No more circuit boards in Wetzlar to repair the M6 Classic

[Al Brown]

Advertisement (gone after registration)

After M6 TTL was proclaimed non-repairable by Leica Camera 2 years ago due to the lack of main circuit boards the same has now apparetly happened to M6 Classic, as per DAG website. The folks at RF forum wrote about the repair of the board not being a simple one and joked that after a possible malfunction your M6 Classic will be demoted to a M4-P free of charge.

Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here…

Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members!

Edited May 22, 2022 by Al Brown

[Advertisement]

The Leica Q3 is available for pre-order at B&H Photo Video and Adorama

[Capuccino-Muffin]

Same fate will hit the early MP with M6 style door, as they use the same M6 innards.

I wouldn’t be too worried, I use my MP without meter. 
 

What scares me is the M7. Only two mechanical speeds... once the corcuit boards will fail (if they ever do).

I know the MP boards are much better than the M6, let’s hope the M7 are better.

Edited May 22, 2022 by Capuccino-Muffin
Typos

[Anbaric]

55 minutes ago, Capuccino-Muffin said:

Same fate will hit the early MP with M6 style door, as they use the same M6 innards.

Citation needed.

The MP board has to drive two extra LEDs, the centre exposure indicator and the low battery warning. Why would the M6 board have the logic to do this?

I also doubt that anyone outside Leica or a major repair shop has much idea about the relative failure rates of the later ('blinking light') M6 board and the MP board. The big difference, of course, is that the MP boards are still available if something sould go wrong. DAG has confirmed that the MP board can't substitute for the MP board.

[Erato]

I had a great chance to acquire a like new M6 TTL but I did not pulled the trigger back then.

I purchased M4 instead of M6 series or else for reasons during the decision making process.

Edited May 22, 2022 by Erato

[spydrxx]

1 hour ago, Erato said:

I had a great chance to acquire a like new M6 TTL but I did not pulled the trigger back then.

I purchased M4 instead of M6 series or else for reasons during the decision making process.

IMHO Good choice!

[Yachtbuoy]

Ouch! Definitely feel a bit more vindicated going with an all-mechanical Leica as there's no circuit board to fail!

[TomB_tx]

Advertisement (gone after registration)

I've had my M6 since 1985 - and the circuit board was replaced about 10 yrs ago after battery leakage damaged it. Hopefully it will last as long as I do.

I don't mind having products that have no repairs possible - I got a Zeiss Ikon ZM instead of an M7, and it's in the same boat: working fine - until it doesn't.

[madNbad]

Maybe this will calm the skyrocketing price for a M6. In actual usage, how many cameras have been affected by dying circuit boards? My guess is a large majority of both the M6 and M6 TTLs will be used for many more years without any problems.

[stray cat]

Despite all the moaning and hand-wringing about potential circuit board failures, what happens if they do fail? You're still left with a perfectly usable camera (M6, M6TTL, MP) albeit one without metering. So you are no worse off than if you had bought an M2, M4 or whatever. I really can't see the big deal to be honest.

 

[Matlock]

9 hours ago, Anbaric said:

Citation needed.

The MP board has to drive two extra LEDs, the centre exposure indicator and the low battery warning. Why would the M6 board have the logic to do this?

I also doubt that anyone outside Leica or a major repair shop has much idea about the relative failure rates of the later ('blinking light') M6 board and the MP board. The big difference, of course, is that the MP boards are still available if something sould go wrong. DAG has confirmed that the MP board can't substitute for the MP board.

In spite of one person's constant posts, the early MPs are exactly the same as the late ones, only the door is different.

[labyrinth]

Those 30-40 year old outdated chips no longer made. Someone needs to design a modern board which fits a single chip that costs $8. The sensors are cheap these days

[LocalHero1953]

15 minutes ago, labyrinth said:

Those 30-40 year old outdated chips no longer made. Someone needs to design a modern board which fits a single chip that costs $8. The sensors are cheap these days

You have the full authority of the members of this forum to go ahead. 100% mark-up and you should make a small fortune.

[labyrinth]

17 minutes ago, LocalHero1953 said:

You have the full authority of the members of this forum to go ahead. 100% mark-up and you should make a small fortune.

I do hardware design for drones and electronics repair as a hobby so if my m6ttl fails I will fix the board or try to redesign it with available components.

