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[breathe]

My repair tech here in Austin (whom I have mentioned in an earlier thread) is probably the most dysfunctional person I have ever known in my entire life.  I don't know how someone who started off his life the way he claims and has good technical knowledge of an important field of audio electronics could have become basically homeless.  I will spare you all the details of the extent I have helped him out but having to work with a guy who is physically like a walking corpse and all but incapable of taking care of himself is really trying on my soul.  I'm working with him because he seems to understand my MCI mixer and apparently no other repair tech in Austin does, but I would like to know what is reasonable to expect from this relationship, the closest relationship I have ever had with a repair tech?  I guess the only advantage of my relationship with him is that shortly after first working with him it became obvious to both of us that paying him an hourly rate was unrealistic so now I just buy him food and pay for his cell phone minutes and occasionally throw him some cash.  It's a really bizarre relationship.

Nicholas

[Larry Sheehan]

Is this the tech who decided that all the ICs in your MCI needed replacing?

[craig boychuk]

Sounds overly complicated.

Is it worth it to you?


-craig-

[breathe]

Does anyone know of a good repair tech in the Austin area who actually has his own car and Internet access?  

Nicholas

[Fletcher]

Not knowing the full situation, it would seem that if there was more work - and the man was charging a proper hourly rate for his services that he would have a car, and internet access, and money to pay his mobile phone bill, etc.

The "project studio" has put more than one great tech out of business - the man either needs to charge for his services or find a new line of work -- but like I said, I don't know the full story - so my comments are based on the surface information provided.

Peace.

[Silvertone]

Good techs get good money for a reason.  They are worth every penny.   Can't get a budget tech, beat him up on the price and time and expect a good job... it's just never gonna happen. It will cost you more in the long run.

[ryan streber]

See Nicholas - as a devout postmodernist, you should appreciate how the purchase of the MCI has advanced the cause of musical (or music-related) storytelling in ways that you would never have planned!  It's very rhizomatic, no?

[Tim Halligan]

breathe wrote on Sat, 20 November 2010 01:33

My repair tech here in Austin (whom I have mentioned in an earlier thread) is probably the most dysfunctional person I have ever known in my entire life.  I don't know how someone who started off his life the way he claims and has good technical knowledge of an important field of audio electronics could have become basically homeless.  I will spare you all the details of the extent I have helped him out but having to work with a guy who is physically like a walking corpse and all but incapable of taking care of himself...

That doesn't sound like a tech...


That sounds like a junkie.


Either get him help, or lose him fast.


Cheers,
Tim

[Wireline]

If you are willing to trust a basically homeless guy in a tech happy town like Austin to keep the tools of your trade up and running, then I'd be looking in the mirror before looking at the internet for an answer.  Great techs are all over Texas, but they are paid their worth.  

I don't trust a carpenter who has no shop or tools to fix my house, either, regardless of how good his work may eventually be.  Bite the bullet, spend the money on a professional, and get your gear taken care of properly, and in the meantime, quiz him on technical specs of said gear.  You can learn more an hour of interaction with a competent and experienced tech than you can from a hundred internet posts.

[breathe]

How do I need to rephrase this question?  How do I find a good tech who is familiar with the kind of equipment I need help with?  The MCI 416A shouldn't be too complicated to anyone with basic EE skills.

Nicholas

[Wireline]

Nic, do you have the schematics book for it?  If so, then any competent tech should be able to help you out.  Also, check the analog console forums for a lead to a good MCI tech in Austin, or someone who might know one.  You could go as far as to check with Randy Blevins in Nashville - he might have a name and number of a guy in your area he would recommend...if anyone knows MCI, its Randy, so I hear.

[breathe]

On a side note, though Noel Webster of Muscle Shoals lied through his teeth to me about the working condition of the board when he sold it to me, and even with all the money I'm putting into it, I don't know if I'll ever get the board to full functionality, I have to say that working on the restoration of the board with my tech has been a remarkably educational experience!  The different op-amp and cap choices and ("Stock, Nashville, or LA style") configurations has seen the channels of the board produce remarkably different sounds, all of which I think have musical applications.  With the BB OPA-134 chips the board sounded like a more exciting version of a Neotek Elite, with the 5534's the board sounds very "warm" and "musical" for rock music but I'd like to get a little more clarity.  Next week we're trying out the BB OPA-604 chips, and then hopefully the week after that the Sage Red and Blue discrete ICs will arrive, which are very expensive but supposedly sound amazing.  I can't afford to do the board entirely with Sage so I was thinking put the Sage chips on the mic and line inputs, then find an op-amp choice that will complete the channel modules without imposing too much of their own sonic character.

Nicholas

[Bubba#$%Kron]

this thread should be a ad for waves!!      Just curious, how much do jh416 cost used these days?

I hope it all works out for ya!!!!

[johnR]

What was wrong with the original op amps?

[Matt Allen]

Nicholas,

As I do know who you are talking about, it does sound like an interesting situation.
He's come across a great deal of hard luck probably due to his own problems and his lifestyle.
He has always been very nice and helpful with me on the phone.
I've paid him for information before, because his knowledge is worth something.
I think it is worth helping him out and see if he can get his life back on track.

My question on the MCI and its issues.
Did it get hooked up correctly upon initial install and was the board tested prior to doing all these upgrades?
Did the voltages get tested before all the modules were plugged in?
Did the power supplies get tested before they were hooked to the console?

The MCI is a fun and decently easy console to work on.