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The frustrating world of echoplex ownership



Another trying week another email to the list.
 
I am begining to feel guilty for the amount of help i am  asking other for, however I dont know where else to turn. I know this is a super-huge email, but please,if you know anything about echoplex's and their problems and feel you may have new light to shed, please try contribute before I litterally run out of options.
 
I have just spent the whole night determined to iron out the noise trouble that has plagued black echoplex pro plus (my second of three).
 
basically it makes a huge amount of hum all the time from the moment the power cord is plugged in. this noise rises as the unit is switched on and can be  raised and lowered by adjusting the volume of the pa system
 
hower no matter how the in and output volume pots are set, it makes no differance, also turning the balance from loop to input makes no change to the hum. the actual fidelity of the audio behind the hum is fine, i can record a loop and the loop itself is clear and undistorted.
 
tonight I have made some more discoveries that may help someone diagnose the problem...
 
1. i have had the roms and ram out of this unit and swapped with echoplex3 (yes the one that doesnt synch cos of crystals!!) anyways, i have tried all combinations and echoplex three accepts the ram and roms from noisy echoplex 2 without any incresed hum...echoplex2 now has the roms and ram of echoplex3 without any lowering or change of hum (therefore i can rule out ram and roms as culprits)
 
2. I was really persistant and managed to get those damn shields off echoplex2 and gently pressed the two square chips (this cured a noise problem with echoplex1 back in the day)...no dice.
I dont have the correct tools to completly remove these chips and clean.reseat so this is still a potential area that may harbour the problem??
 
3. I found that I can connect a lead to the pa and put my lead into ANY jack round the back, input,output,footpedal,feedback etc ...the hum is constant across ALL of the jacks (exceot the synch ones where obviously there is a whining of the clock).
 
4. If i plug into my little practice amp the problem APPEARS to go away...that is to say I can plug echoplex2 into any of the four pa inputs (and its a new one) , or into other pa's (my friends,my clubs etc) and AB the same channels and settings with my other echoplex's...the others are aways quiet...echoplex2 is always noisy...however in the practice amp things sound as clean as a whistle on all units?
 
I don't think i have EVER stuck with such an unreliable and problematic unit type for so long...ever... that is more testement to just how GOOD the echoplex can be, i love the way it works , when it works..however as a product it appears that all echoplex's are NOT created equal.
 
Thanks so much for reading this far, if anyone knows anyone else who might be able to shed light on this situation, please email me or forward this onto them.
 

Love and Warm wishes
 
Phill MyOneManBand Wilson


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