Consoles, Static and Brown Outs

[Amiers]

So today halfway through tech our Hog 4s took a crap. The main console, according to the LD, screen glitched and shut off on him which in turn froze the network signal which killed control to the backup.

Last night sitting outside at dinner the hotel lights shut off outside and turned back on we all thought that it was just the outside but the whole ballroom went out. It was pretty interesting...not. We luckily didn’t see the effects or maybe since this is the reason I’m writing.

Also after we got everything loaded in the drape and everything else became super static charged in the whole room. Literally cant take two steps without creating it. Well needless to say the pipe and drape surrounded the whole ballroom which some of it might of been touching the console and the AC is pumping which causes it to charge itself.

So after that huge long preface.

Has anyone ever had a brown or effect a console the day after causing it to go to factory and not read the usb stick?

And

Has anyone ever had a static shock so bad that a console bricks itself?

 

[derekleffew]

Has anyone ever had a static shock so bad that a console bricks itself?

Not "bricks itself," but in the mid/late 1980s the Colortran Prestige was especially susceptible to static. A discharge would cause a reboot. I think the show would have to be reloaded, but don't remember for sure.

I took to pouring a line of water on the carpet all the way around the FOH control riser in hotel ballrooms. "Solved" the issue.

 

[Amiers]

Lol seriously. We just rotated the consoles on the table to be away from the drape.


It’s not totally dead but won’t recognize the usb stick.

 

[kicknargel]

I once bricked an Apple IIC (that's a computer, children) with a static shock. And I recently had a lot of trouble with a Creative Conners controller that was on a plastic cart touching a drape.

 

[Chase P.]

Shouldn't the case grounding on the console (and most other modern equipment) be enough to protect it's tender guts from drapery static?

It seems like with the brownouts you mentioned around the hotel that they have a bigger problem than just static, maybe something wrong in the house or the larger power grid. Did you have the console on a UPS, or a good surge suppressor? Is anyone else in the hotel having electronics problems?

 

[Amiers]

Projections lost a board. The night of. And yes the equipment has grounding inside.

But just wanted opinions.

 

[JD]

Shouldn't the case grounding on the console (and most other modern equipment) be enough to protect it's tender guts from drapery static?

It helps but is not 100%. Static is like a mini lightning bolt. Some make it through the protection, some even produce a mini EMP. Computer equipment is far more resistant these days then it was back in the 80s, but not completely.
I wonder if the discharge was to the USB port or stick. Could have popped the interface. Also, it could be that the failing chip on the interface glitched the power supply causing the grand crash. Once the chip went RIP, the rest of the system would boot normally.

 

[Amiers]

Yeah that’s what I was thinking the USB slot might of took the hit since it’s on top of the console and the drape was right there.

In the moment I didn’t think to stick it in the back. As the LD had already called the shop and got a fresh set of consoles in the truck and on the way.

 

[FMEng]

Chances are that contact with a charged human killed it, not the drape. When in high static conditions, it's a good idea to discharge yourself to something that can't be harmed prior to interacting with sensitive equipment. A button is very vulnerable to a charged finger.

Does the Hog 4S have an external power supply (a wall wart or line lump)? If so, the chassis may or may not be grounded. I only expect a decent chassis ground when the AC cord goes straight into the equipment.

A static charge could also have entered through the DMX shield. If the manufacturer didn't take care with the circuit trace to the connector pin 1, it might drain the charge right past sensitive components. In the audio world, we call this a "pin 1 problem."

 

[Amiers]

Just an IEC cable.

 

[kicknargel]

Chances are that contact with a charged human killed it, not the drape.

Yes. But if the human interacted with the drape recently or concurrently, that's likely what charged the human.

 

[RonHebbard]

Yes. But if the human interacted with the drape recently or concurrently, that's likely what charged the human.

@Chase P. @JD @kicknargel @Amiers @FMEng @derekleffew Also if the human shuffled across fifty feet of dusty dry carpet and didn't discharge her / his self prior to touching the console or any part thereof. I like @derekleffew 's circle of water, I like it a lot.
Toodleoo!
Ron Hebbard.

 

[TimMc]

@Chase P. @JD @kicknargel @Amiers @FMEng @derekleffew Also if the human shuffled across fifty feet of dusty dry carpet and didn't discharge her / his self prior to touching the console or any part thereof. I like @derekleffew 's circle of water, I like it a lot.
Toodleoo!
Ron Hebbard.

Ron, most of us are too modest to engage in a public "discharge."

 

[Les]

I took to pouring a line of water on the carpet all the way around the FOH control riser in hotel ballrooms. "Solved" the issue.

Not that I want this problem, but it would be fun putting this in our "Technician's Manual".

Loading an Existing Show:
- Power Console 'on' using the button in the top right corner of the control surface.
- Go to [File] + [Open]
- From the dropdown menu, select your company name.
- If you haven't already, pour a thin line of water no less than 6' around the perimeter of the tech booth.
- Once you have found your company name, select your show from below.
- When prompted, select [Yes] to confirm that you want to open the file.

 

[FMEng]

I took to pouring a line of water on the carpet all the way around the FOH control riser in hotel ballrooms. "Solved" the issue.

A spray bottle of fabric softener diluted in water would do the trick, but you use whatever is at hand.

 

[JohnD]

You could always strap on a holster and get a zerostat gun. Maybe the Cling free dryer sheet company could expand their line with disposable booties and gloves like the CSI people use.

 

[derekleffew]

One could also wear a LEKO. But water was the most available and expedient solution at the time. In the 1980s.

 

[Jay Ashworth]

<pedant>If you 'bricked' it, it's not recoverable short of a *soldering iron*. #wordsmatter</pedant>

And as FMEng says, Downy, 6 to 1 in water in a sprayer bottle.

Give it time to dry; it's slippery.

 

[kenact]

I once bricked an Apple IIC (that's a computer, children) with a static shock. And I recently had a lot of trouble with a Creative Conners controller that was on a plastic cart touching a drape.

I used to install computers, in the early 1980s. On one installation, I fried a power supply, 2 memory cards and 4 monitors, due to static. These units actually burned components on circuit boards. I'm not a big fan of carpets and drapes near my electronic equipment.