News:

Follow us on Twitter for important announcements and outage notices.

Main Menu

Silver top

Started by Loukas, March 04, 2012, 04:08:26 AM

Previous topic - Next topic

Loukas

Hi to all !
After some years of searching in Europe finally got this week my silver top from U.K
It was somehow a dream to have it 'cause i do love so much silver tops , and recording with that from 1967-70.
It needs some inner adjustments for sure but i am so happy that i got it in my hands now !
Ser. No 601 - probably a 1966 model but i will check more details in speakers etc.
Just two main questions :
The Jordan amp it seems weak from 1-4 volume and hissy when volume goes to  8-10. What should i do ?
Also i am about to tuning it and voicing it .So any advice for better results on the voicing progress?
(I know these models can drive you out of your mind !).
Any advice will be valuable.
Thanks
Loucas
Silver top 1966
Mark II suitcase 1980

David Aubke

It looks like it's in near-perfect condition. Congratulations.
Dave Aubke
Shadetree Keys

Abraham

wow finding this in europe...! cheap for sure.... I wonder what a FORTUNE did you spend on this, congratulations!
196x Hammond L100
1976 Rhodes MKI '73 Suitcase
1976 Wurlitzer 200-A EP
1981 Casio VL-Tone (Yeah!)
199x Kawai CX-21D Upright
20xx Clavia Nord Electro 2

Loukas

#3
Thank you both .
Yes it is in a very good shape indeed but need a refresh inside .
You are right Abraham , it was expensive but the real hard task was to find one in Europe a.k.a  without "bloody" paying the taxes from U.S to Greece.
There is no such a bargain chance to get it here !
Silver top 1966
Mark II suitcase 1980

The Real MC

What a clean spotless specimen... congratulations!

Mine is serial 74X and per the speaker datecodes it is a 1967.

I did some experimenting during the restoration of my sparkletop.  Run a wire from the left side of the harp to the sustain rail underneath.  There is a screw there it can connect to.  This will decrease buzz and was done on later pianos.

Dampers can be bent to fix ringing notes but beware the bridle straps.  Avoid pulling up on the damper or you will rip through the strap.  Otherwise you'll have to epoxy the strap to the plastic damper body, right where the damper wire is fastened.

Dead pickups may be an easy repair.  Observe both terminals for the green wire.  If one is broken, you simply unwind the loose end one revolution off the coil, scrape the green insulation to expose the copper, and re-solder to terminal.  I fixed two of them this way.

Try raising the harp by putting a 6mm shim between the harp and harp support only on the right side.  This improves the tone of the bottom half of the piano, gets that "furry" sound like the Mark II you have in your picture.  If you like the result, you will have to reset the position of the dampers.

If you're missing the red velvet layer inside the lid, get one installed.  This is not just cosmetic!  Its purpose is to protect that silvertop harp cover from scratches against the wood in the lid.

If you are recording, sparkletop pickups are pretty noisy.  I solved the problem by using a Countryman Type 10 Direct Box right off the harp.  Unbelieveably clean and noise free.

My restored sparkletop made its first appearance with my jazz band this past friday:



Loukas

#5
Wow ! I absolutely love the your piano with the old grill cloth.Very cool to move it live performance.
Thanks for your advices.
They are all useful.
Thanks
Loucas
p.s : Top red velvet lid exists.See left on the second photo.
Silver top 1966
Mark II suitcase 1980

The Real MC

Yeah I liked the "aged" look despite some small tears.

Cabinet was empty when I bought it - no amp, no speakers.  If you look closely you can see through the grill, through the gap where the amp control panel once was.

I'm playing it through a 30W tube amp for the tone, which is converted to line output via a speaker emulator then routed to my Bose system for the volume.   The 30W amp doesn't put out enough volume for this band and I *had* to have that tone.

Ben Bove

Yeah way to go on that Silvertop!  a definite nice find!

The biggest problem for me on these was the hammers.  If you have any notes that don't sound great, *thunk* it could be a groove in the hammer or if someone filed them down, not filed right.  You can usually tell by unscrewing and sliding the harp around, forward and back - to see which notes sound better in a different position.

For volume, 8-10... I don't think the amp can really handle that volume :).  The power amps were weaker so might not sound good.  When you turn from 4-5, does it suddenly get a lot louder? 



MC - great to see you playing out with one!  :)
Retro Rentals & Restorations
Vintage Music Gear

http://www.retrorentals.net
310-926-5799
info@retrorentals.net

FB: https://www.facebook.com/retrorentals.net/
IG: @RetroRentalsNet

Loukas

Thanks Ben !
It's nice to be in the "silver" club !
As you see hammers are almost new .They had been replaced .
The volume goes all the way up normally ,just seem to me weak and really plays normal on 8-10 but with hiisy trebles.
It needs to be "refreshed" .Probably i will give it fo VV for that.
Finding first the strike point is a matter but i am not in rush .I enjoy every adjusting step on this piano .
Silver top is the most beautiful of all Rhodes i have seen that's why and very demanding !
Silver top 1966
Mark II suitcase 1980

Loukas

#9
Some more inner pics that can help the dating.Speakers stamps is 220648 meaning (220 Jensen ) 196(6) 48week
Silver top 1966
Mark II suitcase 1980

hammondrye

Hello all, First post....

Just snagged a 1967 Sparkle Top! Missing the bottom. Awful grooved hammers, so I replaced them with wooden hammers from a 1972 parts piano that I had. (ala The Real MC) I have everything apart right now waiting on some parts from VV. So far so good. i have a copy of the Rhodes Service Manual, and it says that if you perform this hammer replacement mod, you should "shim" the tips to compensate for the shorter neoprene tipped hammers. After some test tone bar replacement, and noodling, it sounds like I wont need the shims. Anyone beg to differ before I put this thing back together?

This piano is clearly marked #1567 on the gold tag and hand written on the rt. hand harp support along with a green rubber stamp of "november 1967". It has a Peterson preamp with copper enclosure. My '72 parts piano has a Peterson amp with "zinc" plated enclosure. It had a cut cord that came with the piano. The end of this cord is a square 4 pin connector the looks like it was hard wired running through the name rail. The splice matches up perfectly, but can't find any pics of a sparkletops that had this cable termination to the preamp. Can anyone confirm that they made a "fixed" cable Peterson configuration?

I plan on building a bottom. Looking now for a Peterson amp for the bottom with 4-pin square plug. I spoke to VV last week, but they said they are missing the amp sections. Anyone have one? Suggestion? Great advice here. Thanks in advance.


Loukas

Some more photos would be  helpful .
Here are all the schematics you need http://www.fenderrhodes.com/org/manual/toc.html
Silver top 1966
Mark II suitcase 1980

The Real MC

Quote from: Loukas on March 06, 2012, 03:08:31 PM
Some more inner pics that can help the dating.Speakers stamps is 220648 meaning (220 Jensen ) 196(6) 48week

Just looked at the pics...

Your cabinet has cutouts for 4x12

Mine has cutouts for 2x12 and 2x10  :o

Ben Bove

Yes my 1967 silver top has 2x10 to player 2x12 to audience... with a crossover component mounted.  I believe they didn't change to the 4x12 until the Peterson preamp series in late 68/69?  Unsure about that.

They had fixed cable preamps for a short period on silver tops, I'll see if I can locate a picture.  Also, although there's a green stamp for 1967, I find it odd that it's a peterson preamp.  Fender didn't release the stereo Peterson system until 1969, so there could be some '68s with a peterson if they were manufacturing them for the 1969 catalogue, but that's the first appearance we see.  So there could have been either a swap since then or who knows what else in 40 years :)

The same goes for loukas and his 48th week 1966 speakers, I'm assuming by the time they were manufactured by Jensen and purchased by Fender and installed in a piano it was probably well into 1967 by then but it's splitting hairs really.


Retro Rentals & Restorations
Vintage Music Gear

http://www.retrorentals.net
310-926-5799
info@retrorentals.net

FB: https://www.facebook.com/retrorentals.net/
IG: @RetroRentalsNet

The Real MC

Mine has 1x10 1x12 facing player and audience  :o  :o  :o

Fred

Just to share some details on Silvertops...

  Mine has a harp stamp of 4568, and matching serial numbers on the piano and amp cab. It is a hard-wired Peterson stereo model, with two 10" speakers facing the player, and two 12" speakers facing the audience (or the wall).

  The pre-amp must be one of the first Petersons... Written in solder on the underside of the board is "Peterson" and is dated 1967.
Head Designer of the Vintage Vibe Tine Piano
Collector
Electric Piano Technician in New Haven, Ct.
(203) 824-1528

Ben Bove

Quote from: Fred on April 03, 2012, 09:17:40 AM
Written in solder on the underside of the board is "Peterson" and is dated 1967.

WOW haha.  I guess no sharpies around!
Retro Rentals & Restorations
Vintage Music Gear

http://www.retrorentals.net
310-926-5799
info@retrorentals.net

FB: https://www.facebook.com/retrorentals.net/
IG: @RetroRentalsNet