Messages

1

The Wurlitzer Electric Piano / Re: Stuck Hammer

« on: November 05, 2019, 10:07:42 AM »

Hi .-)

There is one of the crossbars between G and G# in the aluminum reedframe, so maybe the hammer is touching the crossbar?

Jenzz

2

The Wurlitzer Electric Piano / Re: Clavinet on top of wurly makes huge buzz

« on: November 03, 2019, 03:51:54 AM »

Hi .-)

Shielding the Clavinets PCB will not solve the problem. The main issue is that the 2 clavinet pickups are sitting above the Wulys transformer when in place. The magnetic field of the transformer will be picked up by the PUs, causing hum. A late D6 has a metal shield plate at the bottom where the pickups are, but in this case that will not help that much.

Try to experiment with different positions or distance of the clavinet on top. In the end, the only way to get totally rid of hum will be to place the transformer outside of the piano...

Jenzz

3

The Fender Rhodes Electric Piano / Re: Recording Rhodes with D.I. (Vintage Vibe Piano)

« on: September 04, 2019, 06:57:47 AM »

Hi + welcome ;-)

A VV Piano is a kind of 'alternative', but not a 1:1 Rhodes replacement. There are lots of small differences in materials, parts design etc. which make the VVs sound like an own kind of mechanical E-Piano (very Rhodes-like, indeed).

In fact, the 'bark' is some kind of mechanical generated distoriton (esp. in the low end), so an EQ or drive pedal will only give approximate results...

Jenzz

4

The Fender Rhodes Electric Piano / Re: Pickup Rewinding Question...

« on: July 11, 2019, 06:09:12 AM »

Hi .-)

Yes, you should see roundabout 170 - 180 ohms...

Jenzz

5

The Fender Rhodes Electric Piano / Re: Pickup Rewinding Question...

« on: July 11, 2019, 02:45:18 AM »

Hi .-)

You MUST solder the wire to the posts. The wire has a thin laquer coat (otherwise, the coil will be a complete 'short-circuit'), which you have to melt / tin before soldering.

Jenzz

6

The Fender Rhodes Electric Piano / Re: Rhodes issue (with sound clip)

« on: June 28, 2019, 06:35:35 AM »

Hi .-)

This the typical sound of hardened grommets + and a slightly off-set striking line or too hard hammertip. Move the harp back and forth, there will be a point were the 'zing' will reduce to an acceptable level...

Jenzz

7

Parts, Service, Maintenance & Repairs / Re: Please help me identify the cause of this sound? Rhodes Mk1 73

« on: December 14, 2018, 05:41:35 AM »

Hi .-)

Sounds to me that this note / tine is missing its tuning spring...?

Jenzz

8

Preamps, Modifications & Upgrades / Re: Does this look aftermarket to you guys?

« on: December 03, 2018, 03:03:44 PM »

Gresco GuitarWorks Rhodie Preamp



Jenzz

9

The Fender Rhodes Electric Piano / Re: Help selecting tone pot capacitor for Rhodes Piano Bass

« on: September 21, 2018, 11:07:21 AM »

Hi .-)

The above mentioned schematic was done by me many years ago. It was taken from what i found in an original PianoBass.

Keep in mind, that in addition to the high frequency roll-off, the caps form a resonant circuit together with the pickups inductance, because if you dial the tone pot, the caps get more or less parallel to the pickups.

The fix 100nF cap together with the pickups (2,24H) forms a somewhat flat curved resonant circuit at roundabout 330Hz,.

Jenzz

10

The Wurlitzer Electric Piano / Re: Wurlitzer leg paint color

« on: July 05, 2018, 06:21:15 AM »

Hi .-)

Maybe you can restore the legs using the Cola / Alu-foil method (it really works!)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vz2g-yGyIOc

Jenzz

11

Other Keyboards & Software Synths / Re: Hohner Clavinet Production Survey

« on: June 21, 2018, 08:21:09 AM »

Hi :-)

I just wanted to mention that there is a 3rd version of how the PCB and rocker switches are mounted.... On this Version, the PCB and switches are mounted on a metal bracket that is screwed into the metal harp:



Jenzz

12

The Wurlitzer Electric Piano / Re: Repairs on a Wurlitzer 300

« on: May 05, 2018, 02:40:34 PM »

Hi all :-)

Since i have a 201 in for service (the 300 uses the same PCB), i will take some pics of the PCB tomorrow...

....stay tuned ...

