New to Moog - received my first defective ? Voyager.

Tips and techniques for Minimoog Analog Synthesizers
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weedywhizz
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New to Moog - received my first defective ? Voyager.

Post by weedywhizz » Tue Dec 01, 2009 1:43 pm

Hey guys :)

Wanted to start getting blown away by my first Moog gear.

Bought a Voyager RME. I received the unit nearly 2 hours ago and am really frustrated.

Turned on the Voyager und the unit starts flashing as hell. Same as you turn it on and off rapidly. Display flashes, backlight flashes an LFO Leds flashes.

Think its defective. Maybe the power supply. What do you guys think?

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mayidunk
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Post by mayidunk » Wed Dec 02, 2009 2:25 pm

Is it possible that the power plug is not fully plugged into the wall or the synth? Have you tried plugging it into a different wall receptacle? Perhaps the power cord itself has a problem. Other than that, it's really hard to say what it could be.

If it still doesn't work after you've checked the power cord and plugs, then you should probably contact Moog Music for service, especially if it is still under warranty. Even if one of us could diagnose it long distance, unless the synth is out of warranty, and unless you really know what you're doing, there's a very good chance that you'd only make it worse if you tried fixing it yourself. It's a pretty complex piece of gear.

I hope it turns out well in the end. Please keep us posted.

Bob

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Portamental
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Post by Portamental » Wed Dec 02, 2009 3:14 pm

I hope everything turns out well for you. Defective out of the box? Unlikely but that's not entirely impossible. I don't know about the RME (my own Voyager does not illuminate except for the single LFO led) but my LP is into a habit a giving a little light show of flashing leds upon powering it up, 5 seconds at least. Can that be the same thing happening here? RME owners will chime in i am sure.

FWIW, don't get into the habit of turning your RME (or any electronical device for that matter) on and off rapidly, that's not very good for electronics. You should wait a few seconds (4-10) before turning off a unit you just turned on, and vice-versa, most especially the vice-versa.

jon_kull
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Post by jon_kull » Wed Dec 02, 2009 3:33 pm

I had a similar problem with an RME I bought two years ago. It was a problem with the digital board. You should (obviously) contact Moog about repair/replacement. Depending on where you bought it from you may also be able to exchange it for a working one.

weedywhizz
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Post by weedywhizz » Wed Dec 02, 2009 7:45 pm

Thanks a lot for your replies.

I just called the dealer and described the problem. It seems this unit has been shipped already and they sold it again :(

As far as the guy can speak of from his own experience - the power supply is dead. Not completely as it switches on and off rapidly.

Even when they offer a repair - I'll follow Portamental's statements for an on and off procedure. I don't want this unit back!

So - I'm sending the unit back an will buy at a local store. There I will put my fingers on an will be sure of getting an absolutely fine Voyager.
Hopefully this one will last a whole lifespan of approx. 70 years :lol:

So this is all just electronics. But does a Moog dies so fast?

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a.s.i.
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Re: New to Moog - received my first defective ? Voyager.

Post by a.s.i. » Fri Dec 04, 2009 5:40 am

This seems to be happening quite often; it has also happened to me and had to send the unt back to Musician's Friend. There are also youtube videos with frustrated users with issues like the one you described. The knobs on mine were doing crazy stuff. For example, I recall frequency knob no#2 acted as an octave knob instead. There was also the flickering on the screen. Hope you get your unit fixed.


weedywhizz wrote:Hey guys :)

Wanted to start getting blown away by my first Moog gear.

Bought a Voyager RME. I received the unit nearly 2 hours ago and am really frustrated.

Turned on the Voyager und the unit starts flashing as hell. Same as you turn it on and off rapidly. Display flashes, backlight flashes an LFO Leds flashes.

Think its defective. Maybe the power supply. What do you guys think?
Electro Beats, Synthetic Rythms

Amos
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Post by Amos » Fri Dec 04, 2009 1:01 pm

unit flashing on and off rapidly means there is a short somewhere, and the switching power supply is cycling on and off as it goes into protection mode due to the short. This could easily be as simple as a pinched wire somewhere that became skinned in shipping (i.e. the wire insulation was compromised after the unit left the factory).

A Voyager knob behaving as some other function could be a bad Pot Mapping setting, which does not indicate any hardware failure, or it could be a solder bridge between two control lines.

percentage-wise, Voyagers have been very reliable; not many units have problems out of the box. My sincere apology to anyone who has had trouble.

The best thing to do is always to call/email Moog tech support immediately. We strive to be as helpful as possible, and we will have the most-informed answers about what could be causing this or thay symptom, guaranteed.

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dingebre
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Post by dingebre » Sun Dec 06, 2009 1:20 am

I will just add that Moog support is the best. The one small problem I had with my Voyager Select (never a problem with my RME) was taken care of immediately. I have always been able to talk to a real person with no wait (which tells me Moog probably doesn't have many calls to tech support which I take to mean not many problems) and they have always replied to my emails promptly. If you have a problem, call them and they will take care of you. They have always made me feel like I am their most important customer whether for purchasing new stuff, accessories, or for a repair.

Great company.

David

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