Korg Forums

[Musicwithharry]

Hello

I have a PA700 (as most of you know from my posts about the unit previously). I LOVE the unit and hope to be getting another one in September 2019 as a backup for my original unit. I use it up to 4 times a day in my nursing home music ministry, as well as gigs and studio work. I perform about 40-50 times a month, this is just at the homes and for church on Sunday mornings. I then use it in my studio for countless hours and have NEVER had a problem (well, maybe once where it froze and I needed to power down and back on again...).

The joystick is getting a bit fiddly and I need to get another one. It works just fine when bending up from center position. When I bend up to a note from the left position to center, there is sometimes a slight delay in bending up; as if I am making the move more slowly than normal. It is not terribly noticeable, but I notice it and want to fix it before it gets worse.

I have cleaned it out with electronic cleaner and will do it again soon; maybe even taking the PA700 apart to do a more thorough cleaning (might as well clean the rest of the inside of the unit while I am in there...)

Is the joystick the same one as used on the Kronos, Krome, Microstation, M50 and the other PA series instruments that use that similar joystick? They all look identical in those units, and I still have an M50 (had two of them) and had a Microstation and all of the joysticks look the same in those and in my PA700.

If they are the same, then I found one at Syntaur that I would buy and do the replacement process myself. I cannot be without the PA700, even for a day, since I use it daily. If I do not have it, I cannot work....the nearest service center is 4 hours away, in another state so even that is out of the question.

I have a message into Korg Support about this very thing, but I thought I would ask here in the forums as well. I suspect that I might get the usual 'canned' response of 'take it to a service center or send it to us and we will fix it for you' from Korg and that is not acceptable to me.

I researched the term 'joystick' here in the forums but did not find a result specific to my query. I did read about the weakest part of Korg's units being the joystick, even in the Kronos...seems kind of funny that we put all this $$ into an instrument only to find a weak spot within the entire lineup offering that uses that part...

Grace,
Harry
_________________
Alesis Vortex Keytar, Alesis QS6.2, Alesis QSR, Alesis SR-16, Behringer Deepmind-12, Ensoniq Avista 7600, Ensoniq VFX, Ensoniq VFX-SD, Ensoniq SQ1+, (2) Ensoniq SQ-R+/32, Korg i3 (2020 Version), (2) Korg Kross 1-61, (2) Korg Kross 1-88, Korg Minilogue XD, Korg Minilogue XD Module, Korg M50-61, Korg PA700, Korg X5DR, Korg Z3, Kurzweil SP1, Lowrey EZP3 (bascially a Kawai), Roland D-05, Roland E-09, Waldorf Streichfett, Yamaha Reface CP, Yamaha Reface CS, Yamaha Reface DX, Yamaha Reface YC

[Biggles]

There is a three year warranty so you should be OK for getting it repaired for free.
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Biggles
Lancashire, UK

[Musicwithharry]

Yeah, I know that the warranty is really good, but I cannot afford to be without the keyboard for what may be at least a week. I have no service centers in my area so my option is to drive about 4 hours each way and there is no guarantee that it'll be fixed the same day.

Warranties are great but they usually involve being without the unit for a period of time. If I do not have the keyboard, I cannot work until I get it back.

I will be able to get another PA700 in late-September and if I have not corrected the problem by then, I will send it in to get repaired.

Is the joystick from the Kronos/M50/M3/Microstation/PA Series compatible with the PA700?

Grace,
Harry
_________________
Alesis Vortex Keytar, Alesis QS6.2, Alesis QSR, Alesis SR-16, Behringer Deepmind-12, Ensoniq Avista 7600, Ensoniq VFX, Ensoniq VFX-SD, Ensoniq SQ1+, (2) Ensoniq SQ-R+/32, Korg i3 (2020 Version), (2) Korg Kross 1-61, (2) Korg Kross 1-88, Korg Minilogue XD, Korg Minilogue XD Module, Korg M50-61, Korg PA700, Korg X5DR, Korg Z3, Kurzweil SP1, Lowrey EZP3 (bascially a Kawai), Roland D-05, Roland E-09, Waldorf Streichfett, Yamaha Reface CP, Yamaha Reface CS, Yamaha Reface DX, Yamaha Reface YC

[gwc uk]

KORG warranty. Dealer this week told me the warranty is not transferable.
This is not good for helping used keyboard sales.
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PA1000 + NP30 Twinset

[Musicwithharry]

That is unfortunate.

