When I plug in the sustain pedal to my xs6, the sustain engages without even depressing the pedal and won’t turn off. I’ve tried a couple of pedals and I have to reboot it to turn it off.  Does anyone have any ideas of what it could be?

What happens if you depress the pedal and hold it in that position?

Pressing the pedal has no effect at all.

grlee1970 - 17 October 2020 07:48 PM

Pressing the pedal has no effect at all.

If the pedal you tried just had incorrect polarity for the XS, it would have worked in reverse to expected operation - that is, the sustain would have stopped when the pedal was depressed. If it had a polarity switch, I would have suggested trying the other position. Since the reverse operation didn’t occur, it appears that the pedal isn’t wired for use with the Motif.

I suggest that you get a pedal compatible with the XS. The Motifator Shop is a source for Yamaha ones.

Thanks for the replies.  But I’ve tried 2 Yamaha pedals with my motif.  The fc3 and the fc4.  It has sat for a wile with the sustain pedal jack plugged in it.  I’ve never had problems with it before.  It’s really gone back and forth from the sustain being on right when I plug in the pedal to plugging in the pedal and the sustain not locked until you press the pedal and then it stays on regardless of whether I press down on the pedal or leave it up. When I change voices it will turn off the sustain.  But will go back to doing the above mentioned all over again.  The only thing I know to do is spray some contact cleaner in the jack because I don’t think it’s the pedals but instead the jack itself.  Thanks again for your reply, If you have any other suggestions please let me know.

The Motif requires a sustain pedal with normally-closed contacts. The sustain Jack has built-in switch contacts - when no plug is inserted, those contacts are closed, just as if a pedal was connected but not depressed. If the XS doesn’t sustain with the pedal unplugged, but does when a pedal is plugged in, then the sustain circuit is working as expected.

Spraying contact cleaner into the jack can sometimes cause more problems than it fixes. If you think that the plugs aren’t making good contact with the jack, then I suggest this…
Connect a plug, rotate it back and forth about 1/4 turn several times. Remove the plug and clean it well with a dry rag or paper towel. Repeat a few times, and recheck operation.

Otherwise…
Make sure that the Sustain Pedal setting in Utility mode is correct for the pedal you’re using. From Utility mode, press [F1] > [SF1]. I suggest trying the FC4 again, with the “FC4/FC5” Utility setting, since the FC4 avoids the issue of the “half damper”. See pages 259-260 of the XS Owner’s Manual, General Settings,
(4) Sustain Pedal for details.

Of course, there’s the possibility that the pedals or their cords are damaged. Are they known to work properly with other gear that uses normally-closed type pedals?

I tried inserting the plug and rotating it but had no success.  I did take your suggestion by going into the utility menu and changing pedal parameters.  It did cure the problem.  I think it may have been an OS glitch since I had not changed any parameters since I last used it months ago. But it is working properly now.  My next idea was to conduct a factory reset.  I wish to thank you for taking the time to answer my questions.  I know that you consistently offer solutions to Yamaha users and we really appreciate you.  Thank you again. 
Greg

I’m glad that the problem has been resolved. You’re welcome, and thanks for the kind words.