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quarta-feira, 15 de fevereiro de 2023

How to open the JD-800 without trouble

Gaining access to the internal parts of the JD-800 is a simple process but requires a little care.

Removing all screws may do your internal components fall.

You must remove only the screws AROUND the bottom and two screws in the center line, they are at 1/4 from side, and may be you can see a few bigger hole where thy fit to.

Sometimes the bottom have some "dust" acting like glue to.

Photo: 



How to remove the panel.
JD-800 Manual. (click to enlarge)
Source: Roland Co.


Ok? Good luck!


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domingo, 3 de julho de 2022

Roland JD-800 Repair, Restoration & Modification

Another great work restoring a JD-800. 
Thanks for Scott MacLean for this complete video! 



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domingo, 10 de janeiro de 2021

Another Very Nice Red Glue Repair.

Wow!

What a nice fantastic work and for sure nice photos!

Click the link or the photo bellow for the complete procedure.

Thanks Pete Sherman!

Roland JD-800 "Red Glue" repair


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Great news! JD-800 flex circuit replacement!

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sexta-feira, 16 de agosto de 2013

White Keys Again



This is from "The Retr0bright Project".

By Merlin, of AmiBay, English Amiga Board and Vintage Computer Forums (among others)

How to deal with the “not-so-mellow yellow” of old computers and consoles

“The problem was finally cracked in late July 2008 with a mixture of hydrogen peroxide, a small amount of an “Oxy” laundry booster as a catalyst and a UV lamp; we believed that this could do the job in hours instead of days. Proof of this concept was demonstrated on EAB by Tonyyeb from Hull, UK, Chiark from Leeds, UK and myself. The original test I did as proof of concept took two hours, as opposed to up to the five days it took for the original tests at CBM and a1k.org. We were on to something!!

See the complete article at: retr0bright.wikispaces.com



Portuguese text: 

Coloque as teclas em água oxigenada + bicarbonato de sódio e deixe algumas horas no sol. De preferência cubra o recipiente com um plástico.


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sexta-feira, 8 de março de 2013

One Fix for the Red Glue Problem

JD800 by Marcos Carrera from Taiwan.


This was posted by Shupac800 at the JD-800 Tech Group:



My Fix for the Red Glue Problem
Posted By: shupac800  Sat Aug 4, 2012 8:10 pm 
I posted this tutorial to Gearslutz.com last year and thought it might be
helpful to republish it here.

* * *

There are two kinds of JD-800 owners: those who have already experienced the
red glue of death, and those who are going to...

As we all know, the red glue that holds the key weights to the keys did not prove to be stable over a period of decades. When it gets old, and especially if the synth is kept someplace warm, the red glue softens and seeps out, making a God-awful mess.

The best way to fix this problem is to remove all the red glue, under the mildest conditions possible (NOT boiling water, as some have tried), and re-glue the weights into the keys. The keybed comes out better than new. Here's my technique.

Sodium hydroxide (NaOH, lye) solution works great to dissolve the red glue without harming the plastic. It is caustic, so WEAR SAFETY GOGGLES. Even dilute NaOH can permanently damage your eyes, and it's very likely your lye solution will be splashing about. If you get any of the solution on yourself, wash it off promptly with a lot of water.

The sodium hydroxide I like to use is granular NaOH, which I've bought on eBay. If you can get Red Devil lye or some other pelletized NaOH at your hardware store, that will work too, but the granular NaOH dissolves faster.

In a plastic bucket, mix 80 grams NaOH with 2 liters of water until all the NaOH is dissolved. (The bucket will get warm.) For you chemistry types, this recipe makes a 1-molar (1 mole/L) solution of sodium hydroxide.

Immerse the keys in the lye solution. You only need to soak the part with the glue on it, so don't worry if keys aren't completely bathed in the solution.

Leave the keys soaking in the solution for 18-24 hours. After this time, no traces of the red glue should remain, and the weights will simply fall out of the keys into the bucket.

Carefully pour the NaOH solution down the drain. Don't let the weights get poured down the drain too.

Rinse everything with a lot of water. Dry the weights as best you can. It's normal for a bit of rust-colored oxidation to form on them; don't worry about it.

At this point I soak the keys for another 24 hours in a bucket of soapy water. This bath helps eliminate the fishy odor left on the plastic by the reaction of the lye solution with the red glue.