I did buy my PA700 brand new from Guitar Center in September 2017. I also got the 2-year extended warranty coverage that Guitar Center had and that expires in September 2019. That is renewable, though.

With regard to used keyboard sales, if you get them through Guitar Center, you can buy the extended warranty coverage through them and whatever breaks on it will be covered with their in-house warranty.
_________________
Alesis Vortex Keytar, Alesis QS6.2, Alesis QSR, Alesis SR-16, Behringer Deepmind-12, Ensoniq Avista 7600, Ensoniq VFX, Ensoniq VFX-SD, Ensoniq SQ1+, (2) Ensoniq SQ-R+/32, Korg i3 (2020 Version), (2) Korg Kross 1-61, (2) Korg Kross 1-88, Korg Minilogue XD, Korg Minilogue XD Module, Korg M50-61, Korg PA700, Korg X5DR, Korg Z3, Kurzweil SP1, Lowrey EZP3 (bascially a Kawai), Roland D-05, Roland E-09, Waldorf Streichfett, Yamaha Reface CP, Yamaha Reface CS, Yamaha Reface DX, Yamaha Reface YC

[B.Safe]

[Musicwithharry]

The joystick returns like normal, mechanically. It also does the slower bend (just slightly slower) on any sound that I have the joystick enabled on.

I may do a full resource backup and then reset the machine, just in case.

My determination of the joystick needing to be replaced is because of my experience with other keyboards, including Korg, that have had issues with the joystick because of my use of the keyboards. I use the PA700 much more than most people would, as I use it daily for work. I performed at three different places today for over 4 hours of playing. It gets a lot of use. It is different than using it all day long in a stationary place.

Thank you for your input.

Grace,
Harry
_________________
Alesis Vortex Keytar, Alesis QS6.2, Alesis QSR, Alesis SR-16, Behringer Deepmind-12, Ensoniq Avista 7600, Ensoniq VFX, Ensoniq VFX-SD, Ensoniq SQ1+, (2) Ensoniq SQ-R+/32, Korg i3 (2020 Version), (2) Korg Kross 1-61, (2) Korg Kross 1-88, Korg Minilogue XD, Korg Minilogue XD Module, Korg M50-61, Korg PA700, Korg X5DR, Korg Z3, Kurzweil SP1, Lowrey EZP3 (bascially a Kawai), Roland D-05, Roland E-09, Waldorf Streichfett, Yamaha Reface CP, Yamaha Reface CS, Yamaha Reface DX, Yamaha Reface YC

[musiccankill]

The joystick is same in m50, pa3x,pa4x,m3 (it is white though but the same) and i believe kronos and all the others that it looks the same too...
Before changing it, try to recalibrate it through the test mode.It is very easy to be done and will give it an extension to its lifetime..
If you don't know how to do it you can pm me to help.
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~~~The best keyboard for any player is the one that fits his/her needs!~~~

Korg keyboards owned now: PA5X 61 ,PA300, Triton extreme 61, Korg 707, Trinity plus

[Biggles]

With the extensive use you make of your 700 do you not have a backup keyboard you could use whilst your 700 is being serviced?
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Biggles
Lancashire, UK

[Musicwithharry]

[Musicwithharry]

So, here is an update to the joystick issue I was having...

I ordered another joystick from PartisParts.net and it came in about a week.

I opened up the PA700 and it looks, inside, just like the PA600. There is a video on YouTube where a guy opens up a PA600. They are almost identical inside. For this reason, I did not take any pictures of the inside of the unit.

The replacement of the joystick was very easy to do. It took longer to unscrew the screws out of the bottom of the PA700 than it really did to actually replace the joystick unit.

Here are some things that I noticed:

1. There was a good amount of white grease on the old joystick at the pivot on the +Y/-Y axis (up/down). There was none on the replacement joystick (understandable, since it would get spread all over the joystick during transport. Simply put a bit of the old joystick's white grease on the new joystick, in the same place and work it in a bit. Clean off the extra and you will be fine.

