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January 11, 2008 10:42 AM

Categories: WowWee Alive Elvis

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fernicus

Member
Joined: 01/11/2008

I got the Elvis for christmas here in Toronto and now it seems as if the bloody things gears are sooo loud!  They don't allow much of the music or dialogue to be heard over them and probably have woken Elvis up and half of Mississippi also.  Any ideas what i can do?  Love the thing but don't want to just junk it.  Any thoughts?

Also, are there any tricks, mods, etc. for it?

thanks all!

Discussion:    Add a Comment | Comments 1-25 of 25 | Latest Comment

January 11, 2008 10:49 AM

Sorry. There's no hope. You should send it straight to me for proper disposal.   Laughing

That would be a joke, I say, a joke, folks. 

On a potentially more helpful note, has the gear noise changed since you got it, or has it always been as loud as it is now?

If it's getting louder, that indicates some sort of wear or slippage issue that's making the mechanism noisier. 

Looking at it from the other side of the signal versus noise problem, has the voice and music changed volume since you got it?  If the desireable sound has gotten quieter, then the undesired sound will seem louder by comparison.

I've never actually seen one of these in person, and so can't comment on what the expected level or whirring is. We do have a couple of active community members who have seen Elvis. They may have more specific advice to offer.

ScottE -- collecting and building robots for 40 years - details in profile

January 11, 2008 10:55 AM

hi S,

it seems that it wasn't this loud before as I remember so I was wondering if I could operate on it and it may be a lube problem perhaps?  It's the gear mechanisms getting louder is the issue it seems.  Maybe WD40 perhaps?  Anyone know how to take it apart without too much damage?  Any else operate on Elvis or have some advice?  I'm getting there!  loool

January 11, 2008 10:56 AM

Just a thought but, is it posable that it just needs oiled or something like that.  If the gears are tite and there is a lot of friction the motors would need to work harder and as a result would be louder, wouldn't they?  Im just guessing so I mite be completely wrong.  Unless someone else here thinks this is  a good possability.

January 11, 2008 11:17 AM

I think i would have to take it apart to oil the gears to be honest but I'm afraid i might screw it up.  If there was another possibility then great but can't see one. 

January 11, 2008 11:32 AM

Every WowWee mechanism I've peeked inside of had plastic or nylon gears.

If you do decide to lube, pick something that is compatible with plastic. Some petroleum products would damage the plastic.

For what it's worth, WD-40, is a water displacement product, not a lubricant.

Yes, when you spray something with WD-40, the squeaks can be reduced. That's partly because of the liquid nature of the spray providing some lubrication, and partly do to that liquid acting as a solvent to wash out any accumulated water or debris. The lubricating effects are usually short lived. 

I usually hit something with WD-40 to clean it up, then lubricate with something else for a longer term fix.  I would question the use of WD-40 on the plastic gearing until I knew the plastic wouldn't react with the WD-40 solvents.

ScottE -- collecting and building robots for 40 years - details in profile

January 11, 2008 11:54 AM

so Scott,

seems as if there is light at the end of the tunnel.

couple of questions I have -

 1)  is it easy to take the Elvis unit apart to try and lube?  Would it damage it or set things off?

 2)  what would you recommend in lubeing the gears?  Product name?

 thanks again.

January 11, 2008 12:36 PM

fernicus,

I'd recommend you contact GWJax as I believe he is experimenting with Elvis at the moment and planning to remove most if not all of the electronic components. He might have an understanding of how best to get inside your Elvis and some insight into what you should expect to see in there.

Mark 

markcra.com

January 11, 2008 2:18 PM

hi Mark,

I tried to contact him but couldnt send a msg for some reason - system problem maybe?  So I guess no one else knhows how to take him apart to deal with gears maybe?

:)

January 11, 2008 2:37 PM

This website community is not a chat system, it's a forum thread system. It is not "real time" communication, it's a bulletin board. You post your message, and wait, perhaps for days, for the person you are looking for to check the content or their mail.

Any given member might not be online at any given time. That's especially true when you consider that we are an international community. 

You can use PrivateMail if a community member has that feature enabled in their profile. That will result in a "ping" message to the user's personal e-mail, telling them that a message is waiting on the RoboCommunity mail system. 

ScottE -- collecting and building robots for 40 years - details in profile

January 11, 2008 2:41 PM

no offense meant - when it was stated I should try and contact him, that's what I tried to do.  Hey, thanks anyway.

January 11, 2008 2:47 PM

Not many members own an elvis for a variety of reason (In my case, I have yet to find one in a store), and those that do may not be entirely willing to take him apart.

RoboGuide - Your guide to hacking all things WowWee

January 11, 2008 2:56 PM

It's not a question of offense. It's a matter of needing to wait for a reply. If you sent him a PrivateMail, it might take him a while to get around to answering.

Only a fraction of the 1300+ registered robocommunity users are online on any given day.

While you're waiting, here's GWJax's thread showing how he's tearing down an Elvis for rework.

http://www.robocommunity.com/forum/thread/12447/The-NEW-Elvis-skin/ 

ScottE -- collecting and building robots for 40 years - details in profile

January 11, 2008 3:13 PM

Fernicus,

OK, the noise you hear is all the gears moving, the only way out is to turn up the volume on your remote. The control is at the top and has a slide bar that will move to the right "louder" and left "quieter" as of taking it apart you must remove the wig and remove part of the skin, mostly where the ears are. if you do remove the wig make sure you do not cut the wig off the skin else you'll have to sew it back on. the Gears are well greased and are as quiet as they are going to be. so just turn up the volume.

PS I will be gone for the weekend my sister is having a leg operation in Atlanta,Ga and I want to be there for her. But I will return. GWJax

GWJax, To Hack and make mods on robots is a life style and comes natural and not by choice. If a robot has a screw to open it then it must be opened!

January 11, 2008 3:21 PM

the remote so you mean the buttons at the top of the microphone?  Is that correct?  I think I maxed out the volume and it doesn't go any higher.  Am I correct there?

Maybe I should turn up the stereo from now on. ;)

 lol

January 11, 2008 3:30 PM

no it is not a button. Look for a little bar and slide it to the right the leds Blue and Red will blink on and off and his voice will get louder muffling the sound of the gears. It's really load so you can plug in your mp3 player or ipod and rock out with it. It almost like the bose system. Let me get a Pic for you.

GWJax, To Hack and make mods on robots is a life style and comes natural and not by choice. If a robot has a screw to open it then it must be opened!

January 11, 2008 3:35 PM

ok here is the pic for the remote. look where my thum is this is where the volume control is.

GWJax, To Hack and make mods on robots is a life style and comes natural and not by choice. If a robot has a screw to open it then it must be opened!

January 13, 2008 7:10 PM

I'm Back home now and my sister is only loosing her big toe and pinkey toe and not the leg. But back to the topic, Did this help you out. If not let me know and I'll dig a little bit deaper in to the audio electronics boards which are easy to access without pulling the skin or wig off , Just pull off the bottom plaand the circuits are there. GWJax

GWJax, To Hack and make mods on robots is a life style and comes natural and not by choice. If a robot has a screw to open it then it must be opened!

January 15, 2008 9:08 AM

By accident, my daughter figured out how to turn up the volume when I had no clue.  I asked her how she knew that and she said that she just played with it enough to know how to work it.  Riggghhhhhtttttt......

I told her why didn't I think of that and she asked me if I read the manual.  I told her no and she said well, that's why the manual is there.  sigh, more and more like my ex every day.

 Well, the volume muffles the noise for sure but is everyone's Elvis the same in respects to the loudness factor?  Love to hear what you have to say.  I wonder if I can grease the gears or perhaps leave it as is and not kill myself in the process.

p.s. when I had gone away in another room, my 9 year old decided to give Elvis a makeover giving him glitter lipstick in the process, making him look like one of the extras from the movie Can't Stop The Music.  :) 

January 15, 2008 5:53 PM

The noise is in everyone's Elvis. The main noise is the gear box inside of his head that turns the head left and right. Inorder to get inside of the gear box you must remove the wig and skin and the front of the face shell, jaw and the two lip lifters. I do not recomend you do this unless you plan on hacking it. Putting it back togeather will be a roal pain in the "you know what I as going to say" but there are kid in the room. LOL The only gears that you could grease is in th bottom of the base that tilts the head and these are screw gears and they do not make that much noise so no need to grease. Have fun with your glitter liped Elvis

ps. to take the shine off the face pat the skin down with some babby powder.

GWJax

GWJax, To Hack and make mods on robots is a life style and comes natural and not by choice. If a robot has a screw to open it then it must be opened!

January 16, 2008 8:24 AM

no worries - I've already resigned myself to life with Noisy Elvis gears bust - I've come to peace with it (kinda like having someone around that's constantly grinding their teeth)

 p.s. I like Elvis with Happy Shiny Face - I think I'll leave him that way. ;)

April 20, 2008 8:23 PM

ive bought one elvis head and played around a while and didnt have a problem noise at all

Im Working On Building An Android With My PC. Im financing my projects online with SFI
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April 20, 2008 9:48 PM

You must have turned up the volume a bit. Unless they have redesigned it since I got mine. hmmmm Do you plan on opening it up jackrabbit? If so I'de like to see the inards for any changes.
Thanks GWJax

GWJax, To Hack and make mods on robots is a life style and comes natural and not by choice. If a robot has a screw to open it then it must be opened!

April 27, 2008 4:23 AM

It does seem pretty loud out of the box. Just got my Elvis today. Yet to play with the volume, but just the basic eyebrow movements seem to scream. I will open him up and try to lubricate but I wonder if replacing the plastic gears with metal or trying quieter motors but be a better long term solution.

April 27, 2008 11:23 AM updated: April 27, 2008 11:24 AM

When opening up the Elvis to get to the gear boxes in the brows or getting to the top motor you will need to remove the skin. please refer to the articles if you have not already this will help you out in taking it apart. just be very carful when it comes to the eye lids.
GWJax

ps. please post pics for me inside your Elvis head so I can see if any upgrades or down grades where done. thanks

GWJax, To Hack and make mods on robots is a life style and comes natural and not by choice. If a robot has a screw to open it then it must be opened!

March 23, 2013 2:09 PM

Hello I have a elvis wowwee and it was working fine(I don't have remote) its just stopped working and making a really load noise like the motors stuck, can anyone help, apart from this noise nothing is work at all apart from that loud noise

Discussion:    Add a Comment | Back to Top | Comments 1-25 of 25 | Latest Comment

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