Two issues: Piano tuning; Alesis QS7.1 doesn't work!

[rw2003]

Hey Folks... I'm usually on the Guitar Player forum but I have a keys question/problem... or two!

 

1. Had my console piano recently tuned for the first time in a couple of years. The tuner said he needs to come back for a second tuning in a month or so to fine tune it. I'm okay with that. The piano was pretty far out of tune so I understand it takes a bit of work to get it back. But... after the tech finished his work I now have a few keys that stick... they did not prior to the tuning. Any ideas why?

 

2. My Alesis QS7.1 just stopped working on me. This synth leads a easy life... spending most of the time on its stand collecting dust. I didn't do anything, like drop it or spill anything into it! It used to work fine... Now when I power it up, the display screen lights but no text is displayed. There is no audio output to my amp! I tried to reinitialize it as per the user manual but nothing changed. (Power on and hold the 0 and 3 buttons down).

 

Any ideas of what I can do before I bring it in to a repair shop and spend $ on an out of warranty repair?

 

Thanks!

Rob

 

 

[Sven Golly]

2. My Alesis QS7.1 just stopped working on me. This synth leads a easy life... spending most of the time on its stand collecting dust. I didn't do anything, like drop it or spill anything into it! It used to work fine... Now when I power it up, the display screen lights but no text is displayed. There is no audio output to my amp! I tried to reinitialize it as per the user manual but nothing changed. (Power on and hold the 0 and 3 buttons down).

 

Any ideas of what I can do before I bring it in to a repair shop and spend $ on an out of warranty repair?

 

You didn't clearly state how long ago it "used to work fine", but I'd check the manual for instructions on the battery that powers the internal memory in the synth; if it's been collecting dust for as long as you're hinting at, the battery may be dead, or worse it may have corroded in the synth and damaged internal components.

 

If the battery is fine, we can move on to other items. Luckily we have a number of folks who are intimately familiar with the Alesis line of synths, so we may be able to save you some $, at least in the diagnosis.

[rw2003]

How long??? I bought the synth new from Sam Ash... Maybe about 8 years ago.

 

The User Manual make no reference to a battery but the Service Manual does. Here is the first reference...

 

"CAUTION

Danger of explosion if battery is incorrectly replaced.

Replace only with the same type or equivalent type

recommended by the equipment manufacturer.

Battery Manufacturer: Panasonic/Matsushita

Type: BR2325

Rating 3V, 5mA"

 

 

Second Reference...

2.13 SRAM Battery Backup

The user storage/system SRAM requires a small standby supply current while it is

normally powered down. The battery current is supplied via a transistor circuit (Q7 Q4 Q4)

designed prevent the +5V rail from trying to charge the battery, while ensuring that a solid +5V

is supplied to the SRAM during normal operation.

 

 

 

Thanks.

[Sven Golly]

How long??? I bought the synth new from Sam Ash... Maybe about 8 years ago.

 

Actually I was concerned with how long ago you last used it; has it been powered off an unused for 12+ months, or just a few weeks?

 

Also, had anything odd been occurring when you last used it? Patches sounding odd, losing memory, parameters changing to random/garbled values?

 

 

 

[_Maximus_]

On 2

 

It sounds to me like you now have a brick

 

i once had to replace the screen on my QS6, and nowadays the vol pot is kind of death (but it still works), is very unlikely both things happening at the same time, so it sounds to me is something more serious like a blown motherboard.

 

But don't take my word for it, get a musician friend that knows about electronics to take a closer look at it before taking it to the shop, and ask around for repair prices (i hear repairs in the US are expensive)

 

On the bright side since you live in the US, alesis QS*'s are a dime a dozen so you could probably get another for $300, and now got spare parts for it.

[rw2003]

I don't use it all too often. Last good use...I have to say in the range of a few months, maybe up to 6 months. And yes for the past 12 months or so prior it had been doing some funny things. Kind of the things you describe. It did the reinitialize - power on with 0 and 3 buttons held - and it seemed to clear out those issues.

[rw2003]

Maximus... I hope its something minor, not the mb... If I can't get it going with the help here then the next stop is the local repair shop near me...TripleS. Their upfront minimum charge is $45 and then its $75/hr + parts.

 

http://www.triplesservice.com/aboutus.shtml

 

 

 

[Sven Golly]

I don't use it all too often. Last good use...I have to say in the range of a few months, maybe up to 6 months. And yes for the past 12 months or so prior it had been doing some funny things. Kind of the things you describe. It did the reinitialize - power on with 0 and 3 buttons held - and it seemed to clear out those issues.

