Alesis Q20

[MagicOurMorris]

I have been reading with great interest the various threads relating to "That Sound" etc and I notice that the Alesis Q20 echo unit gets a lot of mention and approval. However as I understand it, these machines are now no longer manufactured, with only "used ones" being available from time to time. I have read that complications with the Alesis Q20 can arise if the internal battery should fail, and due to the general age of these machines, battery failure can and does happen. Is it possble for the type of battery inside an Alesis Q20 to be replaced? ie - is the battery type freely available? if it is, does anyone have an idea as to a ball park figure of the cost of replacement. Can a new battery be installed by the owner of the machine, or does the macine need to be taken to an eletronics expert etc.
Would appreciate any advice from any of the sites members.
Best Regards to all.
Keith.

[scotocaster]

Yes, you can replace the battery.... I have done this on both my two Q20's. The battery i used was the Panasonic BR2335T3L_b, it's a 3v 300mah Lithium (3 leg battery) and has a longer life than the original battery. Cost of battery $3.99 Have a great day. Scott

[John M]

Further to Scotocasters answer..yes they can be replaced..however...
If you have any patches which you dont want to lose, I suggest you back them up on to a PC using the Qclick programme and the appropriate MIDI hardware as when you replace the battery there is a possibility the contents of the memory where the patches are stored may be lost.
The memory chips can retain their data for a very short time after having the power removed, but the time required to change the battery might take longer than that.
Also with some Alesis units (notably the Q2..not so sure about the Q20) there was a batch of memory chips which had an unusually high current drain and the battery didnt last as long as was expected. I dont remember the brand off hand, but if required I can find out.

John M.

[MagicOurMorris]

Hi Scott - Hi John, many thanks to both of you for your response to my posting re the Q20 and battery replacement. I (sadly) do not at present - own an Alesis Q20 nor have I had the experience of listening to one first hand, but from the views expressed within the various threads by members of this site, I may well decide to go for one at some stage in the future when finances allow. I have to say though, I was concerned about perhaps not being able to have the battery replaced, but now, thanks to your kind response, I feel quite relaxed about it. I currently use a Zoom G 1u (Prog with EFTP) and in the main I play at home mainly for my own pleasure. I find that the Zoom provides a reasonable sound ie "That Sound" But like most of us, I would like to get as close as possible, and from comments put forward by members, possibly the Q20 could help significantly in this direction by providing authentic echo patterns etc. I wonder however, if in real terms (score 1-10), how much better the Q20 is compared to the sounds obtained from the Zoom unit, and if the additional cost justified by the sound obtained.
Best Regards
Keith.

[ecca]

If you have a Q20 that's been programmed by Charlie then the midi has been disabled .
It's far and away the best for the authentic Meazzi echoes as far as I'm concerned with the units I've owned.
Be prepared to spend a few bob though, I flogged mine when I discovered PSP608.
Cheers
Ecca

[MagicOurMorris]

Thanks for that Ecca, much appreciated info/advice.
Best Regards
Kit.

[John M]

Q20's are not seen for sale all that often, and when they are they go for silly money... basic units for around the £500 mark.
Perhaps a better bet would be a Q2.... between £160 and £200 on Ebay.(aorund $160 if you buy from USA..plus postage and taxes)
Both machines are basically the same except for the analogue to digital converters which have a higher bit rate (the Q20).
They dont have such a great difference in sound for the extra money.
A Q2 and Charlie Halls patches would be a good sounding system.
Remember also that Hank Marvin used Q2's as well for a lengthy spell before the Q20's arrived, and his sound with them was "OK".

[Tone]

There's a Q20 with EFTP on eBay at the moment with no bids and 5 days to go. You can see it here:

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Alesis-q20-eftp-E ... 255705c11e

Starting price of £700 which seems a tad expensive. As has been mentioned, there isn't that much of a difference soundwise between a Q20 and Q2: the latter seem to sell around the £300 mark.

Cheers.

Tony

[Amanda]

Hi,

The main differences between the Q2 and Q20 are the Q20 has an internal PSU
and it has more program memory than the Q2 so that more parameters can be programmed
into the patches to make them more accurate.

Regarding the battery, I've fitted a PC motherboard type backup battery holder so that
you can use a standard 2032 coin cell, you can also replace it without powering down.

Amanda

[kipper]

If you have a Q20 that's been programmed by Charlie then the midi has been disabled .
It's far and away the best for the authentic Meazzi echoes as far as I'm concerned with the units I've owned.
Be prepared to spend a few bob though, I flogged mine when I discovered PSP608.
Cheers
Ecca

can i ask what is psp608 please thanks peter