EDIT: The images are still there, just click it
So here it is you lovely people. A guarenteed 100% working fix to your combo breaking, multiplier messing woes, that reared it's ugly head in the form of those pesky phantom button pushes that you're pretty sure you didn't do.
Firstly here's my own disclaimer
THIS WILL VOID THE WARRANTY.
But if you're looking here you either got a a replacement that did the same thing a few months, maybe days, or even hours! after you started using it. Or your controller is out of the warranty anyway.
Secondly. OK, so i said 100% guaranteed working fix. I'm not guaranteeing anything. What i'm saying, is that i KNOW this works. All you have to do is follow this fix tutorial and see for yourself.
I have a background in electronics and this fault at first annoyed me to the point of snapping the crossfader across my knee. I'm pretty sure most of you have also been there.
When i stopped raging over my multiplier to think about why this was happening and even before taking the controller apart, it seemed pretty obvious that there had to be a brush type system involved, due to the buttons being located on the platter. The buttons themselves are simple and pretty fault less in their nature.
If the fault was electronic (and there is pretty much no electronics inside the platter unit) it would probably also show while there was no platter movement. As we all know, it only happens when you scratch, rewind etc. It had to be mechanical. More to the point, the way the button signals were transmitted through the platter, to the crossfader unit and on to the xbox.
The brushes in the spindle of the controller are like any other electro-mechanical device. They are subject to noise in the contacts caused by grit on the surface. Not so bad in an electric motor where it is carrying voltage/current, but this device is carrying data in the form of button pushes. And noise will effect that far greater. Imagine turning the volume knob on an old amplifier, it gets more scratchy the older it gets. Same thing here. Plus they are less that a millimeter wide and there are 6 of them. So even the smallest speck of grit may have an effect.
This post is image heavy, they are 2mp images that total around 10mb all together.
I will post an thumbnail prior to the description so you can see what it all looks like before you read about it. Clicky for the big one. The photobucket page is public and they are in the same order so you can keep that page open to view them there if that's easier.
Boring shits over, lets begin shall we?
Tools you will need are pretty basic, nothing special.
Philips (cross head) screwdriver.
Flat head screwdriver, electricians type.
Small jewelers flat head screwdriver.
Small Pair of long nosed pliers.
Craft knife or similar. Nothing too big and bulky.
Rag.
WD-40 or similar. (I used Halfords Water dispersant/lubricant which is the same thing)
So here we have it. Rage. Nuff said.
First you can remove the crossfader unit, we won't be taking that apart.
Lots of screws to take out. There's only 3 types, small, medium and large, all cross head.
There are only 4 large ones and they are in the feet, take those out first and leave them in there. Easier to find when you put it back together.
Then the 2 small ones on the right, where the crossfader attaches.
And finally the 5 medium ones around the center.
Here's a tip to make life easier. Make sure the crossfader lock is in the
LOCKED position, so push it to the left. NOT to the right like in the picture.
You will see why later.
Holding the case together, flip it over the right way up so the crossfader fitting is on the left. Now gently lift the right side of the top half of the case so you can see inside.You will see there is tape holding the wires to the base.
DON'T PULL THE WIRES. They are so fine it's stupid. Plus the solder is lead free and breaks easy which is why they apply glue after.Take your craft knife and cut the tape. you should be able to work the wires out with little force. It's up to you how you do this but
BE GENTLE.
Once you've worked the wires free from the tape you should be able to flip the top half over on to the platter. Where i've circled on the top image is why you made sure the crossfader lock was in the
LOCKED position. It lifts the levers making this connector assembly easier to lift out.
Once you have this out you can put the base to one side. Just remember,
DONT PULL ON THE WIRES
Remove these 4 screws that hold the platter to the upper half of the case. They are flanged so easy to spot from the other screws.
Now
GENTLY lift the upper half of the casing and flip it over to the right. The wires feed nicely through the middle from the connector assembly.
Rest the platter upside down on top of the upper half of the base. There's plenty of wire there to do this but still be careful not to pull them. Rest a book or something under the other side of the platter to support it. If you cant find a book, DON'T PANIC! Fold a towel and use that instead.
In the first image we take the 4 screws out that hold the 2 halves of the platter together. The red circle is there just to show you there is a hole in the bottom half. and to take note of it when you put it all back together. It's where it detects the platter movement. Same as and old skool ball mouse.
