Topic: I Killed My Mini-MP!

[stevetoney]

Over the weekend at All Good, I started having some issues with my rig.  In an initial attempt to diagnose the issue, I was checking out connections and various other options, including swapping batteries.  Thinking that I might have a polarity issue, I swapped the tip on my battery cable. 

Upon figuring out the issue (can't even remember at this point what it was) I backtracked to get everything connected and ready to roll.  That's when I find my mini-mp dead as a paper weight. 

So before sending it in to Apogee, I'm just curious of anyone knows if swapping the polarity would whack it? 

I did notice that the m-mp was running quite hot earlier in the day which seemed odd since it hadn't been running hot during earlier uses of it (haven't had it for very long), but the heat might have been because it was just a hot day, even though I tried to cover it up most of the time (not always but most of the time).

Any thoughts? 

(I've got the Apogee instructions for sending it in for repairs, but just wondering if anyone else has had similar experiences...and whether anybody has an idea's whether it may have been the polarity or heat exposure that might have killed the preamp.

Thanks

Steve 

[anodyne33]

That blows Steve. Here's hoping you just popped a fuse or a diode.

[fivefishdiy]

I don't think it's the heat exposure. Most components can run up to 85C or 125C (that's 185F to 257F)... I wouldn't think you were working in that kind of environment.

anyone knows if swapping the polarity would whack it? 

Maybe, maybe not. Depends on the circuitry inside. Probably not.

was running quite hot earlier in the day which seemed odd since it hadn't been running hot during earlier uses of it

This is a clue. My guess is just component failure. Possibly in the power section.

(Just to be funny, I would blame Rohs  .  Gear is much more reliable in the old days when we're allowed to use Pb-Lead. On the bright side, when you chuck your dead unit into the landfill, it will be at least environmentally friendly, and you can buy a new one to toss again in the landfill later on.)
P.S: There's a reason why Military Gear, aerospace, medical life support, implanted devices, are exempted from this Pb-Lead ban. Care to guess?

[rowjimmy]

Damn, Steve.... 
You are not the first to do this (probably not the last, either.)
http://taperssection.com/index.php/topic,81260.0.html

Sucks but, from what I've read, generally fixable.

[stevetoney]

Damn, Steve.... 
You are not the first to do this (probably not the last, either.)
http://taperssection.com/index.php/topic,81260.0.html

Sucks but, from what I've read, generally fixable.

Thanks for the responses folks, and thanks for the link to the old thread Jon.  That's for sure what happened then.  No doubt about it.

Lesson learned is that I'm gonna dedicate a power cable to the mini-mp.  I coincidently have a number of different things in my rig now that use the very same cable tips, so I've been basically just carrying the cables for 'generic' use.  Won't do that anymore. 

Probably will hard wire one up so that the tip can't be swap around Rat Shack style.  Oh well, ole Murphy-law works once again! 

[tenesejedd]

Yeah, that was my mini-mp in that post. I did the same thing, so i know for a fact, it does not like reversed polarity.

Sorry to hear about your troubles, but at least you know how to go about getting it fixed.

[tgakidis]

My mini-mp should be in soon.  Just to clarify the proper rat shack tip position.  I use edirol stuff (r-4, ua-5) that take reverse polarity.  So for the mini-mp i would change the tip to the correct polarity, the opposite of what i run now with my r-4.

[drewloo]

I thought of this thread last week.  I was recording at the OSMF and grabbed a power cable I used for an R-44 and didn't think to check the polarity of the cable before I hooked it up to the mmp.  The cable was for a wally world battery w/ the adapt-a-plug tips and the polarity was still reversed.  Luckily the circuit protection tripped on the battery before I even turned the mmp on and luckily OFOTD had his charger w/ him and I was able to reset the battery.  Needless to say all of my wworld battery cables are tip positive now.  I  circuit protection.