New Roland GR 500 User - Problems!!

Started by goldener_reiter, February 15, 2021, 04:54:59 PM

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goldener_reiter

Hello people!
Well, on last Friday I finally picked up my brand new vintage synth: a Roland GR 500 System:
- GS 500 guitar, which (due to the lack of care? incorrect packaging?) came with the 3-way selector with the lever broken, and also the portamento switch with the same problem. Another thing is: an unbranded zebra pickup with vintage style (enamel 42 AWG wire and metallic twisted shield) came with the guitar. I couldn't measure the impedance, but I read that the original pickups had low impedance, is this true?

So, I repaired the switches and they worked fine. I didn't know what to do with the pickup, I'd like to get the original one but I couldn't, so I got a radiator cover and, at least, I reached a similar look. In the future I'll try with different configurations to get the best for my ears.

- GR 500 controller: Well, here's when the problem starts. I'll sum up what's working and what's not:

1. Guitar section: works OK in terms of switches, volumes and EQs.

2. Polyensemble: Works fine but I heard a strange noise at the back, something like interference. I adjusted the HEX pickup like the manual said, and turned the Threshold knob until the LED was on all the time. The problem I have is when I set the Sustain to the maximum, hoping to get the infinite sustain, and I only get 20 seconds of sound.

3. Bass: The Low E string is not recognized, as long as many notes along the fretboard. The sound interrupts suddenly.

4. Melody: The same as Bass.

As I said before, I tried to set the HEX pickup (from the outside) and the Knob in the GR 500. I didn't get the result I expected.

Let me know if you need more information and many thanks for reading this. Cheers!



gumtown

My first reaction to a bit of 45 year old equipment is,
have the electrolytic (and tantalum) capacitors ever been replaced?,
considering they generally have a 20 year lifespan.
Free "GR-55 FloorBoard" editor software from https://sourceforge.net/projects/grfloorboard/

goldener_reiter

Thanks for your answer! I'm gonna look deeper. I was thinking something about setting of the HEX pickup. I don't want to make mistakes.

strengdal3

Quote from: goldener_reiter on February 15, 2021, 04:54:59 PM
Hello people!
Well, on last Friday I finally picked up my brand new vintage synth: a Roland GR 500 System:
- GS 500 guitar, which (due to the lack of care? incorrect packaging?) came with the 3-way selector with the lever broken, and also the portamento switch with the same problem. Another thing is: an unbranded zebra pickup with vintage style (enamel 42 AWG wire and metallic twisted shield) came with the guitar. I couldn't measure the impedance, but I read that the original pickups had low impedance, is this true?

So, I repaired the switches and they worked fine. I didn't know what to do with the pickup, I'd like to get the original one but I couldn't, so I got a radiator cover and, at least, I reached a similar look. In the future I'll try with different configurations to get the best for my ears.

- GR 500 controller: Well, here's when the problem starts. I'll sum up what's working and what's not:

1. Guitar section: works OK in terms of switches, volumes and EQs.

2. Polyensemble: Works fine but I heard a strange noise at the back, something like interference. I adjusted the HEX pickup like the manual said, and turned the Threshold knob until the LED was on all the time. The problem I have is when I set the Sustain to the maximum, hoping to get the infinite sustain, and I only get 20 seconds of sound.

3. Bass: The Low E string is not recognized, as long as many notes along the fretboard. The sound interrupts suddenly.

4. Melody: The same as Bass.

As I said before, I tried to set the HEX pickup (from the outside) and the Knob in the GR 500. I didn't get the result I expected.

Let me know if you need more information and many thanks for reading this. Cheers!
Congratulations! You got some realy great piece of gear :) Im not sure what you ment about bass and solo melody? But you know that they are monophonic? its only polyensemble that is polyphonic. Cheers!
Guitar synth man