HammondDave Posted March 13, 2017 Share Posted March 13, 2017 Jazzooo, I'll sent you a PM and reach out to our team in Mexico. I love Mike Martin! '55 and '59 B3's; Leslies 147, 122, 21H; MODX 7+; NUMA Piano X 88; Motif XS7; Mellotrons M300 and M400’s; Wurlitzer 206; Gibson G101; Vox Continental; Mojo 61; Launchkey 88 Mk III; Korg Module; B3X; Model D6; Moog Model D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timwat Posted March 13, 2017 Share Posted March 13, 2017 Yes, I hate cars too. Just bought one, too - for the fiance. Toyota, Lexus, Scion and Honda seem to occupy the pride of place as lowest annual maintenance costs over time. Mercedes and BMW highest. Not surprising. Back OT, broken gear sux. Agreed that, as a matter of principle, the wise man tries to buy the best in the category, even if that means delaying the purchase and saving a little more to afford the best in the category. But that is no guarantee of absolute reliability anymore, not with today's gear. Stuff always happens. Forrest Gump (during his running days) taught us that. .. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ElmerJFudd Posted March 13, 2017 Share Posted March 13, 2017 Using the Toyota to BMW comparison... Cheaper to fix the Casio or the Nord? Hard to say. Not exactly the same of course. Cars are expected to break down, need maintenance. In fact, auto dealers and manufacturers bottom line is supported very heavily by repairs and maintenance. It's all part of the business. The bean counters have every repair marked as a number of man hours (this is what they'd have to pay the mechanic to do the work), this is what the replacement part(s) would cost, cost of the garage, computer equipment, heating and cooling the facility, all the way down to the "free" coffee and donuts in the waiting room. And all of these costs are passed on to you, the owner/leaser. Hey, that's business. But somehow I don't feel that way about digital instruments... it doesn't seem like they build things to fail, or require much upkeep. Rather that's one of the selling points of a digital over an acoustic instrument. Maybe I'm wrong on that, but it doesn't seem that way at least. Plus, more often than not you wind up using a Yamaha certified independent shop that has access to the service manuals and the parts. I suppose they have to pay Yamaha something for the certification and there's some costs set and rules on warranty repairs. Yamaha CP88, Casio PX-560 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reezekeys Posted March 13, 2017 Share Posted March 13, 2017 They might not "build things to fail", but I suspect some companies might be looking to maximize profit by knowingly going with more failure-prone parts to save a few pennies. They're betting it won't fail during the warrantee period. Not too cynical I am... :-) Another drag is that with circuit boards stuffed with SMDs and lead-free solder, there is very little leeway in repairs now no component level troubleshooting, you're just gonna get stuck replacing an entire board. Roland wants $244 for the main board of my A800 Pro that's 3/4 of the cost of a brand new A800. I feel lucky to have the minimal electronic repair experience I do (along with the help of way more knowledgeable folk in this forum!) it's certainly saved me from having to buy a lot of new gear! Doug, sorry to hear of your troubles. I hope the Hammond repair sticks and you get many more years out of it, and I also hope Mike hooks you up and helps you get your Casio fixed for a reasonable outlay of money and time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Alfredson Posted March 13, 2017 Share Posted March 13, 2017 Hate to be obvious but you did check the SK-1 with a KNOWN GOOD POWER SUPPLY, yes? Busch. This x1000. Are you using a line conditioner? The universal wall-warts / line warts that almost every company is using these days are switch-mode power supplies and if they get funky juice, they can go south and take the keyboard with them. The only problem I've had with the SK series was with my first SK2, playing an outdoor patio gig at a restaurant. I got through the gig fine, although I noticed some glitches that were strange (ciphers and hung notes, which had never been a problem before). The next day I set up that same rig and the SK2 turned on but nothing came up on the screen, no lights on the buttons, no sound... just fried. I sent it back to Hammond and they sent me a replacement and they said, "What did you do to this thing?!?" I guess the chips were just toasted. Well, I played that same patio gig a few weeks later and grabbed my multimeter. The AC on the patio was running at a whopping 90VAC. I also brought my Tripp Lite LC1200 line conditioner, which will take anything from 89 to 147VAC and output clean 110VAC. And I didn't have a problem with that gig again. I carry the Tripp Lite with me to every single gig now. Keep it greazy! B3tles - Soul Jazz THEO - Prog Rock Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aronnelson Posted March 14, 2017 Share Posted March 14, 2017 What I don't understand is... besides the wall warts - don't the keyboards have voltage regulators on board? A simple thing like the LM7812 can handle a lot of over voltage and regulate it down to 12V. Korg Kronos, Roland RD-88, Korg Kross, JP8000, MS2000, Sequential Pro One, Micromoog, Yamaha VL1, author of unrealBook for iPad. