Community : All Content - Spider I / II / III

black box syndrome

support@line6.com — Fri, 12 Apr 2013 20:52:03 GMT

Anyone interested in talking abou$the black box syndrome which plagues line 6 amplifiers? Because line 6 surely doesn't seem very eager to talk about this.Everyone who post questions pertaining to this get the same generic responce "take it to an authorized repair facillity", but they don't tell you it will cost you to have an authorized shop just to take a look at it, whether or not you have it repaired. Most of the representitives who answer these posts say that it could mean any of a number of failures in the amp, but a couple have slipped up and said that the black boxes are a code to the failure. I would tend to beleive that the black boxes are a code to exactly what the problem is. Let tell you why I don't think things are adding up with this issue. My amp will not come up, all it has is the 8 black boxes in the display. So I took it to an "authorized repair facillity" they charged me $40 just to diagnose it. They said that the mainboard was blown and they wanted close to $200 to repair it. So I opted not to have them repair it, instead I tracked down a mainboard online and replaced it myself, the amp still won't come on and still has the 8 black boxes in the display. I think there was a defect built into these amps and line 6 is fully aware of this and there should have been a recall on these amps and had them serviced, instead they would rather we pay to have them repaired at our cost. Looking forward to seeing how many responde to this post, and get your input.

I would like to get a head count of anyone experiencing "The Black Box Syndrome" past or present

support@line6.com — Sun, 14 Apr 2013 01:43:50 GMT

If you own a Line 6 amp and have experienced "The Black Box Syndrome" please reply and tell your story. State exactly when and how it started, what you did to try and fix it. If what you did worked. If you contacted Line 6. Exactly what you were told by Line 6. Exactly what did Line 6 do to get your amp repaired. Please responde with anything concerning your experience with "The Black Box Syndrome".

My story is my amp ( Line 6 Spider III 75 Watt ) was working perfectly. Then one day I turned it on and there was nothing. The only thing that lit up was the lcd display and all it showed was 8 black boxes. The first thing I did was to take it to the place I purchased it which is an authoorized service center. They contacted me 3 weeks later saying that my mainboard ( processor ) was out. They quoted me a repair price of close to $200.00. At that time I opted not to have them repair it. After I got the amp back I started the long search for a new mainboard. It was about that time I started seeing just how many other customers had this same problem with their Line 6 amps. I also discovered just how hard it is just to get parts for any Line 6 amp, but finally I found one and ordered it. I changed the mainboard myself which is just the matter of 5 small screws and 2 cables which snap off and on and the guitar input with one plastic nut holding it in place. Not a major undertaking. I changed the mainboard and still only my lcd display lights up with 8 black boxes. So apparently my mainboard is not the problem. But it cost me $40.00 at the authorized service center for them to diagnose the problem and it's not even the problem. I wish that Line 6 would answer me as to why my amp had to be brought to an authorized service center when apparently at least this one wasn't compitent enough to properly troubleshoot the problem. Since then I have been trying to discuss this problem with my amp ( The Black Box Syndrome ) and they completly run away from the subject and hurry to mark my ticket as closed after they give the same answer " take it to an authorized service center ", they mark the ticket as closed before we have any discussion on me having brought this amp to an " authorized service center ", and them failing to diagnose the problem. My amp is out of warranty and as soon as Line 6 finds this out they abruptly stop talking to me. I don't see any reason whether the amp is in or out of warranty why I cannot be told what exactly the problem is. I bought this amp, I own it, It's my property, I have all the right in the world to know anything what so ever I want to know about it. They can run around the bush with everything else, but that's the one thing they cannot run away from, that any information we want about the product we purchased should be provided to us. One last thing is that yes I tried all the factory resets.

Well thats my "Black Box Syndrome" story. Please share yours. Cause I'm sure your just as curious as I am of how many others have experienced this and what was their experience in dealing with Line 6. Also I am curious to see just how closely all the stories are related to each other.

Thank you all for reading this and I'll be looking for all your replies.

my spider iii pooped on my lcd screen left 8 black turds 120 watt 2x10"

support@line6.com — Thu, 31 Jan 2013 00:53:52 GMT

yep the oh so familiar black box bars of death. as you all know the amp is practically junk at that point. called a authorized service center they want 180 plus my hour ride there my hour ride back no amp for who knows how long rent amps so i can play live then who knows what other surprise cost may be in there and finally what i paid for the amp. so whats that come out to at least a brand new spider iv. so i been googling like a nut and this is a damn common problem. WTH line 6 this problem wasnt advertised in any of your product fliers or online ads or store ads, obviously only because nobody would buy them. yea my amp is outta warranty yada yada the thing is mint though i never abused it. how does an amp just break from using it. its built to be plugged in and played isnt? i call you guys and you quick and easy you guys say call a service a center. like you dont want to bother with me. the reason this upsets me is because this amp sounds great and for the price geez its a win win. the problem is millions left the factory with this condition and you guys say its the end users responsibility. really guys i was set on being faithful and strictly use your product. ive used peavey marshall mesa fender behringer egnater orange diamond. i can keep goin and i know i know theres some top dollar amps in there how can i compare i cant really they all sound awesome in there own way but i practically get all those in one unit. this seriously is disturbing you guys arent backing us spider iii owners. we bought your product because it was just what we wanted not because it was only available. plus all of us are requesting how to repair where to repair and so on, clearly that says we want to keep on using your amp and no one elses. i expected more since your such a huge company. after all you guys stated the spider 210 is the most sold amp around the world that says your product is awesome but the secret us people dont know you dont seem to want to back it up or us.

