Help Me!!Gibson Echoplex Digital Pro Plus Problem:NOISY!!!

[Frederik Leroux-Roels <info@frederikleroux.com>]

Dear Fellow Loopers,

This is a very desperate call for help on account of my very moody 
Gibson Echoplex.  I don't know what's wrong with it.  This is quite a 
long message, but I would really appreciate it if you could read it and 
maybe help me out....

After a long period of research and saving money, I finally bought a 
Gibson Echoplex Digital Pro Plus.  I'm from Belgium and since it's 
impossible to get the unit over here (everywhere in Europe it seems to 
be really hard to get one), I ordered it with Musician's Friend and had 
it delivered in NY to the place of friends of mine.  When they came 
back to Belgium they brought it with them.  So here is where the horror 
begins....

I got it out of the box and plugged it in ( off course with the voltage 
switched to 230V).  It wasn't functioning at all.  None of the 
functions seemed to be working.  It was operating in Quantizing Mode 
(000) but the parameter setting wasn't!!! What I did was resetting it 
to the factory settings by holding down the parameter button while 
turning it on.  And then I thought I had it fixed.  The basic recording 
function and overdub function were working properly.  But I started 
noticing something else : the quality of the sampled material wasn't 
good at all.  When play backing, I hear the recorded material really 
clear but the Echoplex seems to add a lot of noise/ hiss.  And I know 
for sure the Echoplex is the cause.  I tried different cables, 
different guitar, no effects in between,.... but it's still there.  If 
you hit the record button and don't play anything, and then hit the 
record button again (play back), it's a really really obvious and loud 
hiss sound.

Like all of this isn't enough.... I also think the undo function isn't 
functioning properly.For example, I record a very short phrase and make 
sure the Undo LED is green.  When I hit it, sometimes it gets rid of 
the overdub right away, sometimes I have to hit it twice or even three 
times, or sometimes I hit it but there's still a fragment left of the 
overdub.  You see, it doesn't make any sense.  To me, it just looks 
like I have a defective unit.  Oh yeah, I also checked if it's the 
footpedal or not....and it's not.  When I push the parameter buttons it 
also reacts in this odd way.

Please, help me! If anyone has had similar problems, please let me 
know.  Or if you know what the problem is and think I'm not too bright, 
please let me know!
I'm worried that I would have to send it back to the USA, because not a 
single Gibson distributor or retailer over here seems to know about the 
unit.

Anyway, thank you for reading all of this and I hope to hear from some 
of you soon.  Thanks, Frederik