perspective control 24

[youbringmesuffering]

looks like i am getting my hands on a Focusrite Control 24, used. When i go to check the console out, what should i look out for aside from obvious cosmetics?
are there any onboard diagnostics i can run to test the board?
Any suggestions on what i should stay away from if it has certain issues?
Any help would be greatly appreciated.

[albee1952]

Try to find out how old the power supply is and if its been serviced/repaired or upgraded at all. That seems to be the biggest failure point. You probably won't use the preamps much(maybe 1 for a talkback mic).

[paulmellors]

Check the serial number. If it ends in a letter before H then it has the dodgy power supply. H and after apparently have the later PSU (although my rev H blew the PSU).

Factor in the cost of replacement PSU in the price you pay. Quote in the UK from a Digi Service Centre was £650 if you need carriage.

Run VEGAS mode to check all faders LED's etc. Find this under the utility command.

It's a great control surface, but not the most reliable piece of kit and with the known PSU and Monitor board problems it always felt like WHEN and not IF it was going to go faulty.

Good Luck

Paul

[crizdee]

Originally Posted by youbringmesuffering

looks like i am getting my hands on a Focusrite Control 24, used. When i go to check the console out, what should i look out for aside from obvious cosmetics?
are there any onboard diagnostics i can run to test the board?
Any suggestions on what i should stay away from if it has certain issues?
Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Hi,

On top of what else has ben said. just take a close look at the scribble strips to see if there's any flickering, this is usually the first signs of power supply problems. also check all faders are really still with a session of 24 tracks or more loaded. if you create a new session with 24 tracks then all faders should be nice and still and sitting level. unfortunately since PT went to +12 dbfs the level markings on the console channels don't correlate perfectly with pro tools virtual mixer channels markings. the console goes to +6 but pro tools now goes to +12 etc.

Ideally you could do with someone who knows the console to go with you, they would know how to check all the functions.

Chris

[youbringmesuffering]

I am a technician so i'm not too worried to get my hands in to test it, i just need to know my way around it.

what do you mean by still? I know that when i open a session, the faders are supposed to snap to the position. Is there something else i should be looking for?

What is the monitor board issue?

[paulmellors]

Originally Posted by youbringmesuffering

What is the monitor board issue?

Apparently they have a high failure rate. According to LEE Engineering (who are Digi Approved Service) they have replaced more Monitor boards than PSU's!

[stainless]

you can check out the faders by simply banking any size session across the board.

I have one of the later boards ending in H (purchased 5/05), and I had to reset the molex connectors once due to flickering during long sessions (6+ hours) and haven't had any other issues since, beyond a spastic fader that I blame on cat jumping up on the console and hitting a fader that was "in use"... at least that is when the issue began... whenever the replacement faders once again are available from Digi, buy a couple as spares!

many people dislike the pre's but I find them just fine for scratch tracks and mic'd instrument cabs. As they cannot be truly bypassed (at least from everything I've been told) anything directly into the console will have the internal pre's in the signal chain.

IMHO, they are an improvement over the 002R pre's

there's another thread here by someone considering/wishing for mods- an external power supply and a way to bypass the pre's would be clutch!.... and if someone could break the control language so the Control 24 would work with other interfaces/platforms, I think these would be around for quite a while

my 2 cents (less inflation)

[youbringmesuffering]

Would you say the pre's are better than the 003r's?

I'm getting the impression that this is a great controller, but that's it.

[paulmellors]

A used control 24 is a lot of kit for the money but everyone accepts it has flaws. If you want the functionality with better pre's and better monitor section then you need to get the new version.

[albee1952]

"many people dislike the pre's but I find them just fine for scratch tracks and mic'd instrument cabs. As they cannot be truly bypassed (at least from everything I've been told) anything directly into the console will have the internal pre's in the signal chain."

You don't need to pass any audio thru the Control 24 at all. You can run external mic preamps directly to the IO(such as a 96IO or 192IO) and the playback can go directly to a monitor controller(like a Presonus Central Station). The Control24 preamps are essentially the same as the original Mbox(based on the Focusrite Platinum range and made in China). Some say those preamps are okay, others say they are crap. Let your ears decide.