Jenzz

13

The Fender Rhodes Electric Piano / Re: Live Piano Sounds in the Reggae Scene ca 1970s

« on: April 10, 2018, 05:53:43 AM »

Hi .-)

This is from '83, but you can see a typical Reggae keyboard setup from the past here:

Rhodes + Organ

Cp-70 + Clavinet + Prophet on top

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A_n0ODIBxS4


Regarding Wya, i think he often uses an auto-wah on the clav (played with its damper bar down!) to get more 'clank':

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VkndVzfOeRc


I have a tape cassette of 'In crowd' where the keyboards are organ, wurly and Solina string, so i think they use what fits in their style and what was available...

In the 'younger' days, i often saw Reggae keyborders using the piano sound of the Korg M1.


regrads, Jens :-)

14

Preamps, Modifications & Upgrades / Re: An alternate Volume/Tone control circuit for Mk1 Stage EPs

« on: March 14, 2018, 02:35:57 AM »

Hi .-)

The 'noise' you mention is only a small matter of components... Do you have your sustain bar grounded? To me, this is the most important thing to do on any Rhodes, since any static of RF noise is coupled via the sustain bar into the the pickup colis, esp. in the lower keyboard range, because bar and pickups are pretty close there.

The 10K / 10K / 1uF circuit was just a treble roll-off design, it doesn't affect the bass. It indeed affects the overall volume if you turn up full, since the 1uF cap cuts out too much treble.

Jenzz

15

Preamps, Modifications & Upgrades / Re: What effects pedals with your rhodes?

« on: February 13, 2018, 03:14:43 PM »

Hi .-)

Here's what i'm running in the effetcs loop of my VV 64:


Boss BluesDriver: Not as an overdrive, but as a clean / solo boost and making the signal a bit more cutting and 'gritty' when on.

George Dennis GD-30 Wah: Optical wah which sounds not so 'peaking', noisy and bass-cutting than a CryBaby, but no so bland than a Morley.

Mutron Phasor 2: Simply a good sounding phaser with a different edge than SmallStone or Phase 90 (which i like, too!)


Jenzz

16

The Fender Rhodes Electric Piano / Re: Rhodes pickup screwdriver test

« on: February 07, 2018, 01:03:10 AM »

Hi .-)

The first 24 pickups on a 88 are wired in groups of 2. Then up to pickup 75, the wiring follows the regular 3-in-a-group scheme.

The last 13 pickups are wired:
1 Group of 3
3 Groups of 2
4 single pickups wired according to the 'back and forth'-scheme.

The 4n7 cap forms a high-pass to eliminate low frequency 'thumps' when the hammer strikes the tine.

Note that the last 13 pickups + high-pass are in parallel to the rest of the pickups, which forms a very complex inductive / capacitive circuit. This is part of the 'special' 88 Sound.


PS: Allways check the 4n7 cap to be REALLY a 4n7 cap. In the past, we had three 88 pianos with a 47n (!) installed right from the factory ! This will change to sound dramatically to a very dull, muffled Sound.

Jenzz

17

The Fender Rhodes Electric Piano / Re: Rhodes pickup screwdriver test

« on: February 06, 2018, 10:14:01 AM »

Hi .-)

88s are wired different on the last octave. Here's a schematic:

http://www.tasteundtechnik.de/bilder/88puschema.jpg

The last 12 pickups are connected via a condenser (the small part on the far right side of the harp) which forms a high-pass filter.


Jenzz

18

The Fender Rhodes Electric Piano / Re: Black wire running along length of pickup rail?

« on: January 18, 2018, 01:52:25 AM »

Hi .-)

The piano will work even without this wire. The wire doubles the connection that is already established by the aluminum tape that connetcs all pickup mounting brackets to ground.

The bare wire is used to connect the damper bar to ground, thus eliminating hum and buzz. If the damper bar is not grounded, capacitive coupling into the damper arms will induct hum and buzz to the pickups. Remember, the damper arms are going under the pickup coils, esp. in the upper ranges.

Jenzz

19

The Fender Rhodes Electric Piano / Re: Distortion in Janus Preamp with volume past 7

« on: January 12, 2018, 12:35:59 PM »

Hi .-)

Looking at several Sidekick schematics, it's possible that it's the input stage of the amp that distorts. The volume pot works as a gain adjustment for the Input stage, so the pot doesn't affect the signal itself. If the input level gets to high, distortion will occur no matter how low the pot is turned.

Jenzz

20

The Fender Rhodes Electric Piano / Re: Distortion in Janus Preamp with volume past 7

« on: January 12, 2018, 02:56:41 AM »

Hi .-)

If your pickups are adjusted for a hot output (close to the PUs), distortion beginning at around 7 on the scale could be normal, due to the internal gain structure of the preamp. The Input stage has a gain of 22, the output stages add an additional gain of 2,2. Assuming an average harp output of 0,5Vpp on hard strikes, the output voltage of the pramp will be at around 25Vpp !

