Which is an 88 note hammer action MIDI controller, and basically nothin' else. Here's what the problem was: all of a sudden, certain notes sounded really weak and quiet (the unit wasn't transmitting sufficient velocity to sound the note properly), while other notes would only sound if you played the key very gently. If you hit the note too hard, no data was transmitted. Upon opening the case, which conveniently hinges upwards like the hood of a car, you find that this unit is basically a small motherboard, a couple of pots for the pitch and modulation wheels and a big honkin key unit. There are relatively few connections. I started by cleaning the ribbon connectors. Didn't help. Then I pulled the MOBO out and checked for bad connections or solider joints. Didn't see anything. Then I unbolted the key bank from the bottom of the case and flipped it over. Two more ribbon connections to clean. Again, that wasn't it. Then I removed six brackets from the bottom of the key bank and unscrewed the circuit boards that contain the velocity and on/off sensors. These consist of a bank of 88 rubber boots with little carbon dots inside to close the circuit on the surface contacts on the pc board. Crude, but effective. I pulled all the little silicone rubber booties off of the pc board and cleaned the contact surfaces on the pc board with iso alcohol on a q-tip. This is the point where you tell yourself, "Either I'm going to fix this thing and feel smug all afternoon, or I have just given myself a reason to go to Guitar Center with a stupid look on my face." I likewise cleaned the small black contact dots in the rubber boots, let them dry and reinstalled them on the pc boards. Reinstalled the pc boards on the key bank. Reinstalled the key bank and reconnected the ribbon cables. Screwed the whole mess back together. Plug in. Turn on interface. Open a VST synth. Pray. Play. It worked! According to what I've seen on Google, this is a common problem with this unit. I have to conclude that it is very sensitive to humidity and that this causes poor contact problems with the surface mounted contacts on the pc boards underneath the key bank. It's a relatively low-skill-level maintenance task, but it's a royal pain-in-the-arse to do because it involves removing and re-installing something like 20-30 screws in the process. Plus the silicone boots for the contacts are much easier to remove from the pc board than they are to reinstall. This is the only complaint I have about this unit. It has the most realistic piano feel of any controller I've tried and the only thing I've seen that seems similar is on some Yamaha synths like the S-90. Worth the effort, IMHO. malachi
"Malachi" <> blatted: >Which is an 88 note hammer action MIDI controller, and basically nothin' >else. > >Here's what the problem was: all of a sudden, certain notes sounded really >weak and quiet (the unit wasn't transmitting sufficient velocity to sound >the note properly), while other notes would only sound if you played the key >very gently. If you hit the note too hard, no data was transmitted. > >Upon opening the case, which conveniently hinges upwards like the hood of a >car, you find that this unit is basically a small motherboard, a couple of >pots for the pitch and modulation wheels and a big honkin key unit. There >are relatively few connections. > >I started by cleaning the ribbon connectors. Didn't help. > >Then I pulled the MOBO out and checked for bad connections or solider >joints. Didn't see anything. > >Then I unbolted the key bank from the bottom of the case and flipped it >over. Two more ribbon connections to clean. Again, that wasn't it. > >Then I removed six brackets from the bottom of the key bank and unscrewed >the circuit boards that contain the velocity and on/off sensors. These >consist of a bank of 88 rubber boots with little carbon dots inside to close >the circuit on the surface contacts on the pc board. Crude, but effective. > >I pulled all the little silicone rubber booties off of the pc board and >cleaned the contact surfaces on the pc board with iso alcohol on a q-tip. > >This is the point where you tell yourself, "Either I'm going to fix this >thing and feel smug all afternoon, or I have just given myself a reason to >go to Guitar Center with a stupid look on my face." > >I likewise cleaned the small black contact dots in the rubber boots, let >them dry and reinstalled them on the pc boards. > >Reinstalled the pc boards on the key bank. > >Reinstalled the key bank and reconnected the ribbon cables. > >Screwed the whole mess back together. > >Plug in. Turn on interface. Open a VST synth. > >Pray. > >Play. > >It worked! > >According to what I've seen on Google, this is a common problem with this >unit. I have to conclude that it is very sensitive to humidity and that >this causes poor contact problems with the surface mounted contacts on the >pc boards underneath the key bank. It's a relatively low-skill-level >maintenance task, but it's a royal pain-in-the-arse to do because it >involves removing and re-installing something like 20-30 screws in the >process. Plus the silicone boots for the contacts are much easier to remove >from the pc board than they are to reinstall. > >This is the only complaint I have about this unit. It has the most >realistic piano feel of any controller I've tried and the only thing I've >seen that seems similar is on some Yamaha synths like the S-90. > >Worth the effort, IMHO. > >malachi > I did the same thing successfully purely on instinct (no research) on a cheaper Fatar. Scary but effective!
