Pip said:
Those are tricky consoles.
They are certainly complex, but with time & experience they are no worse to work on or understand than any other high-end console (e.g. Calrec, SSL, Focusrite).
Some clarifications:
Pip said:
I believe those are the ones that had a factory recall due to the capacitors in certain sections actually blowing up.
Incorrect.
There were no "blow-up" issues. The problems were caps leaking (yes, smoke was occasionally released, typically from the Minifader assembly, but no blow-ups). Caps drying out was (and still is) a problem.
Concentrating on the USA, there was a re-cap project in the 1990s. A colleague (Neil McCombie of ScotchMcNeil Audio) was a key player in the project when he worked at Neve. As told to me by Neil, Neve in the USA had a set of loan modules that moved from one studio to another. The studio's modues went back to the USA based Neve workshop for re-cap & test, after which they were returned to the original studio, and the loan modules moved on to the next studio. Neil worked on the project for a couple of years.
Pip said:
Also if memory serves me right the metering on those desks is actually fed from the patch panels that come with the console not from in the desk, that's why they always came with patch bays as part of the install.
V-Series (V3, VR, VX, Legend, etc.) console channel meters are fed via 64-way ribbon cables from the
channel backplanes. This applies to both the level bargraphs and dynamics LED (or dynamics bargraph, depending on the console version). Meter (bargraph) control is from a dedicated PCB in the centre section.
Main output & Aux output meters are all wired internally to the console centre section.
The patchbay can be either internally mounted in the console, or installed remotely in a 19" rack. All cabling connecting the console to the patch is on 56-pin EDAC connectors: Channel buckets have connectors under them, the centre section has connectors on a rear-of-console panel and on the back of the centre section card rack. Any V-Series patchbay can be
totally disconnected from the console, and the patchbay removed as a complete assembly (albeit a very awkward one to move as it comprises of the patch strips, user connector panel and patch-to-console cables). Sufficient detail is provided in the service manual for a user to make their own patchbay; indeed some studios have done this themselves.
Whilst some centre section meters pick-up their drive signals from lines that
connect to the patchbay, there are
no dedicated patch-to-meter lines: as previously noted, all meter wiring is internal to the console frame.
Pip said:
There are still AMS/NEVE factory trained techs out there that service these desks for major overhaul issues.
Name and business noted above. Neil can easily be tracked-down with a google search
.
.
Regarding the OP's original problem, study the centre section / master section signal flow diagram, concentrating on the main mix paths. The fault as described points to a mechanical issue, not a cap or silicon: scratching being cleard by a blast of high-level suggests poor connection. Look at switches, pots, connectors, relays, ribbon cable connectors, card-seating. Failing silicon or caps do not "come right" when blasted with level, they typically get worse.
