Post your Rhodes pics and its story

[Mark II]

Now it has an onboard AC power on the back and two jack outputs next to the "accessory".

As you see, these 2 jacks on the far left are the output jacks.
than the fx loops (=accessory)

Mark II

[Spookyman]

A picture from my actual live set-up :

[soukouss]

Nice gear Spooky !

What is your rhodes's history ? Some  electronical or mechanic tweaking ?
Do you use the MS20's filters with the Rhodes ?
What kind of music do you play with that set up ?

[Spookyman]

My Rhodes History ?

I bought it there is 17 years ago, for 80 frs (60$) from my cousin. The Rhodes itself was not in so good conditions, cosmeticaly. So i paint it blue and orange there is a couple of years.

Last year, i gave all the internal mechanic to a Rhodes Tech in switzerland. He changed some tines, pickups, made a total revision.

And i made the case and paint job. So it changed from light blue/orange to royal blue/gold sparkle.

In January i also aded a VintagVibe Preamp. It's not the definitive model, with the original serigraphie. It's a sort of pre-serie Preamp.

Yes, the Rhodes is sometimes going thru the cuting edge filters of the MS-20.  I have an effect slope in the Rhodes Preamp, so i can include the MS-20 without problem.

The kind of music ? Funk, soul.

[soukouss]

hmm it sounds good ! thanks for your response.
I'd like to see his royal blue - gold sparkle colors...
Peace
S.

[toddague]

You can see my 1976 Rhodes Mark 1 Stage (aka the "babied studio Rhodes") to the left in this shot:



These days, a new Nord Electro II 73 sits on top of it.  I bought that Rhodes off EBay from its original owner.  Only a few scratches on the tolex, but other than that -- mint condition.  I installed new grommets, thoroughly cleaned out the insides and polished everything up -- then tuned and voiced it.  On top of that, I bought a Rhodes tune-up kit from a music store owner friend that had it laying around, and found Rhodes-issued modification/mounts for the upper 12 or so tonebars.  No springs needed!  I installed these, and get a bit more sustain in the upper registers now.  Typically, I run this Rhodes through a Speakeasy Vintage Suitcase Vibrato pedal, and/or a Speakeasy Vintage dual channel tube preamp to beef up the sound.  Overall, the Rhodes sounds great!

I have another Rhodes (a 1978 Mark 1 not shown here - aka the "Road Rhodes") that is a bit beat up on the outside, but sounds great for live, since it, too, has new grommets and has been revoiced, tuned and had escapement updated to move the tine ends closer to the pickups to give it more bark.

[Ben Bove]

great setup!

[BJT3]

Yeah, nice. Interesting about that upper note mod kit too. Would you mind posting some pics? Cool, so when ya' gettin' the Clav and Moog? Lol...

[Spookyman]

B3, ok...but in stereo ! ! !  :shock:

That's amazing. Is it a 122 and a 145 ? I can immagine the sound...wow !

Yes, i agree bjammerz : Great Setup.

[kapheaus]

http://bp2.blogger.com/_eobW-9K9pIo/Rpi8cLewRPI/AAAAAAAAANs/Vv1DWa1AbKE/s1600-h/DSC01973.JPG

Any love for my Student Model?

[toddague]

Re: B3, ok...but in stereo ! ! !  That's amazing. Is it a 122 and a 145 ? I can immagine the sound...wow !

Actually -- the leslies are a 147 and a 45, which I modified to a 2 speed (so it's basically the same as the 2 speed Leslie-issued 145).  A 145 is like a 147 -- same amp and speakers, but in a 7" shorter cabinet, so a bit less low-end tone.  I use the 145 for live work sometimes, but the 147 stays at home.   This setup does create quite the "stereo doppler effect" -- especially when recording and panning each leslie's horn and lower rotor at 9 and 3...

I'll get a few shots of the upper tine/grommet assembly out here as soon as I can.  No one seemed to know about this Rhodes-issued modification when I first acquired the kit and asked around about it...

[O.Lahoz]

I bought a Rhodes tune-up kit from a music store owner friend that had it laying around, and found Rhodes-issued modification/mounts for the upper 12 or so tonebars.  No springs needed!  I installed these, and get a bit more sustain in the upper registers now.

