John Moore Posted November 16, 2010 Report Share Posted November 16, 2010 I've been searching for a service center for the Fostex FR-2 (not LE), to no avail... Anybody know of a service center that can handle repairs? It's a problem with the internal power supply (batteries overheating). John Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
studiomprd Posted November 16, 2010 Report Share Posted November 16, 2010 the repair departments of the "usual suspects" production sound dealers usually service these... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ProSound Posted November 16, 2010 Report Share Posted November 16, 2010 Here is the address listed in my Fr2le Manual for repairs of all fostex products Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Moore Posted November 16, 2010 Author Report Share Posted November 16, 2010 Whitney- thanks for the info... Unfortunately, the TEL dials a fax/modem, the FAX goes unanswered. I know the Fostex.com USA site was shut down earlier this year, so no surprise! Oh, yeah- Senator: thanks, as usual, for your "helpful" advice... (I have been calling/searching, I was hoping someone could direct me to a trusted source). John Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eric Toline Posted November 16, 2010 Report Share Posted November 16, 2010 Whitney- thanks for the info... Unfortunately, the TEL dials a fax/modem, the FAX goes unanswered. I know the Fostex.com USA site was shut down earlier this year, so no surprise! Oh, yeah- Senator: thanks, as usual, for your "helpful" advice... (I have been calling/searching, I was hoping someone could direct me to a trusted source). John Here you go. www.nxtgentech.com official factory authorized repair for Fostex, etc, etc. Yeah the website says DAT repairs but don't let that throw you. Speak to Dennis. Eric Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erick Posted November 26, 2010 Report Share Posted November 26, 2010 I was made a miustake, to connect my Fostex FR 2LE with a wrong power supply 15V source, fr2le did not turn over, even with batteries, I wrote to Fostex USA and Japan and never answered my e-mails, bad service, however still do not know what to do with the recorder, any ideas? Thanks in advance! Erick del Valle Santiago de Chile Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Moore Posted November 26, 2010 Author Report Share Posted November 26, 2010 Not sure about the FR-2LE, since mine is the older FR-2, but I do have to admit that Fostex support seems to have drifted off the face of the planet... You can't even send an email via the Fostex international site any longer. Ah well- such is life! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jan McL Posted November 27, 2010 Report Share Posted November 27, 2010 This is the most recent information I have for Rick Cannata, who was the Fostex guy in the US: 562-243-0867 cantrax@earthlink.net It's been a year or so, but... Good luck. -- Jan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Moore Posted November 27, 2010 Author Report Share Posted November 27, 2010 Jan & Oleg: Thanks for the info... I've send emails, and will follow up with phone calls on Monday. John Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eric Toline Posted November 27, 2010 Report Share Posted November 27, 2010 This is the most recent information I have for Rick Cannata, who was the Fostex guy in the US: 562-243-0867 cantrax@earthlink.net It's been a year or so, but... Good luck. -- Jan It's cantrax@verizon.net. Eric Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Moore Posted November 27, 2010 Author Report Share Posted November 27, 2010 Eric- thanks... My first email bounced, so I was hoping I could find the right one! John Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eric Toline Posted November 27, 2010 Report Share Posted November 27, 2010 Eric- thanks... My first email bounced, so I was hoping I could find the right one! John You're welcome. As an FYI I'm not sure the number that Jan posted is a working number any more but give it a shot. Eric Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Moore Posted November 27, 2010 Author Report Share Posted November 27, 2010 I just heard back from Rick Cantatta & he is no longer with Fostex... He suggested I try Fostex Japan, which I've done... I kind of doubt I'll hear back from them either. I guess I'll just hang on to this FR-2 as a backup in case anything, other than the power supply sub-board, goes wrong with my other unit. Kind of a shame- I like the FR-2. Some day I hope to afford a 702T/744T, but I'm not holding my breath! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
