The 3 vibrate brick - Please Help {SOLVED}

Serinety · Jun 18, 2011

Alright.. This is a new one for me.

I have read almost all the threads on the incredible vibrating 3 and 5 times while booting on XDA and incredibleforum and tho the problems are similar they are not the same so I am unable to find a fix.

I have rooted the incredible , both the amoled and the SLCD version half a dozen times each and am pretty familiar with all aspects of it.

The setup...

Stock Dinc SLCD running latest OTA. totally 100% stock. This is my wifes phone, and she wanted me to root it.

I used Unrevoked 3.3.

The unrevoked process went perfectly. I plugged in the phone, hit "start" , unrevoked did its thing. It rebooted the phone, did what it does.. said "waiting for reboot", it rebooted fine. It said "this has been a triumph!" and then it said it was uninstalling unrevoked processes, then it rebooted the phone again. It did its hboot thing one more time, screen said "doing preboot sequence" it sat for a sec and then said "done!". The incredible vibrated 3 times and the screen was black.

I thought that was odd, I disconnected the USB cable and rebooted the phone (had to battery pull). when i pushed the power button it vibrated 3 times and nothing happened.

I pulled the battery again, held volume up and power , it vibrated 5 times and had a black screen. Battery pull, held optical button and power, vibrated 3 times and black screen.

This is where I sit.

I did nothing more than run unrevoked 3.3.. that is totally it.

when i "boot" the phone and get the 3 or 5 vibrations, and then plug the phone into the PC, the device manager says "qualcomm CDMA device" under unrecognized devices.

I have read that this is some sort of diagnostic mode, but I dont know anything about that.

Let the troubleshooting begin

ACD168 · Jun 18, 2011

msticlaru said:
Alright.. This is a new one for me.

I have read almost all the threads on the incredible vibrating 3 and 5 times while booting on XDA and incredibleforum and tho the problems are similar they are not the same so I am unable to find a fix.

I have rooted the incredible , both the amoled and the SLCD version half a dozen times each and am pretty familiar with all aspects of it.

The setup...

Stock Dinc SLCD running latest OTA. totally 100% stock. This is my wifes phone, and she wanted me to root it.

I used Unrevoked 3.3.

The unrevoked process went perfectly. I plugged in the phone, hit "start" , unrevoked did its thing. It rebooted the phone, did what it does.. said "waiting for reboot", it rebooted fine. It said "this has been a triumph!" and then it said it was uninstalling unrevoked processes, then it rebooted the phone again. It did its hboot thing one more time, screen said "doing preboot sequence" it sat for a sec and then said "done!". The incredible vibrated 3 times and the screen was black.

I thought that was odd, I disconnected the USB cable and rebooted the phone (had to battery pull). when i pushed the power button it vibrated 3 times and nothing happened.

I pulled the battery again, held volume up and power , it vibrated 5 times and had a black screen. Battery pull, held optical button and power, vibrated 3 times and black screen.

This is where I sit.

I did nothing more than run unrevoked 3.3.. that is totally it.

when i "boot" the phone and get the 3 or 5 vibrations, and then plug the phone into the PC, the device manager says "qualcomm CDMA device" under unrecognized devices.

I have read that this is some sort of diagnostic mode, but I dont know anything about that.

Let the troubleshooting begin

call for a refurb. I had it happen twice.

Serinety · Jun 18, 2011

ACD168 said:
call for a refurb. I had it happen twice.

I have a refurb sitting next to me lol. I wanted to root the old one so that I could do a backup and then restore that backup on the new phone. Wife saves pictures and videos to the phones memory (i know) so i would like to recover this if possible.

Also, it seems like this is something that has to be recoverable. Some sort of software is telling it vibrate 3 or 5 times. I am still doing research on this

k_nivesout · Jun 18, 2011

Well if you're trying to get into hboot you need to hold volume down and power, not volume up. Also not sure what trackpad+power does, I do know you can basically do the same thing as a battery pull by pressing volume down + power + trackpad. Have you tried booting the phone up normally too?

wildstang83 · Jun 18, 2011

k_nivesout said:
Well if you're trying to get into hboot you need to hold volume down and power, not volume up. Also not sure what trackpad+power does, I do know you can basically do the same thing as a battery pull by pressing volume down + power + trackpad. Have you tried booting the phone up normally too?

