Machine Drum Displaying Weird Characters and Boxes, and won't s

Hey All,

I’m having an issue that I’m hoping somebody has encountered and has a possible fix for. A while back my Machinedrum UW mk2 would occasionally have issues starting up, and would display weird looking characters that look like an alien language you’d see in a Transformers or Predator movie. In the past I would just try turning it on and off a few times and it would eventually get to the regular loading screen and work perfect.

Now the weird characters show up every time, and I can’t get it to load. I go to the reset screen, but it won’t complete a reset.

Has anyone seen this issue before? I’m thinking it’s likely that I will need to get it repaired, maybe an electrical or hardware component is having issues. Any potential fixes or suggestions are welcome!

I love my machinedrum, and my life has been less complete without it!

I’ve had this issue and unfortunately, yes, you’ll need to send it in for repair. The weird characters indicate there’s a problem with the CPU, which needs replacing.

It’s been mentioned before on this forum, but in brief (as I’ve had the same issue crop up with mine):

It seems that the cables connecting the interface board with the logic board tend to come loose over time, due to jostling and whatnot. Probably has to do with the fact that they’re just two-pin connectors, which aren’t very solid.

If you’ve done a system test from the debug menu (holding down function and turning it on), and all is good, and if your unit is out of warranty, it’s usually as simple as opening it up, unscrewing the interface board (the top one), and unplugging it from the board below and re-seating the two cables.

If that doesn’t work, you may have an issue with the logic board itself, which can be a costly fix.

Good luck!

Thank you for the replies! Luckily I’m still under warranty, so hopefully any necessary repairs are covered.

@paulkeeley I appreciate the suggestions!

Your suggestion really saved me, and I wanted to thank you! I had sent it in to the retailer I had purchased it through because it was still under warranty. It worked perfect for a few months, but then had the same issue. So just today, I tried your suggestion, and it worked! All seems to be running well. This was in time for a very crucial project I’m working on, and I’m so thankful for your help in getting it fixed up.

Thank you again! I will definitely check out any music you have posted. Cheers!

Super Great Trick! Thank you so much