The new Sony HDR-AS15 (and presumedly AS10) are nice little POV action video cameras. They produce video about as good as and in some respects better than GoPro’s closest priced competition. But it’s got its share of shortcomings and problems. Some of the shortcomings you would have figured they would have figured out ahead of time by looking at the competition.
There is one problem that has shown up and that is a rattle that is very loud in the on board audio. You can hear it when you shake the camera too.
It’s not the waterproof case as it rattles out of the case. It’s not the battery since it still rattles with that removed. Doesn’t seem to be the door or flap. Has to be something inside the camera. Found video online of someone with same problem, I decided to take mine apart to see for myself.
Remove the only two visible screws, they are small, but not microscopic. #0 philips. Pop open the flappy cover on the bottom & you’ll see the screws. Remove. Pry the faceplate gently and it should easily pop off, the cover (not pictured) coming with it.
Remove battery if you haven’t already, open rear battery door.
The entire guts of the camera slide out the rear of the case. Gently squeeze sides of case near base as pictured, it will help to release retaining nubs. Tug at the battery door and the entire assembly should slide out easily.
Inspecting things, the first thing that looks loose is the lens and imager assembly. It’s retained by a couple plastic fingers with barb that keep it from moving forward, but there’s some wiggle space behind it. I found a piece of feltlike material (air filter stuff actually) and trimmed it to fit behind the imager. Gently squeeze it in there to provide some pressure. I gently shook the assembly and could still hear the rattle.
Further examination finally revealed the source of the rattle was the LCD screen. It’s held in a plastic cradle with a foil frame. This cradle is held on with another two #0 philips screws. The cradle is solid enough. Remove the two screws and carefully flip the LCD assembly over, being mindful of the ribbon cable. I removed the foil frame for a better look, but that is not necessary for the fix.
Looking at the back of the LCD assembly, you can see the problem, there is a gap between the LCD and the plastic frame that allows the LCD to slide around. I grabbed one of the myriad cardboard boxes that the Sony came in. Someone has to tell Sony to cut down on the cardboard origami packaging, it’s overkill. Took one of the boxes and cut a sliver to fit in the gap as pictured here. Slide it in.
Reverse procedure to reassemble, quite simple really. Just watch that the little speaker is seated correctly in the LCD frame. Give it a shake (Lub Lub Fiah!), no rattle! Not much else to do to improve the bad audio, but at least won’t have to listen to the rattling! To Sony’s credit, taking this cam apart to work on it was very easy.
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