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Wednesday
Feb212018

Replacing a PURE Evoke Flow Display

** UPDATE 17th January 2023 **

Dear visitors,

For the latest Evoke display news, please check through all the comments section (best start with newest/ last  and work backwards) about replacing this display.

The current suggested source for displays is Shenzhen Liyuan Huida Technology Co who have a good history of offering individual displays for various PURE radios. See their web page and contact form (Jack Wan) at the bottom. You might also find displays on Ebay - see below.

The reader comments here contain a wealth of background, advice and experience from other PURE repairers and are well worth wading through.

Some radios (eg the Avanti Flow) can turn out to be complex with lots of scope for problems, so please consider whether you want to gamble on fitting a new display yourself. Please note I cannot provide any specific advice on repairing or fixing problems, all the information I have is published on my website.

Lastly, folks, I'm sorry if this has become a bit convoluted or messy. My blog wasn't designed for such heavy traffic or 'chat' and large numbers of comments, and I'm trying to keep things going as orderly and easy to use for everyone (myself included!). Please remember, I can't retain or display personal email addresses etc on this web site, though I have successfully put a few people in touch with each other.

PURE SSW-1817 Power Supply Repair

A reader has shared details of replacing the power transistor and capacitors on this common switched-mode power supply used in several PURE DAB radios, more details here

Other sources of suitable OLEDs for PURE Evoke / Flow / Avanti Flow etc

17th January 2023

New PURE Evoke 1S 2S D4 D6 etc Marshall Mio Display Screen

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/114638725086

NOT suitable for the Pure Evoke Flow, Avanti Flow, Oasis Flow, F4

Some repair notes for the Evoke 2S are in this PDF.

20th February 2020

On Alibaba - Shenzhen Liyuan Huida Technology Co (Jack Wan) had offered some new stocks of higher brightness OLEDs and are known to offer a good service to UK individuals. Several people said they have been very successful replacements recently. See https://www.alibaba.com/product-detail/22pin-yellow-white-3003319301002-Pure-Evoke_60671545961.html

PURE EVOKE 1s (early version)

I've received step by step guide notes on swapping these displays which are now here.

PURE Avanti Flow Display

Looking to replace a PURE Avanti display instead? I've written up instructions here.

PURE Evoke 1S Marshall Display

13/6/2019 - A reader has posted instructions on replacing the (same) OLED on an Evoke 1S Marshall in the reader comments, please scroll through them to the end. 

PURE Sirocco 550

2/1/2020 - A reader has posted instructions on replacing the (same) OLED on a Pure Sirroco 550 in the reader comments, please scroll through them to the end. (Happy New Year by the way.)


In 2008 I received a PURE Evoke Flow DAB/ Internet radio as a birthday gift and this cherished radio receiver had been on duty ever since as a portable Internet tuner (thanks to a Chargepak rechargeable battery), doubling as a bedside radio with dual alarms and wireless remote control.  The radio recharged overnight ready for a busy day ahead, seated on my desk. The PURE Evoke Flow opened up a new world of online streaming radio with integral services such as Pure Sounds (rainfall, babbling brooks, breaking waves etc.) and BBC Listen Again, both of which, sadly, have long since been discontinued and are greatly missed.

PURE was launched back in 2001 by the higher-end VideoLogic division of UK graphics chipmaker Imagination Technologies. This was at a time when DAB radio was emerging as an exciting new radio standard and PURE was being positioned as a premium consumer brand. Imagination hit hard times and the PURE brand itself was sold off in 2016. Imagination’s major customer Apple also pulled the plug, deciding to make its own graphics chips instead, and a bitter trade dispute followed. Imagination was snapped up by a Chinese/ US private equity firm in 2017. The PURE brand still lives on, thanks to Austrian financial backers.

A Display of PURE Genius

One of the PURE Evoke Flow’s finest features was its yellow OLED graphics display which needed no backlight and had much greater clarity, luminance and viewing angle than an ordinary LCD did. As every Evoke Flow owner doubtless knows by now, unfortunately the display would fade after a few years (say six or more) as its organic element deteriorated until the display blanked out altogether, rendering the radio nearly useless.

Sad to say, the same fate befell my own radio and I have searched in vain for a replacement display for several years. Spares became unobtainable once RS Components discontinued the Bolymin 128 x 64 pixel BL12864KERNH$​ (Stock No. 668-6124). I failed to find any foreign source that would ship a single replacement display (but read on).

