Defective Ethernet cable makes Helix Control unusable and causes erroneous firmware update prompt in Helix Rack

[YetAnotherUser]

I didn't see any relevant search results for the issue I just ran into, so I'm going to use this post to document what I experienced in case this happens to somebody else.  The fix is to simply replace the defective cable, but the symptoms make it look like the Helix Control unit itself is defective.

 

I ran into this issue for the first time several months ago.  I had been using my Helix Rack and Control without any issues for a long time.  However, when I powered them up like normal the Control unit didn't start correctly and the Rack claimed that the firmware needed to be updated.  This was with the 2.21 firmware.  I hadn't recently done any firmware updates, so I was quite surprised to see this prompt.

 

Pressing the button to start the firmware update didn't do anything, or so I thought.  None of the other buttons on the Rack unit did anything either, so I was stuck on the initial update notification.  If I waited long enough, or power cycled the Control unit, then the Rack moved to the "Starting Update" screen and continued to be unresponsive.  The Helix worked normally as long as it was power cycled with the Control unit disconnected.

 

While the "Starting Update" screen was visible and the Control was plugged in the Control unit appeared to be stuck in a reboot cycle.  The display backlight would change brightness and the displays would appear to turn on briefly.  This would repeat indefinitely.  During my own troubleshooting I must have jiggled the Ethernet cable in just the right way because after a while the firmware update completed successfully and I was able to use the Control unit again.

 

Fast forward to today, when I turned on the Helix and ran into the same Control firmware update prompt.  I hadn't updated the Helix to 2.30 yet, so I followed the instructions to the letter and tried to update the Control unit (since this time the update was actually needed).  There was no improvement, I had the same symptoms as what I described above.

 

This time, I had the presence of mind to swap out the Ethernet cable for a different one.  When I powered up the Control unit, it immediately turned on and started displaying preset banks and foot switches like it always had.  This is important, because before it didn't display anything.  The firmware update prompt appeared again, I confirmed that I wanted to perform the update, and the update worked flawlessly.

 

In short, a defective Ethernet cable caused a Helix Control unit to become stuck in a reboot loop while at the same time caused the Helix Rack to erroneously attempt to reprogram the firmware on said Control unit.

 

 

[VirtualGuitars]

As an IT professional in the networking space, it's amazing what I've seen happen with defective CAT5e cables.  Thanks for sharing this.

[PeterHamm]

Good stuff to know!