HX Stomp Freezing issue

[donecarlo]

I started looking at getting HX stomp about 2 months ago, mainly to be able to try different amp and effects without having the need to actually buy each and one of them. After many YouTube videos (ahem, John Nathan Cordy), I decided to pull the trigger.

 

For some reason, our local Yamaha/Line 6 retailer (Southeast Asia region) has not had any stocks of HX stomp for about a year now, so my only choice was to get one overseas. (I looked through some options in the used market, but not so much luck there) I sought different options, and I found that Sweetwater had a couple stocks of “Floor model” units,  — more or less open box and slightly used but supposedly in good condition, for about 50 bucks off the retail price (plus, it’s cosmic gray which I really liked)

 

I was trying to squeeze every dollar I can since I still have to pay for the forwarding service from the US to my country. 

 

After about 2.5 weeks. The unit came, complete with all of the paperwork, original usb cable and power supply. The unit is in great condition, even has the screen protector intact.

 

I plug it in, played with it for a while, but I noticed that it does not have any of the default presets. So I tried to do a “factory reset”.

 

After doing the factory reset, the screen got stuck on the boot logo screen. I also noticed that unit gets pretty warm. So I turn the unit off, try to wait a couple of seconds, restarted it, no luck. At this point I was starting to get worried that the unit is actually defective, but I was still trying to be optimistic. 

 

After about half an hour, I tried to turn it on again, and luckily, it worked! I was out of the woods — or so I thought. 

 

So I tried dialing in some tones, modifying presets, loading new presets, then after about half an hour of using the thing, it started to freeze — no sound will come out, the tap button LED still blinking, but 20 seconds later it will turn off and the UI will be completely unresponsive.

I tried multiple resets, multiple firmware versions, but all of them seem to give me the same result — the unit just crashes as soon I try to modify any parameter or setting.

 

*If I try to scroll through blocks fast enough like in this video — guaranteed the unit will crash.

 

So I contacted Line 6 support, explained the issue, and their only conclusion is that it is a hardware issue and that the unit must be repaired / replaced. So I then contacted Sweetwater, and after a couple emails, they agreed to replace the item. Unfortunately, since I live outside the US, I’ll have to shoulder the costs of shipping it back.

 

Another 3.5 weeks have passed, and today I received the replacement — a brand new, sealed unit. Hooray, I guess? 

 

I turn on the unit (default Firmware is 3.11.0), everything seemed okay and snappy — until I tried creating a new preset from scratch and adding and Amp block, the freaking thing crashed again, same with what I experienced with the first unit.

 

I just tried flashing the latest 3.70.0 firmware, and I still does get stuck on the boot logo screen, unless I let it rest for about 15 minutes. It will turn back on, but it will exhibit the exact same issue as before of crashing whenever I try to change parameters or presets.

 

One slightly different thing I noticed: it doesn’t get as hot as the previous unit, at least for now. 

 

I think I’m out of options right now, and seem to be stuck with a paperweight. I could still probably ship it back (again) and hope for a refund, but the hassle and cost of shipping an item back again sucks.

 

TL;DR Bought an open box HX stomp, hardware seems to be defective. Got a brand new replacement, encountered the exact same issue.

[silverhead]

On 12/12/2023 at 7:22 AM, donecarlo said:

.....

 

Another 3.5 weeks have passed, and today I received the replacement — a brand new, sealed unit. Hooray, I guess? 

....

 

I think I’m out of options right now, and seem to be stuck with a paperweight. ..

I empathize with your experience, but I don't think anyone here can help you. I would contact Sweetwater again, and if they don't replace it again I would contact Line 6 Support. A brand new sealed unit should be under warranty. I know there may be more shipping costs, but if you end up with a working unit....??

[cruisinon2]

These things happen in threes... try not be the first one through any open doors for a while. Let somebody else take the next hit...;)

 

All kidding aside, it is odd that you'd get two lemons back to back, but I suppose anything is possible. It's definitely out of the ordinary, though... the Stomp has been around for some time now, and I don't recall any widespread reports of brand new units failing.