New OLED Display for PURE Evoke Flow, Avanti, Evoke-1S.

The search for a new display having defeated me (and I don’t give up easily), in 2018 I was really delighted to learn that an enterprising individual has managed to source and import replacement yellow OLED displays that fit the PURE Evoke Flow, Avanti Flow and Evoke-1S Marshall, PURE's guitar amp style DAB radio.

I feared it might be too good to be true but, sure enough, after placing an order online with the UK seller AJSDyno a small carton soon arrived containing a new display for my ten year old radio. Perfect! They have since run out of stock so you will have to source one yourself from eg China (read the comments section later for guidance).

Next was a learning curve to figure out how to fit the new part, so here’s my photo sequence and instructions to help those wanting to replace their displays with minimum fuss.

Only basic tools are needed but a lot of ‘sympathy’ and some dexterity when handling delicate parts is also required: allow yourself half an hour of quality time and work carefully, don’t rush things and you should be fine.

DIY Instructions to replace a PURE Evoke Flow OLED

Unplug the radio from its a.c. adaptor and if a Chargepak battery pack is fitted, remove it. The display is accessed from the rear of the radio, which is secured by six Philips screws, so start by removing them.

Remove 6 x Philips screws holding in the rear panel [click to see]... and swing the panel out, as if it's hinged on the left hand sideThe rear panel can be gently prised out with a plastic spudger or similar tool, swinging it gently out from the right and allow it to rest on the worktop. It carries the main board and some interwiring. Note how some wires and ribbons hook the mainboard to the SnoozeHandle, loudspeaker, front panel controls and the Imagination Technologies display controller.

The rear panel resting on the workbench. Take care not to strain the taut blue wire (SnoozeHandle PCB)A word of warning,

THE SINGLE WIRE (ARROWED) CONNECTING THE SNOOZEHANDLE IS QUITE TAUT. IT IS SOLDERED AT BOTH ENDS AND CANNOT BE DISCONNECTED WITHOUT DESOLDERING IT. TAKE CARE NOT TO TUG OR STRAIN THIS WIRE OR THE TINY PCB CONNECTING THE SNOOZE HANDLE MAY BE DAMAGED!

So ensure you don’t strain this wire.  You can easily pull the two-pin loudspeaker wire connection off the main board. This frees up things to give more access to the innards.

The main front panel connection cable (a silver ribbon, 15mm wide) is quite sturdy and simply slides out of its PCB connector embedded in the front panel on the left, so note which way round the blue ‘pull tab’ goes and pull the ribbon wire gently out. (You can choose to leave this connected if you have the dexterity to work around it, but you may find it slips out accidentally anyway.)

Main board resting on the worktop, display PCB arrowedThe OLED display ribbon in situ, note pins 1-22 markedThe OLED display connects using a flexible printed circuit board ribbon. The connector is probably hidden under some masking tape which can be removed.

Showing how the connector latches must be disengaged before disconnecting the ribbonDO NOT PULL THE RIBBON OUT! It’s numbered 1 and 22 to show the polarity of the flexible cable. Look closely at how the OLED ribbon is seated in the connector, which has a black plastic clamp to secure it in place.

Use a pointed tool or maybe a fingernail to slide out the retaining latch at both endsA pointed plastic tool (or your fingernails) must be used to slide the black plastic clamp outwards to the edge of the PCB. It’s effectively just one latch with two handles on the end that pop out evenly about 2mm, and then gently slide out the display’s flexible ribbon.

Then remove the flexible ribbon from the connectorThe rear of the OLED plastic housing is detached by removing four small Philips screws.

The four Philips screws (circled) are removed nextYour display is probably screened with adhesive copper foil stuck to it. The display is merely stuck with double sided tape around the edges of the display. It is easy to gently pry it off using a plastic spudger tool and it will come away.

Carefully pry the display away off the adhesive border

I FOUND THE NEW DISPLAY NEEDS TO BE STUCK ON ‘UPSIDE DOWN’ COMPARED WITH THE OLD ONE, TO ALIGN THE 1-22 PINOUTS OF THE PCB CONNECTOR.

On this new display, the ribbon sprouts from the TOP edge and needs folding back. Compare yours carefully!Clean the window if necessary with eg a little Isopropanol. Unpeel the clear protection poly film off the new display.  The OLED can be applied and stuck down, aligning it in the radio's display window as best you can. Depending on the type that you purchase, the flat flexible ribbon might sprout out of the TOP instead, if so, fold it over downwards towards the controller PCB so the 1-22 pinout markings are visible on the ribbon as before. The old adhesive should still be strong enough but you'll be able to lift and reposition the display if necessary.

