stuck / hanging notes (and other issues). . . even with latest OS

    So, is this just a common Virus problem, or what?


    A month ago I bought a used Virus TI, in addition to other problems it seemed to frequently get stuck or hanging notes while playing or editing. Since it had other buggy glitches as well (and looked a bit banged up) I returned it to the previous owner for a full refund.


    It took me a couple weeks to find another one, this time I wasn't taking any chances, I went with the latest TI2 model, barely used and in near-mint condition, even came with a transferable warranty (think I have 3 or 4 months left). When the synth arrived it looked immaculate, not a scratch on it, not a loose knob, nothing. However, I wasn't tweaking it long before I got my first stuck note. Then, I made a patch and as I was opening and closing the filter cutoff repeatedly at different rates to hear the sweep, the filter just stopped responding to knob turns, it was stuck halfway opened, no matter where I turned either filter knob. Oddly, if I released and re-triggered the keys/notes it would start working again.


    Of course, I went with my first instinct and downloaded and installed the latest OS, thinking this would fix the glitches.


    To my disappointment, this did not rectify the issue. It was only a couple hours after the update that I got my first stuck note. Then I re-opened the previous patch and started tweaking the filter cutoff again, within a couple minutes it failed. Again.


    Then yesterday my band was rehearsing our set, and I got a new problem out of the Virus. In my rig I use the TI2 as the main board, which means I use MIDI out to control a Moog slim phatty and a Nord electro rack. So, I'm playing the electro's organ with the TI2's keyboard and I get a stuck note on the organ. I've owned the unit for three years and used it with 5 different controllers and NEVER had a stuck note. (and yes, that's right. Not even using USB or computer and still having problems).


    Is this just the world of Virus? Are they all this buggy and glitchy and unreliable? How does anyone tour with these? I have a big gig coming up in March and I'm terrified to use this unpredictable machine. Which is really a shame because I'm loving the sounds I get out of it, but fuck me, it's not worth it if the damn thing can't perform properly.


    I used a Nord Lead 2x as the main board in my rig for four years, I never got one single stuck/hanging note, not one. Never once did the filter decide to stop working. Thank God, I haven't sold my Nord yet. Until I get this Virus dis-ease sorted out, I'll have to keep it around for a reliable back up.


    I've owned many late model synths, from Korgs and Rolands, to Nords, Moogs, and Dave Smiths, and I've never experienced so many problems with one synth. I've had major problems with 2 Virus's in less than 2 months.


    Please help me. Any advice, knowledge, information, etc, you want to share will be greatly appreciated.


    Thanks.

    Hi,


    I've just returned from the gig where my Virus was misbehaving in a very similar way (it happes only at gigs, never in studio of course :)... There are others who experience the same problems as you, but as far as I know, to this day we haven't been able to reliably reproduce this kind of bugs. I will try sweeping the filter rapidly, but is there anything else which you think can cause this behavior?

    What sort of midi setup do you have with the Virus?


    After many hours of troubleshooting today, I MAY have figured out the source of the problem, but since the glitches are sporadic–who knows. haha.


    I had a rather complicated MIDI chain involving two different midi-solution devices, on 2in-1out box and one 1in-4thru. MIDI out went from the Virus and the Electribe ESX to the first box, one out went into the second box, and four throughs came out, three to other rack mounted synths, and one back into the Virus. All of that so that I could both sequence the rack modules with the ESX, and also play them with the Virus keyboard.


    If I take all the MIDI out, the glitches don't seem to occur. So, the problem have more to do with the Virus not interacting well with the MIDI boxes. BUT, if any of you are having this problem without any MIDI hooked up, then I haven't found a solution at all. haha.

    "...If I take all the MIDI out, the glitches don't seem to occur. So, the problem have more to do with the Virus not interacting well with the MIDI boxes. BUT, if any of you are having this problem without any MIDI hooked up, then I haven't found a solution at all. haha..."


    Could it be that your other Midi receiving devices cannot handle note off data sent from the virus correctly? try connecting virus midi out directly to midi in of another keyboard and see if the problem occurs then?...


    I have had hanging notes in the studio, so it may be a typical Virus problem, but it is rare it happens, i blame the USB connection for it as that is all that is connected at the time. check out the thread recently on "ghost notes" sounds like a similar problem to me....

    ?(


    namahshaman: It could be simply a matter of bad luck, getting 2 used units and seeing that both are not in working order. Did you perform a factory reset? This could help wipe out any weird setting the previous owner used, or any strange ideas the unit got while in transit. It could also be that in both cases the power supply was not working properly and made the synth go nuts.

    Zitat von namahshaman

    the filter just stopped responding to knob turns, it was stuck halfway opened, no matter where I turned either filter knob. Oddly, if I released and re-triggered the keys/notes it would start working again

    This sounds strangely like per note knob smoothing (edit menu / common) although this is a patch setting and shouldn't happen for all patches.
    Hope this helps. My unit is controlled rather than controlling, knobs are well behaved, and I haven't lost face as of yet.

    I"ve had both stuck notes and phantom notes (Virus triggering notes on his own, usually if left alone for some time) with my stage setup which is Fantom G midi out -> Virus midi in -> Virus midi thru -> other synths, used for sending program change and midi clock from my Fantom (which is very stable and reliable and no other synths in the chain do anything like the Virus), USB is not connected, so maybe midi is really the problem, I'll look into it...

    Hi,


    We just had a long thread about "ghost notes" - Virus occationally triggering sounds without touching it. Also, I have experienced strange bender behavior, hanging notes, problems with "total integration". And I have brand new Polar Ti2. In my Logic setup Virus is VERY far from total integration, in fact I use it via old fashioned MIDI. I really got frustrated to try and try to make work with usb-TI, sometimes it was quite Ok and then suddenly everything went crazy.


    So what can I say, welcome to Virus world. Great sounds but be prepared to have problems. Access team has told me to send my unit back, but I have hesitated for few reasons: first, these problems seem to be very typical, quite many seem to have them. Maybe they are bugs or unwanted "features"? Secondly, they don't happen (fortunately!!!) very often. This makes diagnostics very difficult. It's very possible, that if Access gets my unit there they won't experience any of my problems. As said earlier, it's Murphy's law that they tend to happen on stage, when damage is maximal... And thirdly and most importantly, I use my Virus every day, I don't want to have weeks or months interruption to my work.


    So this being my case, I just tolerate these issues at the moment. I still have lot of warranty left. Let's see if those problems still exist or get worse...


    All this been said, I love my Virus sound and keyboard too. It's one of my favorite tools. I just wish it would be little more stable.