Serious Problem With Pearl Expert

[Stratis]

I am an owner of a pearl expert and suddenly at the beginning of the concert the console turned off.I checked the power and it was ok
But this continued.The pearl kept opening and closing during the concert alone.On the patch there were 6 Robe Colorspot 700 EAT and 30 channels of dimmer and 2 hazers.I turned on the next day with one Moving head that i was using the previous day and it was working.At the next show the problem continued until it opened and only showed lines in the screen(Not External Monitor).I sent it immediately to service but they didn't find any problems and the console as they said never closed.I plugged the Pearl today alone and it was working.When i connected to the POWER a Robe Colorspot 700EAT and not to the dmx of the console it kept working.When the lamp went on after 10 seconts the pearl again closed and opened by itself several times.Any solutions ?????I have sent it for service again but i want to know if someone has an answer to all this as i have scheduled concerts here in Greece without a console.The Local distributor said that they will replace it with a new one til they find the problem.Avolites may know already this problem as they told me that they will contact with you for any possible damages.

[niclights]

I've never heard of anything like this. But if it always happened on a lamp strike of those fixtures without DMX connected then I would wonder if it was overloading local power supply and dropping voltage?

If this happened with DMX connected then maybe fault on DMX cable/line etc.

Both these assume repeatable condition with the fixture lamp strike.

[Stratis]

I don't think it's a problem with the local power as the same thing happened in three different places.Neither it is a dmx conflict as in one concert i used the other pearl i own and everything was ok(all the cables,moving heads and dimmers are the exactly the same all the times).The only conclusion i came up was that it maybe a problem with the power of the pearl as i also used a ups for sure and the problem still exists

[niclights]

It does sound like a power problem within the desk then. Strange they found no fault, but intermittent issues typically won't show up when you need them, only when you don't!

I assume you tried different power lead?

[Stratis]

Yes I've tried everything and the conclusion i've made was that the problem is not the dmx.could it be a hard disk crash but why when consuming electricity by an other device the the pearl closes????I can't think anything else except for the power.When the moving head was on with the lamp off it was working but when the starter of the lamp went on without the dmx on the avo closes.The first time the problem appeared i was using a power generator and when the concert started and power was consumed from all the amplifiers and pars expert started closing and opening continuously

[niclights]

I have to say that everything you describe - lamp strike/amplifiers etc. really do suggest the voltage is too low and would explain why no fault could be found. But a UPS should rule this out. Are you sure it was working?! Have you measured supply voltages?

I'm a bit confused about your wording.

Do you actually mean the whole console loses power and restarts ie. everything goes off and then comes back starting with the POST screen on the VDU? Just like resetting a PC.

Or do you mean just the Pearl software restarts? This would be much quicker.

[Stratis]

The ups was working.It's 660 watt and the consoles power supply is 250.Sorry if i confused you.I mean that the whole console turns off like a restart of a pc as pearl is a pc

[Stratis]

Before we connect to the power the voltages are measured as we have digital consoles for sound and lighting and any strange voltage will affect the consoles.Don't forget that the problem exists in 2 different places with different power supply

[Olie]

Can you please describe what happens on the VDU screen, LCD screen, hardware panels as separate items. Also how long does it take before the console comes back to life.

I would be very surprised if the console was shutting down completely. It is much more likely that it is just the USB panels resetting which can be resolved. Have you been asked to send your USB logs in to our service department. If not then I suggest you do this as this will tell us if the desk is powering down or simply the USB panels are resetting.

Your description is not detailed enough for me to tell exactly what the problem is. If you can describe the exact sequence of events with every aspect of the desk then I might be able to help more.

[nfegan]

is it possible the bulbs in the fixtures have gone past there Max hours. As this will put undue stress on the power supplying them and the pearl when the strike command is sent. If all the units are being struck together it could be putting the power supply feeding the units and the console under pressure and there could be a voltage drop the the pearl can't deal with and it resets. May be it's happening randomly during the show because the fans on the fixtures are clogged up and the lamp is dousing when thermal cutout cuts in and restriking, causing power surge again resetting the desk.
Just a thought.

[Olie]

There is an Engineering Change Notice (ECN) that deals with this problem. You can find more details on our website.

http://www.avolites.org.uk/support/ecns/ecn-0184.pdf