studiomprd Posted November 27, 2010 Report Share Posted November 27, 2010 you have already found out our good friend, and ally Rick is no longer associated with Fostex, however Fostex is a rather huge corporation, and for their audio type MI/commercial products they have a new USA distributor/representative firm, the same one that now also handles Beyer Dynamic microphones for the MI. I have met them at a trade show (National Sound Contractors, IIRC) and they are nice folks, but seem to be a little slow on getting into it, especially for our little market niche.. http://www.americanmusicandsound.com/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Moore Posted November 27, 2010 Author Report Share Posted November 27, 2010 Senator- Yes, I've contacted American Music and Sound without any luck, so far... After talking to Rick I'm rather disappointed that Fostex didn't keep him as their go-to service rep- he sounds helpful & knowledgeable (which is more than I can say for any of the Fostex service sources so far!). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Moore Posted November 27, 2010 Author Report Share Posted November 27, 2010 Just wanted to post a bit of a private email I received from one of our members who is going to NAMM in January & mentioned that he would talk to Fostex about the service issue... this is how I replied: That's probably a good idea... Although, my faith in large companies/corporations like Fostex has been shaken eons ago. I started out in the Mac world back in 1985 & used to go to all the trade shows in SF... It was great to talk to the techs involved. I knew the feedback went up the chain and was even listened to (you could see suggestions making it into next generation products, etc.). Nowadays it's the bottom line & sales is king. Fostex has done everything they can to remove the end user in the US from any kind of easy support options. They closed down their FostexUSA.com site, including the Fostex Forums, and links to support on the fostexinternational.com site are dead. The only email link that works is sales (kinda telling, eh?). I'm sorry, but I'm not calling internationally to Japan for them to tell me to contact American Music & Sound- I've already tried that! So- take this account to NAMM in January, and with any luck- you'll be listened to by someone with the wherewithal to realize that they're going to end up losing out on sound pro's in the future if they can't support their gear. John Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
studiomprd Posted November 28, 2010 Report Share Posted November 28, 2010 > -----Original Message----- > > Sent: Saturday, November 27, 2010 1:34 PM > > Subject: Fostex service > > at the risk of offending: > how have you contacted them?? > dig up their telephone number and call them, > as I said, I've met them, and they are nice folks, and I believe they > would > like to sell product, which means they are going to need to service the > products; though it is possible their agreement does not include products > discontinued before they signed on, you really ought to try the old > fashioned way of contacting them... > OTOH, I have found that in a lot of cases getting service for discontinued > products can become about impossible in today's world; not what we want it > to be, but what it is. We live in a disposable era... > all the best, happy holidays REPLY > > Thanks, but I have tried calling- left a message or 2... I've called & > emailed everyone else that has been referred to me, but the only reply was > from Rick- who no longer works for Fostex! > > John Moore Yes, I too think Fostex in Japan has been making some less than optimum decisions, certainly as far as most of us are concerned. I have to admit I don't personally know the ins and outs of their corporate structure, and relationships with other corporations, so I don't really know if Fostex USA was owned by Fostex Corp HQ in Japan, or just a licensee, but I do know that a couple years back their relationships began to change... some of us might have sensed it... was Rick Canatta in, or out?? was he the point of contact, or retired??...In the small but competitive marketplace for portable professional recorders, was Fostex able to build, sell and support our specialty products profitably??? I saw Rick at a trade show with some HQ (Japan) types, and Rick was doing the dog and pony show (show and tell?) of Fostex in the USA MI market. a trade show or two later and whatever it was, Fostex USA was now only a new memory, with the MI/Audio products in the hands of a new USA distributor. right or wrong, good or bad, that's the way it is, and whatever was, is no more, and sadly, a lot of support issues are included in the mess that seems to remain. Does this sort of stuff influence us in our future buying decisions: absolutely! is it bad for their business with "us", without a doubt. Mr. Moore, I was just trying to help you get support, and sure, if I see the current Fostex folks anywhere, I'll mention it, and mention it firmly, as I have used, and owned Fostex products, still do. FR-2's, with and without SMPTE TC have been very popular at school's, despite the limited AA battery life, where they have been reliable, and stood up well to student (ab)use; about a year ago I had a power supply module replaced... These units have more than paid back on the original investment made in purchasing the, and have lasted at a couple schools through 2 generations of Apple computers, which have come and gone! In Japan, Fostex Corporation is a huge conglomerate with a lot of different branches and operations. If you closely examine Sony headphones, you will find the drivers of many are actually