Basic Diagnosis

[rode0045]

Hi Rhodes people!

I'm a new-ish owner of an okay rhodes and I've begun 'voicing' the keyboard and doing some much needed routine maintenance- per forum suggestions and the online rhodes manual.  However, after setting the escapement and voicing...

#1:   Some notes still sound dead.  They ring quietly and sound wobbly

#2:   The upper 1 1/2 octaves ring very poorly- like a high pitched dead 'ping' or 'thunk'.  They also have these strange brackets on the ends of the tone bars :?:

#3:  The upper 2 octaves make a loud "click:"  (not out of the Amp!) from the hammer hitting the damper.  I assume this could not be normal- for it is obnoxious.   COULD #2 be related to #3?

How do I know if it is the Tine, Tone bar, Pickup, or Hammer tip that needs replacing?  DO they need replacing?    Any help is hugely appreciated.  

Sean [/b]

[Ben Bove]

1) check pickup distance, or if the pickup is dead.

2) you will probably need to change the rubber grommets, search the forum for McMaster and ordering grommets, very inexpensive.  Brackets are ok, used to help with more sustain.

3) if you have a "Rhodes" from ~'76 and up, they used a harder hammer tip starting at the "B" above middle C.  Often it makes acoustic ambient noise sounding like something is wrong, but it is normal if it starts from this "B" and continues up.

4) pickup replacement - tap magnet with a screwdriver to see if it makes as much noise as the surrounding pickups when theyre tapped.

Best of luck!