Blank screen and no sound - again..

Sounds like a corupt patch.if you use Axeedit and use your mfc or the front panel it can cause corupt patches.when the cat5 cable is not working right ,you just can't change patches or it won't change scenes or it will only go up or down just weird. You can't put any stress on the cat 5 plugs and they have to be flat and not twisted in any way. I've experienced both of these in the past,I've learned to avoid the the issues and have been good
 
So are people on here contending that & pin Midi is superior (reliability wise) to Faslink? Or are you guys talking about AXE 2 that does not have Faslink? I'm just curious.
 
Pinkycramps said:
So are people on here contending that & pin Midi is superior (reliability wise) to Faslink? Or are you guys talking about AXE 2 that does not have Faslink? I'm just curious.
Click to expand...
No. They're saying that, in their experience, straight MIDI has been reliable, more so than the Ethernet connector. They're also saying that FASLink is reliable.
 
I believe most of the time the blank screen/freezes are due to the usb connection to axe edit. at least in my situation.
 
Maxsys said:
Ether-con cable would be my first shout, unreliable beyond belief, I would never use one live. Faslink every time for me.
Click to expand...

If Ether-con is so unreliable why has FAS made it like that for the mk1 and mk2 in the first place? doesn't make sense to me
 
Remember there is a huge difference between Ethernet and Ethercon cables. Ethercon is much more reliable, similar to XLR
 
Ole said:
Remember there is a huge difference between Ethernet and Ethercon cables. Ethercon is much more reliable, similar to XLR
Click to expand...

But people here are reporting it is unreliable (both Ethernet and Ethercon). If that is true I think it is strange that is was made like that in the first place. Mk1 only works with Ethernet not with Ethercon.
 
Bodde said:
If Ether-con is so unreliable why has FAS made it like that for the mk1 and mk2 in the first place? doesn't make sense to me
Click to expand...
Ethernet connections are reliable for stationary connections that don't get moved around much and don't get stepped on. That's why they're all over office computers and phones. EtherCon is a ruggedized Ethernet connection, but it's still not as rugged as you'd like for stage use.

In the days when the earth was young and we all rode around in oxcarts, MIDI was carried by MIDI connectors only. Then some manufacturers added Ethernet connectors to create a two-way connection that could also send power, and could use cheap, widely-available cables. It was a convenience thing, and old-fashioned, reliable MIDI connectors were still available on most equipment.

Finally, FAS came along with FAS-Link, which uses signal multiplexing to provide two-way communication plus power over just three wires. The other cool thing about FAS-Link is the fact that it uses the three wires in existing microphone cables, which are cheap, easily found, and proven to be rugged enough for stage use.
 
Last edited:
I think people confuse ethernet with ethercon. I have not once seen a unreliable ethercon connection.
 
edo said:
My mfc does not show timeout, it shows blank presets i.e. "S001 " without song title and the axe fx screen is blank with no sound coming out
Click to expand...

I experiences the exact same thing yesterday (for the first time) in my studio. I had to restart 2-3 times, before my axe was back to normal. Worked it hard for the rest of the night, with no problems.

I run an XL, mfc101 mk3 and fastlink connection
 
@edo did you find a resolution to this yet?

I reported a similar issue a month or two back, but wasn't able to reliably reproduce it enough for anyone to find a cause. It seemed to go away with the Q3 update, but now on Q3.02 it's back for me. I'm getting closer to being able to reliably reproduce the issue

If turn some effects on and play through preset #2 (I'm sure the patch number is irrelevant), then change to preset #1 using either the MFC (via faslink) or the knob on the AxeFX front panel while my guitar is still sending a signal, then the unit locks up. It's worth noting that this happens regardless of whether or not my MFC is connected, but I seem to notice it more often when it is. Also, my USB cable is plugged into the AxeFX, but the other end is not plugged into anything. Not sure if that could have anything to do with it.

I tried copying preset from #2 to #1, so it's switching to the same exact preset and I still experience the issue.

My patch makes use of scenes and lots of effects, though I don't usually peak above 90% CPU. Usually in the 80% range

I am using third party IRs (the AC30 cab pack from ML sound labs).
 
  • Like
Reactions: edo
@cowmaster39 havent bad the chance to sort it out. Last night I played a gig and it happened again (only once), still using the ethercon. I ordered some midi cables and will try those hoping the problem is the ethercon cable.
 
Hi Edo, did you experience those issues during the songs or between? I have similar issues with no signal in output 2, wich feeds the amp, and always in between songs, so it seems to be relative to the tuner... I use midi cable.
 
@edo @FractalAudio

I think I figured it out.

I had a couple high cpu presets back to back that were using a stereo ultrares cab block that was pointing to the same user cab for both left and right. I used the cab block post fx so I could also run out to a power amp and cab (which I no longer do anymore).

I modified my presets and made the stereo cab a mono cab and moved it in front of all of my stereo effects. Same sound, less cpu, and I'm not referencing the same user cab twice.

Ive played 2 shows so far and numerous practices with these new patches and it hasn't locked up on me once. Patches switch faster than before. It used to lock up on me at least once per show or practice. Hasn't happened again since I made those modifications.

Im no engineer, but I have a moderate understanding of computers and storage. I could be totally off base here, but my guess is that the memory used to store the user cabs isn't quite as fast as the ROM used to store the firmware and all the factory cabs. Switching between presets with stereo cabs all pointing to the same user cab, combined with high cpu utilization from other effects could have caused the storage controller to bug out and freeze the system.

Again, I could be way off base here, but that's what my guess would be.

Cliff, I tagged you in this because I think it could possibly be a bug. I couldn't reliably reproduce it on demand, but I believe I have found a fix and as a result of that, a potential cause of the problem: stereo ultra res cab blocks pointing to the same user cab.

Haven't tested it with factory cabs though.

If edo doesn't use a similar cab block setup, then this whole theory could go out the window.

Just want to share my findings.
 
I never use stereo cabs, I generally use 2 mono cabs with different irs.. Not saying your theory is incorrect, but still, lockup might have to do with excessive cpu overload maybe?? I do have a few patches that go up to 91% or so..
Btw, a couple weeks ago I've replaced the cat5 cable with a midi cable and I had no problem until last gig 2 days ago, when the blank screen / no sound happened again (don't know if that's the cause or it's a choincidence, but it happened when i went up from song 62 to song 1 as opposed to down from 62 to 1)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom