Author: synthchaser

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Synthchaser #072 – Fried LinnDrum Repair

Two customers bought LinnDrums on eBay and sent them in for service/repair. One customer got a good buy, the other got a nightmare! It was a hacked mess of wires and modifications and the circuit board was blackened all the way through from heat. When most people would consider something like that a “parts machine”, our bold Synth Chaser forges ahead. Will he bring it back to life, or has the Synth Chaser finally met his match?

 

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matrixsynth.com’s Oberheim OB-Xa repair video series

For your viewing pleasure, I present Synthchaser #069 and #070…  A 2 part video series where I repair an OB-Xa for Matrix of Matrixsynth.com.

One voice card is dead, and others are failing autotune and sounding really inconsistent from voice to voice. In the first video we take a look at the state of the synth, and troubleshoot and repair the dead voice card.

In the second half, I continue the repair by rebuilding the power supply and voice cards, and get the synth in tune and sounding consistent from voice card to voice card. I also show you a common defect with the voice cards that prevents proper calibration.  Lots of time lapse soldering with looping music.

 

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Sequential Circuits Prophet 5 Restoration & Repair Video Series

For my next few videos I’ll be showing the restoration & repair of a Sequential Circuits Prophet 5 (revision 3).  While in pretty good cosmetic condition, except for a broken pot, the synth doesn’t work (all LEDs light up, “88” shows on the 7 segment display, and no output or response from any controls).  As I release the videos I’ll add them to this post.  Be sure to subscribe to my Youtube channel to be notified when new videos are added.

https://www.youtube.com/c/SynthChaser?sub_confirmation=1

Part I – Introduction

We peek at the insides of a Sequential Circuits Prophet 5 that we will be restoring.

Part 2 – Power Supply Rebuild

I show you how to remove, test, rebuild & calibrate the power supply of your Sequential Circuits Prophet 5 synthesizer.  We also stumble across evidence of a really good reason why you will want to do this to your Prophet 5.

 

Part 3 – Capacitors, Battery, Switches & Pots

We recap the remaining circuit boards of the synthesizer. I show you how to test and replace the battery, clean the switches, and clean and replace the potentiometers.

Part 4 – “Dead” CPU Repair

We troubleshoot and repair the dead Prophet which is non-responsive and stuck with all LEDs on and “88” on the display.

Part 5 – Keybed Refurbishment

We yank out the Pratt Read keybed, and I show you how to change the key bushings to get a nice quiet action to the keyboard, and we clean the buss bar and adjust the key contacts to fix dead/re-triggering keys.

Be sure to pick up my Prophet 5 capacitor kit, and a new set of key bushings!

Sequential Circuits Prophet 5 Rev. 3 Capacitor Replacement Kit Plus!

Sequential Circuits Prophet 5 Keyboard Bushing Set

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Synthchaser #061 – ARP Fender Rhodes Chroma Dual Footswitch Pedal Servicing

The pedal is for sale if you are interested, please contact me.

It’s not just your vintage synths that need love from time to time, it’s also their accessories. I service a Rhodes Chroma dual footswitch by replacing the damaged plug, cleaning the switches, recapping the switch, and polishing the brass. Result is a pedal someone will be proud to plug into their Rhodes Chroma.