Machinedrum fuzzed screen and connector cleaning

Elektron Gear Machinedrum
#1

Hi there,

My beloved Mk2 MD recently quit on me. The unit never gets started: at some point during the boot sequence weird symbols appear onscreen, or the screen is completely blacked out. Having checked other threads, I had the following:

  • Test mode: all ok
  • Reinstalling OS via the function boot: no luck
  • Replace the battery: no luck
  • Try a different power supply (from octatrack in this case): no luck

Raising a ticket, I was told MD service is no longer an option (boo) and that “This is likely an internal cable that needs to be re-seated or has been slightly oxidized. For a long term fix, we suggest de-oxidizing the connectors.”

Does anyone have experience with this issue? I’m fine with opening it up and cleaning things, but does anyone have experience of what to clean specifically in this case? …just to make sure I don’t miss it :slight_smile:

Thanks!

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#2

I had the same thing ~3 months ago when I tried replacing my battery. It turned out that the prong of the battery holder was bent out of shape; this resulted in my MD showing these symbols when booting (don’t know why). After I carefully bent the prong back into its place, everything worked like a charm. Have had no issues since then.

I hope this is of any help. It seems to be a minor issue, your MD will live again! :elmd:

2 Likes
#3

Ah thanks! Looking around the forum it does seem to be a power supply issue, whether from a connecting cable, the PSU, or from the battery itself. Thanks for the extra place to check! Will have a look when I open it up in January…

#4

Try to detach, clean and reattach the power supply board cables that go to both I/O board and DSP board.
This, and a global cables clean, solved the same problem to me.

3 Likes
#5

Alright- I opened it up and had a good clean-out: all connectors disconnected and cleaned with contact cleaner. The battery prongs actually seemed to be ok.

Overall, seems to have fixed the issue- my beloved MD is back from the dead. Thanks!

5 Likes
#6

Reseating all the connectors worked like a charm for me too. It’s totally painless and took less than 30 minutes.

1 Like