Dead SX, backlight comes on, that's it.

[Snug]

Hello there, glad this forum exists, never knew about it until now.

If anyone can tell me whats wrong with my SX I would appreciate it:

My Sx has recently decided to die on me. What happens is when I turn it on the backlight will come on the screen, but nothing else appears. No text comes up, nothing. No sound will come out, no noise, and no midi will send. Then when I turn it off, it (the backlight) fades out reallllllllllly slowly as if it was running on a battery and the battery was slowly dying. The thing that strikes me odd about this is that when I turn it on, the light comes on immediately, but fades slowly on power off.

I opened it up to see if there was a loose pot, power connector, or something, and I saw nothing. Nothing was blown up, black, or melted. The tubes look fine also. I opened up the power supply and the fuse inside of it is not blown and looks fine also.

I didn't drop it or do anything. It has been sitting on my desk un disturbed hooked up to a grounded power strip.

Anyway, So I've had my Electribe SX for almost 2 years so there is no warranty going on for me. So if anyone has any ideas of what may be wrong please let me know.

If i could fix it myself that would be awesome, but if i have to send it off where would be the best place?

Thanks

[Daz]

If you press Shift + Pattern whilst powering the 'tribe up, does it show you the version number at all ?

Daz.

[Francois]

Some Electribes suffer from a soldered fuse problem. Do a search on the net, perhaps it is the problem you are facing now.

[Snug]

If you press Shift + Pattern whilst powering the 'tribe up, does it show you the version number at all ?

Daz.

Nope. Does nothing. Thanks though.

About the "soldered fuse" thing, I did a search and this may be my prob. I'll check it out. Thx.

[ruggid]

I had a similar problem with my MX. I imported it from America and had to use a 240V to 120V step-down transformed due to different electrical voltages in America (120V) to Australia (240 V). I initially used it for a bit but then suddenly the back light would stay on with no writing and there was also a buzzing from the audio out. It turned out to be the step-down transformer overheating and reducing the output so the device couldn't operate correctly. In the end I purchased an Australian KORG power pack, which fixed the problem.

You problem may be similar if you device operates fine for a few minutes, after being turned off overnight, and then it suddenly goes into the state of having just the back light on. If so, perhaps your power pack is busted.

[Snug]

Well, I've ordered another power supply, but I'm going to take my current power supply & SX to my local korg service center and have it looked at. If it is the fuse thing Korg says I shouldn't have to pay for it to be serviced.

I'll post again once I get it looked at/ get new power supply. Thanks for your input guys!

[scientist]

damn...just ran in to this same problem. screen froze, and on restart i just get the backlight and nothing else. i have an emx too so i tried it's power supply too but no luck. anyone have any more info on this? if its an easy fix i'd just do it myself.

[Snug]

It's likely the fuse issue. There was a picture online as to how it can be fixed, but I haven't been able to track it down.

I've JUST NOW taken my esx in for service. Should be getting it back next week. I also have to get the main volume knob replaced, and the arp fader (broke off). Hopefully it should be under $100 . And I'm still hoping that my "dead sx" issue is the fuse problem.

I will report back with my results.

[dehto5]

snug, hav news? my tribe gone mad exactly in the same way as urs. dunno what to do.

[Snug]

The news is in. After over a month waiting for back ordered parts from korg, my Electribe is finally ready. The fuse problem was the problem as far as the unit not powering up. All the service tech had to do was talk to Korg, and I guess they told him where the fuse was and what to replace it with. I've seen some stories about some people bypassing the fuse all together, and mentioned that to him, but he said he would not perform that as it was too much a risk to the digital components inside (in his opinion). He said all it would take would be one little surge and the whole dsp could be fried beyond repair, and the new fuse was more than 2 times the rating as the orginal. This has been a huge blunder for Korg, but they (Korg) were very helpful in answering my questions, finding me a tech in my area, and then talking to the tech to tell him what to do. Good job on the customer service side.

Also, I had to have my fader, and top three knobs all replaced, and the rest of the knobs tightened. The main volume was the big prob b/c I used to use it a lot w/o a mixer so i would fade the whole mix in and out with that knob, and the same with the audio input knob. Doesn't look like these knobs are built to withstand that kind of use, so its better to use an external mixer to preserve the life of your electribe. Mostly the non-fuse related repairs are due to my not using a case when I used to gig with it all the time, so let that be a lesson to anyone that doesn't protect their gear. My total cost is $150 (two hours labor). The fuse upgrade was free, but I question if he didn't add some of the labor from that on to get another full hour. I don't care though its the only place near here that services korg, and they have a great rep, and have been more than nice to me every time I called asking wtf was taking so long.

So after almost a year out of commission I will finally have my Electribe back. Be careful with yours, they appear to be built like tanks, but in fact, are not.

[dehto5]

now, when i know that my problem was soldered fuse also, i can say, that if u know where that fuse is placed, then it's 2 minutes work to fix it, without a new one, or replacing it.

[frenzer]

Yes the chip-fuse location is posted on a french web-site "fanzine" or the like, nice pics on the exact location. I think it is hard wired in so you will need some soldering work, recommended is a 1.5 A fuse. Also just got my emx 2nd hand, anyway first session with it was going well, then suddenly it switched off, completely blank. Tried to switch on again but nothing, starting to get that sinking feeling.... anyway I wait 5 more mins and it switches on again!!!!, no probs. Next two nights no more probs, but what happened the first time, overheating of the AC unit??.

[novaTRON]

DO NOT PAY TO HAVE YOUR FUSE REPLACED. EVER.

korg with cover the cost of the fuse replacement no matter
how long you've owned your MX/SX. have the service shop
call korg.
(I've had 6 fuses replaced on 3 electribes, all past warrenty,
and have never paid one dime)

i don't want to explain the whole story here, if you need more
info go to yahoo groups, SX and search for 'fuse'.

[hirschoff3]

My ESX-1 started doing this a couple of months ago, and I put off bringing it in somewhere for lack of funds, and until I could maybe get a better idea of what was going on so I didn't get ripped off. I took it to a licensed korg place in NYC, and the guy said that he'd seen this a couple of times and it requires replacing an entire chip, which takes a long time and is therefore expensive. Sounds like, though, it is just the fuse - or, from another post I read on here, maybe a transformer?

I'm curious what people who have had this problem fixed have been told by whoever repaired their machine, as I'm not eager to get fleeced on this repair.

[novaTRON]

man, that guy was definitely trying to rip you off. the fuse is
known as a 'chip fuse'. so i guess technically it is an entier 'chip'.
the part is worth probably $2-3 dollars max and can be found at
any electronic supply shop. it has two solder point and takes about
5 seconds to replace once the box is opened up.

don't go to that guy again.

you can have your fixed for free. don't pay one dime. have the
shop call korg. korg will pay for the replacement of the fuse no matter
how long ago the warrenty expired.