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made in 1993, it has early analog - digital converters, so it sounds very punchy and fat.

I'm glad I'm not the only one who noticed that! Like you said, I've always felt that early a-d converters have a unique sound I like. When I try to tell that to people, they think I'm crazy because they say 'digital is digital'  :roll:  Anyway, you got a great sound. I'm looking forward to hearing more of your stuff.

Very nice! The mix is very clean and the rhodes sounds great. How did you record it... direct output from the rhodes into the DP4 & into the computer?

P.S. Great work on the bass, too!

[It's an easy fix]

I think it is HILARIOUS when the seller claims that their organ is in "excellent condition" and then mentions that two keys don't work, and some such other defect is "really easy to fix."

Seller's Glossary
It's an easy fix = "It's completely hopeless. I thought I could fix it myself, but I ended up screwing it up even worse and then finding out it'll cost hundreds to repair, so now I'm trying to pawn it off on some other sucker."

I don't trust myself with power tools so I use an x-acto knife. I lay the tolex on top of cardboard and cut with strong downward pressure. You can feel/hear when the knife cuts the cardboard, so you know it's going all the way through the tolex.

:lol:
That's some tough competition.
"if $1.00 to much then how about FREE"

*pokes head out of dumpster*
Someone say ratty old sofa?

Man, I must be driving down the wrong streets. All I ever find are ratty old sofas.

Big congrats on your find, JJ. You are now embarking on a lifelong adventure. Check out the manual tjh posted, then take it one section at a time and feel free to ask for tips.

Like you did, I would start at the harp, making sure all the tines are in tune & working (as well as the pickups). Then move on to the hammers, dampers & work your way down to the keys. But everyone has a different strategy, I'm sure. Have fun with it!

Hey I like that method. No work.

Lucky for me the warp is in a convenient spot; the left edge lip is curved inward. So I can probably just hang it by that lip and let it straighten itself out by its own weight. Thanks, I'll give it a few days.

I was about to start painting my harp cover when I noticed it's slightly warped on one edge. Is there an easy way to bend the plastic back in shape? Will a hair dryer & some clamps do the trick?

Cool, I think I'll start doing that. I also found a nifty program called CaptureIt which will save an image of any window you point to (it scrolls all the way down).

:shock: Woah, nice job bjam! I've never seen one before. Did you by any chance save the listing & do you know how much it sold for?

Super glue just plain doesnt work in piano applications. i hate the stuff.

In all my years of using super glue (and like an idiot I keep trying), not one thing I've ever superglued has stayed glued. Except for the damn cap on the superglue tube.  :evil:

Both the T and L series have the same "diving board" keys, right? If so, you can usually get an octave for about US$10 + shipping on ebay:
http://shop.ebay.com/?_from=R40&_trksid=m570&_nkw=hammond+keys

I wish I could help you; I had a box of spare diving board keys, but since I moved I haven't been able to find it (along with some crucial Rhodes pieces  :cry: ).

I didn't see it, but I was wondering how you save an ebay listing. I used to save the interesting ones, but since ebay changed their site about a year ago, the pages don't save. Well, it'll save, but if you try to view it offline (or after ebay has removed the listing) you'll get a 'page not found'.

I'm going to go out on a limb (lame pun intended) and say woodworms will not infest a Rhodes. Woodworms generally burrow deep into hardwoods and feast on the fungus they find. Since a Rhodes is mostly plywood/particle wood and nothing very thick, the wormies wouldn't smell any food.

But like steveo said, other critters have been known to set up shop in a neglected Rhodes. When I got mine (which someone had kept in a garage for years) I spent an afternoon cleaning out mouse poop. Luckily, they didn't chew up anything. I think they were just there to jam out.

Hmm - when the Piano (the Preamp) isn't connected to the Bottom, the Bottom is relatively silent. So it seems to me that the Problem is somewhere inside the Preamp, right?

