Lost Sound out of Osc 3

[zorbas]

Anyone else had Osc 3 drop out on them (only making small pops or taps)? I've got a Voyager OS.

If I do a 3->1 FM, at start up it will fire one wavelength off then go silent.

Any help is appreciated.

Cheers!

[Kenneth]

Check to make sure VCO 3 is set to high frequency.

If it's dropping out on you after a while of playing it without issue, VCO 3 may be randomly switching between low and high frequency. The "pops" and "clicks" definitely make it sound like that's the case. I'm not a technician, and wouldn't know how to help you if this were the case. Just speculating. That's the only logical explanation I can think of. Forgive me if you've already covered that.

[zorbas]

Yep. Checked the Hi/Lo.

It's not intermittent, it only goes through one wave cycle at the very startup of the unit and then nothing.

Most frustrating part is that I sent it to Moog a few months ago to fix an issue/upgrade the legato switch and get a tune up. I would have hoped that something like this would have showed up then. Played it a few weeks ago, everything was fine. I literally keep it on a desk in my music room. Ah well...

[BHC303]

I some instances there can be wave cancellation between the square waves, is it like that with all wave shapes?

[xmit]

I had exactly the same issue with my VOS at the start of the year : had to go back to the UK distributors to be fixed by their techs...

Second time back for my VOS too - first time the whole analogue board had to be replaced, at least it was under warranty that time..

Best of luck mate.

[thealien666]

Not to scare you or anything, but the short time I had my VOS (less than a year) it had to go back to the store to be sent out for repair, because the sample-and-hold waveform of the LFO didn't work anymore.
The first time it came back, it wasn't 100% fixed because they only had replace some parts. So back it went a second time, and this time they had replaced the whole analog board in mine too. After that it was perfect again. I sold it shortly after...

Best of luck to you.

BTW, today I own a 37 years old Minimoog D instead. So if it ever breaks down, at least I won't be surprised. But so far, I have more confidence in its reliability than the newer stuff. Simpler design, much less parts that can fail. In a VOS, there are over 800 parts (and close to 100 integrated circuits) on that analog board alone !

[zorbas]

Off it goes...thanks for the notes, all.

[Logodave]

Hey Alien and Kevin,

I have wondered about how humidity affects a Mini or a Voyager and of course modular systems.
We had some high humidity this weekend and my buddy's Model D is acting weird.
Talked to a guy at a studio in Dallas, he says leave it off until humidity drops below 65 %.

I'm getting worried about humidity and it's relation to the Voyager Old School this summer as well.

Could this be the prob with "Lost Sound of Osc 3"?

Sweating in Ohio,
Dave

[Kenneth]

I've had the same second thoughts about switching on my VOS up here in Duluth. Humidity is fine right now, but this past weekend was ridiculous. Don't know what the percentage was but the humidity was ungodly. It felt like you could drown in the air, so I thought my VOS might suffer the same fate if it had been switched on. Can the humidity damage the circuitry even if it remains disconnected from power?

[thealien666]

From my point of vue, humidity will usually not damage circuitry per say (unless actually condensing into water droplets that can cause shorts circuits). But it will oxidize and corrode metal contacts in switches, pots, connectors, IC sockets, and thus cause all sorts of intermittent problems from keyboard contacts, control voltages lines, to scratchy pots, rotary switches, and toggle switches.

It can also, under certain conditions, cause malfunctions like modulation bleeding (especially in early Minimoog D) because the printed circuit board will absorb some of this humidity and change the capacitance of some traces on there. Not a problem with modern PCB because today they're coated with a sealant to prevent that.

But I have observed that on my friend's VOS, there's a couple of keys that need to be pushed a little harder to play when the humidity goes above 65% in his house during the summer months. Because the porous conductive rubber pads contacts underneath the keys will have absorbed part of the moisture. The Korg Mono/Poly, with its early (flawed) Panasonic designed keyboard, is especially sensitive to that.

It's not only electronics that don't like high humidity. Wood is particularly sensitive to that also. But luckily, even though a Moog is made of wood it isn't as critical as a guitar neck in that regard !

Some manufacturers will coat their connectors with gold, because gold doesn't oxidize (provided that the coating, or should I say plating is thick enough). Some manufacturers also use higher quality IC sockets (with round legs), and sealed pots in order to minimize bad contacts over time and harsh conditions.

What I could suggest, would be to get some silica gel desiccant (moisture absorbing pads) and open-up the back of a VOS, or a Minimoog D, and put one in there (preferably taped or glued down as not to move around).
It would not work well in open spaces, but in an enclosed casing it will help reduce moisture levels in there.

For the regular Voyager, the LCD screen can also be affected by extreme humidity levels.

I'm sure Kevin must also have some good pointers about this from his vast experience...

EDIT in the warm summer months, a good air conditioning or de-humidifier will usually keep moisture levels at reasonable levels, both for humans and machines...

[Logodave]

Thanks to both Alien and Kenneth for your response.
I just have known that certain electronics act in a strange
way due to atmospheric conditions.
I am just trying to protect my investment.
I hope my friend Amos might respond if he see's this post.

As time rolls on I guess we all wonder about time and
how things decay.

Peace ya'all.

[filtered]

From personal experience with my OS, humidity doesn't noticeably affect it- I just finished a 3 day microtour of beach shows, all 3 of which were outdoor venues in the infamous Southern US humid brand of summer heat- if aftertouch, etc were affected, I didn't notice it...

[thealien666]

From personal experience with my OS, humidity doesn't noticeably affect it- I just finished a 3 day microtour of beach shows, all 3 of which were outdoor venues in the infamous Southern US humid brand of summer heat- if aftertouch, etc were affected, I didn't notice it...

One thing that helps you, is that you play it a lot. By constantly moving rotary switches, and pots, as well as playing the keyboard will prevent, to some extent, the formation of oxidized areas in those simply by the rubbing of mechanical contacts, and the pressing of the keyboard conductive rubber pads under each note.

A stored VOS in a damp and humid basement for a long time without playing it, for example, would certainly affect it, to some extent, after a certain time. Much like any other electronic equipment, like guitar amps for example. Scratchy volume knobs anyone ?

[filtered]

One thing that helps you, is that you play it a lot. By constantly moving rotary switches, and pots, as well as playing the keyboard will prevent, to some extent, the formation of oxidized areas in those simply by the rubbing of mechanical contacts, and the pressing of the keyboard conductive rubber pads under each note.

A stored VOS in a damp and humid basement for a long time without playing it, for example, would certainly affect it, to some extent, after a certain time. Much like any other electronic equipment, like guitar amps for example. Scratchy volume knobs anyone ?

interesting! gives me more of a reason to work all of those knobs and switches too! you could definitely apply that to vintage vehicles as well- I have a 67 vw bus that I fire up once a week and at least take around the block-

[thealien666]

... you could definitely apply that to vintage vehicles as well- I have a 67 vw bus that I fire up once a week and at least take around the block-

Absolutely !
By doing that, you make all the internal parts of the motor be lubricated by the motor oil, prevent brakes from jamming, prevent flat spots on tires, recharge the battery via the generator (not alternator in those days), etc...

Is it covered with big flowers ?