For referance. I just 5vibed my last inc last week, i know all about it.

k_nivesout: oj + power boots fastboot

For the OP, your device is now in qualcomm diagnostic download mode. Hence qualcomm devices in device manager.

To date this is still a none recoverable issue. NO ONE has ever recovered from this.

Good news is if your still in warrenty VZW will send you out another one for free over night. Just call Tech support directly. Just tell them your phone vibed 3 times and shut off. They'll have you do some things to it over the phone. If what they have you try dosn't work, they'll send you one out over night.

Hope this helps a little and hopefully this will save you from countless hours researching. Took me three days, before I realized I had been beaten, lol.

Serinety · Jun 18, 2011

k_nivesout said:
Well if you're trying to get into hboot you need to hold volume down and power, not volume up. Also not sure what trackpad+power does, I do know you can basically do the same thing as a battery pull by pressing volume down + power + trackpad. Have you tried booting the phone up normally too?

ive always used optical key plus power to boot into hboot, volume down and power works too, but ive alyays just used optical key (easier to press)

hwoever..

volume up + power - 3 vibrates
volume down + power - 5 vibrates
optical key + power - 3 vibrates
and power alone - 3 vibrates

with all of these, the screen is always black

When i plug in the phone after any of these scenarios, the PC recognizes it as Qualcomm CDMA device

wildstang83 · Jun 18, 2011

msticlaru said:
ive always used optical key plus power to boot into hboot, volume down and power works too, but ive alyays just used optical key (easier to press)

hwoever..

volume up + power - 3 vibrates
volume down + power - 5 vibrates
optical key + power - 3 vibrates
and power alone - 3 vibrates

with all of these, the screen is always black

When i plug in the phone after any of these scenarios, the PC recognizes it as Qualcomm CDMA device

Wait, wait, wait just a minute. i wanna talk to you in private. check your pm

wildstang83 · Jun 18, 2011

msticlaru said:
The 3 vibrate brick - Please Help {SOLVED}

Glad I could help you fix this. Don't forget to post what we did to solve this so others can learn from us

Serinety · Jun 18, 2011

This is written for the HTC incredible, please ensure you get the proper ruu image for your particular phone. For example, the HTC wildfire will be PG76IMG.zip, not PB31IMG as I have written below. the rest of the steps are applicable to all HTC phones.

a BIG thanks to wildstang83 for this!

If you are getting vibrates when trying to boot your phone. do the following:

Download (see above comment)

build-3.26.605.1-release-152016-baseband-2.15.00.07.28-hboot-0.92.0000_PB31IMG.zip

google, you will find it.

backup your SD card, format it fat 32 and place this file on the root of your card. Be sure to rename it PB31IMG.zip

Once it is on your sd card, verify the MD5 to ensure the file was not corrupted during the download or during the transfer.

Hold Vol down + power. you will feel 5 vibrations

wait for a god 2 to 3 min. if everything is going correctly, your phone is verifying the IMG file and this takes a bit.

after 2 to 3 min. wait one more min

now, press vol up. this tells the phone to update.

wait 2 to 3 min for the update to happen then wait one more.

press vol up again. you should feel the phone single vibrate and then presto.. working phone again

next time be more careful

Please let me know if this did not work for you.

THANKS WILDSTANG!! You're what these forums are all about

k_nivesout · Jun 18, 2011

Nicely done! I've never encountered this issue but I'm remembering this for future reference just in case.

nate2830 · Jun 18, 2011

Is that just the stock ROM? I had this problem a few months ago, unrooted through Hboot using the stock image placed onto the SD card.....it never fixed the issue though, the phone would still not recognize the SD card once booted but since I was unrooted I could at least return it.....

wildstang83 · Jun 18, 2011

nate2830 said:
Is that just the stock ROM? I had this problem a few months ago, unrooted through Hboot using the stock image placed onto the SD card.....it never fixed the issue though, the phone would still not recognize the SD card once booted but since I was unrooted I could at least return it.....

Yes, this is the stock image method.

nate2830, your case is more typical because your phone was in full-blown Qualcomm Diagnostic Mode. Your device did this because you lost eMMC to corruption. OR you hade hardware failure.

The OP's device '3 Vibed' because when they had rooted with unrEVOked the wrong recovery for there device was installed.

