Malfunctioning Remote (only when screws tightened)

  • So I bought a used KPA and Remote online and received them a few days ago. I have just been using the amp for the past few days trying to learn my way around it. Today I decided to plug in the remote to make sure that functioned (since it was used). When I tried to use it, the buttons seemed to be doing weird things i.e. some buttons would turn on the looper or tuner (not the looper or tuner buttons!). I thought it might have been a weird setting from the previous owner so I did a factory reset, checked the remote settings, and tested it again. Same thing.

    At this point I was a little upset thinking the previous owner sold me something he knew didn't work properly. I messaged him and he claimed it was all functioning fine for him. I then sent an email to customer service describing the problem.

    I'm a guitar tech by profession, so I just couldn't leave it alone. I tried other cables, cleaned out the connections, took the back off the remote to check for visible problems (there weren't any) and tested again. Same thing.

    I removed the back plate of the remote again, and plugged it in without the back. It worked perfectly! I installed the back thinking I had fixed the issue somehow, and with it all screwed together it malfunctioned again. That got me thinking the back plate was shorting out something. I removed the screws and pushed the back plate around trying to make it fail while plugged in but it kept functioning properly. Then I added 1 screw and the problem was back.

    Basically, the bottom silver screws are causing the switches to malfunction when screwed down tightly. If I back them off just a little, the problem goes away. Just pushing the back plate down hard with my hand doesn't re-create the problem, only when the screws are fully installed. The Torx screws on the front don't seem to affect it. In the video below, the Torx screws are tightened fully, and I'm only adjusting the bottom silver screws.

    Anyway, I'm glad I somewhat figured out the problem, but it hasn't been my favorite experience with a new, expensive piece of gear. I'm also hoping that customer service is able to help me out. Being a used product, I'm not sure how that will go. Seems like others on this forum have had good experiences with them. I'll wait and see what they say, but I wanted to share my experience. Hopefully it helps others out there.


    Video of problem

  • If the original owner mounted the Remote to a pedal board . He may have not used the original screws when he removed it from his board


    If it's only shorting with the screws all the way tightened, I would suggest getting some shorter screws and trying them