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I finally fixed the power modules for my 74 rhodes (4-pin). But it seems that the panning vibrato pans uneven in terms of time. it seems that the panning is probably 70/30 instead of a true stereo sound being 50/50. How do I adjust to fix this uneven pan? I tried to find a similar problem on this forum with no luck.

Just realized I submitted this in the wrong forum. Either way, I fixed that channel. Was the electrolytics one channel they had shorted. Was relieved the transistors weren't the culprit! Just put everything back together and she's pulsing away. Now onto to regulating her up!

Thanks for the picture! Mine are a little too big...That is exactly what i needed. The wiring in my unit is definitely different. One ground from pin 4 goes down and grounds out one of the plugs on the bottom, very odd. But jack wiring is correct. Thanks!

Im working on replacing some broken jacks and such in the peterson power supply and I came across a loose ground wire on pin 4. Pin 4 has two black grounds soldered to it, one goes to the speaker mounts and one was just loose.

in the diagram

Pin 4 is just going to ground.

Is it supposed to ground to the preamp out plugs? Here is a picture of my set up now.


You can see the loose black/brown wire there.

Hey guys, It's been a while!

I finally managed to snag a suitcase today and its in decent shape. Harp is from 76 and it's got the 4pin 80W amp set up with no sound coming from one channel.

When I switch the grey RCAs coming from the power supply to each power amp, I get sound from both RCAs, but only through one power amp. This leads me to believe my power supply is alright, and the amp that wont respond to either RCA is bad.

Looking through the old fender rhodes site, it seems that the germanium transistors go bad often, but none of the transistors looked burnt up. So no catastrophic failure it looks like...I will get my multimeter on it soon. But just wanted to make sure I troubleshooted correctly, and my power supply isn't the culprit...

Any help would be great. And it's good to be back on the forums!

I hope it's just a moog envelope. I love messing around and trying to recreate sounds. Minimoog sounds are unmatchable sometimes. Awesome sound either way on this track.

Been getting back into some good old Rhodes tunes, and was wondering if someone knows the effect/instrument being played in this song. The Rhodes is obvious, but what about the solo?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OLdOJBZRgMs&feature=youtu.be&t=1m55s

It sounds like a nice envelope filter, but what is it?

Abraham, you've described exactly what I am experiencing. It must be the same issue. I will look into this crossover distortion. Thanks for the tip. Hopefully I can try and get it solved.

edit: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eBTES_smMI4

This video seems of more interest to me, since i know the transistors I put in are new. There is always that chance I damaged one of them, but I'll look at my resistances from around that section and see if they have wavered and could be responsible. It's most likely the resistors are the only things left from the Wurlitzer factory on that board now.

Hey guys! It's been a while for me, I used to post on the fenderrhodes.com website back in the day, and kinda fell off when the forums moved over here. Either way, I'm back! with a new toy!

So I've had this semi-noisy 200a. I've recaped it, new transistors in, and put new a vintage-vibe preamp in it. It has made less noise, but still has this issue of distorted sound coming from the built in speakers, but not the aux output jack. I've also removed the AC light and replaced with the VV LED mod as well.

Another thing I have noticed, is how loud it is. It rattles the whole piano and can self oscillate if the vibrato and volume are maxed out. Did I mess something up? Voltages from the regulator seem okay. I'm getting about 140v at the reed bar. 10v drop through the pre-amp. Any thoughts?

After going back and forth with MXR vs Small Stone, (which I've had both) I said enough is enough, I'm a piano player, not a guitar player, Sold my stuff, and bought one of those insanely expensive Moog pedals. After the 30min learning curve, i can say it's the best decision i've made with effects.

12-stage is a little much, and but sounds great with a slow pan, and 6 stage compared to 4 (MXR, i think) is  a blessing, I can get that Fagen sound pretty easily, Some good Stevie, along with some pretty wacky psycho stuff (almost Ring Modulator crazy), I might put some recordings up sooner, Just letting you guys know, that if you've been fed up, and wondered, you have my two thumbs up. get it.

Your piano is awesome! Definitely pre 1973 case, with full skirted keys, and as you can see in the last picture, the angle is a straight cut, it flattens out on near the keys...I hope the electronics can be found near by, this thing is a creation for sure...nice find.

Old school keys, with the case, yet new school looks from Mark II era. Neat combo.

I certainly paid more for my Mark V than 2 of my Mark I's but as you see very few of these pianos, and I've never seen one near me at all, I also paid for it freight. Plus, its SUPER rare to find a "deal" with a Mark V. I got my Mark 1A for 500$. which i thought was a steal as it only had sticky keys, and 3 or 4 dead notes. 50$ and an evening, and the thing sounds like it's factory.

