# ZOE-M8Q UART/FTDI Communciations **URL:** \ **Category:** Development Boards\ **Created:** [November 11, 2019, 4:51pm UTC](https://community.sparkfun.com/t/zoe-m8q-uart-ftdi-communciations/38197 "2019-11-11T16:51:21Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![adam.g](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@adam.g](https://community.sparkfun.com/u/adam.g)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2019, 4:51pm UTC](https://community.sparkfun.com/t/zoe-m8q-uart-ftdi-communciations/38197/1 "2019-11-11T16:51:21Z")
Hi there, I recently purchased both the [[SparkFun GPS Breakout - ZOE-M8Q (Qwiic)](https://www.sparkfun.com/products/15210) and [[SparkFun GPS Breakout - Chip Antenna SAM-M8Q (Qwiic)](https://www.sparkfun.com/products/15193). I’ve encountered an issue where I’m unable communicate with the ZOE-M8Q breakout in [[u-blox’s u-center](https://www.u-blox.com/en/product/u-center) software using a [[SparkFun FTDI Basic Breakout - 3.3V](https://www.sparkfun.com/products/9873). The SAM-M8Q however, immediately worked without issue. When I connect both receivers to an oscilloscope, I can confirm data on the Tx pin of the SAM-M8Q, as well as measure the baud rate. However, the Tx pin of the ZOE-M8Q measures 0V and never changes. Could this be due to the fact that the receiver isn’t configured to output data on UART1? None of the SparkFun ublox library examples (e.g. Example10\_ResetConfiguration) appear to be able to resolve the issue. I should note that I2C communications on the ZOE-M8Q work properly, and the receiver outputs NMEA over I2C without any problems. Are there any other ways of manually resetting the configuration of the ZOE-M8Q over I2C? Perhaps it could be a bad board? Cheers, Adam]([https://www.sparkfun.com/products/9873](https://www.sparkfun.com/products/9873))]([u-center](https://www.u-blox.com/en/product/u-center))]([SparkFun GPS Breakout - ZOE-M8Q (Qwiic) - GPS-15193 - SparkFun Electronics](https://www.sparkfun.com/products/15193))]([SparkFun GPS Breakout - Chip Antenna, SAM-M8Q (Qwiic) - GPS-15210 - SparkFun Electronics](https://www.sparkfun.com/products/15210)) ---
**Author:** ![El\_Duderino](https://yyz1.discourse-cdn.com/sparkfun/user_avatar/community.sparkfun.com/el_duderino/32/6367_2.png) [@El\_Duderino](https://community.sparkfun.com/u/El_Duderino)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2019, 9:37pm UTC](https://community.sparkfun.com/t/zoe-m8q-uart-ftdi-communciations/38197/2 "2019-11-12T21:37:39Z")
Hi Adam, You should be able to use the ZOE-M8Q over UART with an FTDI so either somehow that port was disabled or the UART output is not working properly. The [[Factory Default-I2C Example](https://github.com/sparkfun/SparkFun_Ublox_Arduino_Library/blob/master/examples/Example12_FactoryDefault_I2C/Example12_FactoryDefault_I2C.ino) from our u-blox library should reset the board so you can use it over UART in u-center. Have you tested the UART output with just a terminal program? The ZOE-M8Q will spit out NMEA data over that port so that would be another good check. Finally, just to eliminate the possibility of any weird hardware issues, can you please take a few photos of the top and bottom of your ZOE-M8Q and attach them to your response? Please do your best to make sure they are clear and well-lit.]([https://github.com/sparkfun/SparkFun\_Ublox\_Arduino\_Library/blob/master/examples/Example12\_FactoryDefault\_I2C/Example12\_FactoryDefault\_I2C.ino](https://github.com/sparkfun/SparkFun_Ublox_Arduino_Library/blob/master/examples/Example12_FactoryDefault_I2C/Example12_FactoryDefault_I2C.ino)) ---
**Author:** ![adam.g](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@adam.g](https://community.sparkfun.com/u/adam.g)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2019, 10:19pm UTC](https://community.sparkfun.com/t/zoe-m8q-uart-ftdi-communciations/38197/3 "2019-11-12T22:19:47Z")
Hi Mark, Thanks for your message. I’ve run the Example12\_FactoryDefault\_I2C script already but unfortunately there’s been no change to the NMEA output (or lack thereof) over UART. I’ve attempted to communicate directly with the board over UART using [[CoolTerm](https://freeware.the-meiers.org/) at 9600 baud, but again no output. The most telling sign is that the Tx pin always measures 0V when connected to an oscilloscope. By comparison, the SAM-M8Q happily transmits away and I can easily measure the baud rate of the data flowing over the Tx pin. With the ZOE-M8Q SiP package, it’s going to be difficult to visually assess what it could be, but I’ve attached a link to a photo below. My best guess is that there’s a dry solder connection underneath the SiP that could be causing the problem. Photo: [https://photos.app.goo.gl/qNPQEqN1vwciQMPn6](https://photos.app.goo.gl/qNPQEqN1vwciQMPn6) Cheers, Adam]([https://freeware.the-meiers.org/](https://freeware.the-meiers.org/)) ---
**Author:** ![El\_Duderino](https://yyz1.discourse-cdn.com/sparkfun/user_avatar/community.sparkfun.com/el_duderino/32/6367_2.png) [@El\_Duderino](https://community.sparkfun.com/u/El_Duderino)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2019, 11:01pm UTC](https://community.sparkfun.com/t/zoe-m8q-uart-ftdi-communciations/38197/4 "2019-11-12T23:01:32Z")
Hi again Adam, Thanks for providing that photo and the troubleshooting steps you have already taken. Since you are seeing no activity on the TX pin on a scope where other boards work just fine, I agree with your assessment that there is a bad solder joint or something else going wrong with that pin and we would be happy to assist you with a replacement. I believe you have already sent our Customer Service team an e-mail about this issue so I will reply to that with further information regarding your replacement. ---
**Author:** ![adam.g](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@adam.g](https://community.sparkfun.com/u/adam.g)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2019, 5:29pm UTC](https://community.sparkfun.com/t/zoe-m8q-uart-ftdi-communciations/38197/5 "2019-11-16T17:29:51Z")
Hi Mark, Just a quick update: I soldered some headers on the new ZOE-M8Q board was able to view data coming in over UART immediately. Thanks for all your help! Cheers, Adam ---
**Author:** ![El\_Duderino](https://yyz1.discourse-cdn.com/sparkfun/user_avatar/community.sparkfun.com/el_duderino/32/6367_2.png) [@El\_Duderino](https://community.sparkfun.com/u/El_Duderino)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2019, 9:22pm UTC](https://community.sparkfun.com/t/zoe-m8q-uart-ftdi-communciations/38197/6 "2019-11-18T21:22:00Z")
That’s great to hear your new board is working properly. Thanks for the update. We’ll go ahead and consider this post resolved.