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Wow! Great info.

I'm off for a fair bit of experimentation with this new toy!!

A couple more things come to my mind (I know, I'm starting to get boring, but please bear with me  :roll: ): my Rhodes has three knobs: Volume, Tone and Vibrato, the problem is that this third one isn't connected to anything, in fact it doesn't even have a pot, it's mounted on a screw fastened to the aluminium bar. Is the 88 supposed to have a vibrato circuit built in (and then maybe the previous owner removed it) or what?
Also, I was thinking about replacing the simple electronic (two pots, a cap and some wire) with a circuit done in the same fashion, but with newer components, to clean the sound a bit: do you think this will modify the tone in a radical way (just like it can do on guitars) and it's not worth a try?

Thank you

L.G.

As for tuning, take a look at the tines (undr the tonebar) and you'll see a very tiny spring somewhere on the tine. Moving this towards you increases pitch, moving it away from you lowers pitch.

Mmmhh...sounds like tuning is no fun at all..isn't it? I'd give it a try, but what do I need to move the springs? a simple plier will work?

As for the impedance I'd quickly realized it as I switched to the Mesa Boogie amp, but I'm reading several things about different models of Rhodes, so I wasn't sure.
I have several preamps in my studio, and they have the Hi-Z input, so I'd try to hook it up to them and see. Do you bring a preamp for live gigs (if you do them with your Rhodes) or use a standard D.I. box?
BTW overdriving the Rhodes with the distorted channel of my Boogie was lots of fun  :lol:   .

Thank you for your help, I really appreciate it.

L.G.

OK

All of the pickups seem to work, as I did the screwdriver test and got signal on those that were considered faulty.
Now, I'm after the tuning (I've cleaned it and it's back to a civilized state :wink: ). I don't seem to get how I'm going to tune the keys, because the screws on the top only lift or lower the what I belive are the tines, bringing them more or less in front of the pickup; as I understand from the service manual this is done to even the keys sound and have them levelled, but where do I have to put my hands to get intonation?

Also. I tried plugging the piano in my Pro Tools setup going thru a standard mic preamp, and all I got was a feeble level, I had to turn the mic gain all the way up to have a usable level, but noise became an issue then; second I tried to plug it in one of my Mesa Boogie amps, treating it much like a guitar, and the results were clearly better; I noticed that the sound tends to break up into distortion quite easily even on a clean channel; is this due to the fact that the piano has almost no dynamic and you have to strike the keys hard to get sound out?
How is a "classic" or "standard" way to have the Rhodes hooked up and amplified (sorry if this quistion seems a bit dumb  :oops: , I'm an engineer but my instrument was guitar...).

As always

Thank you

L.G.

Hi Andy

Thank you very much for the reply.

I'll be cleaning the piano as you suggested (I was thinking about doing it that way, just some lightly soapy water with a mildly wet cloth...simple), and will use some sort of car cleaner to bring the tolex and overall case to a clean and shiny finish. Also, I was thinking about unscrewing the corner metal plates and the locks as they have rusted out (the  baby has been kept for years in a basement...can you belive this :?:  :roll:  :shock: ) and maybe have them plated again from a local shop that does that kind of work...you know just to keep everytrhing as original as possible, even though I guess such replacement parts could still be available.
The thing that I'd be making sure is that the pickups are working: if they're dead I noticed a repair HERE that I could eventually try before swapping the pickups for new ones.
The thing that I'm a bit concerned about is tuning: the keys and tines seem to be stuck there for years...I hope I'd be able to get them back in tune without any damages (you know...just like when you try to tune an old guitar and a string or tuning peg breaks ).
Apart this (and the thorough vacum cleaning) is there anything else I should be aware of? How can I tell if the piano is "right"?

Hello everybody

I've been looking thru the pages of this forum to find some info since I've been given a Rhodes 88 (actually it's been given as a gift to my brother who plays keys, but he doesn't have the space to keep it in his house so it's going to stay in my studio  :lol: ) which apart the classic one inch thick layer of dust and webs seems to be in good working order: a quick check done by plugging it in the HI FI system we have in the country house where it's been given to us revealed a pair of keys actually don't work: they sound like they are muted (I opened the case up, to inspect them) even though I could find nothing preventing them form working; also, another key is half step out of tune.
The piano has been kept for a long time in a locked basement, the original owner decided to get rid of it by giving it to somebody who could actually play it and have good care of it. So, since it's found a new home we'd like to bring it back to life and full working order.
I'd need a practical guide to the things to do to get it back in shape, what to check, how to clean and everything. I'm quite handy with both electrical and mechanical tools (I'm a sound engineer running a studio), so I guess that I'd be able to do some basic repairs by myself under guidance.
If you need infos to get an idea of the conditions of the piano just ask and I'd do my best to be as detailed as possible in my answer.

Thank you

L.G.