Will sustain pedal work in old keyboard with single output jack?

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I have an old Casiotone CT-370 with a single 1/8" output jack. I bought a damper pedal and 1/4" jack adapter, but plugging in the pedal removes the sound, as it's for headphones, I guess. Is there some other way to hook up a damper pedal? The keyboard is not often used so I would spend as little money as possible. Please give answers in simple layman's terms.
 

happyrat1

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OUTPUT IS NOT FOR PEDALS!!!

It is an Audio OUT signal for headphones or an amp.

If your keyboard does not have a jack marked FOOTSWITCH IN or CC PEDAL IN then THERE IS NO WAY YOU CAN PLUG IN ANY PEDAL!!!!!!

Stop Doing This BEFORE YOU BRICK YOUR KEYBOARD!!!

Gary :eek:
 

SeaGtGruff

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From what I can see online, the CT-370 doesn't have a jack for plugging in a pedal. As Gary said, plugging a pedal into the Audio Out jack won't work and could damage the instrument's electronics.

One possibility that comes to mind would be to connect the CT-370's Audio Out to the Audio In on a computer and use a sustain effect in a DAW. It might be possible to control the sustain effect in the DAW using a MIDI pedal controller. The sound would come from the computer's speakers, rather than the CT-670's built-in speaker.

Another possibility might be to get a sustain pedal for an electric guitar-- there's no reason why effects pedals for guitars can't be used with keyboards. You'd connect the keyboard's Audio Out to the pedal's Audio In, then connect the pedal's Audio Out to a speaker. This isn't the same as plugging in a pedal designed for a keyboard, since those types of pedals are designed to send power/signals to the instrument to control the sustain, expression level, etc.-- so it's safe to connect the keyboard's Audio Out to the Audio In on a guitar effects pedal.
 
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From what I can see online, the CT-370 doesn't have a jack for plugging in a pedal. As Gary said, plugging a pedal into the Audio Out jack won't work and could damage the instrument's electronics.

One possibility that comes to mind would be to connect the CT-370's Audio Out to the Audio In on a computer and use a sustain effect in a DAW. It might be possible to control the sustain effect in the DAW using a MIDI pedal controller. The sound would come from the computer's speakers, rather than the CT-670's built-in speaker.

Another possibility might be to get a sustain pedal for an electric guitar-- there's no reason why effects pedals for guitars can't be used with keyboards. You'd connect the keyboard's Audio Out to the pedal's Audio In, then connect the pedal's Audio Out to a speaker. This isn't the same as plugging in a pedal designed for a keyboard, since those types of pedals are designed to send power/signals to the instrument to control the sustain, expression level, etc.-- so it's safe to connect the keyboard's Audio Out to the Audio In on a guitar effects pedal.

Thank you for the clear explanation and possible options.
 
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If there's no sustain functionality on the keyboard, I don't think anything can be added that will resemble the normal sustain function in any useful or satisfying way. Sustain pedals on electronic keyboards are momentary switches that keep the note going when you take your hand off the keys, so they continue to decay normally while you play other notes.

The 'momentary' part of this is important-- in order to be useful it has to sustain when you depress the pedal and stop when you lift your foot. That's why a guitar sustain pedal wouldn't work--it sustains the first time you step on the pedal, and keeps sustaining until you step on it again. You can see why that wouldn't work. Also, a guitar sustain pedal does a completely different thing--it adds compression or distortion or something that reduces the rate of decay on the note. If you hooked one up to an electric keyboard, it would sound different, but the note would still stop when you lift your fingers off the keys, so it wouldn't be effective at all.

Pedals are typically of two types--'normal open' or 'normal closed', and different brands use different ones. If you get the wrong one, the piano will sustain when you lift the pedal! It's harder than playing from the wrong side of the keyboard. Some better keyboards will detect the pedal when you turn it on so you can use either type. Also, some newer pedals are more complex, with electrrnics that simulate 'half-pedal' effects, in which case you have to use the original pedal.

I have a friend who bought a Casio for $100 that takes a sustain pedal, and it's not bad. For $400 or so you can get a Casio that you could gig on. They're not bad.

I agree with those who suggested against turning on the keyboard with the pedal connected to the audio jack.
 

SeaGtGruff

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Interesting bit of information! Maybe it will prove useful to somebody. :)
 
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It appears that this keyboard's system board was designed to be used in several different models with various options for each, but since this particular model did not have a sustain pedal, there is no guarantee that its operating system would support one, if the connection were installed and one were connected.
 
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Why would an operating system have support for a function not installed on the PC board? It isn't worth the cost or time to modify (or ruin) an electronic device. YMMV Don aka B3
 
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I agree with Ted.

The circuitboard distinctly looks like it is a One Size Fits All type.

It may not just be a case of adding the missing components, there would need to be the tracks on the reverse side of the board as well.

Good luck and do keep us posted on your progress.
 

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