Expression pedals come in two pinouts. Some put the signal on the tip of the TRS cable (what the ZOIA Euroburo expects), some put the signal on the ring. If it's on the ring, all the action will happen in the first 10% of the pedal's travel.
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First of all, sorry! That's really annoying to deal with. Here are some things to consider:
We use MIDI type A (listen on the TIP, send on the RING)
- which is superior as it doesn't require a TRS cable unless you plan on sending PC messages out of the pedal.
Some other devices and brands have the opposite pinout so you'll need to check!
Most companies add jumpers or switches that allow you to change the pinout to be compatible with most devices.
If you're using a splitter like the Quadra-thru you may have issues as the Echosystem and Reverb do not have an optocoupler (the ZOIA does so it should be compatible with virtually anything out there)
If the device you're using isn't performing as desired and you've checked that your cables are good and the pinouts match, you may need to try swapping the splitter with an active one like the midibox2 - though you don't have to use ours, there are tons of them out there!
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All of our pedals that have MIDI use MIDI Type A (MIDI Standard). Same as Korg and Make Noise.
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The pinout for the expression pedal is TIP=signal, RING=3.3V power, SLEEVE=ground. So your expression pedal has to have that pinout. Here's a list of pedals that we know work. Please let us know if you find any other pedals that work! Mission EP-1 and EP-2 (no polarity switch, polarity switch, respectively) M Audio EX-P (has polarity switch)
Moog EP-2 (we've tested the EP-2, and it works. it has been replaced by the EP-3 which we haven't tested yet)
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After confirming that your set up is working perfectly and the fault is the Zebu, take a quick look at the white flex cables inside the Zebu. If one of these cable connections is slightly askew, or if the beige/black connector is open, then your Zebu's MIDI, CV, or audio may not function properly. Reseating the cable so that it's straight and all the way in the connector and then closing the black connector tab so that it's nice and tight will most likely fix the issue. If you need assistance on how to do this procedure and not harm your Zebu, you can email us at: support@empresseffects.com
Instructions on How to Reseat All Your Euroburo's Flex Cables:
JUST A FOREWARNING BEFORE YOU DO ANYTHING! THE BLACK TABS HOLDING THE WHITE/BLUE RIBBON CABLES ARE PLASTIC AND PRONE TO BREAKING IF PULLED TOO HARD. BE CAREFUL WHEN OPENING THOSE CONNECTORS.
Video link to HOW THE EUROBURO IS CONSTRUCTED: https://youtu.be/OUvFoudM1EM?t=564
Use it as a nice little visual aid!
Tools you'll need:
1/16" Hex driver or allen wrench
Knurled nut driver (optional)
1. TAKE A VERY GOOD LOOK AT ALL OF THE FLEX CABLES AND CONNECTORS INSIDE YOUR EUROBURO. YOU MAY BE ABLE TO SEE THE CABLE CONNECTION ISSUE INSTANTLY. For example, it might just be one of the connectors being open instead of closed. Like in this photo!
2. Next, find a big clear work surface. Use the pink pad your Euroburo came with as a soft pad for your Euroburo to sit on.
3. Flip your Euroburo over so the circuit boards are facing up.
4. Unscrew the small black screws holding the circuit board in place (using the 1/16" hex driver). Put those in a very safe place!
5. When those screws are all out, hold the top circuit board carefully with one hand and remove the 3 flex cable that are connected to it. To disconnect them, very lightly pull on the black tab in the beige connector with your finger tips. BE VERY CAREFUL, THESE BLACK TABS ARE TINY PIECES OF PLASTIC AND CAN BREAK. Set that circuit board in a nice safe spot.
6. Now with that board out of the way, we can have easy access to five of the connectors. You may disconnect and reconnect these cables if they are suspect.
If at any point, you reseat the flex cable that you know is crooked or not properly seated, then you can be pretty sure the problem is solved and you can reassemble your Euroburo. If you're unsure which flex cable is the issue, then let's reseat all of them! For these cables, the process to disconnect them is the exact same as the first circuit board. When reconnecting a cable, make sure it is
ALL THE WAY IN AND STRAIGHT.
THE BLUE STRIPE IS ALWAYS ON THE SIDE WITH THE BLACK TAB.
AND MAKE SURE THE BLACK TAB IS FULLY SECURED ON BOTH SIDES AND NOT OPEN STILL.
Here's an example of how the cable and connector should look:
Now to reseat the annoying cables in the corner! This is annoying, so I even suggest reassembling your Euroburo and seeing if your problems are fixed already! If they aren't then you will have to reseat this corner cable. The safest way to get to these cables is by unsecuring all of the knurled nuts on the faceplate so that the 2 slim boards with the jacks can be removed.
7. Start by unsecuring all of the knurled nuts on the faceplate of the Euroburo with a knurled nut driver. A knurled nut driver looks like this: https://www.ctrl-mod.com/products/knurled-nut-driver?variant=31394934456374.. If you do not have a knurled driver and the nuts are too hard to get off, we can mail you a 3D printed hand driver! Or you can download and print your own with the link at the bottom!
8. Carefully hold the Euroburo and the 2 slim circuit boards together and flip the whole thing over. Now with the 2 slim boards free, it's much easier to disconnect and reconnect the cables in the corner.
And feel free to take the whole thing out to easily reconnect all the flex cables.
