4015 used formatters

**GAtech** · 02-16-2015

Anyone have experience installing used formatters into a 4015? Continuing on my other thread, we received 5 used formatters from ebay, assuming they would work in the 4014/4015/4515 and that is how the seller presented them. However 4 of the 5 come up as 4014. One comes up as 4015. I can install a board from another machine and it shows up as 4015. And I can go back and forth, so the dc controller is not "stuck" as any model, and the results are consistent. Each board always comes up as the same model.

I know on the 4250/4350 the machine would eventually revert back to what it was before, basically making the dc controller in charge.

anyone have experience with this?

**Acme** · 02-17-2015

consider yourself lucky they even work. Ebay=not even once anymore.

**GAtech** · 02-17-2015

Originally Posted by Acme

consider yourself lucky they even work. Ebay=not even once anymore.

Well the issue turns out that once a P4000 series board is installed, it stays that way forever and that dictates the model on any machine it is installed in. For some reason everyone on Ebay is selling them as universal which is incorrect and I verified this with several sources.

So the ebay boards work like they are supposed to, just not as advertised. The seller easily agreed to take them back but we have another plan for them. Actually we have been quite successful in all the things we bought from Ebay. Any issues have been quickly resolved by the seller.

**prntrfxr** · 02-17-2015

DO NOT install a used P401x/P4515 formatter in anything you care about. If the personality has not been blanked out and made to default (aka doesn't know what it is yet) it will downgrade the machine and unlike the 4240/4250/4350 series, there is no known way to recover the printer personality.

**GAtech** · 02-18-2015

Originally Posted by prntrfxr

DO NOT install a used P401x/P4515 formatter in anything you care about. If the personality has not been blanked out and made to default (aka doesn't know what it is yet) it will downgrade the machine and unlike the 4240/4250/4350 series, there is no known way to recover the printer personality.

Not sure about that. Out of all the boards we tried, some did come up as a 4015, including one we know that came from a 4015. We also confirmed with a major vendor and they confirmed they supply used boards and they mark and track which machine they come from, and sell appropriately.

**prntrfxr** · 02-19-2015

Originally Posted by GAtech

Not sure about that. Out of all the boards we tried, some did come up as a 4015, including one we know that came from a 4015. We also confirmed with a major vendor and they confirmed they supply used boards and they mark and track which machine they come from, and sell appropriately.

I guess my message wasn't clear enough and for that I apologize. I was referring to the way techs sometimes check a problem by throwing a board in from another machine.

That being said, it is also very easy, even with a major vendor for mistakes to happen and the wrong board get labeled wrong. I have had it happen in field and ended up having to buy the client a new machine (vendor paid half). To me, and you can do what you want, I don't think it is worth taking the chance.