If you're the collector type, I'd say its definitely still (and always will be) desirable. As the last "true" Rhodes, it makes the set complete. I would never trade my V for the new models being made, even the VinVib ones. (which still outprice the mark v...)

I figure I paid 30% more than I should have, but I got a collectors item, a well built-piano, something unique, and no piano can beat the simple sophistication of the Mark V's looks...hah. The only thing i would disagree with, is that in all the Mark V's I've seen, I haven't come across one with dead pickups, I feel like they had more quality control with the mark v's pickups, as mine had none dead, and it was in New Orleans...pretty swampy.

Rhodes pianos are still pretty cheap considering how much an american fender strat goes for now. And while both have classic tone, Rhodes is its own instrument, you compare everything else to it. While a classic Fender Strat guys will always have Gibson guys screaming over them.

Could old caps cause this symptom? Considering the hum is still there when the power is off, i would think it was a grounding issue. But you're right, I've been wanting to do a rebuild anyways, just didnt think the caps would cause hiss when the power was off.

I've done some minor stuff like replacing the soldering in fuses with easy access ones, and i've been meaning to get a new pre-amp for it as well. I'm trying to make the darn thing studio ready, so i can make some recordings...I should have stuck with just Rhodes...hah!

My wulri 200a's line out has a lot of hum/hiss. the volume of the hiss is constant from 0 volume, to 100%. it's even there when the amp is off. of course, when i unplug the wurli from the wall, there is no hum.

I was wondering what could be causing this type of hum/hiss. its alright in some amps, but very noticeable in a recording setting, or on PA's. I've looked for any loose grounds, but Im a bit inept when it comes to troubleshooting something like this...

Was wondering if anyone has experience with these EP's. I've had many Rhodes' but this is my first Wurli. Its in great shape, but has a noisy line out and in particular pop/cracks quite loudly when i strike just one note hard, the C an octave higher than middle C. it plays normally everywhere, i just cant hit that C too hard or TTTKTTTP!!! Does anyone know what might be the problem? Thanks!

Well just bought and received a #3 tine from musicpartsguru. I took my old #3 tine which was too short to be in tune at F# and the others were all too short as well to be put in its place and cut that down to my middle D so i could still get a torrington in the mid range. And put the newer Schaller tine down at the F#. And to me they sound pretty identical. I'd figure the low range would be more obvious tonally still than the mid range, and there seems to be no difference to me. And now, I have all the original tines in the mid range, AND everything is in perfect tune. Hope this helps some people out in the future who are in the middle. And thanks all for the help and advice.

I e-mailed vintage vibe to ask if I could get a tine from a certain era. And I got this nice informative reply. It kind of makes me wonder if the difference in the two tines is so small, that's really just a fanatical thing, like guitar players and getting the perfect vintage pedal. I figure if they can get me a Torrington I'll take it, but also buy a lower mid range Schaller just in case. SO I'll know if I'm one of those people who can "tell" the difference.

I mean, it makes perfect sense. If they are physically different they have different tonal qualities. It's just a matter of how different, and if it's noticeable to   the player. Regardless, I'd like a torrington. hah.

Hi Michael,

Thanks for the question, The answer is I would have to look at our stock and see what we have.  Let me ask you a question, would you know the difference if we sent you a tine and told you it was a Torrington?  The way, I can tell is by different tapers of the tine.  Just curious as we are very articulate here in our tines and voicing and building pianos from scratch or from the ground up. We use tines from all eras and even have to mix Ray Macs with later tines on early pianos when Ray Macs are in short supply. When all voicing is performed and we have it all set up right, you cannot tell one tine from the next regardless of the year, although obviously Ray Macs are usually easy to pick out from later tines due to their shorter ring time and earthier tone. If voiced properly you can blend them fairly well.

It is the pianos and the set up that differ in tone not the the tines, we have heard people talk about tine differences but in our experience you cannot tell and I would bet my reputation on it. All except for the Ray Mac that is.  We have proved this theory many times by putting an early harp on a later piano and putting a later harp on an early piano and they sound the same as well as mixing tines from different eras on a single piano. It all comes down to your set up and voicing. Pick ups can also make a difference also Tines from the factory were not all perfect a good amount had bad oscillation from improper swaging or mounting. All of this can effect tone, sustain and harmonic, so you have to compare apples with apples to get a true comparison and that is pretty hard to do.