In the second image here you need to lift from the left this time because there is more tape holding the wires to the top side of the platter.
Take your time, it's awkward. But i'd rather take my time than pull a wire.
So now you've got that damn tape off you can gently flip over the bottom half of the platter on to the top half of platter and base. Makes a nice little sammich
Now were getting delicate. Holding the spindle to the platter is an E-Clip covered in glue. Spend some time picking at the E-Clip with the craft knife to get rid of it.
WATCH THE WIRES Take your time with it. When you have enough of the glue removed, use the long nosed pliers or flat blade screwdriver to slide it over.
Now you can't see my right hand in a few of the following pictures because, well, i was taking the pictures. But when you push here make sure not to push too hard on the wires as they go down the center of the spindle, you might crush them. The spindle itself may slide out easy or it may take a little force. Just remember to catch it when it does pop out.
The spindle is also keyed. Which is to say it has 2 flat sides so it won't spin around in the hole its in. Wouldn't be much good as a platter if it did. Just remember this when putting it all back together.
And there's the spindle popped out. Now you can lay the bottom half of the platter down on to the top half while we get to work on the spindle itself.
OK so here we have a crossroads. Some of you may like this, but i would rather do the job properly. I mean, you've come all this way just to chicken out at the last bit? If you want to squirt some WD-40 down those 2 gaps in the top of the spindle and hope for the best it's up to you. But i know you don't want to do that. So lets move on.
When you flip the spindle over and look at the bottom you will see 2 tabs that hold the brush casing in the shell. These need to be opened outwards so you can push the casing out from the other end where the spindle is.
This is where you need 3 hands but if you persevere it will be fine. Take your time and use the flat jewelers screwdriver to get in behind those tabs and gently twist them outwards. Taking care not to snap them off obviously or stab your hand. ALMOST DONE!
Now this is delicate and may put some people off but if you have patience it will all go well
trust me. You'll love me when you get an 8x multiplier for longer than a few seconds.
When you think the tabs are back enough, get your right hand ready at the back of the spindle casing and push on the spindle Taking care not to pinch the wires. It may come out easy but it also may take a little teasing and a wiggle to get it moving. When it starts it will just slide out
While it's sliding out pinch the brush assembly together gently. It's shell is in 2 halves and will come apart with little effort. You don't need to do this and it is melted together on the end, but only just. So keep hold of it just in case. It's not a majorly complex thing. Just small and fiddly to get the brushes back in their groves. Like the image shows. You can see the brushes. All you need to do now is squirt some WD-40 into the gap there. There is also one on the other side.
I feel pretty confident in saying there is NO lubricant in here to begin with. So the interference is most likely being caused by metal grit and dust on the brushes causing noise. Brushes probably isn't the best way to describe them. They are more like sprung steel wires pushing into the groves on the spindle.
Anyway, i digress. Squirt away. Don't be scared of it. But not too much. May need a rag under it. Enought to clean and lubricate it.
When you are done, push the brushes back in the shell, line it up and pinch the tabs back up.
The one thing to remember when pushing the spindle back through the the bottom half of the platter is that it is keyed and you have to line it up correctly.
AND WATCH THE WIRES.
All the reassembly is the reverse of assembly, with a few things to watch out for. Its up to you if you re-tape the wires down. I didn't, just make certain they are not pinched anywhere when you tighten the screws.
And a tip in the image above. This is the final stage of re-assembly, where you put the 2 halves of the base back together.
It will only go back one way.
There are 3 pillars on the left side of the top half, circled left. And on the bottom half make sure the crossfader connecter is seated correctly before you put the final screws in. Sometimes it catches on the edge.
Best way to do this is to flip the top half over on to the bottom checking there are no wires pinched on those 3 pillars. Then holding both halves together flip it back up side down. Put the 2 small screws back in first to hold the crossfader connector in place. Then finish off with the rest.
There we have it. Hope you enjoyed it as much as i have. I've been using my fixed controllers for many months now. I hope all of you get to do the same.
Renumeration in the form of sexual favors accepted, aswell as paypal.
(I didn't get 300 on expert)
Tried to post here but admin hasn't authorized my post because of images.
http://guitarherorepair.com/forum/post712.html#p712
Also posted here.
http://pn3.informe.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=40&t=238
DJ HERO Phantom Button Press FIX 100% WORKS!
Linear Mode
