[sdiy] Broken Chroma Polaris in a Music Shop, a good bargain ?

[Glen]

At 03:20 AM 8/8/03 , Massimo Ischia wrote:

>If  membrane switches are dead and there is enough space behind (4~6 
>mm), what about a replacement whith normal micro switches mounted on a 
>PCB? I do this  with an old Timex/Sinclair Home Computer and now works 
>better than with membrane!

The problem isn't usually the switches themselves. You see, the membrane
switches and the fragile, connectorless, ribbon cable that connects them to
the main board, are all one large piece of flexible laminated plastic.
Where the problem usually lies is in the ribbon cable section of this
assembly. Where the cable is bent, it often de-laminates itself. Also, the
end of the ribbon that plugs into the socket tends to be crack or
de-laminate. These panel and ribbon assemblies can sometimes be fixed, but
it is a real weak point in the design of this synth. If you price a
replacement panel from Fender, I think they cost hundreds of dollars,
assuming they are still available.

Converting the synth to microswitches or something like that would be
possible in theory, but how would you do it in such a way that the
instrument would still look good? Remember, the labels for all the
functions are currently printed on the switches themselves.

later,
Glen Berry