weird Q tron malfunction

[darthplagis]

ok guys, im a bit stumped here.

ill start off.. im no electronics expert haha i can solder and stuff but im not a multi meter owner or anything like that LOL

so i have a Q tron (big box non plus version), I've had it close to 10 years now and hardly used it as life got in the way of my playing.

well i get set up to jam with my old band a few months back and when i stepped on the Q tron... nothing. no sound... switching the range and sweep knobs causes an audiable pop.
the thing is the LED for peak lights up with playing response as it should and the gain knob still alters the response of the led as it did when it was working as intended....
there are the odd spikes of sound when gain is cranked coming through the pedal also (audiable).

i have adjusted the trim pot in case it was that, silly i know but alas a no go.
there are no leaky caps and no obvious fried components on the board... its been in my backpack with my cables for close to 3 years since i last used it successfully.

any ideas?

 

[Alien8]

This kind of sound means that something isn't biased correctly anymore. You could look for loose components, cold solder joints, or shorts that have formed as a start.

Beyond that, you could make an audio probe to locate the point where failure occurs, then follow the power supply and ground points in the circuit to get to the source.

If you have a failed component, likely a multimeter is in order!

Good advice here, if you want to source and fix yourself: Geofex
New Page 1 check the debug link in the upper corner.

 

[jbybj]

I would start by cleaning all the jacks. A burnishing jack, deoxit spray, or just ramming a 1/4” jack in and out 35 times. IME, based on 3 years of undisturbed potential oxidation, this is a likely culprit.

Best of luck.

 

[darthplagis]

I would start by cleaning all the jacks. A burnishing jack, deoxit spray, or just ramming a 1/4” jack in and out 35 times. IME, based on 3 years of undisturbed potential oxidation, this is a likely culprit.

Best of luck.

its not the jacks, the pedal signal is fine when the pedal is not engaged. the jacks are solid as ive hardly used the pedal and its been stored in a backpack plus England isnt really known for humidity so it probably isnt an issue