Topic: is my minime defective?!

[satiricalwonder]

I did some recordings of relatively quiet sound sources (piano, guitar) with the Apogee mini-me, which was fine, and then eventually I tried it with 184s in xy as drum overheads and even 10 feet away at minimum gain the pre's were overloading! WAY TOO HOT!! Is this normal? I could actually hear the pre's overloading when the converters were not. Would you recommend using the shure inline pads (http://www.shure.com/ProAudio/Products/Accessories/us_pro_A15AS_content)?

Please help! I am uncomfortable using this unit in a paid gig now that I saw it overload with 0 gain, drums or no drums.

I don't know what do to and don't have money to invest in good pre's to use with this box. I thought it would be all in one (as far as good pre's and good conversion).

[Tim]

there are internal jumpers that will shift the pres from high-gain to low-gain. It's been a few years since I sold mine but I believe it shipped in "high-gain"

it's very simple to do

[easy jim]

there are internal jumpers that will shift the pres from high-gain to low-gain. It's been a few years since I sold mine but I believe it shipped in "high-gain"

it's very simple to do

Good call.  It's probably the jumpers being set to high gain.  You may also want to check the mini-trim screws for each channel recessed under the gain knobs.  For them, you'll need a jeweler's screwdriver to make adjustments.

[satiricalwonder]

thank you so much for your comments. i was quite weary of using anything in the signal chain before the preamp.

as soon as i get off work i'm gonna check out the jumper situation. my fingers are crossed that you are right!

[stirinthesauce]

thank you so much for your comments. i was quite weary of using anything in the signal chain before the preamp.

as soon as i get off work i'm gonna check out the jumper situation. my fingers are crossed that you are right!

yup, most likely the jumpers.  they are an easy swap, takes 10 minutes to pop the top, switch them back and pop the top back on.

[danlynch]

Anyone have a jpg of the top-popped mini-me to point out the jumpers?

My unit is pretty damned hot, which wasn't a problem until the Neumann's went to get serviced and the 4021s went directly into the Mini-me.  I had used the -10dB pads on the 150s and never peaked.  Without the pad, any loud show has the potential to be a problem.

[JasonSobel]

Anyone have a jpg of the top-popped mini-me to point out the jumpers?

My unit is pretty damned hot, which wasn't a problem until the Neumann's went to get serviced and the 4021s went directly into the Mini-me.  I had used the -10dB pads on the 150s and never peaked.  Without the pad, any loud show has the potential to be a problem.

look on page 23-24 of the manual:
http://taperssection.com/index.php/topic,37962.0.html

[danlynch]

Thanks Jason.

[kbergend]

My unit is pretty damned hot, which wasn't a problem until the Neumann's went to get serviced and the 4021s went directly into the Mini-me.  I had used the -10dB pads on the 150s and never peaked.  Without the pad, any loud show has the potential to be a problem.

You can say that again! 

[satiricalwonder]

I wasn't able to deal with the issue last night because unfortunately I didn't have a hex driver. Could anybody tell me the size I need to have to open the Mini-me? If it comes down to it I'll just pick up a few different ones at home depot later.

Thanks again!

[silentmark]

there are internal jumpers that will shift the pres from high-gain to low-gain. It's been a few years since I sold mine but I believe it shipped in "high-gain"

it's very simple to do

Good call.  It's probably the jumpers being set to high gain.  You may also want to check the mini-trim screws for each channel recessed under the gain knobs.  For them, you'll need a jeweler's screwdriver to make adjustments.

Sounds like the jumpers set to high gain and Tim is correct it is shipped with them set to "high." Once you crack the minime open you might need a pair of tweezers to remove and replace them as they are tiny from what I recall.

You shouldn't have to touch the screw pots under the gain knobs unless you are running another preamp in front and bypassing the pre's of the minime. Easyjim is right that you will need a jewler's screwdriver or something similar to adjust these pots if that is indeed your setup, good luck !

[jlykos]

I wasn't able to deal with the issue last night because unfortunately I didn't have a hex driver. Could anybody tell me the size I need to have to open the Mini-me? If it comes down to it I'll just pick up a few different ones at home depot later.

Thanks again!

You can get a pack of like 8 Allen wrenches at Home Depot for about $4.  While you are there, you may also want to get some rubber-tipped tweezers to remove the jumpers because they are tiny, as I recall.  Really easy to do, however.  Good luck!

[Charlie Miller]

I remember opening up my minime and finding the jumpers without too much effort.

[Tim]

yeah I think they are fairly obvious. 2 white jumpers if I recall...