making a JV90 semi weighted

[Mykhailo]

Last year, I spent the money having a roland tech remove the red glue on my beloved JV80 and re-gluing the weights with a proper adhesive.

 

There is a nice condition JV90 near meâ¦.wondering, if the weights for the JV80 are still available from Roland, would it be possible to secure those weights to the JV90 thereby turning it from a synth action keyboard into a semi weighted keyboard?

 

There was someone on this forum years ago who claimed to have done it but I couldn"t find the thread.

[Bill H.]

If memory serves me, the JV-90 is basically a 76 key version of the JV-80... with the same semi-weighted keybed lengthened to 76 keys. So I don't think you have to worry about getting extra weights.

 

If it's near you, flip it over and check it out. Many Rolands from this era did not experience the glue problem, which I believe occured when they were stored at high temperatures. I never did with mine - and I had a JV-80 for 20 years.

[Mykhailo]

Nope, the JV90 is most definitely not just 'the 76 note version of the JV80â¦'

 

The JV80 and JV1000 were both semi weighted

The JV90 is just synth actionâ¦no weights.

 

I"ve seen three JV90s now and none of them had weights underneath.

[Bill H.]

Ok sorry guess my memory isn't as good as I thought it was

[Mykhailo]

No worries, I thought the same until I kept asking people to send me pics of the weights on the underside to see if the glue was coming out, and they were like 'what weights?'

 

I wonder if JV80 weights would work.

[eric]

Interesting idea, though it seems to have a few risks and unknowns. First off, I am pretty sure it is not easy to buy parts directly from Roland. I had done this MANY years ago and I tried again a few years ago and was told that they don't offer this any more. Perhaps they would sell parts to an authorized repair facility, presuming they have the parts you want.

 

If the JV90 had a different action, modifying it could render undesirable results that may not be known until it's too late. I don't know how similar or dissimilar those actions may be.

 

You may be better served to look at a more modern item that could give you the sounds and features you need (and probably more than exist in a JV90). Perhaps one of the newer Jupiter or Fantom variants. Just a few thoughts.

[Mykhailo]

Thanks Eric, I think I"m going to take a pass. I"m now looking at a JV1000. I"ll have to remove the adhesive again, but I have a soft spot for this keyboard and the JV80.

[BernMeister]

Last year, I spent the money having a roland tech remove the red glue on my beloved JV80 and re-gluing the weights with a proper adhesive.

 

There is a nice condition JV90 near meâ¦.wondering, if the weights for the JV80 are still available from Roland, would it be possible to secure those weights to the JV90 thereby turning it from a synth action keyboard into a semi weighted keyboard?

 

There was someone on this forum years ago who claimed to have done it but I couldn"t find the thread.

I did this to mine, but not with the Roland weights...as someone already mentioned here, the JV-90 keybed is not the same as the XP series. So, simply retrofitting with the XP's weights won't do, and certainly not for the black keys as these are shaped differently.

 

I ended up adding weights the old fashioned way: I glued together some square nuts that were thick enough and had just the right weight, balance and feel. The black keys received some rounded weights that fit into their cavity nicely. Apply epoxy as usual and have lots of patience on hand. If you want to go this route, you might actually like the end result better than an XP80 feel (I love mine so much so). Note to the wise: Don't add the same weights ounce per ounce as that of an XP80 spec; the spring load between these keybeds are not identical. So, unless you're willing to change the springs as well, do yourself a favour and "tape" your weights to a set of keys and work out the best weight balance you feel comfortable with.

[Mykhailo]

Too challenging for me! haha,

[bennyray]

MY JV-90 has no issues with the weights coming unglued but my D-70 did have issues but keep them in storage now play the JV-90 sometimes but rarely

[wineandkeyz]

Okay, here's a wild thought, but it won't be cheap. What if you ordered a set of replacement keys that are semi-weighted and switched them out one-by-one? For example, Keyboard Kountry sells replacement keys at about $4 each, so it would cost about $320 for a complete set of keys. From their pictures in the links below, the semi-weighted and non-weighted look very similar, interchangeable maybe? (I suspect that the springs are different, though.) If I was in your spot really wanted to do what you're talking about, I'd order a representative group of the replacement keys and see if they swap out okay. Then order the rest.

 

Here are the non-weighted keys for the JV-90: https://www.keyboardkountry.com/replacement-keys-for-roland-xp-50-jx-jv-jw-and-others/

And the semi-weighted ones for the JV-80: https://www.keyboardkountry.com/replacement-keys-for-roland-xp-30-60-80-and-others-yellowed/

[Mykhailo]

MY JV-90 has no issues with the weights coming unglued but my D-70 did have issues but keep them in storage now play the JV-90 sometimes but rarely

 

please send us a pic of the underside of your JV90 with the key weights.

 

again, the JV90 did not come with weights, it was a synth action board, not a semi weighted board, so if your JV90 has weights, the owner before you did a mod.

[Mykhailo]

Okay, here's a wild thought, but it won't be cheap. What if you ordered a set of replacement keys that are semi-weighted and switched them out one-by-one? For example, Keyboard Kountry sells replacement keys at about $4 each, so it would cost about $320 for a complete set of keys. From their pictures in the links below, the semi-weighted and non-weighted look very similar, interchangeable maybe? (I suspect that the springs are different, though.) If I was in your spot really wanted to do what you're talking about, I'd order a representative group of the replacement keys and see if they swap out okay. Then order the rest.

 

Here are the non-weighted keys for the JV-90: https://www.keyboardkountry.com/replacement-keys-for-roland-xp-50-jx-jv-jw-and-others/

And the semi-weighted ones for the JV-80: https://www.keyboardkountry.com/replacement-keys-for-roland-xp-30-60-80-and-others-yellowed/

 

very cool site, thanks for sharingâ¦.a bit costly and as others have mentioned, no guarantee that the keys are interchangeable. I put a call into Roland for verification.â¦we shall see.

[Mykhailo]

Ok, I just got off the phone with the head tech at Roland. He does not advise switching the keys between the two boards and confirmed that it could create issues.

 

Just bought a JV1000 off of reverb. Problem solved! ð

[bennyray]

MY JV-90 has no issues with the weights coming unglued but my D-70 did have issues but keep them in storage now play the JV-90 sometimes but rarely

 

please send us a pic of the underside of your JV90 with the key weights.

 

again, the JV90 did not come with weights, it was a synth action board, not a semi weighted board, so if your JV90 has weights, the owner before you did a mod.

 

You are correct I haven't played the JV-90 in years been in storage and will stay there most likely.