Probably it is the "rubber-standoff", a Mark V factory improvement for the higher tonebars.
I didn't know that this kit was in sale :shock:

http://www.fenderrhodes.com/service/rubber-standoffs.php

[toddague]

"Probably it is the "rubber-standoff", a Mark V factory improvement for the higher tonebars.
I didn't know that this kit was in sale"  :shock:  

Yes -- you're correct, O.Lahoz!   That's what I bought and installed.  I didn't realize these were for the Mark V, but that makes sense, timing-wise (the package/accompanying memo had a date stamp on them of 1984.

Anyway...I agree with the content found via the link you sent.  The higher-key rubber standoffs sound better and have improved sustain, but the difference is not hugely significant...

[tjjazzpiano]

You people and your B-3's... I'm so envious :-(

grrrrrrrrr

[Spookyman]

hmm it sounds good ! thanks for your response.
I'd like to see his royal blue - gold sparkle colors...
Peace
S.

Here you can see a little bit the colour in the day light :

[jim]

bloody guitarist setting his guitar case down right where it's gonna mess with your sustain pedal!

[Mark II]

bloody guitarist setting his guitar case down right where it's gonna mess with your sustain pedal!

Never mind, jim.
spooky should be glad that he doesnt lay his crappy guitar on top of this awesome gold sparkle finished harp cover.

"Do it, man and I will stab you to death with my sustan pedal rod." :twisted:

Mark II

[Spookyman]

bloody guitarist setting his guitar case down right where it's gonna mess with your sustain pedal!

Never mind, jim.
spooky should be glad that he doesnt lay his crappy guitar on top of this awesome gold sparkle finished harp cover.

"Do it, man and I will stab you to death with my sustan pedal rod." :twisted:

Mark II

You're absolutely right. It's a really crappy guitar...An Epiphone for 450 Euros. But i wouldn't stab it to death...the cover is allready scratched. Nothing serious, but it's allmost impossible to keep a Stage Piano in pristine conditions when i take it to gigs every months...I assume it, and in 2 or 3 years, i make a renovation of the case and top.  :wink:

[Mark II]

bloody guitarist setting his guitar case down right where it's gonna mess with your sustain pedal!

Never mind, jim.
spooky should be glad that he doesnt lay his crappy guitar on top of this awesome gold sparkle finished harp cover.

"Do it, man and I will stab you to death with my sustan pedal rod." :twisted:

Mark II

You're absolutely right. It's a really crappy guitar...An Epiphone for 450 Euros. But i wouldn't stab it to death...the cover is allready scratched. Nothing serious, but it's allmost impossible to keep a Stage Piano in pristine conditions when i take it to gigs every months...I assume it, and in 2 or 3 years, i make a renovation of the case and top.  :wink:

stab the gituar player, not the guitar.

Mark II

[peteblues]

Here is mine:


Got it last Friday. Sounds and plays like a dream. I couldn't get away from it all weekend.

[Spookyman]

Your Rhodes seems to be in very good condition too.

And the Voyager...  I'm loving it ! Nice set-up man.

[gunnar]

Here's my set up: Rhodes - Boss Tremelo - MicroKorg - Zoom Drum machine - Yamaha 4-track recorder - Monacor Reverb

Click on thumbnail to see a bigger version...

[toddague]

hmm it sounds good ! thanks for your response.
I'd like to see his royal blue - gold sparkle colors...
Peace
S.

Here you can see a little bit the colour in the day light :

Very, very cool gold sparkle and royal blue treatment, Spookyman!  Did you do the finishes yourself?  Looks like you stripped off the tolex and found a durable spray enamel for the blue part.  Nice new hardware, too!  Any tips you can share on how to do the sparkle and blue finishes?  My "road Rhodes" could use a makeover like that!

 -- Todd

[Manzarek]

Hi there!!

