HELP: Are My MBox 2 Input's Shorted?

  • Thread starter MetronomeAUDiLE
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MetronomeAUDiLE

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Hello, FutureProducers. I had used 48v of phantom power on a small condenser mic of mines and had moved the wire around a bit, shortly afterwards my levels shot up to about 10.48dB in Ableton Live and now when I record, I get this negative wavelength kinda looking thing. I had Google'd my problem and a few people said that basically what happened was that the inputs got shorted. If this is the case, I am screwed. So with this I ask a few questions:

- Anyone out there know of anything I could possibly do to fix this? (It happened to both channels, so I can't just switch over.)
- Can it be repaired? (I cannot do it myself.)
- If my audio interface can't record anymore, do you know of any cheap alternatives. Anything under 80 bucks I can get that'll do the job. (It needs to have phantom power.)

Please and thank you, I need a response ASAP.
 
microphone?

pics of the screenshots of the waveforms?

pics of your microphone cables?
 
The microphone cables are some regular XLR cables, probably faulty but there would be no way of showing that in a photo. I couldn't get you one either even if I wanted to.

The microphone is a ICM 417:
icm417_big.jpg

The wave forms, in Audacity look like this recording in MONO (mind you absolutely nothing is plugged in, and phantom power is off):
Screenshot_1.png
(When recording, the L side is red and is on the exact dB level.)
 
so the audacity pic shows that you have a dc offset - which is not quite the same thing as a shorted mic

as for the cables - no webcam?

can you get another mic cable (borrow one maybe)? and check with that

Last question - do you turn the phantom power on after you have connected the mic or before? (this could explain a dead mic).....
 
I'm pretty sure I don't have a dead mic, the mic probably works fine. I'm talking about the mic input's for my MBox 2. Because even with nothing plugged in they still come up as having this invisible level that has no sound. This is what the input looks like in Ableton Live:

Screenshot_2.png

I could try another XLR, but the problem is that even with nothing plugged in, the input is showing some crazy steady level here. It makes no noise, but it does make a bit of crackle every now and then at random occasions. When I tried a different cable on my second channel before when it was like this, I could hear the audio but the level stayed like this and would never jump up unless the input from the mic went higher then where it is now. But this always stays in the background. I might not even buy an audio interface again just because of this happening over something as delicate as me moving the mic wire. I'm probably going to resort to a USB mic if this can't be fixed.
 
suggest that you

1) turn of phantom power and recheck your inputs

2) get another cable and check your mic with another interface/preamp

before making any hasty decisions on spending even more money
 
Phantom power has been off the entire time, everything unplugged and the offset is still there. I read somewhere that I can short the input's out with a paper clip and it'll reset back to normal? Is this true?

DC offset with Mbox2

I don't have another interface or preamp. This is my only interface and both channels are like this.
 
I would be cautious doing that

do you know anyone else who uses audio gear or does computer music work near where you live?
 
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