Tascam DR-40 stuck on "Low Battery" warning

[Thanos Pappas]

Hello guys, I am a proud owner of a Tascam DR-40 and have been using it for more than 2 years. I was 100% happy with it until one day I saw a Low Battery warning when I turned it on. I changed the batteries (AA) with new ones but that wouldn't go away. I also tried plugging it in a USB with and without the batteries and it does the same. I tried doing a factory reset but it doesn't let me press enter to that because of the low battery. I also tried a firmware updated with the help of the SD card but it can't do that with a low battery either.

The device turns on every time with an empty battery sign and lets me navigate the menu and use it for about 10-15 seconds each time. I also hear a weird sound (like a low volume crack) from the speaker when I turn it on and when it turns off automatically.

Does anyone know what else I could do to fix this issue? Thanks for your time!

 

[Art Anderson]

Have you tried the Test Mode? Since the Test Mode doesn't depend on going into normal menus you might be able to get it running.

It might eliminate what is NOT wrong. All I can find for a reference to its contents is this service manual for the DR-100 and it matches what I see in my DR-40.
Test Mode DR-100 Service Manual

On the DR-40's center "compass" of buttons, continue to hold down "Quick" and Rewind "|<<" and press and hold Home until it powers up into the information screen. Release all 3 buttons.

The navigation I figured out was to use Menu to open a section and + and - to scroll within a menu.
When done, hold down only Home to power off like a normal shut down.

 

[Thanos Pappas]

Hello and thanks for your answer. I tried the test menu and everything works there. The battery level seems to be around 60-70 (I dont know what it was before) and I can navigate through the menus easily and it never shuts down. However when I try the normal or the update mode again the battery low message comes back. I tried to alter some menus in the test menu and the only weird thing I noticed was that click sound from the speaker when I went into the Audio menu. Maybe it has an issue with the speaker and it doesnt let it function.