Digi 002 Rack: Firewire Link Lost - no 1394 light

[PacoPoblano]

Hi everyone,

I am not sure what to do now. I have a Digi 002 Rack that has not given me any problems since I bought it....until the other night.

I had finished playing a Pro Tools File, then I went over later to start a new file and my Mac said that it was unable to find hardware. I did all of the normal troubleshooting - turned the Mac off, turned the Digi off, verified that the firewire ports were fine on the Mac (by checking with another FW device)....still no joy.

I've seen other posts about power harnesses, etc., related to a FW link light being on all the time. In this case, the FW link lite does not light....it initially comes on when I plug the connector in, but then goes out. I know the cable is good.

Now, I'm going to have to send my rack to the Digi folks this coming week, unless there is another idea. The unit is frozen with only the mute light on - all of the other lights are not lighting and none of the buttons work...makes sense if I can't get Pro Tools to recognize it.

I'm operating an older system - LE 6.4 with Mac OSX 10.3 on an iMac G4. I suppose if I have to send it back it isn't the end of the world, but it would be cool to have a better solution.

Any ideas? I have the unit in my basement, where it is relatively humid, but it's been there since I've lived here on the east coast. I don't have a mold problem or anything like that, so I don't think that's an issue. I did unplug the monitors from the RCA jacks while it was on, but that's never been an issue either.

Thanks, Pat

[Phil Ogden]

It does indeed sound like the power harness issue. I suggest you contact Digi. If confirmed, they'll be able to send a replacement with fitting instructions.

http://www.myspace.com/philogg

[Windshore]

I have owned the 002 rack since it came out. Even if you replace the harness, the issue WILL come up again. It's almost less hassle to just pull the thing apart every 6 months and spray the contacts with Deoxit. It's an amazing flaw that seems to never go away permanently.... or Send to Black Lion and have the redo the whole thing...

[Naagzh]

It could also be the power supply. But if it's the power harness, then try this:

Open up the 002R, and reconnect the two white/clear connectors. The first one is about an inch wide and is connected to the bottom board (follow with your eye the third preamp knob back). The other is nearby, but it's smaller. Sometimes the prongs get dirty and lose connection.

[PacoPoblano]

I did as suggested....took off the cover, popped off the three white/clear connectors and Q-tipped them with WD-40, put it back together, plugged it in and....voila!....it worked! WD stands for "water displacement"....probably a good choice in our humid climate here. So, now I have a fully-functional Digi 002....well, I think so. Of course, I'll be a little gun-shy for a couple of days, hoping the problem does not return, but it was really easy to fix.

Not only did the 1394 light come on, but I have full control of the unit again, and can access ProTools. Awesome!

Thanks for all of your help.

Pat :)

[albee1952]

Actually, my bench guy told me that WD40 is terrible and should never be used on contact points. Next time you open it up, use a real contact cleaner.

[sunburst79]

Originally Posted by albee1952

Actually, my bench guy told me that WD40 is terrible and should never be used on contact points. Next time you open it up, use a real contact cleaner.

+1! WD40 will work in a pinch but is not the best thing to use. The oil will attract dirt, moisture and gunk. FAR better choices would be to find a can of DeOxit or Cramlin R5. Also you should get a hold of Digi and have then send you a new harness gratis.

[bass1]

Mine was doing the same thing. I tried the connector cleaning trick, and instead of it not working at all, it worked for 1/2 an hour before losing the connection. Thank you so much for the solution! Today I tried setting up a fan to blow on the power supply side of the unit. It worked all through my 2 hr. project. It's hot here in So Cal in July, so must be making a power supply problem worse. I'll try cleaning again, but do I need a new power supply unit? (10 yr old digi 002 Rack)

[Park Seward]

DeoxIT really works.

http://store.caig.com/s.nl/sc.2/category.188/.f

WD-40 is an oil, not a cleaner.

[paymar77]

I opened my digi 002 rack, cleaned the connectors and reconnect the cable as described above and it worked! Lovin it!