When everything is dry and clean, re-glue the weights into the keys. I have had great results using a popsicle stick to apply a dab of 5-minute epoxy to each key. Make sure the weights are properly centered.

To remove any red goop that has seeped onto your chassis, I have found the best method is to blast the goo with freeze spray (available from Radio Shack or Fry's). Then, while the stuff is frozen hard and brittle, chip it off with a single-edged razor blade.

And that's it. Have fun.




Another fix by Daniel Forro at the same forum: 
(observe his comments about how reglue the key's weights)



My problems with red glue started few years ago after my moving from middle Europe to Japan - I think also because of high temperatures in the summer.

It's necessary to disassemble the instrument and keyboard, and leave the keys soaked in solution with NaOH (natrium hydroxide). I used a liquid for
cleaning sanitary pipes with 2% of NaOH, it's enough, but it was necessary to leave keys in it for about 2 or three days. I have used transparent plastic
cover from 50 pieces CD or DVD box, lot of keys can be inside in the same time soaked (and after finishing the job and washing box in water it can be
again used). Red glue is dissolved with it perfectly, dissappears, and metal weights still keep glued (mostly, just few fell out).

Then I cleaned the keys with water, and with isopropylalcohol from the rest of dissolved glue film and all dirtiness, and put standard universal common
liquid "white glue" (which changes color to transparent after drying, and is soluble and washable with water - I'm sure it can be purchased everywhere in the
world under different names) to fill and cover all holes around the weight, and weight itself - to avoid any possible future leakage of red glue which is
still under the weight. After drying this glue I had apply more of it on some spots where some air bubble made again holes. In the end I got perfect plastic cover
of metal weight. If I remember well, for black keys it was necessary to use more glue.

There's no problem since the repair.



.'.


Here is another topic about the Red Glue problem: Sorting Out Flats JD800 Sticky Key - Red Glue


domingo, 6 de maio de 2012

Sorting Out Flats JD800 Sticky Key - Red Glue

In the Harmony Central site, the Keys, Synths & Samples forum is the one of the best group about synths and synth players I have found.

From there is this great post about one of the famous problems of the JD-800: the sticky key, also know as the Red glue problem. .

Link to the original topic: ***Flats-JD800-Sticky-Key-Session-***



Topics created by Flat Earth - Vive La Synthesizer! You find him at www.gearslutz.com



***Flats JD800 Sticky Key Session ***

Heres a very quick guide to sorting out the infamous Roland JD800 'Sticky key problem'
As you are only allowed 10 images, I´m sorry if it is not too clear.




Remove the 8 screws located under the ‘ROLAND’ logo on the back of the JD800. then the 2 screws on the underside of the JD and the 3 screws at either ends (left image). The top facia of the synth will open up like a bonnet revealing the circuitry and keyboard (a strap on the left hand side prevents the lid/facia from falling back)





The keyboard can now be removed. Firstly, gently prize out the ribbon connector that connects the keyboard to the motherboard (left image). Using a side-to-side motion (don’t force it!), then unscrew the 6 gold screws running along the top of the keyboard chassis (right image), and the 5 screws underneath the synth (holding the keyboard steady)




The whole keyboard assembly should slide forward easily now. Before taking apart the keyboard, its best to lay it face down on a towel or soft cloth (keep a dish handy for small parts)

On the back of the metal keyboard chassis, there are 5 black strips securing each octave of the keys. Remove 1 strip and the one octave of keys at a time. A knife or flat screwdriver can be inserted under the strip to gently prise it off. (See above right)





After the strip has been removed, each key can be taken out by gently pushing it out. (After each key has been removed, take out each corresponding metal spring clip that is underneath the key, and put it somewhere safe. Put all the keys in order, upside down on a piece of board. (Right image)

At this point, you should be able to see the ‘Red glue’ that is causing the sticky key (red glue) problem.
I found in my case, all the problems seem to emanate from the glue leaking from the ‘black keys’. The glue had dripped down onto the damping strip & between the keys themselves. (see below)





The ‘Red glue’ can be cleaned easily from between the keys. The glue that has fouled the damping strip on the other hand (left image), has to be gently scraped off with a scalpel. I found some of the glue had been absorbed by the damping strip. I was able to cut it out, and then ‘fluff up’ the resulting hole. If the damping strip were too heavily saturated with glue, it would be a better idea to replace it (if Roland can still supply this).

