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Sound Reinforcement - Forums for Live Sound Professionals - Your Displayed Name Must Be Your Real Full Name To Post In The Live Sound Forums => LAB: The Classic Live Audio Board => Topic started by: David Pinn on November 20, 2012, 06:43:44 AM

Title: Noisy mixer fan
Post by: David Pinn on November 20, 2012, 06:43:44 AM
I operate an Allen & Heath ZED 428 mixer that seems to have a noisy internal fan. I know that computers sometimes develop a noisy fan, and that the solution is to open them up and drop a little oil on their spindles. Does that apply to mixers? Anyone dared open a sound desk before?
Title: Re: Noisy mixer fan
Post by: John Roberts {JR} on November 20, 2012, 09:46:48 AM
contact their customer service and ask.

JR
Title: Re: Noisy mixer fan
Post by: Bob Leonard on November 20, 2012, 09:45:18 PM
Either that or open it up and spend a few dollars for a new fan. I am not a fan of putting oil into fans used to cool electronics. It may work, or it may not, but the end result could be oil where you don't want it and a critical component that fails when you least want it to.
Title: Re: Noisy mixer fan
Post by: Greg_Cameron on November 20, 2012, 10:27:04 PM
Most of those fans use "frictionless" bearings. If the bearings are noisy, fan replacement is the only real solution.
Title: Re: Noisy mixer fan
Post by: Neil Brown on November 21, 2012, 05:39:43 AM
Before you buy a new one, try having a look to see if there is excess dirt on the fan blades, dirt stuck to the blades cold cause an imbalance which makes it noisy as it rotates. If that is the case, a small paint bruch & vacuum cleaner can solve the problem.
Title: Re: Noisy mixer fan
Post by: Jim McKeveny on November 21, 2012, 07:17:03 AM
I installed a bunch of early GL2400 series in NYC area churches a few years back. One developed fan noise some years later and the swap-out with a new part was straightforward and cheap.
Title: Re: Noisy mixer fan
Post by: Adam Pace on November 23, 2012, 03:29:07 PM
I installed a bunch of early GL2400 series in NYC area churches a few years back. One developed fan noise some years later and the swap-out with a new part was straightforward and cheap.

I'm with Jim. We have installed many GL2400's. Great boards! Their biggest weakness, their fans(mainly in the larger 32+ frames). Same with Jim, we service them for most of our clients and its quick, painless, and quite affordable. Wouldn't surprise me if the issue trickled down to the larger desks of the ZED series.