Sub phatty - plastic coating on front panel coming off

[kirre777]

I bought my sub phatty in april this year. The front panel has some sort of plastic coating on top of the metal and it has gradually come loose on two locations, under the resonance and sub osc dials. The area is about 1 cm wide and follows the bottom half radius of the knob. Like a smiley's mouth .

Anyone experienced something similar? It's still on warranty so I'll probably let the shop take care of it.

[robml]

it's not a plastic film designed to protect the panel during manufacture? usually they can be pulled off.

i know i had the protective film on my knobs, but i dont remember a protective film on my panel.

cheers

[Blackout]

the whole top plate on the Sub PHatty is actually a vinyl sticker, made to look like silver metal. its one of the only "cheap" manufacturing things i dont like about the Sub Phatty. the information should really have been printed onto the metal with paint, but they just got a big overlay sticker made and then just pushed it over the top of the panel plate. have a look off to the sides, you can "catch" the side of the silver sticker with your nail and actually lift it off fairly easy.

maybe you have already started wearing through the sticker man. which is what i suspected would happen after a while with this kind of dodgy technique of manufacture...

[kirre777]

Thanks for the replies. You can actually feel the plastic coming loose, like a slight elevation or budge in the plastic. So it's probably not a wear issue. I'll keep you posted!

[eXode]

Yes, all modern Moog products, and also Dave Smith Instruments use these lexan overlays afaik. It's because they are supposed to be durable, easy to replace, and still fairly low cost to manufacture.

[Blackout]

if you ask me its a recipe for disaster. leave your moog in the heat and it will bubble and peel off. over time who knows whats going to happen to it, the sticky glue might fail or discolour. its just a whole crappy vibe and im really surprised that MOOG would do such a dodgy short-cut on their otherwise stellar product. its like running a marathon and falling over on your face at the finish line

[Moog Music]

Many Moog instruments including the Minimoog Model D have used high quality overlays. They are extremely reliable and help to protect the front panel - even in direct sunlight. Please contact our support department and we will assist you ASAP as this is not a common occurrence.

http://www.moogmusic.com/contact


- Your Friends at Moog

[Blackout]

the original Minimoog from 1972 had a sticker overlay on its panel? not from the ones ive seen they were made to last properly...

[mmarsh100]

Leave your Moog in the heat and you will have more problems than the overlay peeling off!

[Blackout]

haha true. sometimes it doesnt have to be HEAT necessarily, often just weather that varies wildly (eg 5 degress to 25 degrees) over short periods of time can do the damage. the plastic sticker will expand and shrink at a different rate to the metal and work its way loose and separate from the metal plate. or at the very least you get bubbles underneath and corners peeling back, etc. Or humidity / wet air will change adhesive properties. Theres just so many variables for things to go wrong.

Time will tell Moog. But i think you have damaged your product and build reputation with this production short-cut.

unless Moog plans on selling the Sub Phatty faceplate stickers separately so we can swap them around? eg a black one with white writing so we can peel the other one off and change the color of our Subbs? maybe thats the after-market plan?