I'm no amp expert, but I think that's a good assumption. In fact, the problem could even be originating before the preamp. Whenever I hear Rhodes & hum used in the same sentence I immediately think of the grounding wire on the harp. That's usually been the culprit in my experience (and an easy fix!). Try messing with the ground wire at the RCA harp jack as well as on the other side of the harp. Could just need a quick re-solder.

Now there's a pic for the history books. Good call on the cheek blocks, it's absolutely stunning!

P.S. Next up: you need to post a recording of you playing "Big Bottom" by Spinal Tap on both pianobasses  :lol:

Doh... I had to google "peacefrog" to figure out the reference. Not as Doors savvy as I should be :oops:  "Spaceduck" ...honestly I can't remember where that came from. I must've heard it somewhere & it stuck (one day I'll have to invent a more interesting story).

About classic artists touring with digital equipment, man that bothers me! Especially keyboardists like Manzarek, Wakeman, etc whose rig was as much a part of their sound as the performance. Surely they can afford the extra roadies to lug a Rhodes, Hammond and so on?

Thanks Spaceduck!(love that nicname by the way)    I think I'll have to take a pic of them side by side later!

Definitely do that! Though I'm sure I'll explode with uncontrollable envy.
By the way... spaceduck... peacefrog... we must be distantly related

Now that's a beautiful sight  :shock: I bet she looks great sitting next to your silver sparkle bass.

Hey, I came here wondering the same thing. Like you, I'm not looking for anything crazy, but since I don't always play with a guitarist sometimes I need a little extra edge to fill out the sound.

Currently I'm running my Stage through a GT Trio (guitar preamp) set to "Mean" and run straight into the board. I think it sounds pretty good, but I was wondering what others do with pedals etc.

Interesting stuff, it never occurred to me but yeah, some dye (or a sharpie like rsd said) can work wonders on ailing tolex. I have a CP70 that looks pretty awful due to scratches, and I've been dreading the thought of re-tolexing it. But this might do the trick with a lot less aggravation.

A google search led me here
"Vinyl Dye"
http://www.techpowerup.com/articles/modding/46

Apparently it's pretty easy to find at most auto stores.

sunrunner, thanks for that EXCELLENT breakdown of all the steps. Reading your harp cover story was painful but very informative, and I really think you got the best result in the end. I like the smooth, glossy look of the cream paint. It makes it look ceramic which gives it an authentic 70s look. In fact, after reading your post & seeing the pics, I've decided against wrinkle paint, and instead I'm going to follow your lead & use gloss.

Great thread      

[BEFORE]

Update as follows......


BEFORE




AFTER


Worked like a charm  

You don't know how long I've been working on those stupid stickers, tried every soap solution I could find:
rubbing alcohol, vegetable oil... Vinegar was what did it. Thanks, T!

White wine vinegar, I got that. Thanks, I'm going to try it right now!

Kazowie, what a difference  :shock:

How well does that aluminum paint stick, and would you recommend using it on the hardware (corners, hinges, etc)? I painted my corners, but the paint keeps peeling off. I used Krylon which says "suitable for wood, wicker, metal & paper", but I didn't do the clearcoat layer you mentioned.

Also you did a great job cleaning up those keys. Or are they an entirely new set? I have some sticker residue on my keys I'm having a helluva time getting off.

I'm also curious about how you painted the plastic top. Great retrolicious colour choice, by the way. How much work was it, and did you sand/prepare it any special way?

Hi pcman, if it helps, here's a pic of my stage case bottom under construction...


The tolex is my doing, but note the black paint sprayed around the bottom edges which, I think, was done at the Rhodes factory (does yours have the same thing?). It's just a light coat of black so you don't see any wood showing through between the keys, the gaps on the edges, etc.

Are you saying you want to do the same thing but with silver paint? If so, I think that would be cool. I doubt it would be very noticeable, but maybe if you're under bright lights it could be pretty nifty.

Hi guys, thanks for the suggestions (and sorry for the late follow-up... I was stuck without internet for a week). Steveo, PM on its way.