manufactured by Fostex. In such large corporations, especially international ones, crap sometimes happens, and yes, bad decisions get made, and they have repercussions for the companies and their customers. Sometimes stuff works out better, but sometimes worse... Seems to me at one time HME wireless handheld mic's were the King, and for movies it was Vega, later Cetec Vega, later Mark-IV Vega, and later EV-Vega, and then <gone>...Stella-Vox, Stella-dat, HHB-DAT, <gone>... Ampex, 3M tape) Wollensak, Uhrer... anyone recall the recent disappearance from the marketplace of Mackie's hugely popular and successful Onyx line for about a year...?? (they suddenly lost a Chinese factory, inventory and all)... I don't think they wanted that to happen, do you?? Coherent's TC products including their TC smart slate...?? Loon poles...?? our little market niche can only support so much, only so many businesses; it is very competitive, just as the large mega-markets... Cars?? Jaguar became Ford-you-are...now?? Saturn?? Oldsmobile?? TV's: Motorola, Philco, Sylvania ?? Computers: Univac, DEC, Packard Bell, AST, emachines...?? that's the way it is... it is a cruel world out there, aomw don't survive... that's life... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ProSound Posted December 23, 2010 Report Share Posted December 23, 2010 Just read this in Gotham Newsletter: Gotham is pleased to announce that with the addition of Mike Van Tine to the ranks of our service technicians, we now have the ability to repair Fostex products in house! We can service DV824's, FR2LE's, CR500's, and MR's at our 38th Street location. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Moore Posted December 23, 2010 Author Report Share Posted December 23, 2010 Whitney- thanks for the update... I'll contact them after the 1st of the year & see if I can get this extra unit fixed. By the way- I located a TimeCode card for the FR-2, so now I have to figure out if I can install it myself, or send it off to Mike. John Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
studiomprd Posted December 23, 2010 Report Share Posted December 23, 2010 I recall discussing the TC card upgrade a while back, so do some searching. It is better to have a service tech do it, and several of the usual suspects' service dept's are capable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dfisk Posted December 23, 2010 Report Share Posted December 23, 2010 Yeah, I would imagine that the usual audio dealers would be the places to go. LSC, Coffey, Trew, Gotham. They all have talented service people, and you can probably get a fix done at one of those places. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Philip Perkins Posted December 24, 2010 Report Share Posted December 24, 2010 There's a really good repair guy in Burbank--FET Electronics. He still fixes esoterica like DA88s etc--I bet he might take a crack at an FR2. He's done great work for me @ very reasonable $. (818) 881-2656 3129 W Burbank Blvd Burbank, CA 91505 phil p Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marc Wielage Posted December 26, 2010 Report Share Posted December 26, 2010 There's a really good repair guy in Burbank--FET Electronics. Oh, yeah, Mark Naziry -- terrific repairman. You can also reach him at fetelectronic@sbcglobal.net. They do very good work. --Marc W. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
studiomprd Posted January 13, 2011 Report Share Posted January 13, 2011 At the NAMM show, it was easy to find FOSTEX, as in the Audio equipment hall they had a noticible sign high up, ulike Lectrosonics, who isial;ly has a sign up high doesn't this year! So one of the first booths I visited, after waiting 1:10 in line to pick up my badge, was American Music and Sound. Paul Froula is the National Sales Manage for Fostex, and Beyerdynamic USA. (they also handle other lines, including Allen and Heath). He confirms that the products we are concerned about (they refer to them as "Broadcast", not "Pro Audio") are pretty much all at 'end of life', and that they have continued efforts to secure more media for them (Maxell), but that parts are hard to obtain, these products are complex (requiring skilled technicians) and so for service, they generally farm it out to a few specialists. I told him that it seems Fostex has abandoned our niche market, and he admitted that they only distribute what the Factory makes, and the Broadcast line is in need of a "refreshing". He seemed surprised when I told him that folks reported not being able to get any response. AM&S is accessible in Woodland Hills CA at 818-597-7711 and Paul's extension is 3707 and email is Paul.Froula@AmericanMusicAndSound.com BTW, Lectro's booth had a crowd for their introduction of a 4 channel digital IEM system for musicians...pretty slick, too! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johngooch Posted January 13, 2011 Report Share Posted January 13, 2011 Gotham is in touch with Mike Van Tine. He worked with fostex over the past few years and has a relationship with gotham. He can arrange service. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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