Brand New EV PA - XLR Woe

[synthaside]

Tearing down after our third Gig with our new EV ZX G2 PA , After a pretty decent by all accounts gig Saturday evening , One Guitarist is working the left im on the right  ... he comes over,   "ERR cant get the cable out of the PA"
I suspect a case of feeble guitarist hand is to blame  but indeed the XLR cable is Stuck fast ... no amount of  twisting cajoling pressing and releasing etc will help.

I mutter much profanity at it but its closing on 1 am, so  I wrap it up like Pig in a blanket ( long XLR cable ) to deal with sunday at home .. NO luck , I take the panel off and see if i can access the back , of course the neutranic connectors are totally sealed units ....  I try every form of prying  and even sculpting tools imagine really sharp lock picks (pinched off my other halfs desk), I give up and decide to call Andertons , They agree that there's not  more to be done by me so it's going to have to go back  to EV for replacement/repair.

The pro audio manager , while very torn can't just swap it out especially as i've binned all the boxes etc  its 50 odd days old and yes its been turned on 6 or so times is brand new visually ... from the store's POV
he has to send it back to EV, our issue is they quote an up to 6 week  return window we have gigs in feb.

On a positive customer service note from our Andertons man , He has arranged a loaner unit for me for any gigs ,( not something i was aware Andertons could do)  Including any last minute bookings , should we get to squeaky bum time, I can head down ( im 20 mins away) he will pull one from stock , Very good of him and had me feeling like they definitely gave a crap.

Anyone experienced this sort of thing .... im now worried about our other unit ...  is the solution to buy some super high end Short XLR's  "tails" and daisy chain long cables ... to avoid cheap connectors ?

[Bill Fitzmaurice]

Cheap connectors are the likely problem. Are your cables equipped with Neutrik? If not replace them- the connectors, that is, not the cables. 

[Jakester]

2 hours ago, synthaside said:

The pro audio manager , while very torn can't just swap it out especially as i've binned all the boxes etc  its 50 odd days old and yes its been turned on 6 or so times is brand new visually ... from the store's POV
he has to send it back to EV, our issue is they quote an up to 6 week  return window we have gigs in feb.

 

Not really - whilst you might be out of the time for the short-term right to reject (30 days), you still have the right to repair or replacement and if you elect replacement, that needs to be done in a reasonable time. Andertons can't just say to you "we're sending it away for repair" and that's it.

 

That said, sounds like a reasonably positive outcome - depends to the extent to which you want to get heavy with them. 

[synthaside]

1 hour ago, Bill Fitzmaurice said:

Cheap connectors are the likely problem. Are your cables equipped with Neutrik? If not replace them- the connectors, that is, not the cables. 

Shouldnt be " cheap cables ...  i very very much doubt  that andertons could take that line as the cable itself is Andertons own ... so they couldnt exactly blame it  https://www.andertons.co.uk/stagg-nmc3r-male-to-female-xlr-Rean-3m/

I did look up the terms on their site and they are quite clear  , our chap in audio was able to stretch to a bit past the 30 for goodwill but  at double that .... I suspect its more than his necks worth

Edited yesterday at 13:34 by synthaside

[Phil Starr]

I think Rean are made for Neutric anyway. Legally you need to give the retailer a chnce to repair faulty goods and if Andertons are offering a courtesy cab/PA then I think they are playing fair.

 

Hope you sort the problem, not one I've come across before.

[Beedster]

I had that with a UAD interface a few years back, extremely annoying. I eventually got it out after gently jiggling it (is that a thing) for a few minutes every day for about 3 weeks. It hadn’t happened before, and it hasn’t happened since, but it’s made me a lot more careful in how I use and care for cables, being very gentle when inserting and removing, and checking for any small dents or signs of wear frequently 👍

[Jakester]

On 20/01/2026 at 13:31, synthaside said:

I did look up the terms on their site and they are quite clear  , our chap in audio was able to stretch to a bit past the 30 for goodwill but  at double that .... I suspect its more than his necks worth

 

Yes, but that isn't your statutory rights.  Their warranty is in addition to your statutory rights, not instead of (unless you aren't a consumer). 

 

S9 of the Consumer Rights Act 2015 requires good to be of satisfactory quality.

 

If goods are not in compliance with s9 because they are faulty, then s19(3) of the CRA2015 says you have the short-term right to reject, the right to require repair or replacement, or the right to a price reduction. 

 

The short-term right to reject has passed (more than 30 days). 

 

S23 provides that the consumer may elect for either repair or replacement (not both). So you could have required Andertons to replace it, irrespective of what their warranty terms and condtions say.

 

Andertons must also bear the costs of repair or replacement (s23(2)(b)) of any non-conforming goods. 

 

Any repair must be carried out within a reasonable time and without inconvenience to the consumer (s23(2)(a)).

 

I mean, it does sound like you're sorted, but Andertons are doing everything to pass the cost on to the manufacturer in the first instance, rather than bearing the risk themselves, which is what they should be doing. 

Edited 2 hours ago by Jakester

[synthaside]

I suspect  that Andertons might argue .... That at a maximum of "6 weeks" is a reasonable repair time, for an item to be shipped back to a supplier ...
repaired then shipped back ....  The provision of a loaner for any gigs is removing my " inconvenience".

Thank you for the info,  good ammo to have if the  repair drags on or i have problems post repair getting a loaner I will definately be citing this and getting shirty..

I fully intend to take a test XLR with me when i collect the thing ... if there's any signs of tightness or problems i will kick off, suggesting they have just removed the offending  Andertons cable  and returned it to me ...

Do we have any recommendations for "FULL spec compliant" ... known good XLR Neutranic compliant cable ... I've never experienced problems before with anything good bad ... but i feel like i'm going to be significantly more careful with what i put it in from now on. 

I'm also considering twin cables ....  E.G
https://www.terralec.co.uk/audio_leads/audio__power_cable_dual_xlr_and_iec_combined__various_lead_lengths/35769_p.html

Edited 1 hour ago by synthaside

[spyder]

I use these for all my PA cables.

 

https://ebay.us/m/d2AUNX

 

 

[Beedster]

1 hour ago, synthaside said:

I fully intend to take a test XLR with me when i collect the thing ... if there's any signs of tightness or problems i will kick off, suggesting they have just removed the offending  Andertons cable  and returned it to me ...

 

I'd suggest you don't use your own cable as if the problem repeats they could argue that it's the cable not the socket that's at fault, before you go request they use one of their cables to demonstrate it's all working OK 👍