Technics organ, digital piano, keyboard repairs, FDD repairs, disc drive repairs, floppy disk drive

Technics - a great range of organs, digital pianos and keyboards.  One of the leading names but sadly no longer in production. Contrary to some rumours Technics did not "go bust" or cease trading. Technics is part of Panasonic which in turn is part of Matsushita which is a HUGE company. As far as I know they just decided to pull out of making musical instruments - which is a pity because they made some really good products.

The good news is that most of their PR series digital ensembles (pianos with auto accompaniments), their PX series pianos (without auto accompaniments), their KN range of keyboards and most of their organs can still be repaired.  Most repairs don't need special Technics parts (although some do) - just a Technics repair specialist ... enter Mike Barden!

The bad news is that replacement circuit boards are no longer available.  However, most can be repaired unless badly damaged by corrosion - and sometimes this is possible too. 
It's always worth checking to see whether your house contents insurance covers such events as accidental spillages (if this genuinely was the cause of the problem) on a replacement as new basis.  This probably won't be possible if you bought the instrument second hand.
Info about INSURANCE CLAIMS on Home page (headed "Digital piano repairs, keyboard repairs")

Please always provide the MODEL NUMBER in any enquiries - you can ignore the "SX" or "SY" prefix which is just Technics' code denoting that it's a music product.
It is also really important that I get a good description of the fault, plus any other symptoms you can think of - and details of any previous repair history.  My contact details are at the bottom of each page.

Typical faults in some of the PX series digital pianos and the PR series "digital ensembles"

1) Won't boot up - commonly found on PR603, PR703, PR903, PR1000 (maybe some others) - sometimes won't turn on properly (just get blue backlit display but no writing appears) no buttons light and keys won't play - sometimes the buttons do light but the keys won't play - sometimes turns on normally but only plays for a short time (control buttons may stop working/lock-up/freeze, keyboard may stop playing) - may start working by itself or you may have to switch off and on again to get it working.  Initialising sometimes appears to have cleared the problem but this is just coincidence - the problem will come back!
This is a MAIN BOARD fault and needs extremely specialised repair work which must only be carried out by someone like myself who is an expert in surface-mount rework techniques and has the proper tools for the job.  If a non-expert attempts work on this board it will almost certainly be damaged, possibly beyond repair.  Unfortunately some repairers (often very good engineers/technicians) make a surprisingly poor job of reworking surface mount chips.  This usually results in the problem not being fixed in the first place or returning at a later date.  If a chip is reworked properly it shouldn't need to be done again.  I can usually repair main boards if they have no serious damage from previous repair attempts.  One of these days I'll put up photos I've taken of other repairers' awful soldering attempts on these chips. 
I can test main boards for PR603, PR703, PR903, PR1000 after repairing them.
You can send me your main board for repair.  Please ring first to discuss the symptoms and then I can tell you how to open the piano and remove, handle and package your main board.
PR1000 -  I reckon the UK-badged PR903 is the same animal as the US-badged PR1000.  I've had a few PR1000 main boards from the US for repair and these were the same as the UK's PR903 main board.
Please note that the PR603, PR703, PR903, PR1000 also suffer from the amplifier problem below

NOTE - Problems 2), 3), 4) below can affect all of PR602, PR702, PR902, PR603, PR703, PR903, PR604, PR804, PX336, PX338 ....
Similar faults may occur in other models.  I can't list everything so please ring with your model number.
The PR603, PR703, PR903, PR1000 also suffer from the main board problem in 1) above.
The PR602, PR702, PR902, PR604, PR804 do not usually have main board problems.
I can test amplifier boards for PR602,PR702, PR902, PR603, PR703, PR903, PR604, PR804

2) when playing, sometimes (or all the time) the sound is distorted on left-hand-side or right-hand-side or both sides - may sometimes hear nasty, fizzy or squeaky noises even when not playing.  Check using headphones - you should find that it sounds normal on headphones.  The distortion is most likely due to an amplifier fault.  Some customers argue that it must be the speakers but they are usually wrong!  Some customers say it must be the transformer and they are always wrong!!  NOTE - IF IT HUMS TOO - THIS IS IMPORTANT!!  Ring me with the model number to discuss the symptoms.  You may be able to send me the amplifier board for repair or bring me the top of the piano.  If you're not too distant I could come to you to carry out repairs.

