I’m having problems starting a Qutest I just bought. I believe it’s ex-dem. Before escalating to the dealer who is 400 miles away, I thought I’d see if anyone had insights to help get it going.
During the first startup sequence I inadvertently pressed the Input button before it was completed. The button depressed with a click, but this seemed to send the unit into a spasm. The Filter and Input buttons started blinking white and yellow respectively, and could not be depressed with a click. They seem stuck in their sockets.
I powered down and restarted it. The Filter and Input buttons were solid red for a few seconds, then returned to blinking white and yellow. They could still not be depressed. I repeated this process several times. Same result each time.
Then I unplugged the RCA interconnect and USB input, and plugged the Qutest bare into a different wall socket in another room. This time one of the buttons was able to be depressed during startup. Both buttons lit up green, then went into an indefinite state of blinking white.
It now turns on in that same sequence - solid green followed by blinking white regardless of which outlet it is plugged into, or whether the USB input cable is inserted.
I don’t own a Qutest but have had two very long loans of it when my TT2 has been in for repairs so I’m more familiar with it than I ever imagined I would be. My thoughts are as follows.
pressing Input or Filter alone during the bootup sequence has no impact. The only things which impact are the correct pressing of Input and Filter together to set the voltage, or, a power interruption to the boot up sequence.
the issue of the coloured balls not engaging when you press them is likely entirely different and unrelated. It’s usually nothing more profound than some speck of dirt in there. You can try rotating for a while to see what comes out or take a punt on some compressed air although, personally, I wouldn’t.
There are no reported error messages tied to the light beyond the fact that any flashing suggests the audio is fine but bootup had a power interruption. The colour of the flashing lights might tell Chord something but I’ve not met a dealer who knows and the consensus is that the colour of the flashes is random. That’s either a power interruption happening internally each time you boot, in which case it’s going back to Chord via your dealer, or, and I think this is the far more likely option, it’s a function of the cheap power supply which comes with going bad.
FWIW, I nearly sent my TT2 back to Chord because I thought the ball had broken. Being partially-sighted really didn’t help on this one but it turned out to be a ludicrously fine and small piece of cellophane which had attached itself, spun inside and cast a shadow upwards making it look like the ball had broken shards.
Five minutes of patient and careful rolling later the issue was solved.
My TT2 has gone bonkers a few times. The very first occasion it threw out an error message I’d never heard of, wasn’t in the manual etc. Rang the dealer and they literally said they’d take a punt and first put a £20 replacement of the wall wart in the post for me next day and be willing to bet it was that. It certainly was.
So, if I were you, I’d not switch rooms or pull out cables. I’d firstly get it on a table in a quiet room and start seeing if there’s any movement in those balls which might enable crap removal. Listen for clicks, crackles etc. when you press and/or if you can get any rotation. There’s not a lot of downward movement in them anyway so don’t be surprised if it turns out you have engaged both.
Then I’d obtain an equivalent power supply and try that. Odds on that will fix your issue. If not then you’ve done the things a dealer and Chord would ask you to do before returning and so away it goes.
That’s correct but there is sometimes enough give to be able to get bits of dirt out and, if they do roll, it can also be indicative of them not being set properly and thus the problem described above of them sometimes clicking down when pressed and sometimes not.
The buttons do get stuck with the tiniest bit of grit so if you’re able you can turn it over and undo all the Allen bolts and then flip it right way up. Carefully lift off the top and the buttons which are acyrlic rods will drop out. Clean them and the holes in the lid.and the little pads on the board . Do not use and solvent or liquid to try and clean or you will lift the tiny plastic squares that hold the buttons in place.
It’s easy job really which I’ve done on most of the used qutest that I’ve owned .
Ha no. I did order an iFi wall wort to have on hand just in case I needed to test that possibility but ended up sending it back. The OEM one is working just fine.
Yes! Opening it and dislodging the buttons fixed it immediately. Now working perfectly. I think what was happening was since the buttons were stuck in a depressed position it was causing the unit to enter some sort of “change settings” mode when it began powering on.
but it’s a cracking little DAC.