All the best, Chris

PS. I will look and see what we have.

Yeah, stinks that none of these ebay sellers tell you where they got their tines too, makes it that much harder. Even vintage vibe, who wants more, doesn't give you the proper info.

Was at a gig tonight, and low and behold, the last song we played I broke the very middle D on my '72 Fender Rhodes. If anyone has some tines around or from a scrap piano please PM me.

I'd like to get the same era tines, even though a new one might sound just the same with the right settings. Just want to keep her vintage. Thanks all!

I'm sure there was a small difference since the 1974 model i had, used the smaller more common pickups, and the 1972 model used the longer pickups, but I certainly didn't notice any. Keep that in mind when replacing pickups, The action on the 74 was typically poor and the keys where ugly. This is why I encourage you getting the older model. I think the action is "better" with the 1972 model which have a slightly different pedestal. It's not flat like the 74 keys.

Of course action varies widely with these old pianos. If you can play both of them and compare, i'm sure you'll find the one that you like better, If they sound different, it's most likely due to the orientation of the pickups to the tines, which you can change quite easily. The tines and hammers should be the same.

get the full skirt keys model. I've owned a 74 and just got a 72, I love the keys of the 72 compared to the 74. but of course this is a personal opinion. The bark is the same. I also love the square hammer tips. make sure the two models you're looking at have the same type of wear. The I switched out the square hammer tips of my 74 with new ones, and can't remember if they were square originally. Either way, the point is that there definitely are some old models out there with new innards.

The no faceplate looks meaner to me anyways. Love it much more than a faceplate, just two knobs. love it.[/i]

I just thought I'd share some stuff I finally found out/solved recently with my Mark V, that I would assume applies to any Rhodes with grouped hammer combs. (all?) Never read anything about hammer combs affecting double striking notes, just bridle straps and escapement. This was a frustrating problem with an easy fix.
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When I first got this mark V it played alright, but needed new hammer tips and felts for sure, So I decided to do it all at once. This involved removing almost everything except the keybed, and when I put it back together I noticed some strikeline issues, and double striking tines in the lower octaves.

I fixed this temporarily by raising the bass end of the harp 1/8" and seriously modifying some specific notes. I originally thought that my shoddy job at putting in hammer tips had been causing the thuds and kkrrrb's. Until today.

The real culprit was one set of hammers at the low end, about one octave. It was the hammer comb, turns out that 2 of the 5 holes pre-drilled into the aluminum had either been stripped, or were drilled too big for the screws to give enough tensions, and this led to the whole hammer comb bending ever so slightly, and actually developed a hairline crack near one of the screw holes of the plastic!

I noticed this, not only because the hammers weren't resting level in that octave but also when I fully depressed a key, then pressed a little harder, the other surrounding hammers (2 or 3 on each side) would move a little if i pressed harder, kinda like a wave. I quickly went over to and got some machine head screws an inch long with some bolts, and threaded these though the hammer comb and made it tight as could be. along with the three holes that did hold tension.

I put everything back to "factory settings' removed my harp shims and made sure the strikeline was where I wanted it, (which was factory). Turns out Rhodes did know what they were doing and it plays great, now I just have to change all those specific pickups back to normal since I had changed them for the old, incorrect strike line. So in the end,

Make sure all the screws are holding down your hammer combs tightly!!! It saves a lot of nights fiddling around with one octave of bass notes only to give up because it was "good enough". I'm just happy I didn't end up snapping that hammer comb when playing too hard for too long. Hope this helps some people in the future!

Interesting, I had my 54 wired straight to the 1/4" jack for a while, tried the switch out a bit, and then went back to stock. Those sliders suck tone, but i wanted to keep the Rhodes stock. I just use the adapter piece straight off the harp, and, you're right, i rarely need to adjust volume. No biggy.

I know that a Mark II has intrinsically less dynamics than a old model Mark I.

Where have you heard this?

My mark II has wooden keys too, and although its a 54, and has the sliders, I go straight off the harp, with an adapter. That may help you to hear what is really going on before passive filters.

To make your rhodes a little less intimidating to play, I would first move your pickups around. (closer to the tine, farther from the tine, to see if they are moved too far back, requiring you to do more work to get that overdriven sound.) other than that, there's load of action, escapement, key alignment, stuff you can look into, as well.

But if your action is nice, but the tone isn't, the easiest thing to do is mess around with the tine to pickup arrangement. Try moving the pickups back and forth (volume) and the tine up and down (overtones) to see if you get what you want.