If you additionally increase the treble or bass, this voltage will increase rapidly, so distortion will occur.

Does the Avion supply +/-15V or maybe +/-12V? Did you check that?  If the preamps runs on +/-12V, ist pretty clear that distortion will appear earlier because of the lower headroom....

Jenzz

21

Preamps, Modifications & Upgrades / Re: "Illdigger" low noise mods for Wurlitzer 200A

« on: January 07, 2018, 10:42:28 AM »

Hi .-)

Ist all in the text.... He's just doing what an audio-experienced tech should do to every Wurly. He just used quality parts at the important spots and did a clear re-wiring of power and audio cables.

No rocket sience... ;-)

Jenzz

22

Buying / Re: Looking for a Vintage Vibe piano in Europe

« on: January 06, 2018, 03:49:51 PM »

Hi .-)

EMC is the official VV distributor in EU:

http://www.emc-de.com/


Jenzz

23

Other Keyboards & Software Synths / Re: Help wiring a Pianet T transformer

« on: November 22, 2017, 08:46:27 AM »

Hi .-)

Since i have a Pianet T actually on the bench, i took some measures.

Input DC resistance is 38 R
Output DC resistance is 2,57 k

Seems to be a 5:1 transformer that is used 'backwards'... When i feed 400Hz / 100mVpp into primary, i get roundabout 580mVpp on secondary (into a 1 Meg load...)

hope this helps bit...

Jenzz

24

The Wurlitzer Electric Piano / Re: The Wurlitzer 300 is NOT the last model. It's from January 1973.

« on: October 26, 2017, 02:53:31 AM »

Hi .-)

The 300 is a model that was build by Wurlitzer Germany (Hüllhorst is just around the corner from me, between Hannover and Bielefeld) for europe only. I think is was made to compete with the electric 'Home'-pianos like the Hohner Electra.

The innards and circuit are the same as the EP201, a EU-Version of the original 200. The amp is close to the 200 schematic, but has some additional things like a trimpot for adjusting tremolo Speed and two trimmers for power amp bias.

Until last year, they were building and servicing Wurlitzer musicboxes at Hüllhorst, but they are closed now and the wisdom about Wurlitzer pianos is long gone there...

Here's a pic of the factory in Hüllhorst....




regards, Jens

25

The Fender Rhodes Electric Piano / Re: Quintessential Phased Rhodes Songs

« on: October 07, 2017, 03:43:47 AM »

I prefer the Mutron 2, but i know what you mean... Phasing is an effect that works pretty well with Rhodes...

Steely Dan - Babylon Sisters Live
Bill Withers - Just the two of us
Billy Joel - Just the way you are


Jenzz .-)

26

The Fender Rhodes Electric Piano / Re: Which 4-pin cable do I need for this Suitcase Cabinet?

« on: September 26, 2017, 01:02:46 AM »

Hi .-)

Seems that the connetor on the cabinet has been replaced. This is not original. The connector is a japanese microphone connector which is normally used for Mic connection on amateur radio etc...

https://www.pmr-funkgeraete.de/Funkgeraete/Stecker-Adapter/Mikrofon-Stecker:::48_69_160.html

Sorry, i only found a german site ad hoc....

Jenzz

27

Other Keyboards & Software Synths / Re: Pianet Model Names and Differences

« on: August 30, 2017, 08:08:31 AM »

Hi .-)

Check this out:

http://www.hohner-pianet.com/hohner_pianet/

...but ii is in german....

The effect inside the Pianet M is a Chorus based on the TDA1022 chip...



Jenzz

28

The Wurlitzer Electric Piano / Re: Using a Wurlitzer in Europe

« on: August 15, 2017, 03:08:16 PM »

The move isn't permanent so the transformer is probably the way to go.  Do you know how many watts the 200A pulls?  Wondering if something like this is sufficient: http://a.co/imAiwOR
Thank you both!

This thing is rated 200 Watts which is more than enough... A 200A ist rated 55W max.

Jenzz

29

The Wurlitzer Electric Piano / Re: Using a Wurlitzer in Europe

« on: August 15, 2017, 09:07:49 AM »

Hi .-)

Switzerland has 230 V, so you will need a step-down converter, or have to replace the transformer.

Jenzz

30

The Wurlitzer Electric Piano / Re: Cannot adjust letoff on 200a

« on: August 07, 2017, 03:29:20 AM »

Hi .-)

The problem is that the jack trips without touching the adjusment screw before. I have seen this on many Wurlitzers. In some cases, the jack spring was not tight enough, but in most cases, the felt at the hammer butt became fluffed, getting to big and then actuating the the jack.

Jenzz