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Post by Jason on Feb 11, 2020 20:37:17 GMT -6
Hey all,
I took delivery of a new Warm WA-412 today. Long story short, phantom power is wonky. It worked for about 5 minutes until I disengaged it to plug in another mic; when I re-engaged it made a loud pop and crackle with a static-sounding tail through my cans. Have tried everything and narrowed it down to the phantom power on channel 2.
I’m no electrical engineer, but does this sound like a possible easy fix, or should I start the return and exchange?
Side note - I have owned a small boat load of Warm gear over the years; this is the first QC issue I’ve personally encountered.
Thanks,
Jason
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Post by matt@IAA on Feb 11, 2020 21:17:39 GMT -6
Do you have phantom power on the other channels?
If so, then unplug the unit, open it, and inspect. Follow the phantom power from the power supply, and try to find out where the problem is. There should be a phantom supply cap, a resistor, and a pair of resistors that are common 48V rail on one side and XLR pin 2 and 3 (and the input transformer primaries) on the other. Not much to check.
If it’s easier, power it up (be careful with the lid off!) and use a multimeter to probe the traces checking VDC.
Maybe the cap was in backwards.
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Post by johneppstein on Feb 11, 2020 21:18:19 GMT -6
Well, since it's a new unit under warranty I see absolutely no reason to not send it in for servicing - and one VERY good reason for doing so. Specifically, if you're not authorized to work on it that gives the company reason to void your warranty in the event that something really serious might go wrong within the period.
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Post by matt@IAA on Feb 11, 2020 21:18:52 GMT -6
Yea, actually, what John says is much better advice than what I said.
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Post by johneppstein on Feb 11, 2020 21:21:15 GMT -6
Yea, actually, what John says is much better advice than what I said. I almost appended essentially what you said as Part 2 of my post, but thought better of it. |
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Post by Jason on Feb 11, 2020 21:24:27 GMT -6
Thanks, everyone. So, I walked away for about a half-hour...now it’s working again. I promise I’m not crazy and carefully eliminated everything else in the chain. I’m going to leave it on overnight and see where it’s at in the morning.
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kcatthedog
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Post by kcatthedog on Feb 11, 2020 22:02:15 GMT -6
If you have any other concerns don’t open it up call Warm, they will sort it out.
I had 2 412s , zero issues.
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Post by ragan on Feb 11, 2020 22:33:00 GMT -6
A really easy thing to check is ribbon cables/wiring harnesses. Jiggle/reseat any in the path in question. Has fixed many an intermittent issue for me over the years.
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Post by Jason on Feb 12, 2020 10:51:39 GMT -6
Strange issue. Again, not an electrical engineer. But, basically, start the unit cold and the phantom power works. Let the unit run for 5 or 10 minutes and then phantom power on the channel "dies." Channel still passes signal, just no 48V power. Worked last night after cooling it down and starting back from "cold." Left it on overnight and now not working this morning. Retailer is thankfully and graciously overnighting a replacement. Am genuinely curious to hear those in the know on these things speculate as to the possible issue...
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Post by matt@IAA on Feb 12, 2020 11:23:40 GMT -6
Only on that one channel?
If its on every channel, sounds like the IC regulator is overheating.
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Post by Jason on Feb 12, 2020 12:41:52 GMT -6
Only on that one channel? If its on every channel, sounds like the IC regulator is overheating. Yep, only on the one channel. |
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Post by gabehizer on Nov 13, 2021 20:33:51 GMT -6
I have had the same problem with the WA-412, but worse! Here is a record of the problems:
The times shown are all relative to the starting time and shown in minutes.
Test One
00:00 All four channels perfect
00:23 Pfft! Short sound heard on the PC and channel 3 is now dead (no signal, loud hum only)
01:00 Channel 1 now dead.
A bit later: Channel 4 super noisy, can barely hear any signal.
Test Two
00:00 All four channels perfect
01:30 Channel 3 dead, channel 4 noise only
03:00 Channel 1 dead
Test Three
00:00 Channels 1-3 OK, channel 4 very noisy; after cycling thru ch 4 buttons, ch 4 is now OK
01:00 Channels 1 and 3 dead
01:45 Channel 4 noisy, gets much worse over the next ten minutes
I sent the unit back to Warm Audio THREE TIMES for repair and each time the problems were still there.
The most recent "fix" still leaves me with Channel 3 not passing phantom power, though the other issues seem have been fixed.
Since I live in Mexico, this has been an expensive procedure for me (the shipping up and back from the US), even though Warm Audio agreed to do the "repairs" without cost.
I just wanted to document this in case there are others out there that run into similar issues.
Gabriel
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kcatthedog
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Post by kcatthedog on Nov 13, 2021 22:17:16 GMT -6
Drag.
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Post by timcampbell on Nov 13, 2021 22:23:39 GMT -6
Try another cable on the affected channel. A cable can pass signal and not pass phantom power. Also press your phantom power switch on and of many times or de-oxit, maybe it is a dirty switch.
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Post by EmRR on Nov 14, 2021 9:58:42 GMT -6
It sounds like they’ve gone fancy with underspec’d active parts.
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kcatthedog
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Post by kcatthedog on Nov 14, 2021 12:41:15 GMT -6
Ah, I had two of these units: zero problems and personally I was quite impressed with their sonics, heft and build quality.
Not certain what’s going on with these two units,be good to know.
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Post by Ward on Nov 14, 2021 13:06:56 GMT -6
Ah, I had two of these units: zero problems and personally I was quite impressed with their sonics, heft and build quality. Not certain what’s going on with these two units,be good to know. Issues with quality control and inspections perhaps? Sounds like it's a good design and overall build, but occasional unresolvable issues happen somewhat frequently. |
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Post by svart on Nov 14, 2021 13:47:31 GMT -6
The wa412 is FULL of cables. It's a strange setup for sure.
Anyway, my guess is an iffy cable connection or switch. Either one is high ohmic and the turn on surge arcs and that's the pop and sizzle you hear. It opens the connection with arc crust but when you do it again it might arc through the crust and make the connection.
Best thing to do it replace the unit. You could find the problem but it's up in the air whether the arcs have damaged anything else.
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