Sometimes if the pickup is too high, it'll just sound too belly for my tastes. Hope this helps you out some.

Awesome story, was he nice enough to sell it to you at your price?

Just got to playing around with it, It's lowest note is E, so you can play it on a 73. And i guess its just a slow phase shifting effect. It's been a while since I used mine, sounds great.

One of my favorite tracks, forgot about it, then rediscovered it lately.

Was wondering what kinda EQ or effect stevie might be using to get that great low growl out of his Rhodes. I assume its an 88 since its so low, haven't played it so not sure of this. Almost sounds like theres a phaser or even tremelo in parts, but not sure if thats just the sound rocking so hard.  Any ideas?

Most people record straight off the harp, at least It feels like it. It's easier to start with everything there, and then cut out what you dont want, than to try and boost signals that are being cut out by the passive electronics ya know? I've decided the attenuation from the sliders on my 54 is by far the worst of all the Rhodes pianos, on my mark V, it's a lot more bearable. and my old 74 stage was somewhere in between.

I always record straight off harp for my 54 and if i'm lazy, I'll go out the jack on my Mark V. Never did try that mod proposed in this post earlier, I think it wouldn't matter much, just makes sense that a bunch of pots and wires and capacitors would dampen the sound quite a lot, when compared to nothing at all.

It was a last minute bid by e******t. I see that on a lot of auctions...it ended at nigh 60$ little steep since the .pdf is right here on the site. I just thought it'd make a nice addition to my Mk V, but 60 bucks? I can get a gloss color copy of that pdf for 5! hah.

Anyone here get that thing? Just wondering since I was bidding on it until it got above 45$!

Suitcase tops don't have the four leg flanges on the bottom for stage legs, and the wood is thinner than on stage models so you can't add you're own. The best option is to buy a nice sturdy stand, and plop it up on that. Maybe change the namerail if you wanted to, But you can still just go straight out from the accessory 1 jack, if your model suitcase has it. (Straight from the harp)

I was wondering what the local Rhodes community thinks about hammer tips, with regards on where to get new ones, and what's the right time to replace them.

I usually get mine from VV, but wondering if there are any other options perhaps better resulting sources. There's a thread on here about the harshness of the tips of VV, that some people seem to have problems with. And square hammer tips, has anyone done a restoration with an older piano that uses the square hammer tips? does anyone make these?

I turned out really enjoying the felt on hammer action. Something about working a little extra for the extra bark perhaps? Maybe it was that antique feel.

Either way, I had to sell that piano to cover some unexpected costs. But i do miss that action. Truly unique, and not too cumbersome at all, like on my (now gone as well) 1974.

I've always loved this look better...there, i said it.

odd. Mine is missing those, I can see them in some Mark V videos. (like one posted here) but they are missing in others, I guess they were really good at falling off, I checked mine, I only have the three in the front...Thanks for the info, I should go out and get some.

yeah looks like a plug, and the mounting bracket (assumption) those four things glued? or bolted on to the top. looks like a rack was put on the top or something

I'd say its from 1975 just because I love those knobs, and my 74 had them.

The 'input' is incorrectly labeled from factory. It's an output and always has been. The only model that correctly labels it as an output is the Mark V.

it looks like someone put an effects loop in it, and perhaps another output for some reason. a pic of the inside of the rail would help identify what the original intent was.

But shouldn't be too hard to get back to original, if it isn't already. Shame about those drilled holes through the nameplate. why would someone do that?

Just noticed the hole in the plastic lid too. perhaps some active electronics!? cool stuff, along with those mounting brackets on the lid. Looks like this thing has some intense gigging history. Cool stuff.

P.S. what is that play-dough stuff all over the sides and the floor? foam? how long was it in that box!!!

the cheek blocks don't fit exactly:

This is why i wanted to remove the keybed, i need like 1/4" on one side and the other side has plenty of room. If I could move that keybed it would fit like a glove.

Thanks for the info! I stopped last night because I didn't want to break anything, since there's no replacements. but if it's just a screw driver, i'll try and do it for real next time...at least the key tops are nice and clean.

I don't have any screws in around the aluminum sides. just holes that match up with other holes. I guess some one removed them. even without them the keybed is rock steady, So other than the handle screws, the 1/4 turn holes are holding it in quite nicely. I'll try and take pictures.

Edit: clarification...the holes im talking about are 4 holes in the back. not the ones on the side and front. In other pics, (like the ones on ebay) they seem to be empty as well. not sure why though...

