don't devolve into us-vs-them Fox News-style debates between supposed fanboys and supposed haters. Many of the participants in JustAlex's getDPI thread from 2016-7 are the same people active here, and I suspect even he doesn't want a repeat.

I bought your S2 in 2015. At the time you remarked on how much value it had lost. I have since gone through two S 007's, which was a very costly decision. When the S2 sensor cracked in late 2015, Leica replaced it for free. But they seem to me to have done a U-turn and turned S-users into cash cows--though perhaps not you. Both S 007's I sent in for the unavoidable grip peeling issue, otherwise functional despite occasionally freezing, were found to be need of vaguely described calibrations and adjustments that cost upwards of $1500.

ZHNL wrote a similarly elegiac post about how when he sent his S 006 with a corroded sensor in, Leica made him choose between 1) paying more than the cost of a used S 006 for a new sensor and 2) upgrade to the S 007 at (absurd) MSRP. That struck me as especially cynical--and an abuse and perversion of commitment.

The S system not only fails more frequently and for more reasons than the M or the SL, but its artificially propped up list prices translate into exorbitant repairs and drastic deflation in absolute terms.

I am now without an S 007, but like you I remain a fan of its image quality and handling, and I plan on buying back the S2 to use the lenses with. Corrosion and lowlight capability aside, the S2 was actually the more enjoyable to use, because it was simpler and slower.

Edited December 19, 2018 by alan.y

[erlingmm]

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It probably does not prove anything, but I have had the S2, the S006 and the S007  (still) without any problems whatsoever.

Edited December 19, 2018 by erlingmm

[Flu]

Just saw this thread, my 007 also suffered from the red blinking dot of death / card error issue. If I recall correctly, it was a faulty card reader and I think the circuit board also needed replacing. Leica Germany fixed it without charge and it has not skipped a beat since.

[ropo54]

2 minutes ago, Flu said:

Just saw this thread, my 007 also suffered from the red blinking dot of death / card error issue. If I recall correctly, it was a faulty card reader and I think the circuit board also needed replacing. Leica Germany fixed it without charge and it has not skipped a beat since.

I had the same problem with my card reader with my SL 601. Leica insisted the issue was created by me pulling the card out of the camera. (I had not). Repair bill was to replace card reader and to change a circuit board - labor intensive and expensive - to the tune of almost $1050.  

Shortly thereafter, another Leica customer came in with the same issue.  My Leica store was then able to convince Leica to issue a refund for my repair.  

I do know of one other Leica Forum member who also had posted about the same card reader issue with the SL 601.

[esynchronicity]

Reviving an old thread, but I am encountering this with a S007 that I just acquired. Same issues as the original poster - the red light stays on, the top display starts up and shows "NO CARD", and then starts to blink "NO CARD" continuously. I have tried with 3 different Sandisk SD cards (64GB Extreme Pro, 32GB, Extreme Pro, 16GB SDHC) and 1 Lexar 633x 64GB. The cards have been formatted on a Leica SL, a Mac using Disk Utility, and also a Mac using the SD formatter. It can't be a bad SD card - they all work fine on every other camera I own (M9, T, SL, Nikon, Fuji). I have 2 batteries and same result using either, and also when I start up without a card I exactly the same thing happens. The menus never start. 

I emailed S support in Wetzlar and they responded that there is nothing I can do from my end and that I must send it back to Germany for repair. 

The camera is not in warranty - has anyone else had this issue recently and had to send theirs in?

[traveler11]

You are not the only recent S man to have the 'fickle finger of fate' slip its evil digit up your photographic posterior.  Three weeks ago my 007 exhibited all of the same brick-like symptoms, after downloading Leica Image Shuttle 3.7.8.  I wanted to see if the software had acquired any new or different abilities in addition to the S3 prior to focus stacking a recently ready orchid.  When I went to my old S2P that I replaced with the 007, because it developed sensor fungus, I found that the USB2 cord was not to be found.  I called Josh in Miami who had a cord in stock.  Two days later, after receiving the cord, I set up the S2P and 120MM Summarit to my 27" iMac only to find out that the newest LIS does not support tethered computer control of the distance with the S2.  ie no focus stacking.  Fortunately, I learned to not delete previous softwares or OS upgrades, and I used the LIS 3.6.  Unfortunately, the 007 changes the distance in smaller amounts resulting in better stacked images.  Using my S2P for my orchid photography will force me to spend extra PP time in Lightroom deleting the myriad of fungus spots.

 

Unlike esynchronicity, I emailed Leica USA to find that they are out, indefinitely.  There is only someone to receive emails and give out the unfortunate news.

 

The only cost I saw in this thread from years ago was $4000 USD.  If that proves to be an accurate cost, I will be an S man with 2 very expensive brick-like cameras in need of repair that I will likely not spend the money on.

 

I should mention - I love the images I get.

[Sarnian]

6 hours ago, traveler11 said:

The only cost I saw in this thread from years ago was $4000 USD.  If that proves to be an accurate cost, I will be an S man with 2 very expensive brick-like cameras in need of repair that I will likely not spend the money on.

 

This is from an e-mail to Wetzlar in June 2019:-

 

"I´m sorry to have to learn that your Leica S 006 is also showing sensor corrosion. The sensor exchange is being partly charged with 2400,- € plus VAT if the camera is older than 5 years."

