Rage Wireless Guitars recalled, chemical burns deemed too emo

Performance Designed Products' Rage Wireless Guitar isn't the most well known Guitar Hero peripheral out there, but that's apt to change in a hurry after this. Said instrument has just been recalled after the company received a single report of a burn after the user self-pwnt him / herself by installing the AA batteries incorrectly. Apparently the circuit board within the axe is "defective" in such a way that it causes cells to leak if they are inserted in an incorrect manner, and thus, it poses a risk of chemical burn to the rocker handling it. Interestingly, consumers who own one are instructed to return the thing to the original place of purchase rather than PDP itself, so we'd recommend wrapping your arm in gauze and printing out the read link to help your case if you've trashed the receipt.

[Via SlipperyBrick]

[Canoo @ Oct 23rd 2008 8:13AM]

FACE MELTING!

[Seanross @ Oct 23rd 2008 12:49PM]

My Chemical Romance?

[nanobis @ Oct 23rd 2008 8:15AM]

We all know guitar hero was dangerouse for your Image as a rocker. Just never that it was bad for your health.

[Mobius_1 @ Oct 23rd 2008 9:15AM]

But being bad for health should mean it's good for image of a rocker...

[konshuss @ Oct 23rd 2008 9:42AM]

then again holding a modular piece of plastic with no fret or strings in front of a leisure suit larry: magna cum laude style 'press the right button now' scroller never made anyone a rocker.

[dervheid @ Oct 23rd 2008 8:15AM]

Cue the "this wouldn't happen if you were learning to play a real guitar" chip on shoulder brigade!

[Wwhat @ Oct 23rd 2008 1:44PM]

Quite a few people have died due to accidents with (real) electrical guitars, including pro's.

[paakofi @ Oct 23rd 2008 8:17AM]

Is anyone experiencing a bug in the comments section that forces the page to scroll down and select the "Add Comment" button. This has been happening for a week now. Prevents me from reading the comments section unless i manully hold the scroll button down

[blizz419 @ Oct 23rd 2008 8:22AM]

doesn't happen to me, what browser are you using, firefox here

[paakofi @ Oct 23rd 2008 8:45AM]

Disabled LastPass and it stopped happening. Will go over to the LastPass forums to follow up on this error.

Only happened while I was on engadget though.

[dervheid @ Oct 23rd 2008 9:09AM]

Only when I reply. It posts the same comment half a dozen times!

[dervheid @ Oct 23rd 2008 9:09AM]

Only when I reply. It posts the same comment half a dozen times!

[dervheid @ Oct 23rd 2008 9:10AM]

Only when I reply. It posts the same comment half a dozen times!

[dervheid @ Oct 23rd 2008 9:10AM]

Only when I reply. It posts the same comment half a dozen times!

[dervheid @ Oct 23rd 2008 9:10AM]

Only when I reply. It posts the same comment half a dozen times!

[dervheid @ Oct 23rd 2008 9:11AM]

Only when I reply. It posts the same comment half a dozen times!

[Mobius_1 @ Oct 23rd 2008 9:16AM]

Dervheid, have mercy on paakofi's inbox

[dervheid @ Oct 23rd 2008 9:19AM]

Ooops.
Think that's it sorted.

[dervheid @ Oct 23rd 2008 9:23AM]

Ooops.
Think that's it sorted.

[maveric101 @ Oct 23rd 2008 9:43AM]

@dervheid

engadget's comment system may be bad, but you're not fooling anyone. your 6 posts are spread across 2-3 minutes.

[dervheid @ Oct 23rd 2008 9:57AM]

Meh!
Hooked you though!!

[happy_penguin @ Oct 23rd 2008 11:43AM]

All work and no play makes dervheid a dull boy.
All work and no play makes dervheid a dull boy.
All work and no play makes dervheid a dull boy.
All work and no play makes dervheid a dull boy

[Stiv @ Oct 23rd 2008 8:32AM]

You know what people could do? They could just put the effing batteries in the right way, that's what.

doctor: How did you get those burns?
kid: I don't know how to operate a double-A battery.
doctor: That's it! I refuse to fight natural selection any more. Get out of here.

[Mobius_1 @ Oct 23rd 2008 9:36AM]

"A Darwin award awaits you, my son, it is DESTINY!"

[Chris @ Oct 23rd 2008 8:34AM]

How do you put batteries in wrong? They have very noticeable +'s and -'s and also the curly spring thing...

