hdoran Posted December 31, 2018 Share Posted December 31, 2018 The HD POD 500x has a technical design flaw in that the DC in power cable protrudes externally from the board. As such, it is prone to being stepped on and broken. This happened to me about a year ago and I sent it in to repair at Line 6. It was promptly repaired and returned. However, this happened again two nights ago during a gig and I need to send it back in to repair yet again. My wish list is for Line 6 to construct a way to shield this from happening, but in the meantime, has anyone else experienced this issue and can anyone recommend a more robust way to protect the DC power cable from being stepped on? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cruisinon2 Posted December 31, 2018 Share Posted December 31, 2018 You could get smaller feet...;) You could house the entire unit on a larger pedalboard/case/etc, and use a power strip so that the the 500X's power cable is kept within the confines of the larger board... other than that, I got nothing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pianoguyy Posted December 31, 2018 Share Posted December 31, 2018 I can't answer the question because I don't accept the premise. The unit isn't design flawed, the issue is user error. I have heard horror stories from people who have had gear puked on. Yet, with 30+ years of being a full time performer, I have never had anyone puke on me during a show. But others will buy nice gear that they don't take out of the house because they fear that very situation and would rather perform live performances with cheap gear. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phil_m Posted December 31, 2018 Share Posted December 31, 2018 Get a long extension cord and keep the wall wart close to the HD500X... I mean, any power supply is liable to get broken when being stepped on. Or are you saying that the barrel end of the power supply was ripped out of the back of the HD500X? A right angle adapter like this may help: https://www.amazon.com/BiXPower-2-5mm-Dongle-Connector-Converter/dp/B01B8I4LFW Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hdoran Posted December 31, 2018 Author Share Posted December 31, 2018 33 minutes ago, cruisinon2 said: You could get smaller feet...;) You could house the entire unit on a larger pedalboard/case/etc, and use a power strip so that the the 500X's power cable is kept within the confines of the larger board... other than that, I got nothing. Ha! I'll try the smaller feet idea. And your idea would definitely work. I could put it onto a pedal train and slip the DC in through the bottom and that would work. I just really like the light load of the single unit now and putting it onto a larger board just heavies the load a bit. But, as you suggest it would work Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hdoran Posted December 31, 2018 Author Share Posted December 31, 2018 19 minutes ago, phil_m said: Get a long extension cord and keep the wall wart close to the HD500X... I mean, any power supply is liable to get broken when being stepped on. Or are you saying that the barrel end of the power supply was ripped out of the back of the HD500X? A right angle adapter like this may help: https://www.amazon.com/BiXPower-2-5mm-Dongle-Connector-Converter/dp/B01B8I4LFW Yeah that might be what I need. The current design of the stock supply protrudes outward. So, a sound tech walked on it the other day and broke it during sound check. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hdoran Posted December 31, 2018 Author Share Posted December 31, 2018 24 minutes ago, pianoguyy said: I can't answer the question because I don't accept the premise. The unit isn't design flawed, the issue is user error. I have heard horror stories from people who have had gear puked on. Yet, with 30+ years of being a full time performer, I have never had anyone puke on me during a show. But others will buy nice gear that they don't take out of the house because they fear that very situation and would rather perform live performances with cheap gear. Every internet forum has that one guy who has a huge resume and knows everything. Thanks for your reply and letting us know that guy is you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pianoguyy Posted December 31, 2018 Share Posted December 31, 2018 I am definitely that guy. We already know that what you are doing is not working. You can either accept the help or continue on your path. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
codamedia Posted December 31, 2018 Share Posted December 31, 2018 I run an extension to my gear at the front of the stage... Since nobody should ever be walking, standing, jumping, stripping or dancing where all all the connections are so this this never an issue for me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hdoran Posted December 31, 2018 Author Share Posted December 31, 2018 9 minutes ago, codamedia said: I run an extension to my gear at the front of the stage... Since nobody should ever be walking, standing, jumping, stripping or dancing where all all the connections are so this this never an issue for me. LOL, stripping! I wish it were true, but in my world, we play some rooms where the band is on the floor in front of 200+ people and not technically on a stage. So, the first time this happened it was from a person who was dancing near the board. But, last night it was a sound tech walking on stage laying down cables for the show. It was all an accident. But, the way the barrel protrudes externally from the POD DC input makes it more likely for this type of stuff to happen. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
codamedia Posted December 31, 2018 Share Posted December 31, 2018 16 minutes ago, hdoran said: It was all an accident. But, the way the barrel protrudes externally from the POD DC input makes it more likely for this type of stuff to happen. I look at it this way... the power plug sticks out a lot less than most of the connectors.... they are all at risk around clumsy people. You could build yourself an artificial barrier if you find yourself in these bad situations on a regular basis. If you extend the visual of the unit another foot people won't generally invade that space. EG: wrap a 6" - 8" empty box and place it in front of the connection area.... people will not come beyond the box, keeping your HD connections safe. I do something similar with towels on some stages that people insist are drink tables. They don't put their drinks on the towels (which are a rounded roll) they put them in front.... and if one spills, I have a towel soaking it up :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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