 

So, EUR2,400 is currently roughly $2,630. I don't know about the VAT element; it depends on where you live and what trade agreements(?) your country has with Germany. VAT might be around 20%? Living where I do, no VAT is chargeable.

Edited May 21, 2020 by Sarnian

[Hans-Dieter Gülicher]

Ad 1: In January I bought a secound hand 007 from the Leica Store Wetzlar. Back to my home and after taking some pictures I discovered the same problem = sensor-corrosion. Back to Leica Wetzlar the 007 got a new sensor (warranty).

Ad 2: Checking the 007 I found it accepted 32 GB cards (Sandisk), only.

Ad 3: After all I lost my trust in the 007. It was not my camera furthermore.

Ad 4: At the 13th of February a got a call from Wetzlar, went to the Store (about 170 km from my home) and recieved a brandnew S3. But back to my home I got the information my booked trip to Chile-Antarctica has been canceld because of the Corona situation.

In the meantime besides of my Q2 the S3 is my preferred camera, a worthy successor of my earlier R9+DMR. The S3 works as expected and I hope to go to Chile next year.

Regards Hans

[Sarnian]

11 minutes ago, Hans-Dieter Gülicher said:

Ad 1: In January I bought a secound hand 007 from the Leica Store Wetzlar. Back to my home and after taking some pictures I discovered the same problem = sensor-corrosion. 

Huh? I didn't think that the 007 suffered from sensor corrosion??

[Hans-Dieter Gülicher]

Shit happens. Leica included.

[Reggieplaysbass]

Hi esynchronicity,

it’s unfortunate that your Leica S failed on you. I had the exact same problem while I was traveling with my 007 this January. I was shooting everyday for two weeks and my camera stopped responding. I had the same No Card error message and the red light kept blinking too. It was incredibly frustrating to say the least but I’m glad I had a back up with me. As soon as I got home in Singapore, I sent the camera for repair at the local service center. The camera was sent to Germany and It took 7 weeks for the camera to come back but Leica did CLA, firmware update, adjusted all the parts that needed fine tuning, replaced the leather, and repaired/replaced the electronic part that failed plus gave me 1 year warranty. I paid SGD$457.96 which is around $321.23 USD. it’s unfortunate that these things happen to a very expensive camera but I assume this No Card electronic failure isn't uncommon. I was initially worried that the repair cost would be outrageous. Still pricy but with all the repairs for my 4 year old camera + cla + new parts, I thought it was pretty fair. Good luck on the repairs of your camera. Hope you can get it sorted soon. 
 

best,

Reggie

[dritz]

4 minutes ago, Reggieplaysbass said:

Hi esynchronicity,

it’s unfortunate that your Leica S failed on you. I had the exact same problem while I was traveling with my 007 this January. I was shooting everyday for two weeks and my camera stopped responding. I had the same No Card error message and the red light kept blinking too. It was incredibly frustrating to say the least but I’m glad I had a back up with me. As soon as I got home in Singapore, I sent the camera for repair at the local service center. The camera was sent to Germany and It took 7 weeks for the camera to come back but Leica did CLA, firmware update, adjusted all the parts that needed fine tuning, replaced the leather, and repaired/replaced the electronic part that failed plus gave me 1 year warranty. I paid SGD$457.96 which is around $321.23 USD. it’s unfortunate that these things happen to a very expensive camera but I assume this No Card electronic failure isn't uncommon. I was initially worried that the repair cost would be outrageous. Still pricy but with all the repairs for my 4 year old camera + cla + new parts, I thought it was pretty fair. Good luck on the repairs of your camera. Hope you can get it sorted soon. 
 

best,

Reggie

That repair is less than I paid to repair a PC board failure in my R8 about 10 years ago ($US 550) Why then, did my warranty repair on my S007 for "No card" have an estimate 10x that? It is a disincentive to stay with the S bodies.  I cannot rationalize the cost of repairs from Leica -- my experience is that either it's free or it's "uh oh." For an S body I would happily send it in for CLA annually to keep it under another 12 months of warranty. It's a very expensive brick otherwise. I switched to the SL with S lenses because the 601 are plentiful and inexpensive.  I do miss the S, though. I wish it were economically viable to own one.

[albireo_double]

Hmm, my S007 has worked fine since September 2015 when I bought it (yes the door cover needed replacement and is peeling off again, sigh). The lenses are a different story, but all repaired for free, even when older than five years, thanks to my dealer's ability to twist some arms in Wetzlar. Now I am getting worried, when I read about so many electronic failures and the replacement cost out of warranty. Good thing is that I can probably buy a second hand S007 now for less than Leica would charge for a new circuit board!

[dritz]

1 hour ago, albireo_double said:

Hmm, my S007 has worked fine since September 2015 when I bought it (yes the door cover needed replacement and is peeling off again, sigh). The lenses are a different story, but all repaired for free, even when older than five years, thanks to my dealer's ability to twist some arms in Wetzlar. Now I am getting worried, when I read about so many electronic failures and the replacement cost out of warranty. Good thing is that I can probably buy a second hand S007 now for less than Leica would charge for a new circuit board!

5 years of service with only cosmetic trouble sounds great -- especially if you earn income from it.  In the meantime, keep that shutter snapping!

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[traveler11]

Today, David Hild of Leica USA, NJ emailed me back to say that their limited number of technicians are accepting repairs, and my camera may be put into their queue.  I boxed my 007 and initiated an USPS pickup. Putting this into action has removed a great weight.  The ever-expanding Leica repair saga continues.