My replacement display fitted in place. Yours might look different. Main thing is to ensure the pinouts 1 > 22 align the right way roundRe-assembly, as they famously say, is the reverse of the above. Pass the OLED ribbon through the slot in the black plastic housing and screw down with 4 Philips screws.

I obtained a small reel of 50mm adhesive copper tape from Ebay and stuck it over the black plastic housing. That's optional.

To re-connect the OLED to the PCB, you must ensure the black plastic latches are STILL OUT by a few millimetres then gently slide the connector ribbon in as far as it will go. You'll know it's right when the bare copper conductors on the end of the flexible ribbon disappear into the housing, after which it can't go any further. Gently but firmly slide the black plastic latches inwards again to clamp the ribbon evenly in place.

If necessary, re-insert the silver front panel ribbon, the right way round, into its own connector ensuring the flat ribbon is even and flush with the connector.

Reconnect the loudspeaker and close up the housing by 'swinging it back into' the case, starting at the left-hand (telescopic aerial) side, always taking care not to strain the blue SnoozeHandle wire, then screw the rear back onto the housing.

Powered up and working again! [click to see]The radio can then be powered up and tested.  Mine worked immediately,  even after all this time it remembered the settings and found my LAN again. The remote control worked again too with new batteries (remember there is a 'Hardware Bind' button in the remote, to pair it that way if needed). Surprisingly, my radio then updated its firmware over Wi-fi to V5.1.The display active/ standby brightness can be dimmed via the Options menu if it is too bright.

LEGACY LINK : Replacement Evoke Flow OLED Display from AJSDyno

Reader Comments (241)

Thanks Alan for the excellent instructions here. I've just replaced the screen on my Evoke Flow with a white one from Jack Wan at Alibaba. He's out of yellow ones. No customs charges for me (UK). Crossed fingers it will last.

February 19, 2019 at 17:50 | Unregistered CommenterRichard

Same story in regards to a fading display for an Avanti Flow. However, this site and the fact that many have DIY'd to get their excellent audio product up and running again has encouraged me to order a replacement display from the AliBaba site linked in Alan's commentary. Fingers crossed for the serviceability and arrival of said item. However, the Avanti appears to be a lot more complicated than the Evoke to dismantle, with no help from internet searches. I've had to remove back and front panels and the power supply in order to sufficiently stretch out the front panel, then remove half a dozen cable ribbons and two more pcbs and units, as well as speaker connections, to get access to the display. Hopefully I've taken enough pics and taken enough care to be able to reassemble successfully.

February 20, 2019 at 15:56 | Unregistered CommenterAlastair Jenkin

I can imagine a Pure Avanti Flow would be very much more complicated to fix. The Pure Evoke Flow is just a simple box that opens from the rear but the Avanti Flow is probably much less trivial to fit a new display into. They seem quite pricey, even if bought used, and I haven't managed to get my hands on one to take apart, not yet anyway!

February 21, 2019 at 9:50 | Registered CommenterAlan W

Hi Alan, thanks for your write up. I bought a white display from China via Alibaba, it arrived within a week & worked immediately I fitted it. The parcel was posted from Southall UK! I used the old copper foil from the original display. It looked VERY similar to the original display, marked with the RiT display & part number. It went in the same way round as the orinal - no need to bring the lead out the other way. Let's hope it last longer than the original! Peter

February 21, 2019 at 19:10 | Unregistered CommenterPeter R

Hi Alan,

I have fixed more than 20 Evoke Flow's and a few Avanti Flow's, and my Oasis Flow, mostly with new displays. I got the displays when they were a bit cheaper on Alibaba, and sold the repaired radios on eBay.

I have now found another display on Alibaba that appeared to be a new RiTDisplay to replace the P19301 used by Pure. This is a P35801, slightly smaller overall, but the pinout on the ribbon appeared to be identical, although the driver IC is different.

However, having received 3 displays today, I have found that there is one problem - the display appears as a mirror image! The SPD0301 driver obviously has a subtle difference in the command table, compared to the original display's SSD1305.

Other than needing a mirror to read the display, it works well in the Evoke Flow. If any of your readers know how to download and modify the firmware installed in the Flow radios to make this display work correctly, I'm sure many would be interested.

