[bryan conner]

My Canon 40D has developed a problem that appears to be sensor related. I want to send it to a repair facility for repair (out of warranty). Canon Germany lists several possibilities for repair in addition to their own facility in Willich. Does anyone have experience with Canon repair in Germany...good or bad? Or is one facility known to be a better choice than others?



thanks

[mst]

Personally, I have experiences with Canon directly (Willich) as well as Greb in Dreieich and Geissler in Reutlingen. Good and bad experiences with each of them, so I see no reason to choose one over the other, except maybe if you live close to one.



I've heard good things about Gima in München as well as Canon's central service in the Netherlands (I'm sure Wim can recommend that option, too).



-- Markus

[wim]

Since I was called out here <img src='http://forum.photozone.de/public/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/biggrin.gif' class='bbc_emoticon' alt='' />.



The old repair facility of ETBass in Roosendaal in the Netherlands no longer exists.



However, there are two now, namely one in Bergen op Zoom, which is very good reportedly, acoording to several people I know, and most recently I used the facility in Nederweert, which is relatively close to, e.g., Mönchengladbach in Germany, and which is the second repair point in the Netherlands, and seems to work together with them (and is owned by DSP in Mönchengladbach).



I recently had occasion to work with them, and was very pleased by the very good service they provided. The waiting time despite parts not being in stock was incredibly short, I think (I was quoted a month and it only took a week and a half), but do keep in mind that I am a CPS gold member, so I do happen to be fortunate enough to get some preferential treatment. Not only were they very professional over the phone (to make an appointment - I prefer to deliver and collect myself), but also over the counter, and they emailed me several times to keep me up-to-date, and did phone me to ask, again, whether I didn't want a lens in exchange for the duration of the repair (which would have been sent to me from Germany, BTW). Since I had planned the repair to coincide with a period of inactivity of the lens in question (it could still be used without a problem), I didn't want to go through the hassle of returning a lens by delivery service, so I declined (both times I was asked <img src='http://forum.photozone.de/public/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/biggrin.gif' class='bbc_emoticon' alt='' />).



Just in case somebody wants to know about the repair: the friction mechanism of the 100-400L. I gave it to someone to try out, while the friction was set to maximum, and he managed to zoom regardless. Something in the mechanism gave, so it wouldn't tighten up anymore. The lens could still be used, but I had to be a bit more careful with it as a result. It appeared that the entire focusing ring unit had to be replaced, and that particular part was not in stock.



Anyway, good experience, quick and good repair too. The lens looks like new again.



Kind regards, Wim

[Guest]

I now send all my stuff to Willich. I have had a 30D fixed two times by Geissler for the same problem, which eventually occured a third time. (electrical board failure). When the problem occured a third time I send the camera to Willich where it was fixed for free although the last repair was more than two years ago.

BTw Anybody had the same bad experience with the 30D? Mine developed the board failure (camera completly dead, not even an error report) three month after purchase and has since then broken two more times despite exchange of the circuit boards by Geissler and not a single outing in harsh conditions. Shutter count must be less than 20.000. Either the circuit of the 30D carries some inherent deign problem or the repair facilty was just incompetent.

[bryan conner]

I really appreciate the info. The closest facility to me is in Reutlingen (105km) and second is München (180km), so I probably will ship via Deutsche Post. I suppose that I will send it to Reutlingen since it is in Baden-Württenberg where we live and my lovely wife, being the Schwäbian that she is, would frown upon choosing a Bayerisch facility over a Schwäbisch one...



Thanks again for the info. I did not want to send the camera to a place that had a "bad" reputation.

[bryan conner]

I never owned a 30D, but I have read about similar problems with 30D's on other forums. Sounded like a faulty design or manufacture of the circuit board itself.



[quote name='jenbenn' timestamp='1287411208' post='3671']

I now send all my stuff to Willich. I have had a 30D fixed two times by Geissler for the same problem, which eventually occured a third time. (electrical board failure). When the problem occured a third time I send the camera to Willich where it was fixed for free although the last repair was more than two years ago.

BTw Anybody had the same bad experience with the 30D? Mine developed the board failure (camera completly dead, not even an error report) three month after purchase and has since then broken two more times despite exchange of the circuit boards by Geissler and not a single outing in harsh conditions. Shutter count must be less than 20.000. Either the circuit of the 30D carries some inherent deign problem or the repair facilty was just incompetent.

[/quote]

[bryan conner]

I wanted to give an update on my repair. I sent the camera to Geissler in Reutlingen on October 22nd. I received the estimate via DeutschePost one week later. I wish they would have sent it via EMail as that would have been a little faster. The sensor was replaced, the camera was cleaned and adjusted etc. Oh, the funny thing was that one of the procedures listed on the estimate was updating the firmware....it already had the latest firmware. LOL. Of course, there was no seperate charge for this, so I imagine that they try to list everything possible to add value to their services. I would do the same thing....haha. Anyway, I received the camera yesterday (November 12th) and it works perfect. The charges were a total of €396,27 including return shipping, taxes etc. The camera was repaired within the time frame promised. The only complaint is that we sent two emails to them, one asking about an estimated time for repair, and the second asking if the camera would be sent C.O.D. requiring someone to be here to pay. They never responded to either email. In both instances, we had to telephone a few days later to get an answer. I am pleased with the repair (so far) and the repair time. The price is ok with me, but I have not had a CMOS sensor replaced before so I have nothing to base that opinion on except that it was cheaper to repair than to buy another 40D. I recommend Geissler's services as long as you do not mind telephoning them with questions instead of relying on email correspondence.