Elektron Recalls Power Handle For Model:Cycles, Model:Samples

Elektron has announced a recall for the recently introduced Power Handle BP-1 for the Model:Cycles & Model:Samples.

They say that, under certain circumstances, the Power Handle BP-1 can cause a short circuit, potentially posing a burn and/or fire hazard to consumers.

Background: Elektron has discovered a manufacturing error involving some Power Handles that may cause overheating in the battery handle and the cable attaching the handle to the Model:Samples or Model:Cycles. Initial research suggests that the issue affects a very small number of units.Elektron says that they have notified global consumer protection authorities and made the voluntary decision to initiate a full recall of the product.

What Owners Should Do

Due to the possibility of safety risks, Elektron has decided to recall all the Power Handles in the market.

They ask that you:

  • Stop using the Power Handle immediately
  • Unplug the Power Handle
  • Remove the batteries
  • Contact them to get a full refund

See the Elektron site for details.

35 thoughts on “Elektron Recalls Power Handle For Model:Cycles, Model:Samples

  1. Chance for a redesign – without the external cable nonsense!
    Maybe even with included rechargeable battery pack ?

  2. Honest question from a potential buyer of one of the main units: Does anyone know if the quality and durability of the buttons/pads has been improved or revised? I’m not necessarily talking about responsiveness, which may still be an issue – but I know early on with Samples, people were needing to get the entire button/pad membrane replaced. Sometimes repeatedly.

      1. I also Agree with Eoin. The point of a good product, is to not have to buy a new one every year but use updates as they come out. This is actually a selling point of Elektron products and isn’t negative at all.

        1. Bought an Octatrack in 2012 and I’m still getting valuable updates. Literally no other synth company on the planet has as an aftermarket policy good as Elektron

          1. There are only a handful of companies that release firmware updates that take an instrument to a whole new level, and Elektron does it more than just about anybody.

            The free updates for the Octatrack, A4 & Rytm have been especially amazing.

            A few other examples stand out in my mind – Novation with their updates for the Circuit and Bass Station 2, and Moog with the Mother-32.

            I wish that Korg would keep developing the Prologue, because it’s a very good synth that could be a classic if they gave it a little more love.

    1. Bit offtopic but yes it would be nice when there is something new released.

      For me its more like 42 months sins they released an instrument of intrest to me, because the models i did not care for personally. I dumped my Elektron savings in products of other companys thanks to Elektron’s release schedule 🙂

      1. Since Elektron started making machines the consumer synth market has changed. There is a broader market of people with a more diverse range of expendable income. Having a range of instruments that covers this is just smart business. Not everyone is willing or able to drop €1800 on their first drum machine

    1. I was kinda wondering the same recently…I don’t think theres 1 jam video on the web released within the past few years that doesn’t have at least 2 Elektron boxes

  3. Re: not releasing anything in 18 months. They’re a small company and the last 18 months we’re not ideal, if I recall correctly.

    1. it’s been the opposite. increased sales from enthusiasts being stuck at home and increased output from other synth makers whose workers have been stuck at home. the only hiccup has been in manufacturing them and getting them out as fast as people want them.

      also…… how small? certainly not as big as korg or roland, but bigger than dreadbox or soma. they’re available at all the american retailers. something on par with moog or arturia? medium sized.

      they were advertising for a rust developer on social media and i hope they found someone. i think the anticipation is high for them to release something awesome, and hopefully not something in the model line for beginners.

    2. Yep, a lot of companies are being told they have a lead time of at least 12 months for parts that were common at the start of 2020… it’s definitely not a great time to try to release something new.

      Model:Cycles is excellent for the price IMHO. That battery handle, not so much. I grabbed a MyVolts Ripcord to run it off a USB battery pack and I’m happy with that.

    3. if they are a small company, they are definitely an exceedingly rich one. I’d like to see them come up with a new machinedrum though.

  4. LOL. I mean who wasn’t laughing when they read this?

    The whole product made little sense. They should’ve designed the models with the battery built in. It would’ve been a way more popular device as well.

      1. Companies need to stop trying to be Apple. Instead, we get portable instruments that you tether to a wall socket with a $50 external battery compartment that spontaneously combusts. I think it’s time they get rid of the ping pong and foosball tables at Elektron and get back to work.

  5. How hard can it be for Elektron to make an awesome sampling Groovebox? At around 1 K. Probably not hard at all! But they are probably too afraid to lose Octa and MD sales for this to happen.

    1. What about a Digitakt MKII that offers: stereo multi sampling, side chain and built in battery at 1K. 🙂

      Would be great, would be awesome, would be almost perfect. But yeah probably not gonna happen any time soon.

  6. I’m kind of bummed for them since I thought it was a cool idea even though its a bit expensive for what it is without any batteries, honestly rechargeable AAs aren’t very pricey however. I love that the handle angles it as well however I don’t like how it kind of adds another 1/3 to bag space when traveling. I’ve been pretty happy using myvolts cables to a usb battery on the cheap, but I loved the idea of this, I hope they can work it out and deliver a proper product, the samples and cycles are super fun lightweight little boxes that should be more portable IMHO.

  7. I work for a PCB Manufacturing company, and I can confirm that sourcing components to build ‘stuff’ is a huge issue. We have a full order book from major companies such as BAE, Ford etc but our production lines are struggling to build anything becuase of sourcing parts (and more recently getting them delivered).. Those pesky covid kids aren’t going down the tin mines !

  8. I waited until the Power Handle was released to buy my Model:Cycles, because I didn’t want the device without it being portable. When it was released, I bought the Power Handle and Model:Cycles together at the same time directly from Elektron. Then, they recalled the Power Handle.

    During my Power Handle recall process, I explained to Elektron twice that the only reason I bought the M:S was that the Power Handle became available. I asked them to accept the return of my M:S as well, but they wouldn’t even acknowledge my situation, and wouldn’t accept the return of my M:S because it was outside their normal return window.

    Really disappointed with Elektron’s lack of custom support. To me, this seemed like a reasonable request. I hope there aren’t a lot of people in this situation.

    1. Dude, sell it. In case you haven’t noticed, Elektron fans are even more fanatical than Apple fans in 2009.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *