How to solve "octopole RF voltage could not be maintained" error on 6120 Quadrupole LCMS?

Question

I'm having some difficulty troubleshooting an issue I'm having with our mass spec 6120B model G7111B. Intermittently I receive an error for "octopole RF voltage could not be maintained" and the mass spec shuts down mid-run. I then shutdown the computer and reboot and the mass spec runs fine after that. I called the service line and they said it could be 1 of 4 issues, either the octopole itself is bad, voltage on the PCA board is off and they suggested "dipping" the instrument, or either the PCA or main board is bad. I was getting this error last year and plugged the octopole assembly out and cleaned it and did not have an issue for 4-5 months until recently when it flagged the same error code. Any suggestions that could be implemented internally would be great.

m4esti · Answer

Hi All,

There is no customer viewable documented procedure for dipping octupole pca.. We cannot give procedures that require going under the covers due to safety concerns. Dipping could fix your issue but it could be a deeper issue such as rod drop in octupole assy. You will need to have onsite.

elizabethagilent · Answer

I am a field service engineer, and honestly I am not sure if I'm allowed to share the procedure with customers for safety reasons: the dipping procedure is done with the cover over the electronics tub off and the voltages on, so there is the possibility of getting shocked if the procedure is not done correctly or if other components are unintentionally touched while doing the procedure. I suggest calling Agilent online technical support (if you are in the US, the number is 800 227-9770) and asking if there is a documented procedure that they can share with you as a customer.

How to solve "octopole RF voltage could not be maintained" error on 6120 Quadrupole LCMS?

Top Replies