A device with version 0002=Amoled must have CWM Recovery version 3.0.0.5
A device with version 0003=SLCD must have CWM Recovery version 3.0.0.8

If your device is not set-up like above, I highly suggest getting it there now.
Your device has a higher chance of "5 vibe" brick otherwise.

I am led to believe this is the case for our OP do to immediately after root (well actually during the root process if you will) they lost all screen function and the screen would not light. This meens of course: wrong recovery for the device. Also in there post above They had mentioned that Device Manager mentioned Qualcomm CDMA Device. Had there device been a total loss they would have seen Qualcomm CDMA Diag in Device Manager.

We were able to save the OP by doing what we call a 'Blind Recovery'. One must know the steps to take and how long to wait between those steps. Without being able to see the screen. Doing the dougpiston PB31IMG wipes the faulted recovery and reverts back to oem recovery which brings back phone screen function and the device it self.

End result being a device that
A) Functions properly that is now stock s-on ready to root again or whatever
B) Is now s-on with stock image and no trace of ever being rooted that now can be sent back to VZW for warranty replacement.

In any case, if you ever find yourself with a device with a screen that won't light, always try the steps above in this thread.

Things that are important to know:

1. Your devices Hardware version (Reference Above)
2. The md5 sum of ANYTHING your about to flash to your device. Test this after its on your SD Card with any md5 checker for best results.
3. If anything your about to download and flash does not have a posted md5 sum, ask the dev to please post one for verification.
4. A '5 vibe' is 'non-recoverable' and is generally 'hardware related'
5. A '3 vibe' is generally 'software related' and can be recoverable 'most' of the time. We must be careful how we proceed to take action to be succcessful.

I hope that the OP and I have saved someone from a future headache.

nate2830 · Jun 18, 2011

wildstang83 said:
Yes, this is the stock image method.

nate2830, your case is more typical because your phone was in full-blown Qualcomm Diagnostic Mode. Your device did this because you lost eMMC to corruption. OR you hade hardware failure.

The OP's device '3 Vibed' because when they had rooted with unrEVOked the wrong recovery for there device was installed.

A device with version 0002=Amoled must have CWM Recovery version 3.0.0.5
A device with version 0003=SLCD must have CWM Recovery version 3.0.0.8

If your device is not set-up like above, I highly suggest getting it there now.
Your device has a higher chance of "5 vibe" brick otherwise.

I am led to believe this is the case for our OP do to immediately after root (well actually during the root process if you will) they lost all screen function and the screen would not light. This meens of course: wrong recovery for the device. Also in there post above They had mentioned that Device Manager mentioned Qualcomm CDMA Device. Had there device been a total loss they would have seen Qualcomm CDMA Diag in Device Manager.

We were able to save the OP by doing what we call a 'Blind Recovery'. One must know the steps to take and how long to wait between those steps. Without being able to see the screen. Doing the dougpiston PB31IMG wipes the faulted recovery and reverts back to oem recovery which brings back phone screen function and the device it self.

End result being a device that
A) Functions properly that is now stock s-on ready to root again or whatever
B) Is now s-on with stock image and no trace of ever being rooted that now can be sent back to VZW for warranty replacement.

In any case, if you ever find yourself with a device with a screen that won't light, always try the steps above in this thread.

Things that are important to know:

1. Your devices Hardware version (Reference Above)
2. The md5 sum of ANYTHING your about to flash to your device. Test this after its on your SD Card with any md5 checker for best results.
3. If anything your about to download and flash does not have a posted md5 sum, ask the dev to please post one for verification.
4. A '5 vibe' is 'non-recoverable' and is generally 'hardware related'
5. A '3 vibe' is generally 'software related' and can be recoverable 'most' of the time. We must be careful how we proceed to take action to be succcessful.

I hope that the OP and I have saved someone from a future headache.

Oh sorry!! Thought it was a similar problem, but had a feeling it wasn't since the stock image didn't resolve my issue. Thanks!

HillsRider · Jun 23, 2011

My DINC was suffering from the 5 vibe syndrome. If I used it for anything that stressed the system or even used the phone for a few minutes it would result in a reboot that ended with a black screen, 5 vibes, and the indicator flashing green. At first I could pull the battery for a few minutes and it would recover. Eventually I ended up putting it in the freezer for a bit to get it running again. This progressively got worse until it was nearly unusable. Then I stumbled upon this thread..

http://xdaforums.com/showthread.php?t=982454

Turns out mine was a hardware failure as the processor's BGA grid was failing. I heated the processor and now have a fully functional DINC. I had nothing to lose by trying this as I bought it second hand and didn't want a fancy paperweight on my desk.