[Wwhat @ Oct 23rd 2008 1:46PM]

Some people use recreational drugs before playing you know, respect different lifestyles please.

[Wwhat @ Oct 23rd 2008 8:26PM]

Hmm, squares voting me down? Or what's the issue?

[iEye @ Oct 23rd 2008 8:39AM]

I'd love to meet the moron who could not follow simple instructions...
+ -
___________
_| |
|_ |
|___________|

[Mojo_Yugen @ Oct 23rd 2008 8:58AM]

He probably works at the dumb-ass company that makes a product that spews acid if you put the batteries in the wrong way.

Maybe they should just rename the guitar to the "acid-spewer" and call it a feature.

[Kali4 @ Oct 23rd 2008 9:12AM]

@Mojo

If they did that, they would have to rename their company to Apple, Sony, or Microsoft...

[Alex @ Oct 23rd 2008 11:19AM]

I don't get your little diagram thing. That is, if it was supposed to show some batteries.

Nope. Still don't see it.

[Wwhat @ Oct 23rd 2008 1:48PM]

The diagram screwed up obviously by the commentsystem eating the spaces or something.

[Wwhat @ Oct 23rd 2008 8:27PM]

Ah, I get it, you just vote all my comments down for fun today, I'm ok with that.

[michas_pi @ Oct 23rd 2008 8:44AM]

I bet this made some users RAGE.

[dvsbstrd @ Oct 23rd 2008 9:15AM]

HAHA SO RANDUM XD

[eric f. @ Oct 23rd 2008 8:49AM]

Acid is awesome.

[J. Evans Turner @ Oct 23rd 2008 9:09AM]

I had seen a 3rd-party wireless guitar for Wii at Wal-Mart that did not require the Wii remote, but claimed to work with Guitar Hero 3.

Presumably, it has Bluetooth components built-in. The price was very reasonable, if I recall correctly.

I think this is the same one I noticed, but I'm not sure because Engadget didn't mention which console it was designed for. I didn't notice the horrible whammy bar placement until just now.

[G @ Oct 23rd 2008 11:22AM]

OMG you're right that whammy bar placement is HORRIBLE, where did they even get the idea for that????

[Fray @ Oct 23rd 2008 9:11AM]

Ah Performance Designed Products, making the world a better (and more intelligent) place one acid-burned moron at a time.

[dervheid @ Oct 23rd 2008 9:24AM]

This time.
Maybe...

[kellogs908 @ Oct 23rd 2008 9:30AM]

Rock and Acid have always gone together so well before this, I fail to see the problem

[jose @ Oct 23rd 2008 11:52AM]

doh... you beat me to it...

[Sundog @ Oct 23rd 2008 11:38AM]

One word: Diodes.

[Mike @ Oct 23rd 2008 1:53PM]

Guitar Hero and LSD producing unit all in one. Now THERE is a concept

[Gadgetphile @ Oct 23rd 2008 2:28PM]

I don't get it. Many electronic devices will cause batteries to discharge and potentially leak if installed incorrectly. Why was this device recalled and all the others haven't been?

[happy_penguin @ Oct 23rd 2008 3:11PM]

Because people are fucking stupid and refuse to take responsibility for their own ignorance. The manufacturer probably decided to recall rather than risk backlash on teh internets.

[Mike @ Oct 24th 2008 1:15AM]

Every manufacturer is recalling their stuff, are they becoming careless?
www.youtechno.info ----->You Techno

[tekd @ Oct 24th 2008 2:18AM]

I can only presume that the leaking takes quite a while to occur since even if you directly shorted AA batteries they wouldn't immediately explode. So most people who actually manage to insert the batteries wrong would probably notice that their stupid controller didn't work and swap it long before the batteries ever blew up.

Anyways, the real problem with this product isn't the circuitry so much as a battery holder that actually lets you put in batteries wrong and still lets them complete a circuit.

[dervheid @ Oct 24th 2008 2:59AM]

Woo Hoo!
Another day, another set of low rankings.
Some people out there need to get a life if you've time to mark that many comments down.
Let's see who we can piss off today!

[Bjsfreaked @ Oct 24th 2008 4:56AM]

Am i the only one thats really notcied the guitar has the buttons at the stem of the neck and not just in the top of the guitar where the usual buttons are? like the holes on the side of the neck is a sual look for the Rock band guitar?
Is it just me who's noticed that?