The $45 estimate came from ebay, heavy on shipping charges. I checked out Vintage Vibe and yep, it's a lot less especially if I specify a 32 key model (around $30 w/ shipping), not so bad

Yep I considered using this as an opportunity to re-felt & re-shim the entire keyboard, but the ones on there feel really good, and I've learned not to monkey with anything that aint broke!

Hi gang, I just discovered my Rhodes is missing 13 balance rail felts & 22 paper shims. My first question is does anyone have any spares? If not, my 2nd question is, does anyone need any? A full set of felts+shims is something like $45, so if anyone needs 66 or less, we can pool together & it won't be so painful!

Oh, and a 3rd question: has anyone tried making their own shims? It seems like some paper, hole puncher & scissors might do the trick. Or do they need to be precise?

the rod just  seems seems to be a thin cymbal stand.  I am going to buy the correct rod but I want to make sure the pedal has all the right parts too.

Hey PC, yeah the standard sustain rod for a Rhodes is nothing more than a hi hat rod!

TJH, great pics. I've always wanted to see an older pedal up close. I have 2 that are from '75 and they look identical to the black one. I've always wanted to strip off the paint because I think natural silver looks really sleek.

I know the piano have been played mainly in a Rehearsal studio...
it was usual in Italy in pop-rock-jazz rehearsal studios in '80s to have a rhodes as (almost) only keyboard in the studio ... and the players wa all sort of people...

I grew up playing one of those rehearsal Rhodes in highschool. It was awful how we (myself included) abused that thing. This was in the 80s when all I wanted was a Yamaha DX7  :roll:

BTW. could someone give me the lenght of original legs (closed) thanks!
I think I ask a lathe turner to build this in a simpler form (no telescopic).

I happen to have my Stage legs and a measuring tape right here. The rear legs are about 27" (68.5cm) including the 1/2" thread at the top. The front leg is slightly longer, about 27.5" (69cm) with the telescoping part pushed in as far as possible (see pic).

Back leg is 4 octaves, C# to D
Front leg is 4 octaves, C# to D#

* Another problem I now have is a strange static noise ... with a sort of "pick envelope" ...?! ... I fair this is due to the many dead pick-ups ...
I saw somewere that damper rail have been grounded ... maybe a compelete grounding wire will help ?

I had that problem, too. I tightened the grounding screws at both ends of the black wire & re-soldered the red wire at the jack (on the harp), and that fixed it. I'm not good with electronics, so I can't suggest anything if it's a dead pickup. Maybe you'll be lucky, and it will be easy to fix like mine was.

Good luck with the rest of it! Maybe someone else can give more advice.

Hey cool, I'm glad this thread has been bumped up. I need some inspiration!

solyaris, that's how the inside of mine looks. Everything's there intact, but there's a lot of cleaning to do. The outside looks great in those 2 pictures. Did you do that yourself?

My Rhodes has been sitting on the dining room table since the last time I posted in March. The new tolex looks great, top & bottom, but now I need to do something about the hardware and I'm dragging my heels.

Do you have original manuals the CP70 & CP10? Mine have picked up a few coffee stains over the years.

I agree with the idea of adjusting the pickups closer to the tines for more growl & 'saturation'. I have 2 harps for my Mark I stage, one has the pickups slightly off axis like the manual suggests for a tight bell sound while the other has the pickups dead center & really close for an overdriven sound. Both harps are from the same production year (and month, I think), but the difference is night & day. Now if someone could just figure a way to swap harps with the stomp of a pedal, how cool would that be!

I have the harp section apart right now. I'll start covering it this weekend.

Post some pics of the finished product if you get a chance! Also if you have any tips to share, please do. Sooner or later I'll have to retolex my CP70 and I'm dreading it (I have enough problems doing my Rhodes which I've been working on since last year   )

Well I nearly have the bottom half recovered. The tolex was a bit of a challenge, but the result is pretty darn good!

Wow, that's quite an accomplishment. I've never heard of anyone re-tolexing a CP, although I've seen a few in videos (such as the famous white CP70 played by ABBA   ) If you've gotten to the harp half, how did you manage the curves & angles on the back? That part baffles me.

