Control/Dimming - Light board servicing

[Les]

So, I recently received an EDI Bijou Plus that I won on eBay for $100. It seems like it works very well, aside from the fact that I haven't hooked it up to any dimmers. I've just been paging through menus and writing random cues and all those functions seem to work. The question I have is about servicing the unit, as it needs a little TLC. The main thing is that the sliders feel a little dirty, and one submaster is missing its slider completely.

I called "Bear" from Norcostco - Dallas and he said that they could service it for $65 per hour and that the cleaning shouldn't take more than an hour. He also said that the potentiometer should be a cheap fix. I popped the hood and the circuit board doesn't seem to be damaged underneath, so I'm thinking that they could just solder on a new potentiometer. That's a pretty cheap part, right? What do you think about their service charge? It sounds fair to me, but I will call a few more places just to compare.

The unit also has some permanent marker graffiti on it, but Bear said that they have solvents that they could use on it to get it off. I tried rubbing alcohol, but it seems like it would take more than that to get results. Bear said that they use chemicals like Dry Cleaning solvents, etc.

All in all I think I got a pretty good deal! If I had some 5-pin DMX cables I would hook it up to my dimmer packs, but the fact that it boots up and is responsive seems pretty hopeful. There is an inspection sticker inside the board that says it was manufactured in 7/02. This is the Bijou Plus 48/96 (without the encoder wheels and moving light section).

One other thing; in Stage, the channel sliders don't register on the screen when I bring them up, either by keying them in or pushing up the handles. I think it's something that needs to be addressed in the setup menu. I don't have a manual, and have yet to download one due to lack of a USB cable for my printer and a very slow computer that really shouldn't have anything else saved on to it. This is a long shot, but would anyone around here by any chance know how to fix this?

Thanks guys!

[gafftaper]

Hey Les, my repair guy here in Seattle was also charging $65 an hour last time I checked... $100 for a field repair.

[DimmerDotCom]

Originally Posted by Les

One other thing; in Stage, the channel sliders don't register on the screen when I bring them up, either by keying them in or pushing up the handles. I think it's something that needs to be addressed in the setup menu. Thanks guys!

F1 and ENTER to go into 2 scene mode. Look at the monitor display carefully, there are little hints displayed at all times on what you can do on each display. You can download the manual at dimmer.com Home Page under the library page.

[church]

the service charge sounds normal - varies slightly from area to area. Slide pots are normally in the $10 per pot range plus installation. However there are some very expensive pots installed by some manufacturers but your repair shop will advise.

Always use care with solvents as they can remove the silk screen from the console and even make the clear plastic covers on sound meters turn opaque as one of my friends found out to his cost.

[Les]

Thanks for your help so far guys, and thanks for the pointer, DimmerDotCom. Very much appreciated! I'll go power up the board and try this right now.

Originally Posted by church

Always use care with solvents as they can remove the silk screen from the console and even make the clear plastic covers on sound meters turn opaque as one of my friends found out to his cost.

I tried a little trick by mixing white toothpaste and baking soda, and with some aggressive scrubbing, most of the ink was removed, without damaging the paint. I have noticed however that the treated area is a little shinier than the rest when viewed at an angle. I'm willing to live with that as opposed to cartoon characters and autographs though.

Update: F1+ENTER worked. Thanks Maurice!
So will the faders not respond like this in single scene mode, giving me access to 96 channels on the front panel?

[derekleffew]

Originally Posted by Les

...as opposed to cartoon characters and autographs though.

I hope it wasn't Charles Schulz or Al Hirshfield.

[Les]

Originally Posted by derekleffew

I hope it wasn't Charles Schulz or Al Hirshfield.

Haha, neither of those are on my board, but does the name "rusty sheffield" mean anything to you? Well, I just erased it regardless...

Here's a picture of the $100 ebay board:

[DimmerDotCom]

Originally Posted by Les

Thanks for your help so far guys, and thanks for the pointer, DimmerDotCom.
Update: F1+ENTER worked. Thanks Maurice!
So will the faders not respond like this in single scene mode, giving me access to 96 channels on the front panel?

I answered your PM.

Your welcome. Try SETUP + 3 + F2 + ENTER and you can flip from 2 scene to single scene. Good buy. Try not to break the power switch (JOKE). If the console flakes on you you may need the 5V power supply adjusted. I had to do this only once at a school as we had to wait for USD purchasing to approve the purchase of a new power supply as the existing one was failing. A little boost stablized the console until the replacement purchase was approved.