Broken flash or something I've overlooked?

mbraner

New member
I've been looking for a small lightweight speedlite that has tilt & swivel, so I can carry it everywhere and use bounce flash. The Insignia Compact model (NS-DCF200N) seemed like the ticket. Found a used one in like-new shape. This is the nikon-specific version. It works OK in optical slave mode. But on-camera it does not fire. Not in TTL mode and not in manual mode.

I tried several camera models, D3100, D3300, D5100, D50, D7100. In darkish ambient the camera viewfinder lightning icon keeps blinking even after the flash it turned on, so it seems that there is a problem in the communications with the camera. Except on an ancient D50, where that icon stops flashing once the flash is turned on, so it notices the connection - but it still does not fire.

If I connect it to the camera with an adapter that only feeds the middle pin through (made for manual flashes) then it DOES fire. On a YN622N TTL radio trigger it does not fire. Thus, it seems that ANY 4-pin Nikon-type hotshoe confuses it. Is it broken? It supposedly worked for the previous owner on a D750. I checked that it is fully seated in the hot shoe, and the electrical contacts look OK.

I tried detaching the foot part, to check the wires, since the "flash" part does seem to work, only the communication with the camera is faulty. It is easy to detach the foot. But the circuit board at the end of the foot is not easy to remove (screws sealed with glue). It is connected to the rest of the unit via a delicate ribbon cable. I couldn't figure out how to release the ribbon cable end connectors. So only jiggled the cable end a bit. No change. Any further ideas?
 
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