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[Noel Bennett]

Who's to say it wasn't an analog console? If a console, digital or analog, has a power supply failure its not going to stay on.

The reason I said digital is that "in most cases" when an analog console fails-it just stops working.

Digitals can do all sorts of weird things (such as was described by the OP) with some very odd failure modes and "sounds".

I would never have said anything about a possible digital desk if the sound that just "stopped".

Of course my statement was based on the limited information in the post-and no other knowledge.


  +1

  The only "weird thing" I can ever recall happening with an analog console was that RF was getting into a channel strip.

  Hammer

In the early 90s I was mixing a show on a house system when the console (Soundcraft 800) suddenly started outputting a HF oscillation that (because the EQ and Xover was in the amp room) before we could mute the system took out all the Horn drivers. Once we got things going again with 12" mid drivers running from 1.25k to ? (triamped system became Bi amped)
there was as you would expect a significant degradation of audio quality.I ended up having to have security fend off a constant stream of punters complaining "fix the mix  it sounds muddy"

[Helge A Bentsen]

Who's to say it wasn't an analog console? If a console, digital or analog, has a power supply failure its not going to stay on.

The reason I said digital is that "in most cases" when an analog console fails-it just stops working.

Digitals can do all sorts of weird things (such as was described by the OP) with some very odd failure modes and "sounds".

I would never have said anything about a possible digital desk if the sound that just "stopped".

Of course my statement was based on the limited information in the post-and no other knowledge.

There is actually one analog console that could possibly do what you describe. The XL4. The high and low pass filters on the XL4, when left in the same position for extended periods, will from time to time oscillate at the corner frequency. They are sealed pots so there is no way to clean them. The only fix is to give the pots a "work out". Had an XL4 at a house gig for years and the first time it happened to me, it took at least 30 seconds to figure it out, but it seemed like an eternity. I got in the habit of regularly working the pots. If you are not aware of this, it can be quite an experience. The output sounds like what the OP was describing. I would think that Roy Williams (if he is still doing FOH for Plant) would be aware of this if it was an XL4, but you never know.

That same thing happened to me several times with the mid-band eq on Midas Venices.

[Gerry Tacker]

That same thing happened to me several times with the mid-band eq on Midas Venices.
[/quote]

I have experienced the same thing on the Venice.
It turned out that cell phones caused it in every instance.
Bass player with cell phone sitting on DI box on top of amp gets a phone call and you hear the infamous Nextell flock of birds swooping in.
Next thing multi frequency oscillation, disconnect input, still there, massage pre amp control, still there. massage eq controls, work to the mid range controls massage them and voila oscillation is gone.
Even the folks at Midas were stymied on that one.

[peter dakin]

Video of Robert talking about the issues
Youtube

[Earl Driggers]

That same thing happened to me several times with the mid-band eq on Midas Venices.


I have experienced the same thing on the Venice.
It turned out that cell phones caused it in every instance.
Bass player with cell phone sitting on DI box on top of amp gets a phone call and you hear the infamous Nextell flock of birds swooping in.
Next thing multi frequency oscillation, disconnect input, still there, massage pre amp control, still there. massage eq controls, work to the mid range controls massage them and voila oscillation is gone.
Even the folks at Midas were stymied on that one.

It is basically the same thing that happens to the HPF/LPF on the XL4, except at different freqs. The pot is of the same design and has the same issues. Funny enough, had Jim (formerly of Midas/KT repair and guru of all things Midas) in the shop yesterday and we were talking about that exact thing. The only fixes are exercising the pots or replacing them. Until the pots actually fail, exercising works just fine.

[Roy Williams]

It was a H300 which we had sub hired in to do two shows down South whilst our regular stuff was being taken up to Vancouver for the rest of the tour. We had a bank of 8 channels got tits up with no control over the output.Tried a re boot and took out all the VCA's still causing noise. We shut down removed the fader strips and relocated the lines further up the board.

[[email protected]]

We had a leslie tube burn up a week ago, and it sounded like hendrix playing a dying cat as it went. Analogue components are capable of plenty of weird sounds.

[Loren Aguey]

That same thing happened to me several times with the mid-band eq on Midas Venices.

I have experienced the same thing on the Venice.
It turned out that cell phones caused it in every instance.
Bass player with cell phone sitting on DI box on top of amp gets a phone call and you hear the infamous Nextell flock of birds swooping in.
Next thing multi frequency oscillation, disconnect input, still there, massage pre amp control, still there. massage eq controls, work to the mid range controls massage them and voila oscillation is gone.
Even the folks at Midas were stymied on that one.
[/quote]

Same here. A couple months ago I went to boost some 4k-ish on the kick drum. Oscillation began somewhere lower around 1k. It didn't stop for several minutes and I noticed that once I bumped the snake channel to a different input on the desk, channel one was still oscillating. Its happened on direct input channels as well. Now I'm afraid to boost anything on that desk. One more reason that when considering the price vs (lack of)feature set/performance and general layout, the venice really annoys me.

[Lee Brenkman]

It was a H300 which we had sub hired in to do two shows down South whilst our regular stuff was being taken up to Vancouver for the rest of the tour. We had a bank of 8 channels got tits up with no control over the output.Tried a re boot and took out all the VCA's still causing noise. We shut down removed the fader strips and relocated the lines further up the board.

Roy,

Thanks for dropping in here and letting us know what happened at your end of the snake.

Better luck with the regular stuff for the rest of the tour.

[Bob Leonard]

Roy,

Thanks for dropping in here and letting us know what happened at your end of the snake.

Better luck with the regular stuff for the rest of the tour.

Yes. thank you Roy, and so ends the speculation. Tough recovery but Robert seemed to take it all in stride, which is a clear indication he is aware of your skill set and holds nothing against you for an issue well beyond your control. He obviously has tremendous faith in your abilities. Good luck with the rest of the tour.

[ProSoundWeb Community]