Hi there! Can anyone advise? I just picked up a used Microkorg XL and it is distorting in the right hand channel both on the outputs and headphones. I have tried resetting it but it's still the same. Anyone had experience with this? Is it hardware? Can it be fixed?
Thanks in advance!
Pat
Microkorg XL Distorting in right channel
Moderators: Sharp, X-Trade, Pepperpotty, karmathanever
Hi,
Mmh, too bad.
If you ruled out your cables, amplifier, speakers and so on, it is in the XL.
Do you have it on each program? Then I would say, some weak/broken contact in the board. If you feel convenient with it, you can try to open it up and have a look. Otherwise go back with it to a KORG dealer for repair or don't use the right channel...
Success.
Mmh, too bad.
If you ruled out your cables, amplifier, speakers and so on, it is in the XL.
Do you have it on each program? Then I would say, some weak/broken contact in the board. If you feel convenient with it, you can try to open it up and have a look. Otherwise go back with it to a KORG dealer for repair or don't use the right channel...
Success.
microKORGXL, Kaossilator Pro, monotribe, SQ-1, volca fm, Kross 88 BK
Alesis SR18, Akai Miniak, Fender Strat, Line 6 Spider II 112, Zoom MS-50G
Alesis SR18, Akai Miniak, Fender Strat, Line 6 Spider II 112, Zoom MS-50G
Hey, thanks for that! Spoke to Korg UK earlier and they pretty much said the same. Got onto retailer who it was purchased off and they gave me the number of a local repair guy who is gonna take a look next week. As a matter of interest to anyone with a similar issue, Korg quoted £60 and said it was an hours work. So everyone has been really helpful on the whole and I reckon that £60 is not that bad at all to have a repair done by Korg. Thanks to all!
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jwallis123
- Posts: 8
- Joined: Fri Sep 05, 2014 10:27 pm
A lot of people seem to have this problem, and at least for me the fix was really easy! Took like 15 minutes!
1 Unplug the thing of course.
2 Remove all the screws off the back panel, they're all the same, and took the back off. No need to unplug the battery wire
3 Then just remove the four silver screws from the board that the headphones jack is soldered onto
4 reseat that board so that it was making nice contact with the metal pieces it screws into
5 then screw it back in, pretty tightly but without forcing it or stripping the screws
6 at this point it's a good idea to put the back on without the screws, plug it in and test it with your headphones.
7 if the sound is back, unplug it and screw the backing back on!
Please respond if this worked for you so that others will have confidence that it's a good fix... maybe I just got lucky....
1 Unplug the thing of course.
2 Remove all the screws off the back panel, they're all the same, and took the back off. No need to unplug the battery wire
3 Then just remove the four silver screws from the board that the headphones jack is soldered onto
4 reseat that board so that it was making nice contact with the metal pieces it screws into
5 then screw it back in, pretty tightly but without forcing it or stripping the screws
6 at this point it's a good idea to put the back on without the screws, plug it in and test it with your headphones.
7 if the sound is back, unplug it and screw the backing back on!
Please respond if this worked for you so that others will have confidence that it's a good fix... maybe I just got lucky....
Hey thanks for that! I did as you suggested and it seems to have worked. However, i also noticed that on re/seating the board there seemed to be wires getting trapped. So it got me thinking maybe the problem was the wires trapped? The reason i say that is because the actual posts the board fastens onto are very dull metal not shiny. Well on the one i have anyway. So i don't really see how that contact would make much difference. Trapping the leads however would make a lot more sense as it's such an easy thing to do during manufacture. I have to also say that the built quality on this synth is absolutely appalling. The case on the one i have is so bent it won't sit properly on the keyboard stand. I have seen many posts saying the same thing. Anyway,for now, it seems the problem is solved so thanks for the suggestion. Hope this helps anyone with a similar problem.
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Derpancakes
- Posts: 45
- Joined: Wed Jun 18, 2014 7:33 pm
Referencing an above statement about the build quality, I was a bit conflicted when choosing between the MicroKORG and the XL. I decided on the former since the XL seemed a lot more cheaply made and had more plastic. It sucks to hear that people are having problems, since Korg seems to produce good quality products.
