If you are only using Rack Switch modules and not Switch + or Switch X modules, then the probability of switching problems is fairly low. Even if you add in a Switch + or Switch X, maybe it doesn't do what you intended (it can be tricky), but no harm will usually be done. And don't forget that the Bypass Looper and other signal routing modules are also types of switching module that may do some or all of what you need to do.
There are a couple of things to avoid in order to prevent serious problems, though.
First, never connect an output of one switching module to an output of another switching module. If one is sending an "on" and the other an "off" signal, then you'll get a short circuit. If that happens, components will overheat, but hopefully shut down before they are damaged. Unplugging and waiting a while for them to cool may get you going again. But repeated overheating, or even a single unfortunate overheating, could lead to damage on the power boards of the modules involved, or possibly blowing a fuse in an 18V Power module. Fuses and boards can be replaced easily at low cost, but you may be down for a while to get fuses or replacement boards. While unlikely, it is possible that you could get an electrical fire or shock if you connect your cables that way. In normal operation, very little current is used by the switching system. The voltages are what matter. Both the voltages and current are very low when the switching is functioning properly, but just like with most electrical devices, if you connect them inappropriately, you may damage the equipment or injure yourself.
You don't want any loops in your switching. That would likely require breaking the rule above of "don't connect from an output to an output", but it's just another way of thinking about it. For example, don't run a cable from one output of a Rack Switch to another output of Rack Switch. First, that would be pointless. It is also the clearest example of why that is bad. Turning the footswitch on for one input and off for another will create a short circuit between two different voltages. As you design your switching, it should always be tree-like, branching out to more branches, going "forward" toward the final "leaves" on your tree, which are the effects modules that you are ultimately switching. Draw out your connections on paper, first. If you see any cases where you are going "backwards" in a chain of connections, think carefully about what you are doing. The path from your footswitch(es) to your effects should always go one direction, from input to output to input to output to input, etc. It may be OK to come out of a Switch + or Switch X module and go back through that same module again, if you are going through a different section of the module and not creating a switching signal loop or connecting outputs to outputs.
While there are some cases where it is OK to use a split/join cable in your switching, it is best to avoid it to help avoid the cases when it is not OK, like joining two output connections together intentionally or accidently. In other cases of bad cabling, you may just not have anything happening. Think of Switch + as the safe way to split a connection (from one switch to two or more effects). Think of Switch X as the safe way to join two or more switching outputs to control one effect. In both cases, there is some logic between the inputs and outputs that prevent short circuits.
If you are working on some complex switching design, and you hook it up and it doesn't behave as expected, unplug it quickly rather than staring at it while it potentially overheats. Build sections or layers of the design at a time, so you don't have to debug large switching designs. It is easier to figure out pieces and make sure they work before adding to them or joining them together.
Here are some things to try to find problems other than the ones described above:
- make sure your Rack Switch module has 18VDC power. It could use 100 milliamps or more with a 12 Button Footswitch or multiple 3 Button Footswitches
- make sure your footswitch has power, and the status LEDs on the footswitch turn on/off when you stomp the switches
- make sure you have cabled your module(s) to the correct footswitch(es)
- try swapping switching cables
- make sure you don't have the footswitch override switch turned on for a module, causing it to ignore the footswitch input
- some modules use more than one footswitch. Make sure you have them connected correctly.
- some modules have very subtle effects. If you suspect the switching because you can't hear the effect, try adjusting the effect to see if it really is on.
- if you have added or removed a module yourself, make sure you reattached all the internal cables correctly.
- note whether a module works correctly when bypassed and/or when it is engaged. This can provide insight into what is and is NOT the problem. As an example, if clean signal goes through OK when the effect is switched off, then your audio cabling and power probably aren't the problem.
- use the status LEDs - note whether they turn on/off when you expect, regardless of what you may or may not be hearing
Switch + and Switch X add some cool switching functionality, but it can quickly become complicated. It is easy to make a mistake in complex switching designs. Before expecting a problem with any of the modules or cabling, your time may be better spent reviewing your design again. Then walk away from it and come back after a while and review it again. Look at what you actually constructed and how it would work, instead of thinking about how you want it to work.
