Issue with power to an MFC 101 II

A

Alan Jack

Member
Help. I have bought an MFC 101 Mk2 to use with my Axe FX II. I cannot for the life of me get the MFC to power up through the ethernet port. I have powered up the controller with a 9V power supply, performed a factory reset, set the unit to Axe FX II etc. I have tried 2 different ethernet cables and the AX-1 and 2 Faslink adapters. Nothing. Can anyone advise to something I have missed? Thanks in advance.
 
One thing that jumped to mind was a problem some folks had when they inadvertently plugged a metal USB plug into their ethernet port on the Axe FX and shorted/burned out what I believe was a resistoror rail that powered the MFC. That was the most common reason I recall when the MFC would power up directly, but not through ethernet. The only other thing I can suggest it trying different cables, as it is very easy to get one with a bad connection there.

The other power issue I recalled was an oversized power supply, but that was only on the midi power outs.

Do a search on "USB into Ethernet" for some examples of that first possibility.
 
Thanks Rick. I have today gone and bought a new CAT5 cable. Still nothing. I have also ordered a 5 pin MIDI cable to try running the MFC that way along with a 9V power supply. If it works with the MIDI I think I might take the opportunity to upgrade the MFC port to an Ethercon. Everything I have done and tried points to the MFC being at fault. A cheap fix.
 
On the midi cable, you'll need a 7 pin for the power to make the trip. It's been a while since I ran that, but if I recall correctly, the 9V power connects to the back of the Axe FX, and a 7 pin cable carries it to the MFC. Or you can use one with an adaptor built in for the power. I had one that was 5 pin with a power socket on the Axe FX end and 7 on the MFC side. It was like this one: http://www.musiciansfriend.com/acce...1598633-sku^331270000000000@ADL4MF-adType^PLA

I think you can do it either way, but the additional 2 pins on the 7 pin connector are what carries the power on the midi hookup.
 
I have a 5 pin cable ordered and I will run a 9V into the MFC 101. I also have contacted a local electronic engineer about first and foremost looking at both the AFX II and controller to see whats going on and ultimately change the MFC port on the AFX to an Ethercon rather than an ethernet connection.
 
The 5 PIN MIDI has solved connectivity issues just now. However I'm still thinking of upgrading the MFC post to a full blown ethercon post. Can this be done?
 
Alan Jack said:
Help. I have bought an MFC 101 Mk2 to use with my Axe FX II. I cannot for the life of me get the MFC to power up through the ethernet port. I have powered up the controller with a 9V power supply, performed a factory reset, set the unit to Axe FX II etc. I have tried 2 different ethernet cables and the AX-1 and 2 Faslink adapters. Nothing. Can anyone advise to something I have missed? Thanks in advance.
Click to expand...

Contact Fractal Support.

If your Axe is a MKI there are some issues with the Ethernet port and Cat5 cables.
Faslink is the most stable connection to a Faslink equipped MFC like the MKII.

But the Axe MKI's didn't have a Faslink port and the Ethernet to Faslink adaptors that Fractal sells are still dependant on a short Cat5 cable between the Axe and the adaptor.
In my experience, most Cat 5 cables will be flaky with the Axe MKI's Ethernet port.
Sometimes you get lucky and find a Cat 5 that will work fairly consistently, but it's rare.
The problem has to do with the Ethernet jack being slightly recessed into the Axe MKI's chassis so the contact between the jack and the cable is not complete.
Sometimes jiggling the cable inside the jack will give you a good connection, but you may have to repeat and jiggle again later that session.

So, in my experience, the best way to pair up an Axe MKI with an MFC MKII is the 7-pin MIDI cable connection using the supplied AC adaptor.
But that might not give you a stable connection either in some areas owing to issues with local voltages and current.
The short story is that 7-pin MIDI connection doesn't work so well over long cable runs in certain areas.
Fractal actually had to arrange for a local tech (Toronto) to modify the circuit board on my MFC so that I could have a stable 7-pin MIDI connection when using longish cables (roughly, longer than 10 ft) here in Toronto.
Cliff made it sound like the issue was that Toronto's current is a bit on the low side.
Perfectly stable now though.

Have a search through my past posts in this forum about the MFC.

Good luck resolving this.

PS
If your Axe is not a MKI then none of this might be relevant.
I don't know if any of these issues still linger with MII's or XLs.
All my experience in this area is with an Axe MKI and an MFC MKII.
 
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