<Orangefreak> wrote in message news:... > "Malachi" <> blatted: >>Which is an 88 note hammer action MIDI controller, and basically nothin' >>else. >> >> > > I did the same thing successfully purely on instinct (no research) on > a cheaper Fatar. Scary but effective! > What's kinda cool is that the thing seems to be engineered to allow easy access to the insides for routine maintenance. This could also be evidence of a vote of no-confidence by the designers, though. m
pray?? so prayer DOES work, if you work at it, uh... :0) andre "Malachi" <> wrote in message news:L7G8h.8790$... > Which is an 88 note hammer action MIDI controller, and basically nothin' > else. > > Here's what the problem was: all of a sudden, certain notes sounded > really weak and quiet (the unit wasn't transmitting sufficient velocity to > sound the note properly), while other notes would only sound if you played > the key very gently. If you hit the note too hard, no data was > transmitted. > > Upon opening the case, which conveniently hinges upwards like the hood of > a car, you find that this unit is basically a small motherboard, a couple > of pots for the pitch and modulation wheels and a big honkin key unit. > There are relatively few connections. > > I started by cleaning the ribbon connectors. Didn't help. > > Then I pulled the MOBO out and checked for bad connections or solider > joints. Didn't see anything. > > Then I unbolted the key bank from the bottom of the case and flipped it > over. Two more ribbon connections to clean. Again, that wasn't it. > > Then I removed six brackets from the bottom of the key bank and unscrewed > the circuit boards that contain the velocity and on/off sensors. These > consist of a bank of 88 rubber boots with little carbon dots inside to > close the circuit on the surface contacts on the pc board. Crude, but > effective. > > I pulled all the little silicone rubber booties off of the pc board and > cleaned the contact surfaces on the pc board with iso alcohol on a q-tip. > > This is the point where you tell yourself, "Either I'm going to fix this > thing and feel smug all afternoon, or I have just given myself a reason to > go to Guitar Center with a stupid look on my face." > > I likewise cleaned the small black contact dots in the rubber boots, let > them dry and reinstalled them on the pc boards. > > Reinstalled the pc boards on the key bank. > > Reinstalled the key bank and reconnected the ribbon cables. > > Screwed the whole mess back together. > > Plug in. Turn on interface. Open a VST synth. > > Pray. > > Play. > > It worked! > > According to what I've seen on Google, this is a common problem with this > unit. I have to conclude that it is very sensitive to humidity and that > this causes poor contact problems with the surface mounted contacts on the > pc boards underneath the key bank. It's a relatively low-skill-level > maintenance task, but it's a royal pain-in-the-arse to do because it > involves removing and re-installing something like 20-30 screws in the > process. Plus the silicone boots for the contacts are much easier to > remove from the pc board than they are to reinstall. > > This is the only complaint I have about this unit. It has the most > realistic piano feel of any controller I've tried and the only thing I've > seen that seems similar is on some Yamaha synths like the S-90. > > Worth the effort, IMHO. > > malachi >
"Andre Lefebvre" <> wrote in message news:R2H8h.344662$5R2.270608@pd7urf3no... > pray?? so prayer DOES work, if you work at it, uh... > > :0) > > andre > > > "Malachi" <> wrote in message > news:L7G8h.8790$... I learned about the power of prayer when I was trying to get my first DAW to work right. Later I was informed that it's considered rude and impious to swear while praying. It worked, though. malachi
Glad you got it fixed. I was installing some RPG ceiling stuff earlier this year and POW. One fell on my K2500. It has the same velocity sensors as the Fatar. I had to replace 1 section of the silicon boots. One of the sensors was damaged. Kurzweil was out of the part (they said it would be on backorder for about 4 months). Got one from Fatar. Seems to be working so far. Max Arwood "Malachi" <> wrote in message news:NhG8h.8794$... > > <Orangefreak> wrote in message > news:... >> "Malachi" <> blatted: >>>Which is an 88 note hammer action MIDI controller, and basically nothin' >>>else. >>> >>> >> >> I did the same thing successfully purely on instinct (no research) on >> a cheaper Fatar. Scary but effective! >> > > What's kinda cool is that the thing seems to be engineered to allow easy > access to the insides for routine maintenance. This could also be > evidence of a vote of no-confidence by the designers, though. > > m >
"Max Arwood" <> wrote in message news:elH8h.8811$... > Glad you got it fixed. I was installing some RPG ceiling stuff earlier > this year and POW. One fell on my K2500. I'll bet that was a four-letter moment. m
On 21 Nov 2006, "Malachi" <> wrote in cakewalk.audio: > What's kinda cool is that the thing seems to be engineered to > allow easy access to the insides for routine maintenance. This > could also be evidence of a vote of no-confidence by the > designers, though. This last summer, a mic stand tipped over and fell on my Roand JV-30 keyboard, snapping one of the keys in half. I opened the unit up discovered it came apart in about 3 units, and that the keys were fairly easy to remove. Looked easy to fix, so I called Roland, and they said they'd sell me a key for only, like 5 dollars (plus $10 shipping, of course.) The key arrived in a couple of weeks, but it about a month before I had time to install it. Putting the new key was pretty simple... but then I found I could not for the life of me remember how the 3 big assemblies fit together! They had come apart very easily, without force, but now nothing seemed to want to come together without major gnashing of plasic and metal. I didn't want to force it, and I finally got discouraged and left the parts sitting in the closet for several more weeks. It reminded me that I had neglected to do what I already know I should... draw a diagram or take some pictures. I eventually needed to use it, and gave it another crack. I finally managed to get them together and now it works, mostly, except that the modulation stick only works to one side now. Only a few screws left over. I probably should have taken it to a dealer and paid the 30 or 40 bucks and saved myself a heap of aggravation. If it breaks again, I expect I'll try to fix it myself again.
