[sdiy] Key spring colors on ARP synths

[Terje Winther]

Thanks Dana,
That explains a lot.
The ARP synths I worked on were consistent: it was never a mix-up of key spring colors within one synth: it was always the same key spring color for black and white keys throughout a single keybed. It probably came like this from Pratt-Read.
Thanks again.

Terje Winther
terje.winther at wintherstormer.no


> 3. feb. 2025 kl. 00:37 skrev tamedogs at wildcats.com:
> 
> I worked there from early 1974 to late 1980.
> Keyboards came from pratt-read. They came out of the crates, a guy named
> Gene buffed the keys and into the units they went. I never heard anyone ever
> talk about spring colors.
> 
> Dana
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Synth-diy [mailto:synth-diy-bounces at synth-diy.org] On Behalf Of Terje
> Winther
> Sent: Sunday, February 2, 2025 4:36 PM
> To: David G Dixon via Synth-diy <Synth-diy at synth-diy.org>
> Subject: [sdiy] Key spring colors on ARP synths
> 
> Recently I have fixed some old ARP synths. They all needed a really good
> cleaning of the keyboard. And as you know; you need to remove those key
> springs to change key bushings and various other fixes.
> The key springs have two colors; black and (dark) red. Supposedly because of
> different tensions for the white and black keys, since they have slightly
> different horizontal travel.
> 
> But here is where it gets strange:
> Some of the synths I have fixed used black springs for black keys (sort of
> easy to remember), while other synths used the red ones for the black keys.
> So which is correct? Or did ARP change this according to any sort of
> differences between the various versions of the Axxe and Odyssey etc.?
> 
> Anyone?
> 
> 
> 
> Terje Winther
> terje.winther at wintherstormer.no
> http://wintherstormer.no/
> 
> 
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Terje Winther
terje.winther at wintherstormer.no
http://wintherstormer.no/