Little Phatty Stage II problem!

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faatherton
Posts: 5
Joined: Sat Feb 02, 2013 9:17 pm

Little Phatty Stage II problem!

Post by faatherton » Sat Feb 02, 2013 10:13 pm

Okay, this is my first post ever. I will try to be as coherent and thorough as possible. Bare with me!! :D

I recently purchased the Stage II off of ebay. Excellent condition, been sitting in a studio. Open it up,
go upstairs to my HQ and plug it into my Tascam 2488 (24 track digital recorder) that is hooked up to
two powered KRK Rokit 5's. Flip the on switch and go to town. Awesome.

After about 20 min. of messing around, the LP's LED screen goes blank and the synth makes a sound
like a bomb slowly dropping. Nothing. Can't browse presets or turn nobs. So I unplug from the Tascam
and plug in headphones- LP reboots and everything seems to be in working order. With just the headphones
plugged in, it seems fine.

I try to plug the LP into some pedals and a small practice amp. No dice, does the same thing. Then, I start
to think that it could be a grounding issue. I live in an old house (1896), so it seemed like a possibility.
Took the LP downstairs with the practice amp- same problem.

Take it BACK upstairs and try all the outlets. I try hooking it up to a Peavey Rock Master head into a Marshall
cab. It works!! Sounds great! So, I naturally plug into my pedal board and run it through the Rock Master. NOTHING.
Same symptoms. I unplug all my pedals and just run it through a reverb and looping pedal. It WORKS!! So, I try running
the out from my pedal chain into my Tascam (I'm really itching to lay something down!). Nothing.

So, after some research, I find this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-VMCijPZiLU
Seems to be doing the same thing to this guy. His remedy seems like an option. However, my problem
is that I don't know what to do. The guy I bought it from is shocked at all of this and has offered to refund
my money if ship it back to him. I really don't want to do that if this problem can be easily fixed. If it is
a grounding problem, or my house isn't wired sufficiently enough to handle a MOOG, I kinda think I should
send it back. I may take it to a friend's studio to see if it does the same thing there. If it works, then that
may just mean that my house is the problem. But what if I performed at a venue and they had grounding
problems?? AH! This seems like a nightmare.

Should I take a chance after spending $900+ to keep this thing and search for a fix, or just send it
back? I'm worried if I bought a different one, that it might to the same thing! Even if I kept it
and had to rewire my house- there's no guarantee that it would fix the problem!

Suggestions? THANK YOU!

IgorCristo
Posts: 235
Joined: Thu Mar 29, 2012 3:03 pm

Re: Little Phatty Stage II problem!

Post by IgorCristo » Sun Feb 03, 2013 6:07 pm

I'm sorry to hear it... unfortunately I don't know how to solve these "more advanced" things. I'm sure someone will help you!

Did you try Moog's support? They're just great in general...

Cheers!
Moog Minimoog Voyager Performer Edition and Little Phatty Stage II | Elektron Analog Four and Analog Rytm | Mutable Instruments Ambika | Korg Minilogue

faatherton
Posts: 5
Joined: Sat Feb 02, 2013 9:17 pm

Re: Little Phatty Stage II problem!

Post by faatherton » Sun Feb 03, 2013 7:32 pm

Thanks for the reply! I haven't tried Moog support...I wasn't sure if they'd help me since
I purchased it used.

The guy I bought it from suggested doing a firmware update...but I got scared off by instructions
talking about "boatloaders" and "MIDI"...which I don't have a midi setup or anything. Worried that
I could potentially mess it up even more.

SOOO bummed people!

mrfett
Posts: 38
Joined: Thu Dec 27, 2012 10:47 pm
Location: Silver Spring, MD

Re: Little Phatty Stage II problem!

Post by mrfett » Mon Feb 04, 2013 3:13 pm

I'd try using it at a friend's house and see if the problem persists. Then I'd try calling Moog and see if they can offer any advice. If it happens at your friend's house I'd send it back. In general I suspect something is wrong with it. Sad story :-(

faatherton
Posts: 5
Joined: Sat Feb 02, 2013 9:17 pm

Re: Little Phatty Stage II problem!

Post by faatherton » Tue Feb 05, 2013 2:56 am

Here's where I'm at:

Took it to a friend's house...everything worked fine.
This makes me believe my house is the problem. I'm
no genius when it comes to electrical wiring, but would a
power regulator be something that could help? There
has got to be a way to fix this. I will call Moog as
soon as possible.
Last edited by faatherton on Wed Feb 06, 2013 2:31 am, edited 1 time in total.

ricknboogie
Posts: 107
Joined: Sun May 29, 2011 11:55 am
Location: D/FW TX

Re: Little Phatty Stage II problem!

Post by ricknboogie » Tue Feb 05, 2013 12:47 pm

There is no device to regulate the power that will help, without spending an enormous amount of money. Things like "power conditioners", are not capable of actually stepping up the voltage from the wall. Short of moving to a new location, I'm not sure what the answer is here, but feel for your predicament. Hope you can sort it out, somehow.

Ledbetter
Posts: 206
Joined: Tue Jan 01, 2013 7:18 pm

Re: Little Phatty Stage II problem!

Post by Ledbetter » Tue Feb 05, 2013 11:06 pm

You should call an electrician, I think.
Former owner of Prodigy #2845 (purchased new, long ago), Animoog, Voyager Select (Fire & Maple), Little and Slim Phatties, Nord Electro 4D, 5D and Lead 2X, Roland AX-9.

faatherton
Posts: 5
Joined: Sat Feb 02, 2013 9:17 pm

Re: Little Phatty Stage II problem!

Post by faatherton » Wed Feb 06, 2013 2:34 am

This video describes the problem I'm having. Hoping that this could
be a potential answer. Will update! Thanks! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-VMCijPZiLU

faatherton
Posts: 5
Joined: Sat Feb 02, 2013 9:17 pm

Re: Little Phatty Stage II problem!

Post by faatherton » Fri Feb 08, 2013 3:16 am

OK, waiting for the weekend to run a few more tests.

However, I did have a thought. I'm currently enjoying playing my LP through a couple of pedals
and my amp. Yet, whenever I try to plug directly in to my Tascam 24 track, it crashes and
does the same as I described above. Is it possible that a DI box would help this situation??
Is it possible that the LP is too much for the Tascam to handle?

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