Sorry about the dead end at the Yamaha site. That's a real bummer that they don't stock anything anymore.

Sometimes you can use a vise, hammer & pliers to bend the hardware back into shape (I did this with one of the latches), but it's no easy job. Also it won't help you if the plastic bezel is shattered which is often the case. It's a cryin shame that a classic keyboard like this has absolutely no source of parts except for the chop shops.

Great thread!! The information & especially the pics are really inspiring.

It's been almost a month since I started re-tolexing, and all I've got done is the lid    I ended up spending weeks trying to glue the cracks, fill the chips & straighten the warped wood. It probably would've been quicker if I had just rebuilt the whole chassis from scratch, but I'm glad I stuck with the original stuff for the sake of keeping it authentic. The tips here & in the other thread about tolex were really helpful, and I haven't made any mistakes so far.

Now I have some questions about paint & hardware...

Drcarver, that's a great job you did painting the plastic cover. It looks like you got the "leather" effect on the gold top. I remember an old thread where someone mentioned using a hair dryer somehow. Is that how you did it?

Hardware: I also tried painting my hardware (silver), but the paint keeps peeling off. Would a clearcoat help? What other options do I have? Since I don't have the budget to get it chromed, I was thinking I might try removing all the paint, then sanding & polishing the hardware with this Ryobi compound I got at Home Depot for $3. Has anyone tried that?

I agree, that's some amazing work on the corners, tjh! I'm guessing that's the trickiest part of the whole job.

Thanks for the tips, everyone. Haha, especially the earmuffs for profanity...

Yall have inspired (shamed) me into doing this job right away. But right off the bat we got problems. I pulled the old tolex off, and it revealed some major damage. Tjh, you mentioned bondo--do you think it'll do the job on this nasty gash?



Also what do you think about that spooky fault-line running the length of the wood? (Lucky thing I never tried lifing it from the side strap.) Would some wood glue do the trick or do I need more drastic measures?

Needless to say, even though I haven't cut any tolex yet, the swear words are flowing freely. And uh, so much for my beautiful studio  :evil:

I'm drooling over your tolex job, dcarve. It looks really tight. Have you ever done it before? This'll be my 1st attempt, but I've read volumes & watched every YouTube video there is, so I think I'm ready.

I got sorta jipped on my Rhodeses because I bought them on ebay, and the seller conveniently didn't show the back which was all shredded. Yeah tjh392, the bottom one has an aluminum frame to protect the edges--it looked really cool in the ebay pics, but as it turns out, it's a pretty shoddy job. Oh well, ya live & learn!

And you're right, kramer, I wouldn't recommend putting it on a Z-stand like I did, even though the stand is supposedly rated for 125lb per tier. It creaks & groans like an ole gramma. But how else can ya stack 2 Rhodes?

Haha, that was my first thought! I saw the pic and figured they were showing how NOT to set one up. But who knows....? If nothing else, it'll keep people from setting their beers on top  

Cool rig!

Here's my setup (Stifle the laughter; re-tolexing is scheduled for next week  :oops: )

Groovy!! Thanks for this  
Just wonderin... has anyone ever tried setting it up in the "standing position" (img003, fig. 6)? I've never seen that one before, but it seems to make sense.

I like this old look. Feels more "vintage"  :wink:

Congrats, KO! A lot of people don't know it, but Yamaha still sells many of the parts you need. I used to know the direct link to the webpage, but it's slipped my mind. I know I've posted it here once or twice... or you could go to yamaha's site and spelunk through it until you find the right page (it's tough to find).

Whatever you do, don't pay tons of $$$ to some chop shop! Certain items are easy to make with common parts from a hardware store. You could also try the Yahoo CP70 group. There's a lot of good info about DIY projects for the CP70.

