PICS : My First Rack/Tube Setup and Triaxis Question

Shredragrammaton · Jan 30, 2009

Well , after about half a year of saving up , the day of reckoning is at hand !

A most awesome experience setting this up and playing for the first time.
Ive found myself playing the setup rather than the guitar ! - SO many options and possibilities

One question. The triaxis (evilbay) is acting weird... After maybe 10-20 mins of operation , the front lights go off , asif the whole unit is off, but the valves are still on and if you play you get a sound , albeit a rubbish crackly sound.
For a few days i noticed if you turned it off for half an hour it would usually come back on....for 10mins.
But now if it goes off and you tap the top of the unit (its unracked) just above the mode switch , it comes back on instantly. Anyone ever encountered this before ? It seems like a loose connection but i was hoping for some info!

Also , does anyone know howto do a master reset on a (i think) version 1 UK triaxis , the serial number is somewhere in the 300s - 03xx (dont have it at hand right now). Any searches i do for it are all version 2 resets which have no effetc on this unit!

Fanx Guys!

INDI · Feb 4, 2009

Reset issue: Maybe you should consider taking the battery off for a few seconds then put it back (or change it). I assume you will loose all your presets, except the factory defaults from 1 to 20. The battery is under a metal hood. You have to unscrew 4 screws, but in order to access the left side screws of the hood, you must carefully remove the front-left board (which is in the front half of the opened Triaxis, as you look at it from the front side). Take care when taking out the ribbon multicables.

Lights issue: Open Triaxis and check the ribbon cables that connects the front panel's electronics to the main board. Maybe is a contact problem.

leadfootdriver · Feb 6, 2009

I don't think a master reset will help. That will only clear your presets. It sounds more like a intermitant connection problem.

Maybe change the memory battery since you'll have the unit opened, and then give all of your quick connection harnesses a good whack with contact cleaner. Do it with your tube sockets as well. Work them in and out with a good soaking.

I had this problem with my Mackie mixer, because it has a lot of ribbon cables. Even my 2:90 power amp fried at the transformer quick connector. I had to solder the wires directly to the board.

Companys use ribbon connectors to save on labor costs. But the trade off is that your lose the integrity of electrical connections over time. There's more resistance with a touch contact vs a soldered contact.

Good luck.

mrcomputer · Feb 16, 2009

I'm thinking a visit to your local Mesa repair guy might be in order. Although there is a possibility that the sound you're hearing could be the CAT!

jbw

Harsh · Mar 6, 2009

Hi,

Have you found a solution yet? Did the ribbon cleaning and battery change help? I bought a Triaxis recently and I have the same problem. The unit just turns itself off and makes this loud unpleasant noise. Just like yours, it comes back on briefly after a cooling off period and then switches off again. I'll try changing the battery and using contact cleaner, but I'd rather not open the unit up if it's not gonna help (I tried modding my ADA MP1 last month and completely killed it)!

One thing my other guitarist recommended was to keep it away from the power amp. My 50/50 gets REALLY hot and the Triaxis sits right on top of it, so it maybe overheating. Looks like your Triaxis is on top of the 2:90? Try placing your effects unit between the triaxis and the power amp. I did that last night - lets see if that works.

Other Triaxis owners, any help would be great!