Malachi wrote: > Which is an 88 note hammer action MIDI controller, and basically nothin' > else. > > Here's what the problem was: all of a sudden, certain notes sounded really > weak and quiet (the unit wasn't transmitting sufficient velocity to sound > the note properly), while other notes would only sound if you played the key > very gently. If you hit the note too hard, no data was transmitted. > > Upon opening the case, which conveniently hinges upwards like the hood of a > car, you find that this unit is basically a small motherboard, a couple of > pots for the pitch and modulation wheels and a big honkin key unit. There > are relatively few connections. > > I started by cleaning the ribbon connectors. Didn't help. > > Then I pulled the MOBO out and checked for bad connections or solider > joints. Didn't see anything. > > Then I unbolted the key bank from the bottom of the case and flipped it > over. Two more ribbon connections to clean. Again, that wasn't it. > > Then I removed six brackets from the bottom of the key bank and unscrewed > the circuit boards that contain the velocity and on/off sensors. These > consist of a bank of 88 rubber boots with little carbon dots inside to close > the circuit on the surface contacts on the pc board. Crude, but effective. > > I pulled all the little silicone rubber booties off of the pc board and > cleaned the contact surfaces on the pc board with iso alcohol on a q-tip. > > This is the point where you tell yourself, "Either I'm going to fix this > thing and feel smug all afternoon, or I have just given myself a reason to > go to Guitar Center with a stupid look on my face." > > I likewise cleaned the small black contact dots in the rubber boots, let > them dry and reinstalled them on the pc boards. > > Reinstalled the pc boards on the key bank. > > Reinstalled the key bank and reconnected the ribbon cables. > > Screwed the whole mess back together. > > Plug in. Turn on interface. Open a VST synth. > > Pray. > > Play. > > It worked! > > According to what I've seen on Google, this is a common problem with this > unit. I have to conclude that it is very sensitive to humidity and that > this causes poor contact problems with the surface mounted contacts on the > pc boards underneath the key bank. It's a relatively low-skill-level > maintenance task, but it's a royal pain-in-the-arse to do because it > involves removing and re-installing something like 20-30 screws in the > process. Plus the silicone boots for the contacts are much easier to remove > from the pc board than they are to reinstall. > > This is the only complaint I have about this unit. It has the most > realistic piano feel of any controller I've tried and the only thing I've > seen that seems similar is on some Yamaha synths like the S-90. > > Worth the effort, IMHO. > > malachi > > Malachi, When you had it open, did you notice if there was anything like an internal battery that kept a bit of current to the memory? I've got a Studiologic that will reset itself back to the 00 preset even when the power supply is on. I've wondered if it could be a bad battery inside. -- -- Dave Modisette http://web.tampabay.rr.com/cmodiset/webpage/dave_modisette.htm
"Dave (Mod Bod) Modisette" <> wrote in message news:EiL8h.8163$... > Malachi, > > When you had it open, did you notice if there was anything like an > internal battery that kept a bit of current to the memory? I've got a > Studiologic that will reset itself back to the 00 preset even when the > power supply is on. I've wondered if it could be a bad battery inside. > > -- > > -- > Dave Modisette > > http://web.tampabay.rr.com/cmodiset/webpage/dave_modisette.htm Dave, Now that you mention it, no I didn't see any coin batteries on the mobo or anywhere else inside the case. Maybe some kind of flash/static memory in there, or maybe we just have to, in prehistoric fashion, reenter your favorite settings each time you turn the beastie on. m