3) piano went "pop" (or maybe went "BANG"!!!) or may HUM on left-hand-side or right-hand-side or both sides (usually a loud hum) and may stop playing.  This is also an amplifier fault.  Usually the output transistors and a few other things have blown.  I need the amplifier board to repair.  If the output transistors have blown there is a possibility that this may also have blown the speakers.  Once again, get the model number and ring to discuss.

4) very high-pitched whistle - sometimes not audible to humans but may be the reason why your dog foams at the mouth and runs repeatedly into walls!  Sorry, back to normality for a moment.  The main board produces some high frequencies which, although annoying if you can hear them, may be tricky to pin-point and silence.  Check to see if it's the main board whistling by turning down the master volume or plugging in headphones (don't put on the headphones).  If the whistle can still be heard it's the main board so explain to the dog that you may be packing his bags.  A main board whistle could be coming from a choke (coil) vibrating at high frequency and might be cured with the right kind of glue.  If the whistle disappears with master volume or headphones it might be something you could do yourself (if you're brave) so please ring for advice on this.

Typical faults on PX103, PX105, PX107 and maybe others - dead, no display, LEDS don't light up (except for the one on the front of the piano) - send me the main board or bring me the top half of the piano - ring for advice on how to remove this.  I can test PX103, PX105, PX107 main boards after repairing them.

Common faults on PX334, PX552, PX554, PX664, PX665 and others - dead, may have gone "pop" or "bang" or may make a VERY LOUD HUM ... do not switch it on again to see if it's got better by itself!! (remove the mains lead and hide it so no-one else can switch it on) - usually the amplifier and speakers will have blown.  It's not a cheap repair but it is cheaper than buying another piano.  Also I can modify the power supply to considerably reduce the likelihood of a repeat occurrence.  The reason I say "do not switch it on again" is that if you are extremely lucky (and it has happened a few times) the amplifier and speakers will still be okay - but if you turn on the piano again you may well blow them!!!  This happens in a fraction of a second and automatically transfers yet more money from your bank account into mine!!
Prevention is far cheaper than repair on these models  If you have one of the above PX series which is still working properly it is definitely worth having the power supply modified if you intend to keep the piano - it's at least £200 cheaper than having it repaired after the amplifier and speakers have blown.  You can bring the top of the piano here to have this done (same day by arrangement) or you could send me the circuit board but it's a bit tricky to remove and slightly trickier to put back.  At present I do not have a suitable piano here to test these boards so bringing the top of the piano to me is the best bet.  Then I know it's all working properly before you collect it.

Typical faults in older models e.g. PR250, PR350, PX55, PX66 and quite a few more - everything looks normal, all buttons and display working normally but total silence ....
First make sure that NOTHING is left plugged into headphones sockets (some pianos have two), especially the headphone jack adaptor (3.5mm stereo mini jack socket to quarter inch stereo jack plug)
Ring me with the model number of your piano

Speaker faults - usually in older models - can affect any loudspeakers having foam surrounds which perish and disintegrate with age leaving the speaker cone floating unsupported.  The symptom is distorted sound.  If you continue to use the piano the problem speaker will eventually damage its speech coil.  If you're lucky the speaker goes open circuit and just stops working.  If you're not so lucky the speaker will go short circuit and blow the amplifier.  If you have distorted sound, try using headphones and if okay on headphones get the speakers checked.  When foam surrounds perish and disintegrate it's usually fairly obvious because there are lots of bits of the old foam (often black) lying  below the speaker.  Note - when this happens it's a fairly safe bet that both speakers will need replacing.  DON'T carry on playing the piano if it sounds distorted because you will eventually blow the amplifiers aswell!!

NOTE - I do not have a whole range of Technics pianos here on which to test boards.  With the exception of those models listed above, if you only send me a board I am unable to test it unless there happens to be a customer's piano of the same model here at the time.  The best solution is either for me to come out and do the repair on site or for you to bring me the top of the piano.  If you bring the top of the piano (and the speaker box if there is one) it is not only cheaper for you but I can be certain that everything is working properly before you come to collect it.  If you want to do this please ring me for advice on how to dismantle the piano safely.

