Non-working Electro Harmonix Memory Man

[marc61]

I'd like to try and sell it, but first I was looking for a little advice. Should I fix it? or sell it as is? My understanding is that it's circa 1978 and is the original version.

I've had it about 5 years. It was working when I first got it, but just stopped

Any thoughts?

[johnallg]

Could be an easy fix, could be a *****. A schematic would be necessary if it isn't a failed connector, wire soldering, pot, switch, or such. Unless a capacitor has the top bubbled out or blown off, this could be a tough fix.

Interesting, it edited my B word! When did that start?

[sloop_john_b]

When did that start?

That depends; when did you pick up the bottle of Bombay?

I had an EHX Electric Mistress stop working on me. Quality is not always consistent with these, although I think it's gotten much better over the past few years.

[marc61]

The only thing I see of notice when I open up the back is that the electrical cord seems to have been replaced. I'm going to try and plug it in tomorrow and see if it works at all.

[johnallg]

When did that start?

That depends; when did you pick up the bottle of Bombay?

Saturday; I got the 1.76L bottle. Why? You coming to the wedding? I'll need to get a couple more!

[collin]

It might be worth contacting a repair shop.

It could be something relatively easy for a competent tech. $50 bucks spent fixing a pedal can double the value or more...those old EH pedals (particularly the Memory Man) are pretty collectible.

[cjj]

A lot of this stuff is pretty easy to fix if you've got a few basic tools, a decent volt/ohm meter for instance. These can be bought for less than $20 at places like Radio Shack and are useful for all sorts of things.

First, check all wires and connectors for loose connections. If there are any connectors (plug/socket things) on the boards, etc. unplug and reconnect them a couple of times. Often the contacts get corroded and this will scrape them clean, you wouldn't believe how many "broken" electronic items I've fixed this way.

Next look the circuit board over for "crispy critters", parts that have overheated/burned up. If you find any, here's where it can get difficult, trying to figure out what it used to be and what might have caused the failure. If you don't see anything obvious, on to the next step.

Take your volt meter and measure a few voltages. That box has a transformer so it takes the incoming wall voltage (120V in the U.S.) and steps it down to a low voltage, usually in the 9V to 15V range, sometimes the transformer will say what it is. just looking at it I can see that it's a "center tapped" transformer, there are 2 black wires coming out and a green one. If you measure between the 2 black wires (use the AC volts setting on the meter, with the box's line cord plugged in), you should get some voltage between the 2 black wires and half that value between the green wire and either black one. If you get nothing, the transformer is probably bad.

From here on out, it gets a bit tougher, but that's probably enough to get you started...

[jdogric12]

I would try and fix it, Marc.

On the censoring, I noticed that with another forumite last week whilst pm'ing. We had fun testing the system out.

[marc61]

Funny cuz EH is in NY, but other than that, I wouldn't have a clue where to go to get it repaired.

[jdogric12]

Give 'em a call, you never know!

[beatlefreak]

Here is a schematic:

[marc61]

Give 'em a call, you never know!

Just as a goof I sent them an email. Maybe they can refer me to someone.

[marc61]

Here is a schematic:

Appreciated Kris. Not sure if it's the right one though. Mine is just a Memory Man. Not the deluxe. I believe it's the very first version.

[marc61]

Received messages from two different sources that this is the guy who can handle EH repairs. Just wanted to share:

http://howard.davis2.home.att.net/

[marc61]

Just to update. I actually got it repaired by this guy : http://www.ronsound.com . He said he doesn't usually do repairs any more but still enjoys working on EH boxes. Cost was $50 and he turned it around in a day. Work he did was "Replaced IC, adjusted bias and balance trimpots". Whatever that stuff means . He also said it's a 1980 FWIW. Seemed worth it to me.