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Phoenix Engineering - Falcon - stopped working

This is a day I've been dreading ever since PE shut it's doors. I've been enjoying the device with my HW-19 ever since PE started offering them to the public several years ago.

It happened yesterday after I put the Falcon in stand-by mode to flip a record I was playing. It didn't turn back on like normal, no lights, no nothin'. I then reset it to factory defaults and it responded to that. Lights turned on and all the switches were responding like normal. I was only relieved for a few seconds when I realized the motor wasn't spinning.

I have verified the motor works on it's own, so I can rule that out.

Is there anything inside the Falcon that would burn out and cause this issue?

The Rouadrunner unit is showing me that the motor, by itself, spins at lowly 31.xxx. I'm lowly now.

ANY help would be greatly appreciated.

-Mike
pappas3278
10 responses Add your response
tablejockey
3,816 posts
 
You could send a message to Sota, since they took over the product.
lewm
12,651 posts
 
Last time I checked, Bill Carlin, the designer of the Phoenix engineering gear, is still available by email, and he is very responsive to owners problems. He helped me out with an issue I had with my gear that was entirely of my own doing. However, in your case, the first thing I would do is check that the Hall sensor and the little magnet that has to activate it are in proper orientation. Also, clean the sensor with a soft brush. If those strategies don’t help, you may need a new Hall sensor, which bill Carlin is able to provide.
pappas3278 OP
3 posts
 
Yep, contacted Bill via email today and he responded super quickly.  Falcon is on its way to him as we speak.

Funny you mention the magnet/sensor. I was dealing with that early yesterday morning before the Falcon quit on me.  I discovered the magnet was hitting the sensor ever so slightly.  Not sure how that came about but whatever.  Upon remounting the magnet to the underside of the platter, I discovered the magnet actually has a "working" side.  When I remounted it, it wouldn't register so I had to flip it around it started working normally again.  I was a little surprised by that. 

Thanks for the responses everyone.
lewm
12,651 posts
 
So far as I could tell when playing with it, the magnet is a simple disc type; the whole thing is the magnet.  So I would have expected that both sides are magnetic. Maybe when you remounted it the first time, the orientation between it and the Hall sensor was a hair off.  In flipping it over, you may have fixed that problem without realizing it.  Otherwise, I dunno.  Bill would know.  I gather he did not think that you or he needed to consider the Hall sensor as the source of the problem. C'est la vie.
pappas3278 OP
3 posts
 
C'est la vie indeed.  And yeah, I gathered that he might have understood the issue wasn't with the sensor/magnet.  In fact, the Roadrunner works all by itself without the need to be connected to the Falcon or Eagle.  It revealed just how off-speed my motor is.

How do folks adjust speed when not using this type of motor speed adjustment?  Belt tension?
lewm
12,651 posts
 
Some post on this website.
slaw's avatar
slaw
20,579 posts
 
What tt are you using?
fuzztone's avatar
fuzztone
5,513 posts
 
Magnets have poles.
pappas3278 OP
3 posts
 
Magnets have poles...*sound of forehead slapping*

I'm using a VPI HW-19 with a SAMA.  Not much, if any, room to adjust tension.
tomwh
150 posts
 
It could be as simple as the cable to the motor.  I had a cable issue, which I can't remember which one.  Bill sent me another.  Bill is a real standup guy who has helped the DIY guys like no one else in the industry.

Enjoy the ride
Tom
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