Paul600k5 · Jun 23, 2011

Thanks guys, for helping me out with a 3-vibe brick i just had for no reason at the gym today. Was listening to music, texting, working out. All of a sudden, music stops, phone completely unresponsive. Battery out, 30-second wait, restart gives me boot-screen boot loops. Volume up + power gave me a 3 vibe brick.

Thanks to you guys, I discovered that i could get into hboot, boot into recovery from there, do a full wipe, reflash of CM7.0.3 and get the phone to start again. However, that's when the next BIG PROBLEM started. Screen went to sleep while restoring apps from the Market and now when i press the power button, the soft buttons light up but the screen doesn't. This is just super-duper to have problems like this on the same day I was telling a friend that I wouldn't trade this phone for anything else VZ has right now. Anyone have any advice?

PS - The only thing I did today besides "normal" use, is i updated Handcent and changed the LED flash rate.

refthemc · Jun 23, 2011

msticlaru said:
a BIG thanks to wildstang83 for this!

If you are getting vibrates when trying to boot your phone. do the following:

Download

build-3.26.605.1-release-152016-baseband-2.15.00.07.28-hboot-0.92.0000_PB31IMG.zip

google, you will find it.

backup your SD card, format it fat 32 and place this file on the root of your card. Be sure to rename it PB31IMG.zip

Once it is on your sd card, verify the MD5 to ensure the file was not corrupted during the download or during the transfer.

Hold Vol down + power. you will feel 5 vibrations

wait for a god 2 to 3 min. if everything is going correctly, your phone is verifying the IMG file and this takes a bit.

after 2 to 3 min. wait one more min

now, press vol up. this tells the phone to update.

wait 2 to 3 min for the update to happen then wait one more.

press vol up again. you should feel the phone single vibrate and then presto.. working phone again

next time be more careful

Please let me know if this did not work for you.

THANKS WILDSTANG!! You're what these forums are all about

Sounds good, I'm hearing a RUU will work just as well?

VKaz · Jul 22, 2011

This got my phone to turn on, but now im in a boot loop. How could i fix this? I appreciate all the help.

kzoodroid · Jul 22, 2011

I actually recovered from a 5 vibrate error. I had flashed the leaked GB over a stock sense without doing a wipe and got stuck in a boot loop. Every time I tried to either power up into hboot or recovery (- vol and power, or + vol and power) I would get 5 vibrations and then a blank screen. If I tried to power up normally nothing but boot loop after the white htc screen. So I just kept trying to get hboot to load and then after about 5 tries it worked and I was able to get into recovery and flash a backup ROM. I still have problems getting hboot to load properly and it appears its a problem with how hard I press the volume keys. If I press it too hard I get five vibrations followed by the blank screen and it still takes a number of tried to get it to work right. Getting into recovery from ROM Manager is no problem it works flawlessly and I can flash ROMs with it no problem, just have problems when I manually try it. Otherwise the phone works great.

k_nivesout · Jul 22, 2011

Well if you're doing volume up and power I believe that puts it into a diagnostic mode where it vibrates three times (I think) and flashes the led. Also, I'm not sure how the pressure with which you press the button would matter, I'd think it either recognizes the button press or doesn't.

kzoodroid · Jul 22, 2011

k_nivesout said:
Well if you're doing volume up and power I believe that puts it into a diagnostic mode where it vibrates three times (I think) and flashes the led. Also, I'm not sure how the pressure with which you press the button would matter, I'd think it either recognizes the button press or doesn't.

Like I said it does it with the - volume and power combination too, + volume and power used to go straight into recovery bypassing hboot.

Its not so much the amount of pressure but the length of time I press the buttons, if I hold them too long I get the 5 vibrates, if I press them both then quickly relase them the phone will usually boot normally into hboot but not always. The button psuhing could all be coincidence and the phone just randomly works right after so many tries so I don't want to mess with the phone too much as I'm sure that eventually it will stop responding at all some day. I've never had problems flashing through ROM Manager so I will just use this and skip trying to do anything manually.

The 3 vibrate brick - Please Help {SOLVED}

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