There is my lil story, first im from Canada and originaly speak french, so sorry if sometime im hard to read

Im a vintage Piano-Organ collector now i count 8 pieces on my collection
- Fender Rhodes Mark 1 Seventy Three
- Fender RHodes Mark II Fifty Four
- Fender Rhodes Piano Bass
- Gibson G101 organ
- Vox Continental MK I organ
- Vox Super Continental
- Wurlitzer 200A
- Korg BX3

So im first a big fan of the doors, and my first goal was to get the famous Piano bass and the gibson and Vox organ, so i found someone around here who was selling a RHodes Seventy three at a really fair price, my 1st idea at this time was to buy the rhodes to trade it for a Gibson/Pbass/vox after that... But after played a few min on it i decide to keep this baby forever a year or 2 after i found someone who was sellling a part of the Satellite amp and i bought it, the Rhodes sound totally amazing in it, really smooth, but i only have the slave unite, so i cant buy the preamps with the vibrato... After that...

I reach my goal to get my other babies... a 1971 Silver Sparkle Piano bass proudly sit on the top of my Gibson G101

After getting some other organ i discover a friend of mine was the owner of a Rhodes 54, he was sleeping since a lot of year, i bough him and when i open it i discover it was totally brand new, the hammer look like they never play

Ill maybe be interested to trade it for a Clavinet D7 or a Minimoog but i really love it.

Thats my lil story, ill try to keep get m,y collection bigger but im a non proffessional musician, i play for fun! ill join the rest of my collection for those interested by those oldies





P.S The BX3 stand was made by myself and a friend to made him look like a real B3,

[Spookyman]

Very, very cool gold sparkle and royal blue treatment, Spookyman!  Did you do the finishes yourself?  Looks like you stripped off the tolex and found a durable spray enamel for the blue part.  Nice new hardware, too!  Any tips you can share on how to do the sparkle and blue finishes?  My "road Rhodes" could use a makeover like that!

 -- Todd

Yes, the tolex was stripped away. The Hardware is brand new. For the case, i took a car colour, and applied it with the help of a friend. The top, i gave it to a friend that also make Drum Set Finish.

So if you are interested, there is a post in the Archive Part of this site :

http://ep-forum.com/smf/index.php?topic=2352

Thanks for your comment Todd  :wink:

[Ben Bove]

love the collection manzarek!

[tjjazzpiano]

P.S The BX3 stand was made by myself and a friend to made him look like a real B3,

/e drools

I heard the old ones have a more "dirty" sound than the new ones.  True/False?

[Manzarek]

i never try a new one, but i heard the news one are way smoother than the early version, better/badder? ill need to try one!

[Tehu]

Hey Manzarek, are you from québec?

amazing collection you have here!!!

[Tehu]

Here my new Setup






just brough the Wurly 2 month ago! Great sound!

[Carol Rhodes-Rice]

Ok here's my Rhodes stuff:

My baseball jacket:

My poster:


Carol

[jim]

that's awesome!

[Ben Bove]

I love the cabinet rhodes!!

[Carol Rhodes-Rice]

Apparently there were only 25 made.  At least that's what it says on this site.   Dave has one and I have one.  Both of which were built from the "stuff" my brother recovered from my dad's "shed" when he moved from Fullerton hills when he and Delores (wife #3 and Harold Jr's mom ) got divorced.

[Orestes]

Hello, i am Orestes From Greece. Sorry for bad english.
This is my lovely Rhodes piano. I bought it from ebay, a guy from italy.
The model is mark1 1976



The keyboard is in good working condition. Has many scratches but i love the sound.
I did a jamming party with some friends when rhodes arrived and this is my first jam with the piano... The recording is Home made...

http://us.share.geocities.com/benekas/JamOstl.mp3

You can listen a hammond sound from the motif es keyboard.[/img]

[Mark II]

I will use this thread as the original one is closed since the relaunch of this site. I promised some pictures, so there u go

Meet my new modified Peterson 4 Pin Suitcase Preamp with custom made faceplate.



about the modification: I drilled some holes and installed 2 LEDs indicating the vibrato and 2 switches. one switch is for varying the speed aswell (actually halving the speed), the other switches from stereo panning to mono tremolo on both channels.

I installed it all on a second namerail I got from musicpartsguru. I removed the long black sticker. I like the recent design.

comments are welcome.

Mark II

[Ben Bove]

very cool on the custom preamp!  great work!

[Ben Bove]

Carol, a quick question for you about your wood cabinet Rhodes - What does the left pedal do?  I assume the right pedal sustains, does the left Dampen?  or hold down certain sustained notes like a grand piano?