9. Once all the cables are nice and straight in their connectors, it's time to reassemble the Euroburo! Put the 2 slim boards back into the faceplate. Reconnect the flex cable from the longer slim board to the bottom circuit board. Here's the connector I'm talking about:
10. Now get that other circuit board that you removed and hold it like this. You will connect the longest flex cable first!
11. Now reconnect the second largest flex cable like this!
12. And lastly, the smallest flex cable. To do this spin the whole Euroburo 180 degrees and connect it like this!
13. Now your Euroburo should look something like this! Time to screw the first circuit board back in place. When placing that circuit board, just make sure none of the flex cables are getting crimpled or are bending too much.
It's blurry! But your flex cables should be nice and loopy with no weird crimples.
14. In one piece, carefully flip over the Euroburo and the 2 slim boards that are not secured yet. First place your SD card into the Euroburo. This will make sure the slot is in line. Now resecure all of the knurled nuts.
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TL;DR instructions below!
STL 3D Print File for the MIDI Plug is at the bottom of the page!
Some users have reported hiss and/or a clicking artifact (but not limited to) when receiving MIDI note messages.
If you are experiencing noise issues when using MIDI even if your unit is not powered on, this is probably the fix for you!
We have discovered that lifting the MIDI IN jack pins of the main processing PCB eliminates the noise. We are printing plugs to be installed in the ZEBUs as a simple fix which will not affect the functionality of the ZEBU whatsoever.
The only downside is that the board will have to be partially removed with a 1/16 hex key to increase the clearance and allow us to insert the jack pug. I would be happy to do this for you but if you're willing, it's very easy.
Even if you mess up, it won't affect your warranty!
Please fill out the form below and we will send out the plug asap. Please see instructions below.
Please fill out our warranty repair form, and mention that you need to be sent the part and I will convert form repair to a parts shipment.
If you would rather have us install it, just mention that in the comments (trust me you can do it, it's very easy!)
The ZEBU foam packaging works really nicely as a workbench jig!
Step 1
Remove all but one of the hex screws with a 1/16 hex key.
Step 2
Slightly loosen the final hex screw to raise the board up a bit and insert the MIDI plug into the right jack, which is also the correct jack. You might feel resistance, but it's OK to push it in all the way till it's snug in the jack.
Step 3
Replace and tighten all hex screws as shown (snug, don't overtighten) - see trick below
Here's a little trick:
With the screw laying on your workbench, insert the hex key with your finger holding the side of the screw and hex key shaft to easily maneuver them into place.
All done!
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When sending clocks, triggers or gates into the input jacks on the Euroburo to internal ZOIA modules, small amounts of noise may cause modules to trigger unintentionally.
To remedy this we added clock filters that you can engage by editing the corresponding input jacks module (hit shift plus the pencil and paper icon after pressing the desired input jack button). Scroll down to the clock filter option and select the desired setting. These will prevent internal ADSRs from firing at unwanted intervals.
The clock filter acts as a Schmitt trigger to output a clean clock signal (which Zoia requires) from the cv input. The numbers represent the low and high threshold values. ie 2,8 would cause the module to output 0 when the input goes below 0.2 of the input voltage range, and output a high signal when the signal goes above 0.8 of the input voltage range.
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You can find the Euroburo Addendum here, it covers the changes that make the Euroburo unique!(download below)
If you're wondering what has changed, check out the change-log in the firmware update section:
https://empresseffects.freshdesk.com/support/solutions/articles/1000275389-updating-firmware-on-the-zoia
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Below are instructions on how to update the firmware on your ZOIA and EUROBURO. Attached are the firmware files and the changelog.
0) Backup your patches using the instructions in the manual. To backup patches enter the config menu(shift + the gears icon) and select patches to SD card, then select an existing folder or make a new folder to save your patches in.
1) Download the firmware file from below. It should have the format eezoXXXX.bin where the XXXX is replaced by the version number. If there are two bin files below, the one with the higher version number is still beta. If you're going to use the beta firmware, make double sure to back up your patches! If you want to use old versions of the firmware, please go here.
2) Copy the file to the root directory of a high-capacity microSD card that's been formatted FAT32. Pictured below is the microSD card that comes with the ZOIA, but you can use any microSD card that has HC written on it. Note that some operating system don't want to format things as FAT32 (Some Mac OS's Disk Utility will be stubborn). For these obstinate OSes, you can use the SD Associations SD Memory Card Formatter.
3) For ZOIA, Insert the SD card then power on the pedal. Make sure the pins of the SD card are facing upward, or else ZOIA will prompt you to try again. If you're updating the EUROBURO, the steps are the same except the SD Card's pins will be facing downward. NOTE: DO NOT USE an SD card extender ribbon when updating the ZOIA and EUROBURO, your update will fail.
4) The screen will tell you when ZOIA/EUROBURO sees firmware and what it's doing with it. When it sees an update, it will take 40 seconds to complete the update.
In some cases, the screen won’t tell you anything and will be blank for 40 seconds. Sorry, I know it’s annoying, but it only happens when updating the firmware.
Note: Empress firmware updates are released in the binary (.bin) file format. Some browsers, including Chrome and Firefox, are identifying .bin files as potentially harmful and may prevent users from downloading them. We are working on a solution, but in the interim, please follow the steps below to download these updates.
On Chrome:
On Firefox:
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