You can see what i'm talking about here;

http://www.soundinvestmentsusa.com/ebay/images/rhodesmar-1244904351-4978.jpg

not a big deal, just to clarify.

Thanks again.

I'm sure you've got your answer. But if anything, I would say it would improve the learning process.

After I started playing my first Fender Rhodes, I was much more interested in the differences in piano sounds and actions, and that interest sparked new musical ideas. I would play street life over and over on the rhodes and an acoustic piano and try the playing styles associated with them, it opened up a broader look at piano, and what can be done with it, it also got me interested in recording and transcribing again, which I used to do a lot of. It was certainly a positive thing, and I agree with the above posts.

Go for it.

Edit: I just noticed your name. Katy Lied is one of my favorite, if not the favorite, records of all time.

Does anyone have any info on how you do this? The keybed is held in by the four 1/4 turn holes, but not sure how you remove these are how they are held in place. Anyone here have any experience? I can do this on a Mark I or II in a jiffy, but not so in a Mark V. Any words of Rhodes Wisdom?

I need new felts for a recently acquired mark V. But the felts in a mark V are a little different than I have seen in my Mark I and II. they are shorter than they are wide. (square bottom, but rectangular sides) also the top register is black.

I assume the hammertips are the same as in previous models, and I plan on getting felts and tips from vintagevibe, but should I have to cut the felts down? and are there any alternative places that provide felts. ( i kinda like that black look)

P.S. are the pickups different for Mark V's? because none of mine are bad, (first time has every happened) and if they are the same as from the Mark II's thats a miracle...because i had 23 bad ones from the Mark II.

I've never shipped or received anything from freight but my first experience was a great one. I Just got a Mark V through FedEx Freight, and it was in immaculate condition when received. Went from Baton Rouge, LA to Ocala, FL. took 3-4 days. It was packed at a shipping store with plastic/styrofoam on the bottom, some densely packed paper throughout, and two thick cardboard boxes on the outside. Not a scratch anywhere, even on the boxes. A very thorough and customer friendly process throughout. (the guy i picked it up from knew me by name) It was insured for 2000, but luckily, never needed it.

When I did this job to a '74, I didn't know what to use, So i used both. Superglue and Gorilla Glue. It worked. Gorilla glue expands after application so i'm not sure if it did that much work, the superglue held it on, and the gorilla glue just required some clean up. Either way, I played it 45 mins after application at a jam session, and everything held up. (and still is).

My logic was that the superglue would bond instantly and the gorilla glue would make sure it stayed. again, not sure if thats realistic or even makes sense, but it worked.

My opinion would be that superglue definitely works, and that it definitely smells up the place.

The only experience I've had with Laney is with my bass playing. I hated that amp. My friend used the logo to make a belt buckle. But now that I think about it, that amp sounded alright, it was just too much bass and not enough trouble.

Then again this was a bass amp. So I'm really just rambling. That's my 2 cents that makes no sense.

You could always do what this person did with a 54...hah.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nED5L1NraJI

A red towel. folded. hot dog style. yes

I'm looking to finally repair my 5-pin preamp, but have only purchased pots and caps from a guitar website, does anyone hear have any tips or recommendations on where to get correct caps and IC's on the web? Are the IC's particularily difficult to find? Thanks all.

No, the light just stays on and the rhodes sounds normal. Adjusting knobs does nothing to the sound until you turn the vibrato switch to the on position. If I test capacitors (C13 for example ) for continuity while the preamp is on, this sometimes brings the preamp back to it's normal state, not sure if that's safe.

My 5-pin 1978 vibrato has intermittent problems with the preamp. The basic effect is that the vibrato indicator stays on when in off, and cuts out when the speed is too slow.

I don't touch the preamp for say 20 mins, and this problem will show up/go away depending, sometimes fooling with the switch and speed settings will cause it to work again and i will hear a small pop.

The service section says "the most common preamp failure (even then it was rare) was in the 4558 IC's."My simple question is, does this sound like a IC problem or something else?

I've ran through the preamp with a multimeter trying to find and cold joints or anything weird, but nothing really.

EQ all the way. I have a 78 suitcase as well. And after a lot of pickup/escapement/harp adjustment, I've become certain that a good EQ will be the only way to coax more of that kind of tone out of her. I haven't gotten one, but plan on trying the MXR 16-band soon.

As a comparison I ran my 54note through the suitcase preamp/amp to see if it was my harp, but the two sounded pretty similar. And my 54 is almost all bark. I might have to tone down the suitcase when the EQ does some of the work. Mellow her out.