stories Posted January 6, 2009 Share Posted January 6, 2009 Hi, I'm looking to find a replacement data wheel for a BSS FDS-388 OmniDrive ether new unused or as a used spare, so long as it works 100% ok (current one will only go up smoothly and is having going down problems, usually jumping the value up unless it's got some pressure on it). Having contacted BSS, who pointed me at the UK service supplier, who've told me they've the part @ £6.40 +vat in stock, but unless I send the unit over to them to do the repair work, they will not sell directly to me.. oh and there busy and can't give any time frame on the work. They have given me details of a couple of companies that will sell direct but I find it ludicrous that a company 20min away wont deal directly with me and would rather ship the part to a company in London, for me to then buy and have shipped pretty much all the way back and incurring all the costs and % increases... Seem absolutely stupid and a great way to drive a customer away from products they deal with… So if anyone can help me out with a replacement or knows where these can be sourced from, they must be an off the self part at heart, would likly stock, CPC, RS etc any leads? Cheers Matt Moderation: Moved to Sound for a better chance of a useful response. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mixermend Posted January 6, 2009 Share Posted January 6, 2009 It is possible that you can get a suitable rotary encoder from RS or Farnell - but the BSS also has a push switch (for cursor movement). There are many different sizes and PCB mounting arrangements however - so it is always better to get the correct part from the Manufacturer - as you will be certain that it will fit. Many Manufacturers seem to not wish to deal directly with ther Customers (all of whom are Professionals, with many well qualified to carry out their own repairs) - insisting that they contact a Service Centre. This results in double handling - often two carriage charges and substantial delay. The simplest way is for the Manufacturer to simply pop the part in an envelope and post it to the Customer - free of charge - as often small spare parts are of very small cost. Good Customer service? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stories Posted January 6, 2009 Author Share Posted January 6, 2009 It is possible that you can get a suitable rotary encoder from RS or Farnell - but the BSS also has a push switch (for cursor movement). There are many different sizes and PCB mounting arrangements however - so it is always better to get the correct part from the Manufacturer - as you will be certain that it will fit. Many Manufacturers seem to not wish to deal directly with ther Customers (all of whom are Professionals, with many well qualified to carry out their own repairs) - insisting that they contact a Service Centre. This results in double handling - often two carriage charges and substantial delay. The simplest way is for the Manufacturer to simply pop the part in an envelope and post it to the Customer - free of charge - as often small spare parts are of very small cost. Good Customer service? It's mad isn't it.. and certainly not good customer service imo (especially at the price BSS charge for things..). It's more the principle of it that annoys me than the extra cost (~£7 direct for the part and I'm local enough to swing by to pick up, or £11 to get it posted from the 3rd party...), that’s relatively small in this case, but represents nearly a 50% increase in cost to me. The icing on the cake is that thet are quite happy to take my money if I have them fit the part @ £45+vat per hour, quoting 1.5 hour for the work (a bit long imo.. and I had offered to strip it down to the pcb...). The saddest thing is when I last contacted Behringer with a support request they sent me the part I was after free of charge, without any prompting.. I would guess it's something to do with Harman in the mix... just makes you wonder what happens when something like an x-over needs some emergency treatment.. Apology’s to the mod's my post started as a wanted request but I got a bit carried away sharing my experience.... Cheers Matt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KevinE Posted January 6, 2009 Share Posted January 6, 2009 I would guess it's something to do with Harman in the mix I agree with that one wholeheartedly. So think about about your next purchase, people! It's almost certainly an ALPS encoder (or Taiwan Alpha copy), RS and Farnell do them in various physical forms with push switches, the only crux is how many pulses per detent and how many detents per revolution. If you can't tell (you can break open the old one and count the stripes) then order a small selection and try them..they're only a few quid. I do know that the ones for the Soundcraft mixers have a lower number of pulses per detent and so won't work on their effects modules..but I cant speak for sister company BSS. here Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wrighty Posted January 9, 2009 Share Posted January 9, 2009 Yeah, I haven't fully worked Harman out. I had Crown spares off them not long after they took over the distribution from Fuzion, without any problems and I haven't got an account with them. I phoned up about a year later to get some more spares for other Crown amps and they refused to give me prices or supply the parts directly. They gave me the number of a bunch called Electronic Music Services in Southend-on-Sea who were really helpful and got the parts to me as quickly as possible (bearing in mind Harman's slowness to process spares orders). A few months later, I needed some replacement pots and faders for a Soundcraft LX7 desk so was expecting the same hassle as I'd had getting the second lot of Crown bits. It turned out to be no problem at all, barring their order handling charge (or minimum order - can't remember which) and I got what I needed. Maybe they've gone back the other way now it's Sound Technology or maybe Soundcraft are the exception to the rule. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eytan Posted February 22, 2009 Share Posted February 22, 2009 Having contacted BSS, who pointed me at the UK service supplier, Matt Moderation: Moved to Sound for a better chance of a useful response. Hi Matt, Can I have the details of the UK service supplier? I need a FDS 388 dsiplay and the plastic display cover. 1) Maybe they will be willing to sell these parts to me as I am not located in the UK and it would be too costly to send to them for repair.2) They might direct me to someone who can sell me these parts? Does someone on this forum have access to a 388 display unit and a plastic display cover? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.