Work backwards from the module all the way to the footswitches. Is the module on or off? What is that footswitch cable connected to? What determines whether that cable gets an on or off signal? What are the switching inputs to that cable? What is the function of the module it is plugged into (don't forget about the switches on the front of the Switch + module). For each switching input for the cable, trace those connections back.
Draw out your cabling in a diagram and step through examples with your diagram and your modules.
It's difficult to debug switching design problems remotely, so Customer Support may have trouble helping, but we're happy to do what we can. Sometimes you just need a different pair of eyes on a problem. Get a friend and try to explain to them what you're doing and what is going wrong. Sometimes just trying to explain it (even to someone that doesn't understand!) will help you find your problem.
The switching is done by changing voltage levels on the switching cables. "On" is a voltage near 12V DC. "Off" is a voltage near 0V DC. You can use a voltmeter on a cable to measure if it is "on" or "off". Knowing that may help you debug problems.
At the time of writing, we've never had a failed Rackswitch, Switch +, or Switch X module. When we've encountered switching that isn't working, it has never been a bad module. Occasionally a physical switch in a footswitch unit will have an early failure, or even less likely, a status LED. But we have seen those two specific failures, along with one connector failure. These components rarely fail, and are more likely to fail "sooner" rather than "later", probably indicating a manufacturing defect. It usually takes a long time before a switch, connector, or LED will fail from usage. They will eventually, though.
The switching boards in each module also very rarely fail. The only failures we've found were due to bad components on the board. They failed immediately in QA and were replaced. There haven't been any failures of switching boards that passed QA and failed later, but it is possible.
Obviously, if something fails after some change you've made, first check all the components involved in the change.
We once bought some cheap switching cables that were of low quality. Their connectors were loose and would cause intermittent failures. Those cables are very common and very inexpensive, so "cheap" doesn't necessarily mean "bad", but it could be the problem. If problems are intermittent or go away when you jiggle cables, then you may have a bad cable or connector.
If you have intermittent switching problems, there are a couple of possible causes. The most likely is a bad switching cable. It is easy to get a bad switching cable. The switching cables use the small 1/8” jacks, like the ones on mobile phones for connecting headphones. Sometimes sellers or manufacturers will substitute 3mm jacks for 1/8”. The 3mm jacks are just a little bit too small to work reliably, especially 3mm male jacks being used in an 1/8” female jack that has seen lots of use and may have lost some of its “spring”, allowing the smaller male jack to not make contact properly. Also make sure that the cable is plugged in all the way. Some of those cables plug in partway then need another push to get them fully seated.
The female jacks in each module where you plug in the switching cables are “switched” jacks. That means that when no cable is plugged in, the part of the jack where the cable tip would normally make contact is instead making contact with a switch built into the jack. If the jack or switch in the jack get bent, then the switch may not make contact when no cable is plugged in. When that happens, you can experience some odd behavior – module randomly turning on or off, or taking a while to turn off when it is switched off. You may also notice some extra noise when this happens. This is more likely if you are using the override switch on the back of the module to keep the module on all the time or to turn the module on and off without a switching cable. We’ve only seen this problem in some prototypes we built with some new switching jacks we were trying out. None of those jacks were ever used in production because they bent easily. In fact, it seems that more than 90% of the 1/8” jacks available around the world are very low-quality jacks that are bent upon arrival or bend after only a single use or two. But even our high-quality jacks can eventually fail after many, many uses, which should only happen after many years.
If you suspect the switching jack, look at it closely to see if the switch is making contact with the jack when no cable is inserted. You may need a magnifying glass to be able to tell, as even the tiniest gap can cause problems. Also, if you are only using the override switch and not a switching cable, test with a switching cable connected to a RackSwitch module. If the problem goes away using a cable, then probably the switching jack is bent. Once they are bent, it usually doesn’t do much good to try to bend them back. They can lose their “spring”. You’re probably better off just getting a new switch jack cable assembly.
The intermittent problems could also show up if we accidentally use an un-switched jack instead of a switched one. That should never happen… You can easily tell if the jack is a switched jack just by looking at it. The bent “springy” piece that contacts the tip of the male cable plug will have another metal tab very near it. That metal tab is the switch. It should make contact with the jack only (and always) when no cable is plugged into it. It should neve make contact if a cable is plugged in.