[Carol Rhodes-Rice]

Hi Bjammerz,

I just went and turned mine on, played a few notes and noticed no difference in the sound from holding the pedal down or not.  The Supersite has some info on the student model here:
http://www.fenderrhodes.com/models/student.php

I guess the left pedal is supposed to handle volume, but mine doesn't do anything it seems.

I'll ask Dave about it.

Carol

[pianotuner steveo]

The left pedal on a console style Wurlitzer cut the volume down, I would assume that this is what the pedal on Carol's originally did too. I don't see how it can act as a sostenuto in a Rhodes....that would be very difficult to do.

Steve O

[nate]

Here's a few shots of my KMC I:


This is how it looked when I picked it up.  Got if off craigslist here in Nashville for $350.  Most of the plastic trim was cracked and peeling, and the walnut veneer on the sides was torn and chipped.  The grille cloth was frayed and stained, and somebody had duct-taped the metronome knob to keep it from being turned on, which left a bunch of residue.

I thought about leaving the outside alone and just fixing the guts, but decided that if I'm going to have it sitting out in my home and studio, then I want it to be functional AND look nice.

I completely dismantled it and filled in as many cracks and chips as I could.  Then I sanded and painted it, and replaced the plastic trim.



I pulled out the action, and found that it had plastic/wood hammers with the original square felt tips on most of them.  Some in the middle octave had been replaced with neoprene years ago.  I replaced all the damper felts, all the pedestal felts, and the namerail felt.  I also found a small stamped date code on the bottom of the harp:





Then I moved and it sat for about 6 months before I could get back to it.  Last week I replaced the tonebar grommets, screws, and washers, and fixed some of the upper damper felts (thanks to this board)  that I had installed wrong.  It plays great now, except I think I need new bridle straps on about 3 notes.

Oh, here's what it looks like now:



I added a parallel direct out from the harp in place of the mic input and replaced the orange neon bulb with a bright red LED.  I also replaced the rotary power switch/source selector with a giant toggle switch and put new knobs on it.  I also had to order a new "Seventy-Three" logo.

Here's it's cousins, my chopped/modded Wurli 206A:



And my refinished M3:

[Mark II]

holy smoke, the KMC looks amazing. well done.
a little redish, :wink:  but I like it.

kind regards

Mark II

[pianotuner steveo]

Real nice job on the Wurli and Hammond too! Real nice Hammond!

[Clavier]

The Hammond looks good! Need to fix that F key, though.

[Clavier]

Doh! I forgot to mention that the Rhodes is gorgeous! I saw it, and suddenly went  

[pianotuner steveo]

Funny story about that F key on my mom's Hammond. When I was a little kid, I somehow pulled up on that same key and busted it off. I freakin panicked and didn't know what to do. I quickly chewed some gum, and stuck it under there and "glued" the key back on. My mother NEVER noticed it- it held until 15 or more years later,when my little nephew broke the same key off and got blamed for it-that's when I fessed up! 15 years (or more) later and the gum still held!!!! At this point I was a tech, so I repaired it the right way..it's still in the family today.

[Ben Bove]

haha wow!  now that's amazing

[Clavier]

Good story.  :lol:

[wanderingjew]

Here's my rhodes, mk 1 88 suitcase.

I had been looking for a rhodes for a looooong time, probably 6 months or so. Could never find one in my budget, or most importantly, within driving distance. So I check out ebay one day, search keyboards by distance, and lo and behold, there's a mk 1 88 key suitcase in the next county. Damn, I thought. So I spent a week getting the money together (and went into debt in the process - hey, I'm a student, I'm allowed to have no money) and two days before the auction ended, emailed the seller and asked if she would sell it locally. She did.

It's a real nice piano, miles beyond the Rhodes settings on my e-mu Vintage Keys. The seller got it from a school auction, and it looks like it had hardly been used. The tolex is scuffed up, but that's to be expected. This thing is immaculate. I think it's the closest anyone's ever gotten to getting a virgin rhodes used.

The seller also had a piano bass, but I didn't have the cash, as well as the fact that I already play bass, and I sorta kinda think the piano bass is a bit of a novelty. Anyway..... Here is a pic of my baby.

[Ben Bove]

Looks great!