The new display is available in 1-off quantities from Forfuture Technology (Shenzhen) Co., Ltd., on Alibaba, for about £10 each, plus postage.

John

March 1, 2019 at 19:29 | Unregistered CommenterJohn A

Follow up to my 20 Feb post regarding an Avanti: Yeehah!!! Part arrived and got it all back together and .... it worked. Lots of juggling with looms and one of the pcb sockets had actually come away from the board but careful sliding back on over the pins seems to have done the job. Thanks very much to AW.

March 2, 2019 at 18:52 | Unregistered CommenterAlastair Jenkin

Just installed a new screen based off these instructions and appears to be working well.
Bought the replacement screen off eBay - not cheapest option but appears to work well.

Only two observations:
The original screen once removed appears to have a Matt finish, where new screen is gloss. Once installed however looks fine.
Secondly the new screen appears to be a couple of mm bigger than the original, it all appears to fit Ok but I had to trim the OLED plastic caddy a fraction to get a good fit. Nothing major but just made the install slightly easier.

March 6, 2019 at 18:54 | Unregistered CommenterJonathan

many thanks for the useful instructions. Had slight problem with black plastic clip as I completely removed it (new OLED then didn' t work as it wasn't sat right). Left clip in and rested ribbon on top before securing clip and Bingo!

March 9, 2019 at 12:24 | Unregistered Commenterjooools

As per John A. post, purchased a replacement display from Forfuture, same mirroring issue - display also appears to be one pixel to the right with the overlapping pixel wrapping over to the left. Have a shiny worktop which mirrors the display conveniently!

Any tips or resolution ideas appreciated. The company themselves have been very attentive but I wait to hear if they have a fix

March 16, 2019 at 14:43 | Unregistered CommenterIan

I just fixed my Evoke 1S using these clues. There's no snooze handle wire on the 1S which helps.

Getting the whole unit apart is a bit scary - remove all the screws you can find and disconnect the various connectors. Take a photo before of the insides to remind where everything goes.

I found a display here: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Pure-Evoke-1S-Marshall-D4-New-screen-display-unit-OLED-White/123611723355?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649

Getting the front panel PCB to lift off was difficult, it was sticky around the edges. With careful force it pops off (once the screws are removed).

The clues about removing and re-seating the ribbon cable are critical too.

Thanks for this guide, Bill

March 21, 2019 at 11:37 | Unregistered CommenterBill Hodgson

I've had a response from Forfuture on the mirrored display - anyone know how to implement? Handy with a screwdriver and glue but this is just over the edge of my capabilities!

"Regarding the orientation of the text, if the initial code set the command A0H for wrong display, it should have been set A1H. These two commands A0H and A1H are for left and right scanning. So just need to try A0H or A1H for the right one in the initial code.

2. Regarding the two columns offset, which caused by column address command. before writing the text data to the GRAM, the page address and the column address should be set as follows:

page address : B0H,
the column address: 00h, 10h

e.g.
#define col_offset 0
void OLED_Set_Pos(unsigned char x, unsigned char y)
{
OLED_WR_Byte(0xb0+y,OLED_CMD);
OLED_WR_Byte((((x+col_offset)&0xf0)>>4)|0x10,OLED_CMD);
OLED_WR_Byte(((x+col_offset)&0x0f),OLED_CMD);
}

when call OLED_Set_Pos(0,0) for setting the position from the origin. and then start to send data for display"

March 22, 2019 at 10:47 | Unregistered CommenterIan

It's been interesting to see this problem emerging, if only because it's a useful warning to others -- but I can't see how it could be rectified without hacking the radio's firmware, and as that's firmly the intellectual property of PURE themselves and isn't open source I can't see any solution to this unfortunately. AW

March 22, 2019 at 13:07 | Registered CommenterAlan W

Hi Alan,
Regarding the new display that I found on Alibaba, which showed the display as a mirror image, I'm sure it can only be resolved by modifying the firmware in the radio. Upgrading Pure radios installs a new .dfu file, and that can be examined, but I have no plans to wade through the 8Mb file to find the OLED driver commands!

By the way, I believe that the reason the new display is not fully compatible with the Pure Flow radios is the different driver IC in the display. The original RiTDisplay P19301 used an SSD1305 driver, whilst the new P35801 display uses a SPD0301 driver. The original driver was able to address a 132x64 pixel display, but the new driver can only drive a 128x64 display. Consequently, the Pure firmware sends commands to the original display to define the start address of a 128x64 array in the display RAM, but these commands put the start address in the wrong place for the new display. For reasons that I have not fully worked out, this results in the mirror image, with a 4 pixel horizontal offset. So if anyone finds an alternative display, check that it uses the SSD1305 driver IC.

