“Type” Knob Behaving Erratically

[jcshirke]

Hi Everyone,

The "Type" knob on my ModFactor just started behaving erratically. As I turned it, it would not display the types of effects (in this case, the flanger types–pos, neg, jet, and thru-zero). All the other knobs worked fine. Powering on/off didn't help.

Then it started working again seemingly out of the blue. I'm not really sure what I did. Maybe I pushed down on it, maybe I wiggled it a bit–I really don't know. 

But no sooner did it start working again, then it stopped again, briefly. I think I pushed down on it while turning, and it worked again. But I can't be sure what did the trick.

So, is it just a bad knob? Will I have to send the MF back to Eventide for service? It's hardly been through anything approaching rugged use, so having a knob fail seems awfully premature. Or is it a software issue perhaps?

The pedal is mounted on a hard-top pedal board in a semi-permanent state. I'm actually not sure if or how I can get it off, if I have to return it. But I assume there has to be a way.

Thanks,

Jef

[timothyhill]

My first guess would be that there may be some dirt under the knob. You may be able to gently and carefully take it off and clean underneath it. You might want to give Eventide Support a call, too. I'm sure they can offer some suggestions for cleaning, or help you diagnose the problem if it's something else. You can reach them at (201) 641-1200…

http://www.eventide.com/AudioDivision/Support.aspx

[jcshirke]

Thanks, Tim. I wonder if some contact cleaner might do the trick. I'll call them, if no one from Eventide replies here.

Jeff

[jcshirke]

So far, no luck. Called support, but they told me to send an email, which I did. No reply as of yet.

Knob still isn't working right. I took the MF top plate off to see if it would allow me access to the knobs, so I could clean them, but it really doesn't. So, I'm pretty much stuck waiting at this point. This is definitely a drag.

Jeff

[timothyhill]

Yeah, that really is a drag. The problem you're seeing may be caused by something else entirely, too… possibly a cold solder joint or a loose wire or maybe something else entirely.

You could try turning the knob back and forth about 30-40 times and see if it helps. If not, though, I'd wait to see what Eventide Support says.

Please keep us posted as to your progress and eventual resolution, too.

[jcshirke]

I did a clear system setup tonight (power on holding right switch and encoder down simultaneously), and I thought it fixed things. The knob was working properly for a few minutes, then it stopped again.

Oh well. Maybe I'll hear from Support tomorrow.

Thanks again,

Jeff

[jcshirke]

Just sent it in for repairs. Maybe a bad pot? We'll see.

Thanks for the help.

Jeff

[timothyhill]

You're welcome. I hope it doesn't take long to get your pedal back. Let us know, ok?

[jcshirke]

timothyhill:

You're welcome. I hope it doesn't take long to get your pedal back. Let us know, ok?

Tim/Fellow Forumites–

It was a bad pot. Eventide fixed the problem, and the turnaround time was roughly a week. All in all, a pretty quick fix, and I have no complaints about the service.Communication was excellent, and the turnaround time was quick.

The only drag–in my view, at least–is that it did cost me $100. I understand that warranties expire, but my pedal had hardly any use. Once I really started using the pedal, my pot failed. Should a pot fail that quickly? Not in my estimation. It makes me question the quality of the pots that were used in the pedal, and I do expect more for my money. If 2 more pots should fail in the MF, then I might as well buy a new one, since I'd be out $300 total for repairs once all is said and done.

My humble request is that Eventide makes sure to use the highest quality components in these pedals. $100 isn't the end of the world, and I did get upgraded switches, too, which is part of Eventide's standard service on these pedals, if you happen to have the older ones, as I did. But I am sort of on edge now waiting for something else to go wrong with the MF or one of my other Factor pedals…and I really hope that's not what I'm in store for.

Jeff

[timothyhill]

Hey, Jeff, glad to hear you got your pedal back in working order!

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