 

Okay, so get it in for a battery replacement. If you're fortunate, the battery hasn't leaked (it's unlikely, but it does happen on occasion), and that's all you'll need.

 

If you're reasonably handy, you can open it up yourself; put it on a large level surface that's covered by a soft towel so as to not scratch the unit nor damange the knobs/sliders. Keep track of what screws you remove, and take notes if you need to. You're not going to want to try to do anything yourself (no offense, but if you could service anything inside the unit, you wouldn't have needed to ask about it ), but you'll be able to see if anything looks amiss.

 

Best of luck!

 

[_Maximus_]

i really dont think is the a death battery althou a leaked battery would explain a lot, the battery on the QS are not for supporting the OS, their OS is on a chip so with a death battery you've probably only lose your User Banks.

 

good luck thou, i didn't mean to sound pessimistic

[Dave Bryce]

Battery needing replacing wouldn't result in zero audio output, I don't think. The User bank would be blank, but the presets would still be there...

 

I think repair shop is the way unfortunately....or, as Maximus said, see if you can find someone selling one another for cheap.

 

dB

[rw2003]

Thanks! If the battery is all it is then great. I usually like to tinker with things but I will let the shop do the repair (get it right the first time!)

 

 

[Jim Alfredson]

1. Had my console piano recently tuned for the first time in a couple of years. The tuner said he needs to come back for a second tuning in a month or so to fine tune it. I'm okay with that. The piano was pretty far out of tune so I understand it takes a bit of work to get it back. But... after the tech finished his work I now have a few keys that stick... they did not prior to the tuning. Any ideas why?

 

Regarding sticky keys, just call him and tell him. I'm sure he'll repair them when he comes back. Usually it's something simple. I don't charge for that kind of work if it's part of a tuning and isn't a symptom of a larger problem, but I don't speak for anyone else.

 

 

[JpScoey]

 

1. Had my console piano recently tuned for the first time in a couple of years. The tuner said he needs to come back for a second tuning in a month or so to fine tune it. I'm okay with that. The piano was pretty far out of tune so I understand it takes a bit of work to get it back. But... after the tech finished his work I now have a few keys that stick... they did not prior to the tuning. Any ideas why?

 

2. My Alesis QS7.1 just stopped working on me. This synth leads a easy life...

 

spending most of the time on its stand collecting dust.

 

Thanks!

Rob

 

Rob, when a piano is tuned, there is NO INTERFERENCE with the key mechanism at all -

 

when tuning a piano, all you do is actually play the keys to make the notes sound!...

 

repeatedly playing the keys (which is what you do whilst tuning) will, if anything, free notes up -

 

especially the ones that aren't used often.

 

So if they're sticking, you can only put it down to co-insidence, I'm afraid!

 

(This is assuming it is the KEYS sticking - if the tuner has 'nudged' some hammers to one side with his muting wedge,

for example, then that's a different matter).

 

However, your tuner is due to return to fine-tune it, and it will almost certainly be a easy-fix

 

which, as B3-er said, shouldn't be chargable.

 

I would say, though, that *regardless how out of tune it was* it does not NEED a month to 'settle'.

 

When I do a pitch-raise I normally return within a week for the fine-tuning - so call him back sooner !

 

 

As for the QS7 - I know nothing about electronics, but I DO know that a keyboard shouldn't be sitting

 

collecting dust..... at least keep it covered when not in use.

[rw2003]

Ok... the Alesis is in the shop. They already got $45 from me... let's see how much more!!! I post the results back here when I hear from the shop.

 

Now the piano... The tuner suggested waiting the 4 weeks or so. Its okay with me... I'd rather not have to pay for another visit so soon after the first!

 

I will mention the sticking keys to him... I'm sure he'll take care of it as he seems to be a first class individual. Interesting about the "nudging" of the hammers with the mute. I'll open up the piano and take a closer look... maybe even get a video clip to show you folks!

 

THANKS!

 

 

 

 

 

[rw2003]

Follow up on the repair...

 

I picked up the repaired unit yesterday. They had to "replace two blown capacitors in the power supply circuit." Total cost for repair... $10 parts and $115 labor.

 

I'm happy to have my keyboard back in working order. The repair was reasonably priced.

 

I recommend folks in the NY/NJ area using Triple S Service for repairs.

 

Thanks to all who responded here!

 

[_Maximus_]

Brilliant man, i thought it was a gonner, and it was actually a simple fix.

 

I think the fix wasn't that expensive for US standarts, otoh i sended my triton extreme, for service this week, there going to change all switches (latin america kills korg switches) the volume slider, the rotary encoder, battery, and a full revision and cleaning, and its going to be about $ 120.00 just wondering how much would that set me back in the US?.