[idusidusi]

15 minutes ago, labyrinth said:

I do hardware design for drones and electronics repair as a hobby so if my m6ttl fails I will fix the board or try to redesign it with available components.

Good for you! I admire folk with those abilities, I am too ham fisted for such small and detailed stuff.

[logan2z]

4 hours ago, stray cat said:

Despite all the moaning and hand-wringing about potential circuit board failures, what happens if they do fail? You're still left with a perfectly usable camera (M6, M6TTL, MP) albeit one without metering. So you are no worse off than if you had bought an M2, M4 or whatever. I really can't see the big deal to be honest.

 

The only 'big deal' I could see is if one decided to pay current prices for an M6 because of the meter, only to have it crap out and be unrepairable.  Sure, the camera will continue to function just like an M2/M3/M4, but for 2x the price.  

[stray cat]

11 minutes ago, logan2z said:

The only 'big deal' I could see is if one decided to pay current prices for an M6 because of the meter, only to have it crap out and be unrepairable.  Sure, the camera will continue to function just like an M2/M3/M4, but for 2x the price.  

IF it craps out, and as has been said by MadnBad (above) and others, there's a strong probability the circuits will function perfectly for a very long time. I think there's way too much emphasis on the "what ifs" when these are superb cameras with great electronics.

But, you pays yer money, you makes yer choice.

[Matlock]

10 minutes ago, stray cat said:

IF it craps out, and as has been said by MadnBad (above) and others, there's a strong probability the circuits will function perfectly for a very long time. I think there's way too much emphasis on the "what ifs" when these are superb cameras with great electronics.

But, you pays yer money, you makes yer choice.

Paranoia is the word, very widespread on this forum.

[Danner]

6 hours ago, labyrinth said:

Those 30-40 year old outdated chips no longer made. Someone needs to design a modern board which fits a single chip that costs $8. The sensors are cheap these days

The obsolete part is very likely a Leica-defined custom gate array that maps the photo transistor current/voltage and ISO dial settings with exposure values to output the diode-illuminating signals.  A replacement will require someone to generate that kind of map/algorithm to achieve the same end.  So, a microprocessor, I suppose.  And, fit it into the form factor.  A non-trivial effort to be sure.

Edited May 23, 2022 by Danner

[Advertisement]

Hallo,

Look here: Leica M

[Anbaric]

5 hours ago, Matlock said:

Paranoia is the word, very widespread on this forum.

There's little concern about the potential failure of electronics when people as discussing something like the Nikon FM,  a camera of similar vintage to the M6 which also has a simple LED over/underexposure meter. The big difference, of course, is price, which is what makes some people nervous. If the FM fails, you just buy another one for the price of a Leica lens hood. The M6 is about 20x more expensive, so knowing that not all faults can be fixed is perhaps something to consider when deciding whether to splash out 40% more for a secondhand MP instead, but not something to worry yourself about if you already have an M6 that's perfectly fine.

15 hours ago, TomB_tx said:

I've had my M6 since 1985 - and the circuit board was replaced about 10 yrs ago after battery leakage damaged it. Hopefully it will last as long as I do.

I suppose all of us who have cameras with electronics that can't be fully serviced should now be using lithiums if we aren't already. I've had far too many problems with leaking alkalines over the years.

10 hours ago, stray cat said:

Despite all the moaning and hand-wringing about potential circuit board failures, what happens if they do fail? You're still left with a perfectly usable camera (M6, M6TTL, MP) albeit one without metering. So you are no worse off than if you had bought an M2, M4 or whatever. I really can't see the big deal to be honest.

With the M6-TTL, I think you can lose flash sync altogether, not just TTL flash.

5 hours ago, stray cat said:

But, you pays yer money, you makes yer choice.

Absolutely!

[madNbad]

Considering Leica has been selling cameras with the same basic design since the introduction of the M2 more than sixty years ago, the problem with meters in some models or the availability of parts is mostly fodder for the Internet forums. We need to put it in context of other cameras that are the same design age as the M6. Bad meters in a Nikon F2? Sover Wong has built a successful business around resurrecting them. How about the then new F3? Nikon doesn’t have parts for them either. Canon? Pentax? In short no other company other than Leica offered parts and support for a camera introduced to the early 1980s longer than they have. We should celebrate how long these electronic  parts have been available and be glad that there are plenty of mechanical parts to keep those bubbly M6s’ working well into the future.