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mkaltensynth
- Posts: 1
- Joined: Mon Apr 20, 2015 9:16 pm
- Location: Phoenix, AZ
microkorg XL output noise and diminished sound amplitude
Found this thread after recently acquiring a used uKorg XL with a faulty L/MONO output channel. The Left channel sound level was about 6dB to 9dB lower than the Right output channel which could have been compensated except for noise being present.
Excluding noise sources addressed previously in this thread, observed output noise is typically an indication of a faulty ground connection or ground loop that causes the ground reference voltage NOT to be zero volts.
The suggested fix in this thread is GOLDEN. After opening the unit and removing the headphone/output jack circuit board, sure enough the mother board's steel, screw fastener standoff showed signs of physical wear, i.e. an electrically compromised surface.
The standoff is the ground contact and should be pristine. The observed wear is caused by the physical forces exerted on the headphone/output jacks when used. By applying a pencil erasure, an excellent mild abrasive, to carefully sand away unseen oxide formed on the metal surface, the problem was fixed
I believe someone mentioned soldering in this thread. That's a last resort. Try cleaning the contacts first; test the outputs and if no joy, inspect all solder joints, focusing on the problem jacks, to see if a cold-solder joint exists.
Cheers!
Excluding noise sources addressed previously in this thread, observed output noise is typically an indication of a faulty ground connection or ground loop that causes the ground reference voltage NOT to be zero volts.
The suggested fix in this thread is GOLDEN. After opening the unit and removing the headphone/output jack circuit board, sure enough the mother board's steel, screw fastener standoff showed signs of physical wear, i.e. an electrically compromised surface.
The standoff is the ground contact and should be pristine. The observed wear is caused by the physical forces exerted on the headphone/output jacks when used. By applying a pencil erasure, an excellent mild abrasive, to carefully sand away unseen oxide formed on the metal surface, the problem was fixed
I believe someone mentioned soldering in this thread. That's a last resort. Try cleaning the contacts first; test the outputs and if no joy, inspect all solder joints, focusing on the problem jacks, to see if a cold-solder joint exists.
Cheers!
One always has to remember these days where the garbage pail is, because it's so easy to make sounds, and to put sounds together into something that appears to be music, but it's just as hard as it always was to make good music. -Robert Moog
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samcamelia
- Posts: 1
- Joined: Mon Apr 24, 2017 1:20 pm
(sorry for my english, I'm brazillian)
I've done the procedure twice, the second time I used the eraser as well. The synth worked fine for the past weeks but today after a long day of recording the problem is back. I don't know what to do. Should I take it to a pro to clean and unoxidate it? Or even take a look at the soldering points. I'm so disappointed about the build quality of this product!!
I've done the procedure twice, the second time I used the eraser as well. The synth worked fine for the past weeks but today after a long day of recording the problem is back. I don't know what to do. Should I take it to a pro to clean and unoxidate it? Or even take a look at the soldering points. I'm so disappointed about the build quality of this product!!
I had problems with my right channel going out completely (both headphones and regular outs) and the volume knob causing a loud pop half way through turning. The volume wouldn't drop very far from max either.
I tried the fix in this thread and it didn't work. Ultimately, I had to desolder and remove the headphone knob and solder a replacement I bought from Parts is Parts. Once I did that, it worked good as new.
Thought this info might be helpful to other people in the same boat as me who might come across this post.
I tried the fix in this thread and it didn't work. Ultimately, I had to desolder and remove the headphone knob and solder a replacement I bought from Parts is Parts. Once I did that, it worked good as new.
Thought this info might be helpful to other people in the same boat as me who might come across this post.
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StevieTeaselSeed
- Posts: 4
- Joined: Thu Oct 19, 2006 2:59 pm
- Location: Savannah Georgia USA
- Contact:
MicroKorg XL distortion/ low volume right channel
For what it's worth ladies and gentlemen, a good solid whack near the headphone/ output jacks usually solves my right channel dropout issue. The problem mostly rears its head during times of humid weather.
discipline creates freedom