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mate stubb Posted March 14, 2017 Share Posted March 14, 2017 Yeah, but they can't handle under voltage. Moe --- Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aronnelson Posted March 14, 2017 Share Posted March 14, 2017 Don't they just shut off with under voltage? What are you saying happens when the voltage goes low? These circuits are designed to handle even power being cut off. If not, then simply unplugging a keyboard would destroy it. Korg Kronos, Roland RD-88, Korg Kross, JP8000, MS2000, Sequential Pro One, Micromoog, Yamaha VL1, author of unrealBook for iPad. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Alfredson Posted March 14, 2017 Share Posted March 14, 2017 Turning off the voltage source is a lot different than low voltage. Keep it greazy! B3tles - Soul Jazz THEO - Prog Rock Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aronnelson Posted March 14, 2017 Share Posted March 14, 2017 Again, what are you saying will happen? For example - under voltage to PX-5S due to dying batteries - the circuit will turn off. Something like this: https://www.maximintegrated.com/en/app-notes/index.mvp/id/279 I'm just trying to find out what you are saying will happen? Are you saying that the keyboard will be damaged by under voltage? Especially if it is powered by a wall wart? Korg Kronos, Roland RD-88, Korg Kross, JP8000, MS2000, Sequential Pro One, Micromoog, Yamaha VL1, author of unrealBook for iPad. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CEB Posted March 14, 2017 Share Posted March 14, 2017 We have reached price points in UPSs that it seems unwise for any keyboard player to be gigging without spending the $100 or less necessary to get UPS battery backup with automatic voltage regulation. I use this one. You can get cheaper ones that are smaller. https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B001126QE0/ "It doesn't have to be difficult to be cool" - Mitch Towne "A great musician can bring tears to your eyes!!! So can a auto Mechanic." - Stokes Hunt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BEMcCut Posted March 14, 2017 Share Posted March 14, 2017 I once had an original Korg CX3 sustain a chord in the middle of a song. I looked at the power conditioner in my rack and the volt meter was down around 90. Everything survived. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reezekeys Posted March 14, 2017 Share Posted March 14, 2017 All my cheapo Chinese switched mode power supplies (and my more expensive Apple power adapter) say they work over a range of 100 to 240 volts. As I see it, that's one of the upsides of my laptop rig since I occasionally go overseas all I need is a $5 plug adapter and I've never been worried about what the voltage is at any venue, anywhere. Should I be? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HammondDave Posted March 14, 2017 Share Posted March 14, 2017 Hate to be obvious but you did check the SK-1 with a KNOWN GOOD POWER SUPPLY, yes? Busch. This x1000. Are you using a line conditioner? The universal wall-warts / line warts that almost every company is using these days are switch-mode power supplies and if they get funky juice, they can go south and take the keyboard with them. The only problem I've had with the SK series was with my first SK2, playing an outdoor patio gig at a restaurant. I got through the gig fine, although I noticed some glitches that were strange (ciphers and hung notes, which had never been a problem before). The next day I set up that same rig and the SK2 turned on but nothing came up on the screen, no lights on the buttons, no sound... just fried. I sent it back to Hammond and they sent me a replacement and they said, "What did you do to this thing?!?" I guess the chips were just toasted. Well, I played that same patio gig a few weeks later and grabbed my multimeter. The AC on the patio was running at a whopping 90VAC. I also brought my Tripp Lite LC1200 line conditioner, which will take anything from 89 to 147VAC and output clean 110VAC. And I didn't have a problem with that gig again. I carry the Tripp Lite with me to every single gig now. Jim... which Tripp Lite model do you use? '55 and '59 B3's; Leslies 147, 122, 21H; MODX 7+; NUMA Piano X 88; Motif XS7; Mellotrons M300 and M400’s; Wurlitzer 206; Gibson G101; Vox Continental; Mojo 61; Launchkey 88 Mk III; Korg Module; B3X; Model D6; Moog Model D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Real MC Posted March 14, 2017 Share Posted March 14, 2017 Had a brownout happen during a gig. Traced it to a bad extension cord. Finished the gig, no damage to gear. DC regulators in power supplies can only regulate with input voltage higher than output voltage. If the input voltage falls below the output voltage, they can't regulate. AC regulators can maintain constant AC output voltage but it's a different circuit from a DC power supply. They also accomplish as the expense of increased current so you have to be careful it doesn't trip a breaker. Frankly I haven't had a need for AC regulators since I have been gigging since 1981. The biggest culprits to power malfunctions has been extension cords or faulty outlets in the walls. Many of the OTS cords frankly are not reliable. I make my own extension cords and have yet to have one fail. I use heavy duty cable with rubber outer jacket (NOT polymer!) and Hubbell AC plugs. You get what you pay for. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DanL Posted March 14, 2017 Share Posted March 14, 2017 Hate to be obvious but you did check the SK-1 with a KNOWN GOOD POWER SUPPLY, yes? Busch. This x1000. Are you using a line conditioner? The universal wall-warts / line warts that almost every company is using these days are switch-mode power supplies and if they get funky juice, they can go south and take the keyboard with them. The only problem I've had with the SK series was with my first SK2, playing an outdoor patio gig at a restaurant. I got through the gig fine, although I noticed some glitches that were strange (ciphers and hung notes, which had never been a problem before). The next day I set up that same rig and the SK2 turned on but nothing came up on the screen, no lights on the buttons, no sound... just fried. I sent it back to Hammond and they sent me a replacement and they said, "What did you do to this thing?!?" I guess the chips were just toasted. Well, I played that same patio gig a few weeks later and grabbed my multimeter. The AC on the patio was running at a whopping 90VAC. I also brought my Tripp Lite LC1200 line conditioner, which will take anything from 89 to 147VAC and output clean 110VAC. And I didn't have a problem with that gig again. I carry the Tripp Lite with me to every single gig now. Jim... which Tripp Lite model do you use? Its in his post- LC1200 Live: Korg Kronos 2 88, Nord Electro 5d Nord Lead A1 Toys: Roland FA08, Novation Ultranova, Moog LP, Roland SP-404SX, Roland JX10,Emu MK6 www.bksband.com www.echoesrocks.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reezekeys Posted March 14, 2017 Share Posted March 14, 2017 I was doing a big show in Poland with our US gear, using transformers for voltage conversion. Every time the bassist thumbed a low E, the voltage dropped and all my gear shut down, then quickly rebooted of course my patches reset to their defaults. That was an interesting gig. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Alfredson Posted March 14, 2017 Share Posted March 14, 2017 Again, what are you saying will happen? For example - under voltage to PX-5S due to dying batteries - the circuit will turn off. Something like this: https://www.maximintegrated.com/en/app-notes/index.mvp/id/279 I'm just trying to find out what you are saying will happen? Are you saying that the keyboard will be damaged by under voltage? Especially if it is powered by a wall wart? The difference between getting DC from an AC adapter and getting it from batteries is that a voltage decrease in a switchmode AC adapter results in it pulling more current to try and make up the difference. There's a lot of current available via the AC. The batteries don't pull more current, they just slowly die. Keep it greazy! B3tles - Soul Jazz THEO - Prog Rock Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jazz+ Posted March 14, 2017 Share Posted March 14, 2017 I love me gear: Mojo 61 keyboard Casio PX-360 digital piano Harry Likas was the Technical Editor of Mark Levine's "The Jazz Theory Book" and helped develop "The Jazz Piano Book." Find 700 of Harry’s piano arrangements of standards for educational purposes and jazz piano tutorials at www.Patreon.com/HarryLikas Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TommyRude Posted March 15, 2017 Share Posted March 15, 2017 I had a love hate relationship with this rig, the Roland S-550. This isn't mine, I dumped that sucker a long time back, but I had the same setup with the funky ass monitor. Used 1.44mb floppy discs, I had a case full of them. At one time or another any one of the 3 components would fail, the S-550, the monitor or the disc(s). When it worked, it was awesome, lots of love! I would sample all kinds of stuff and play it live along with my regular rigs. It required crude programming knowledge and technique, and along with a healthy imagination you could get some pretty killer sounds. But man, when that baby went down, major HATE! I remember it happened one time at a pretty important gig at the Roxy in Hollywood, was pissed! Had to reboot it about 3 times before it started to function correctly. http://medias.audiofanzine.com/images/normal/roland-s-550-234955.jpg Some music I've recorded and played over the years with a few different bands Tommy Rude Soundcloud Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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