I am currently trying to verify the specs of displays from another source. They appear to be the original P19301 display but, as that ceased production years ago, any that have surfaced recently are RiTDisplay production rejects. Hence their flaws or premature failure. So I suspect the new source may be offering similar old stock. I will report back if they do appear promising as replacements.

Keep up the good work,
John

March 25, 2019 at 22:16 | Unregistered CommenterJohn A

Hi Alan, thanks so much for maintaining this page.
I'm having two different problems with my Evoke F4, bought in 2014.
The first problem is the display: it got exhausted and it's not readable anymore. Using your instructions I was able to replace the display with one bought on alibaba: it's not perfect, because it has some "shades", but at least it is readable. I'm very grateful for the indications you wrote here.
The second problem, occurred before the display was dimmed, is that the DAB tuner cannot receive any station anymore. Autoscan can find stations no more, and I'm sure they are broadcasting because other brands are receiving.
When I opened the radio to change the display, I also checked the aerial wire and it looks connected.
The FM tuner and the internet radios are working (nearly) fine.
Have you got any idea why the DAB tuner stopped working and how I could fix it?
I'm Gianni, from Modena (Italy).
Greetings and thanks again.

May 1, 2019 at 19:04 | Unregistered CommenterGianni L.

Unsure why DAB would stop working, if the aerial connection is intact maybe you could try a factory reset. Instructions for EVOKE Flow/AVANTI Flow/ Oasis Flow/ ONE Flow/ Contour: Make sure your radio is switched on. Press and hold the 'Options' button down for two or three seconds and confirm the reset when prompted. (see https://support-uk.pure.com/en/kb/articles/resetting-your-pure-internet-radio for info.) You will lose ALL presets, alarms etc. Alan W

May 2, 2019 at 18:39 | Registered CommenterAlan W

Thanks for your guide. I followed it to the letter and replaced my failed OLED in an Evoke Pure Flow in around an hour without issues. The Winstar Display is available on ebay.co.uk at https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Winstar-WEX012864CGPP3N00000-OLED-Style-Graphic-Display/163403227912?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649. Cost 20 Euros. There is one issue that I came across while fitting - the plastic housing which holds the display has fitting markers that are slightly too small for the replacement display. These are plastic and can be easily filed or cut off; Thanks once again.

May 3, 2019 at 16:42 | Unregistered CommenterLes Glassock

Thanks for posting these instructions, I managed to fix my Pure Evoke Flow based on your instructions. I would never have even tried this otherwise. Thanks!

May 4, 2019 at 16:50 | Unregistered CommenterSteven Clarke

It looks that no more OLED are available on the market..
It is a shame :( I need one for Pure Evoke Flow..

May 7, 2019 at 6:27 | Unregistered Commenterbajdik

They seem to keep cropping up here and there on Alibaba and Ebay so I would not give up, keep looking out for them.

May 7, 2019 at 10:32 | Registered CommenterAlan W

I see, but the price is too high. Last display was sold for $90..

May 10, 2019 at 6:55 | Unregistered Commenterbajdik

In the internet I found the following display:
https://www.first-components.com/en/wex012864dwpp3n00000
Is the display compatible?
Thank You!

May 11, 2019 at 13:43 | Unregistered CommenterHJW

Well it claims to be, and it has the correct 22 pins. Someone else (see above) has used a Winstar OLED white display with the same part number successfully, so it's worth trying but obviously I can make no guarantees myself.

May 11, 2019 at 17:49 | Registered CommenterAlan W

Yes, I think that should be OK!
Anyway, it is probably company in Italy..
Will they ship it to EU?

May 11, 2019 at 17:59 | Unregistered Commenterbajdik

They claim to serve customers of all sizes around the world so I guess so. I can't be sure. The email address is sales@first-components.com.

May 11, 2019 at 18:43 | Registered CommenterAlan W

I ordered a Winstar OLED at "www.first-components.com" by email. Completely uncomplicated delivered by express within a few days to Germany. The conversion with the Winstar OLED worked perfectly. Thanks for the great description. This will allow the Evoke Flow to run for several years. Thank you!

May 27, 2019 at 18:56 | Unregistered CommenterHJW

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