If bringing the top of the piano without asking for advice 1) disconnect mains lead, pedal lead, speaker lead (only on models with speaker box below top of piano)  2) tape down music rest if non-removable  3) close and tape down keyboard cover if present  4) prepare vehicle for transit - IMPORTANT - if piano has plastic boxes protruding from underside you must put packing under the piano to prevent the weight of the piano resting on these boxes  5) remove screws fixing piano to stand  6) two people required to lift piano off stand and into vehicle  7) if you have loud hum or distortion problems and the piano has a separate speaker box please bring that aswell for testing  8) if any pedal problems bring the pedal unit - this is usually easy to unscrew which saves having to bring the whole stand with you.

If opening piano to remove circuit boards  1) ring me with the model number to check that your piano does open in the usual way - some don't!  2) unplug mains so you can't electrocute yourself  3) remove top of piano (most Technics pianos open like this - as a general rule, don't remove the rear of the piano)  4) slide keyboard cover (if any) forward to cover the keys.  Now you can see inside the piano.

WORTH NOTING - main board faults listed above are not related to the other faults listed above so if you have the main board repaired one week and next week you get distortion it just means that the amplifier, pre-amplifier or speakers decided to go wrong very soon after the previous fault.  Generally speaking, a main board fault will not cause an amplifier fault.  However, an amplifier fault might possibly cause a main board fault due to over-voltage but this is far more likely to be caused by a damaged pedal lead.

A few tips to help you avoid the expense of unnecessary repairs:
1) Electronic musical instruments DO NOT NEED SERVICING - they only need repairing if they go wrong ... "if it ain't broke, don't fix it!"
2) Initialise.  Sometimes the instrument behaves very strangely or may not play at all because its operating system has got itself in a knot. It's always worth trying the "initialise" procedure on most Technics products before calling out a service engineer. Initialising will lose anything you have written or recorded ... so now you'll wish you'd done that saving to disk first!
3) Damaged pedal lead may blow up your Technics piano.  Take care not to damage the lead which goes down to the pedals. Surprisingly (not a nice surprise either) this can cause extremely expensive damage to the main circuit board!  New, genuine Technics pedal leads normally in stock for all the later PC, PR and PX models.  Non-returnable.  Non-refundable.

DIY nutcases
I can supply a set of the 24 correct transistors for the preamp board in PR602, PR702, PR902, PR603, PR703, PR903, PR604, PR804, PX336, PX338 including the improved specification ones used for the higher supply voltage pianos like PR902, PR903. Price £30 per set including postage UK mainland only.
Outputs FETs Mitsubishi FS30KMJ-3 and FX30KMJ-3. Price £15 per pair including postage UK mainland only.
ICP fuses N75 or N10 £1.25 each including postage UK mainland only. Minimum order 4 x any ICP = £5.
All transistors are new. All sales are non-refundable. Unused parts are not returnable for credit or refund.

Please note that anyone attempting a pre-amp board rebuild must be extremely good at de/resoldering. The boards are only paxolin and the track is easily damaged and/or lifted. There are 72 joints to desolder, 24 transistors to remove, 30 components to check, 96 other joints to de/resolder for these 30 components and some wire links, 24 new transistors to fit, 72 joints to solder, 72 wire ends to cut off ... and then you're finally ready to plug it in and test it!
WARNING - Do not switch on the piano if the pre-amp board is unplugged as this WILL blow the output FETs!!  Remove the mains lead and hide it so this can't happen.  If you can't remember where you hid the mains lead I can sell you another one - always assuming that I can remember where I've put them.

FDD, disc drives, disk drives
Quite a few of the Technics floppy disc/disk drives, floppy drives, floppies, disc/disk drive units, FDDs, FDD units can be repaired, refurbed, supplied as exchange unit, supplied new.  In some cases a modern drive can be modified to work instead of the original, obsolete floppy drive unit although this won't improve storage from 720k to 1.44M.  In this situation a 1.44M diskette may give problems unless the HD media identifier hole is covered up.

 

UNASHAMED PLUG  Most Saturday nights I'm out playing bass guitar with an excellent function band.
I've always had a great sense of satisfaction repairing electronic musical instruments
but now I think live performance is my main reason for being!
Have a look at our website www.famousfiveband.com and see what you think.

Posted by Admin on March 08, 2007 | 0 comments | Permalink |