Spider III factory reset, Presets, and F.A.Q.

support@line6.com — Tue, 07 Nov 2006 10:47:45 GMT

Note: The Spider III was released in 2006 and discontinued in 2010. The Spider III is now listed as a Legacy Product.

Q: What are the presets on my Spider III amplifier?

A: The user presets and artist/song presets for the Spider III are listed as attachments at the bottom of this document. The Spider III user presets are the 36 user-programmable presets. The artist/song presets location cannot be saved, but you can modify and/or store these setting in the 36 user-programmable presets. If you would like to return your unit to the original presets, please perform a factory reset.

Q: How are the Artist preset banks categorization and alphabetized?

A:When looking at the list of the banks in the unit, the banks seem to be broken into four different sections:

1. Albert Lee - Julien K

2. Ash - Volto

3. The Accident Experiment - Thursday

4. Songs 50's - Misc. Fun

Each of the first 3 sections (artist banks) is alphabetized. Is there a reason all the artist presets overall aren't alphabetized?

The artist banks are categorized by Clean, Dirty and Heavy:

1. Albert Lee - Julien K: Cleaner patches

2. Ash - Volto: Midgainy patches

3. The Accident Experiment - Thursday: Heavily overdriven patches

Q: How do I perform a factory reset on my Spider III?

Factory Reset Procedures

Q: How do I use the compare mode (to find where the knobs were originally set)?

A: Press and hold the Tap button, then turn the Amp Models knob. This activates Spider III's "Compare mode". Now turn any knob other than Amp Model and Master Volume, and the channel lights

will tell you whether you need to turn that knob up (Channel A lights) or down (Channel D lights) to match the stored setting. The Channel B & C lights will be lit at the same time once the knob position matches the stored setting exactly.

Q: How do I connect the Spider III HD 150 to the Spider Cabinet?

A: The Spider III HD 150 is designed to see a load on *both * speaker outputs by connecting the left and the right inputs to the Spider cabinet with speaker cables. Running the Spider III HD 150 into a 4 ohm load may result in damage to the amplifier. Please see the following link for more information:

Cabinet Connection and Ohm F.A.Q

Q: Can I use two Spider III cabinets with the Spider III HD 150?

A:The Spider III HD 150 was designed to power a single Spider III Stereo Cabinet with a stereo 8 ohm load. Using two Spider III cabs would require a modification to each cab so that they are each rewired to produce a 8 ohm mono load. This modification would preferably be done by an authorized Line 6 service center, which can be located from the Service Center link on the Support page.

Q: How do I connect external speakers to my Spider III 150 amplifier?

A: You will need to disconnect the internal speakers (covering the dry-solder clips with electrical tape) and connect both external speaker outputs to an 8 ohm (or higher) load. Do not connect just one side, as this may cause a power amp failure. Powering the internal speakers along with a external speakers may cause a power amp failure and is not supported.

Q: What type of speaker is used on the Spider III combo series?

Spider III 15: Custom 15 (4 ohm)

Spider III 30: Celestion G12E50 (4 ohm)

Spider III 75/150: Celestion G12P80 (8 ohm)

Spider III 120:(2) Celestion G10P80 (8 ohm)

stomp boxes

support@line6.com — Sat, 26 Jan 2013 15:36:08 GMT

I am trying to run two amps through sterio stomp boxes. is it possible to run stomp boxes to my spider III 150 while using just clean or crunch channels and no onboard effects? maybe through my fvb shortboard external jack? Lewis

4-Cable Method with Spider II

support@line6.com — Sat, 05 Jan 2013 08:32:52 GMT

1- Can we use 4-Cable Method between line 6 Spider II that dont have return and sendand Gt6 boss?

2- suppressor or stomp box or decimal or gate noise (and what if it has return and send) works with line 6 spider II that dont have return and send ?

Spider III 30 Watt loud noise when guitar cable is plugged in.

support@line6.com — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 19:41:03 GMT

When I plug in the amp, there is nothing unusual. But when the guitar cable is plugged in, a loud buzzing sound emits. When the cord is unplugged from the guitar, the buzzing noise continues whether the cord is touching skin, clothing, etc. It is not the normal buzz of an amp, it is much louder. I've tried several cables but the problem persist, I've reset the amp to the factory settings but this didn't work either.Could you help me please.

Thanks

Jaime R.

Line 6 Spider III 75 watt. problem might be fixed!

support@line6.com — Fri, 26 Oct 2012 21:58:15 GMT

This is a problem that has been an issue for quite some time and I have seen a lot of blogs about it but this was a discovery made by my bass player in my band.

I have almost given up on this amp although I love it, I can never depend on it. Now, if this does the trick, I might start using it again on stage.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OT5u6Igo68A&feature=g-all-u

Frank

clicking and cutting out

support@line6.com — Sun, 30 May 2010 13:07:42 GMT

I have a spider 111 120watt amp that has started to cut out some times when you turn a dial then it starts to make clicking noises and i have to turn it off to get it going again but sometimes it does not work for a while

Spider III 150w switchs off and Fbv Express MKII bug

support@line6.com — Fri, 12 Oct 2012 02:35:49 GMT

Hello,

Two kind of problem happened sometime alone, sometime together. First, one of the channel of my Fbv Express MKII get stuck whatever I do with my angry foot. Second my amp switchs off by his own after one hour of use whereas I need him for another hour. I have to switch physically the button from I to O and then turn on to bring back the fire.

It's happened a few time and I though I can pass over but recently my two problems seemed to be additionned and the reboot plus the foot controler problem reseted my preset.

should I worry seriously about this ? bring it on store for an estimate ? or may I make something else ?

Thanks to read me, forgive my french syntax