Once all the glue has been cleaned away, it’s worth cleaning the contacts. Just remove the 5 grey rubber contact suspension mats and clean the whole strip with a light tissue doused in cleaning fluid. (Be careful removing these mats, as the small rubber securing cones can tear easily!)

The keyboard section can now be re-assembled and tested.

I found that putting a thin layer of hot glue over the ‘red glue’ in the black keys could prevent further leakage in the future. But not too much as to make the key too heavy.

Hope this is of use to anybody experiencing similar problems.
  
.'.

Additional comments from that topic and very useful info from the topic follow. (Edited)




Comment by Don Solaris - Certified Synth Maniac

Unfortunately, cleaning of damping strip from bottom side is not that easy. And the only solution (after you clear keys and before you put them back) is to take a small piece of Post-It paper and put it right over the glue. Glue will hold it, and key won't be sticky anymore.

Same can be applied to top side of damping strip as in many cases, the glue already penetrated it deep enough, that you can no longer cut it out with scalpel.





Comment by  MarkShovel2

I found it was essential to get the metal spring clips uniformally seated on each key. I had a few black keys that were stiff. I observed that the metal clips were not correctly seated into the top of the key. When correctly seated, everything is very uniform. The action now approaches my two V-Synths.




Comment by Flat Earth

Id thought of putting a small piece of thin plastic or paper over the saturated parts of the damping strip, but after gently cutting it out, i was able to 'fluff' it up, with a needle back to a pretty good state.




Comment by 4thtry

As in your case the black keys were causing the majority of the problem. I used a tube of silicon instead of hot glue to try and seal in the offending red glue. I had to be careful not to add too much or the little metal stopper with the rubber jacket would come in contact and add unwanted friction.




Comment by Flat Earth

when i inserted the hot glue, i had to be careful not to put too much in. I found a small blob either side of the weight did the trick. Used a small screw driver to spread it over the red glue, but you have to be quick, the hot glue sets quite quickly.

I didnt do the white keys btw. Even if they had 'leaked', they wouldnt cause any problems with the keybed mech as they arnt above it. I will be keeping an eye on them though.



Comment by Flat Earth

Update

After repairing the keyboard action (which now plays super smooth) i found I had a few dead notes. I thought the culprit may well be the rubber dome key contacts, so i took it apart again and made a note of which keys failed to play. I then swapped one of the 5 grey strips with another and checked to see if the key played. **BINGO** they worked. They rubber strip must have worn out. Its best to replace all 5, but remember, the 5th strip (top octave) is different to the lower 4 octave strips. It has 13 contacts rather then 12 like on the other lower octaves. Take this into account when ordering replacements. 




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Another topic for the Red Glue problem is: One fix for red glue problem.


terça-feira, 21 de fevereiro de 2012

Great modifications and maintenance: Roland JD-800 "Restyling"

Great modification and fantastic result!

Efrem, from Italy have done many improvements inside that make the Roland JD-800 more robust and easy to maintenance.

A great video from a synth lover.

He turned the Roland JD-800 in a module, removed the keybed and improved it.



(Video updated in 21, June 2017)

Click the link to watch the video at Youtube:  Roland JD-800 _ Modifiche hardware



 










The video show all parts he serviced. Very good ideas.

Pay atention to details and you will be surprised. I comment only a few.

Well, he removed the damaged keybed. here in the blog you will see another modification such like this. 

The headphones output in front make it easier.

The joystick was placed apart and it is on a temporary support.

The plastic over the card place is a great idea. Protect against contact with the flat cable and prevent also agaist dust.

I say dust? Oh my god! He made a total cleanup! Dust inside is the great problem of the JDs. 

Another great idea was to improve heat dissipation in the power source. 
The connectors are no longer soldiers which greatly facilitates maintenance.

Love to see all that. Thanks Efrem, our congratulations! 


UPDATE: This one is an update from him but due restrictions you need to click at the Youtube link to see it. 



 See also:
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    quarta-feira, 17 de fevereiro de 2010

    Keep Your JD-800 Clean

    Just be careful with the Roland JD-800, clean it very often. 

    Dust in the sliders, button and circuits can provoke a typical JD-800 berzerk (auto-programming...). 

    This effect is like a ghost acting in the synth. If you don´t use to change program while playing, turn off the banks edit mode. (just press bank A-b-C-D to light off and then save the patch.


    You will also note, when some parameter is changed because dust, a "point" will light in the painel, like if you have done it.

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