EXTREMELY loud crackling and popping while playing

EXTREMELY loud crackling and popping while playing
« on: March 28, 2021, 08:51:18 PM »
I have had my new Pro 3 for about a week and today it started making EXTREMELY LOUD crackling and popping noises and would stop playing anything resembling music. Just a cacophony of sickening sounds. You know the noises at power on that people are posting about? Well it was like that except a million times worse and it happens at any time and not just at startup/shutdown. So I was playing it and having a fun time and all of a sudden the EXTREMELY LOUD SOUNDS that burst through my headphones startled me to the point where I thought I was being killed and temporarily deafened me. My ears are still ringing. It felt like I was knocked across the room like I was shocked or something, and I would know about that because I got struck by lightning in 1999 and it threw me about twenty feet. The noises were so bad that I was expecting smoke from the unit by then. Yes it was THAT BAD. But the strange thing is that it would do all of that and suddenly it would play correctly. Right now it sounds normal but anything electronic that ever put those sounds out is definitely F***ED UP! There is no way I am keeping this thing. I just paid $1,599 for this so yeah, I'm bummed. Has anyone heard of this? It most certainly will be exchanged for a new one from Zzounds since it is less than 30 days but I would like to know your thoughts and if anyone has heard of this problem. BTW my new at the time Prophet 12 had to have both the circuit boards replaced and the keyboard replaced under warranty so sometimes I just don't know, you know? I don't want to sound like a jerk here but my Moogs never give me any problems. And now I am going to enjoy some WC Fields on YouTube since I can't play with my Pro 3. Boo hoo for me. Thanks for reading.
« Last Edit: March 28, 2021, 09:06:44 PM by Synthesizer Patel »
Sequential Pro 3
DSI Prophet 12
Moog Sub 37
Moog Mother-32
Elektron Octatrack
Elektron Monomachine
Korg Monotribe
Arturia KeyStep
Arturia BeatStep Pro
Monotonic Labs Type U-73
DSI Poly Evolver PEK
Behringer Odyssey
Pittsburgh Modular SV-1

Re: EXTREMELY loud crackling and popping while playing
« Reply #1 on: March 29, 2021, 06:01:32 PM »
Sorry to hear about your experience with the Pro3. I have had mine for more than 6 months and have had no problems, until the last FW update (Arp Latch FW bug which they added to the list of fixes for next update). I also have a Prophet REV2 that I have had zero problems with at all. I also have had Moogs, and some have had issues... so I would say, if you like the sound and workflow of the Pro3, give it a chance. The support team at Sequential is excellent and if you haven't submitted a support ticket, do so immediately. They usually get back to you pretty quick. All hardware synths are subject to problems and I hope you give this one a chance. It is one of the best mono synths I've used in quite a while, IMO. Best of luck to you.
Sequential Pro-3
Dave Smith Prophet REV2
Yamaha MODX6
Behringer DeepMind12D
Behringer Odyssey
Moog Mother32
Moog DFAM
Behringer K2
Behringer Model D
Kurzweil K2500RS
Arturia MiniBrute 2S
Behringer Pro~1
Behringer Neutron
Various Eurorack
WAY too many VSTs :)

Re: EXTREMELY loud crackling and popping while playing
« Reply #2 on: March 31, 2021, 12:58:44 PM »
Ummm...I think it is defective.

Zzounds is exchanging it for a new one without question, and Sequential's customer service is top notch.
Everything you hear in this video is coming from the Pro 3. Nothing else is even plugged in. Notice at the end where I turn it off and then back on and it works. Not for long though. It eventually reverts to the noise again. And yes, it did get a lot worse from when I first posted.

I want to publicly thank Sequential and Zzounds for their stellar support.

https://youtu.be/ddD6ZTo8-UY
Sequential Pro 3
DSI Prophet 12
Moog Sub 37
Moog Mother-32
Elektron Octatrack
Elektron Monomachine
Korg Monotribe
Arturia KeyStep
Arturia BeatStep Pro
Monotonic Labs Type U-73
DSI Poly Evolver PEK
Behringer Odyssey
Pittsburgh Modular SV-1

Re: EXTREMELY loud crackling and popping while playing
« Reply #3 on: March 31, 2021, 09:40:39 PM »
Ummm...I think it is defective.

Zzounds is exchanging it for a new one without question, and Sequential's customer service is top notch.
Everything you hear in this video is coming from the Pro 3. Nothing else is even plugged in. Notice at the end where I turn it off and then back on and it works. Not for long though. It eventually reverts to the noise again. And yes, it did get a lot worse from when I first posted.

I want to publicly thank Sequential and Zzounds for their stellar support.

https://youtu.be/ddD6ZTo8-UY

For what it's worth -- I had a similar issue where, suddenly at completely random times, my pro 3 would just start screaming at me at what seemed like full volume.. Filters and envelopes unresponsive, etc.  Only a power cycle would revert it to normal for a while.

Turns out there was a fringe timing issue with an internal component and with the guidance of sequential support, soldering a single resistor fixed the problem for good.  They offered to send me one with this already performed, but they said I could do it myself and it wouldn't void the warranty (talk about great support!).   

If you have this problem again, I suggest reaching out to support and they will happily guide you through this process.