Also sit tight and watch ebay because quite often someone will be selling just the bottom half. Contact the seller and ask if you can just specify certain parts you want, in order to save on shipping. You can get tons of goodies for cheap because everyone else is afraid to bid on an item that costs $500 to ship  :wink:

The vinyl (tolex) could be tricky because, unlike a Rhodes, the CP70 has some odd angles & curves. But I would imagine it's the same procedure more or less. There's some good info right here on this site on how to re-tolex.

Anyway, I hope one of these ideas works for you. Take good care of that CP70--it's a dying breed.

Per Rob A's suggestion, I tried some compression on my direct recording, and I was blown away at the results. I used a free VST plugin called JB Ferox ("Analog circuitry") you can download here

http://www.jeroenbreebaart.com/audio_vst.htm

Recently I had the chance to record through a UA 6176 (610 preamp + 1176LN compressor), and the results were just amazing. I dialed in a moderate attack and a lightning fast release/recovery which worked great for percussive playing. I give compression two big thumbs up.

Hey Soulg, I listened to this tune 3 times trying to come up with anything critical I could say. It's really a solid song, nice playing all round & even the recording quality of this 'blueprint' is plenty good on my speakers. Great job  

The only thing I can think to suggest, after thinking really hard, is just before the solo section @ 1:30 it would be neat if you had (to quote Wordman from Eddie & the Cruisers) "a cesura - a timely pause, kind of a strategic silence." You do it really well in the beginning @ 0:13, you could even use the same phrase. That way it would launch into keychange/solo with renewed vigor.

Really, though, this track is fantastic. If this is your rough cut, I can't wait to hear what you can do in the studio!

By the way, what's the mp3 player you have embedded on your website? I've been looking for a good trimmed down player (without all the Soundclick, Myspace junk). Yours looks great.

hey nathun, that pedal looks killer! The hose clamp handles look like bass tuning pegs.

To make it no-slip, you can either do what steveo suggested, or you could make chains like on a standard CP70 pedal. If you have a hardware store nearby, you can buy 2 lengths of chain (23.75" for the left side, 19" for the right side) and some s-hooks. I just made a set, and the total bill was about $4. Ya gotta love DIY.

I think '75 was a wacky year at the Rhodes factory. Not only were the tines, hammers & frame changed, even the case hardware got re-designed. Lik bjam said, I doubt all this had too much of a tonal impact, but I kinda notice something.

I have 2 Rhodeses, one from mid '75 and the other from late '75. I think the mid one is a little more barky, and the action is stiffer. The late one blew me away with smooth action but it's not as aggressive sounding as the mid. Good for mellow, dreamy, Mr. Rogers neighbourhood stuff  

Lately on all my songs I've been recording the mid'75 in the left ear and doubling it with the late'75 in the right ear. Maybe you can hear the difference or maybe it's my imagination.

http://www.soundclick.com/bands/page_music.cfm?bandID=761671

For a short clip of the late'75 by itself, scroll down to the bottom of the list and click on 'Fishy Night'

Either way, congrats on your Rhodes I'm sure you'll love it!!

Doh, looks like I'm too late. I'm looking for a rail (+electronics if anyone has em). Steveo, if your buyer flakes out, drop me a line!

Pricing, I agree with RobA & MarkII... I missed one on ebay which went for $22.50. A few days later another one went for around 50. But I think both of these had pots & jacks.

Spaceduck,

That's hot stuff! I've never seen one of those in such good condition! Good score indeed!  

That would be so perfect in my live rig. I can see it now:

-Porta B w/ the L mods
-Rhodes Stage 54 to the left
-Micromoog on top of Hammond
-Korg DW-6000 on top of Rhodes
-Yamaha C-605P or CSY-2A to the right of the Hammond
-Moog Taurus under the Rhodes
-A patch bay and mixer
-a bunch of vintage effects and a wah

yyyyyyeeeeeesssssss!  

Cool, one of those keyboard rigs you need a ladder to climb into! I like your style

Btw the DW-6000 was my first keyboard ever! I loved that thing. For solos, that "UNISON" button was pure magic. Alas, the keyboard just sorta vanished one day. I guess that's one good thing about a Hammond... it's not going to just disappear under someone's arm.