2. The small wires that attach to the joystick, the bottom side of the joystick, had frayed shielding a bit. This is due to the zip-tie used to hold those wires in place, on the bottom of the joystick assembly, being too tight. I put a small piece of electrical tape on each wire, at the frayed point, and then lightly put another small piece of electrical tape around the three together. This should minimize the amount of fraying to those wires and provide a bit of a buffer.

The reason for their fraying is likely because of the up/down movement (+Y/-Y) of the joystick. It is more likely because of the 'up' movement (+Y) than the down, because pushing the joystick up is when the tension on the cables is greater.

Pull a little more of the wires themselves to add a bit of slack. When you replace the zip-tie, do not make it as tight as Korg did. You should be fine after that.

I traced the wires that go to the joystick and if, for whatever reason, those wires actually broke apart, you could replace the entire wire assembly, as it is separate from any other wire connections (although they are run together in the cabling system to the main board). You could also, if handy with a soldering gun, add a bit of extra wire of your own for the three cables.

I figured that I would clean a bit whilst the keyboard was opened up, but surprisingly, there was not much dust at all. I buttoned everything back up and tried out the keyboard (without doing the calibration of the joystick through the software) and it was like the thing was brand new. It worked flawlessly again.

I put a message into PartsisParts.net about the old joystick, and whether or not it could be fixed. I have yet to receive a response from them. Maybe the old joystick can be taken apart, cleaned and put back together and be like new again.

3. Another thing I noticed was where the speaker boxes are for each speaker. There is a small round cutout where a tweeter might go (and probably the same box used in the PA1000). It got me thinking about adding a dome tweeter on each side and how that might impact the built-in amplifier... I think, that after getting my other PA700 (which may be in January 2020 now), I may play around with adding a couple of tweeters and a small crossover network to the speaker system in the PA700. This would make it sound A LOT better than the simple full-range single speaker per side system currently in place. I suspect a simply two-way crossover network from an audio parts store would be fine and support the additional ohm load (which would not be much anyway).

4. After taking the bottom of the keyboard off to do the joystick replacement, I noticed that aside from the joystick, keybed and speakers, everything that really powers the PA700 is in the middle of the unit.

5. The power supply for the PA700 is ACTUALLY a wall-wart power supply - it is just installed inside the unit. So, even though there is an IEC computer cable connection on the back of the PA700, it is really just a wall-wart power supply pre-installed into the unit for you. The PA600 was this way too, and I suspect that the PA1000 might be this way as well. Would the PA4X be this way too? How many of the PA series are this way...

What this means is that is the power supply fails, you can replace the wall-wart supply without having to remove a separate power board. While many of us dislike the wall-wart power supplies, I can see the benefits in replacing it much more easily than an integrated power board within the unit.

There is another post in the threads here where a user basically made his PA700 (or PA1000) into a module. This can be done because just about everything is in the middle of the keyboard itself. With the right controller, I could see this being an option for some users.

6. The speaker grills are fairly easy to remove, if you wanted to repaint them. You pull up the metal tabs and they will slide out. You may want to change the color of the grills to black (or whatever color you wish) and this can be done fairly easily. I may do this in the future as well.

So, these are some observations when I was replacing the faulty joystick in my PA700 earlier this week.

Grace,
Harry
_________________
Alesis Vortex Keytar, Alesis QS6.2, Alesis QSR, Alesis SR-16, Behringer Deepmind-12, Ensoniq Avista 7600, Ensoniq VFX, Ensoniq VFX-SD, Ensoniq SQ1+, (2) Ensoniq SQ-R+/32, Korg i3 (2020 Version), (2) Korg Kross 1-61, (2) Korg Kross 1-88, Korg Minilogue XD, Korg Minilogue XD Module, Korg M50-61, Korg PA700, Korg X5DR, Korg Z3, Kurzweil SP1, Lowrey EZP3 (bascially a Kawai), Roland D-05, Roland E-09, Waldorf Streichfett, Yamaha Reface CP, Yamaha Reface CS, Yamaha Reface DX, Yamaha Reface YC

[gwc uk]

Musicwithharry. Thank you. Nice Report.
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PA1000 + NP30 Twinset