Rhodes Chroma Polaris

Man and I scared. I need to check my batteries because I know they
are very very old and I'm afraid they may be leaking. But all this
cracked ribbon info really has me worried. If I do get in and out
safely, I think I'll configure another way to change out the battery
like creating an externally accessible battery compartment... Any
thoughts ?

--- In chromapolaris@yahoogroups.com, "Phidippus Audax" <mao@...> wrote:

>
> Man and I scared. I need to check my batteries because I know they
> are very very old and I'm afraid they may be leaking. But all this
> cracked ribbon info really has me worried. If I do get in and out
> safely, I think I'll configure another way to change out the battery
> like creating an externally accessible battery compartment... Any
> thoughts ?
>

Ive heard people say this but if you dont even touch or let the ribbon
cables brush against anything it should be fine, its sandwiched and
secured to two pieces of steel. Im redoing all the ribbon cables with
new wire soldered where the connectors were to the best part of the
ribbon traces, which ill secure flat and will no longer have a bend to
connect to the panels, all of mine had at least a bit of cracks, but
there is alot of slack ribbon left on mine, should be better(more
reliable) than new. Really not as hard as it sounds if you have no
cracks down low on the ribbons where they disappear between the steel.

But making sure the batteries havent leaked and replacing them seems a
good thing to do. Have someone gently hover the control panel above
the board enough for you to swap the batteries.

good luck. -jack

Thanks... My Chroma Polaris has been is storage for almost a year as
I've moved and am building a studio. It is in practically mint
condition and I've used it for tons of Planetarium soundtrack madness
and other fun, but I am afraid, like all CP owners, of that dreadful
day when it bites the dust. I haven't got around to sampling all my
favorite patches so I hope to be able to backup some analogue memories
when I do get her plugged in again this Fall. Are there any
polyphonic modern synths that come close to the CP in fatness and ease
of tweakability? There are some new players out there, in addition to
the Prophet 08, Poly Evolver and latest Junos. I bet the Prophet 08
would be the best bet if I ever needed a versatile replacement.

--- In chromapolaris@yahoogroups.com, "hkreddig" <stupidallen@...> wrote:
...But making sure the batteries havent leaked and replacing them
seems a good thing to do. Have someone gently hover the control panel
above
the board enough for you to swap the batteries.
good luck. -jack

I'll keep her alive. It's just like my two DSS-1's that I've hung
onto -more sophisticated samplers abound but it's got the phattist
filters and a detuned unison mode that'll peel the paint. I've got a
few other oldies but goodies, but one new one that I'm glad I snagged
-the only one not in storage- is the Korg R3. I've got to say that it
is got to be the biggest bang for the buck going. Highly recommended.
I can't wait to patch the CP into it's audio in. Sorry ...getting
off topic. I'll report back when I get the CP out of the storage unit
with a new battery in place -and I do plan on making an easy access
battery compartment. Can't wait to hear again that super low end
throbbing filter sweep texture with the Vol Env Release on max...! Phid.

--- In chromapolaris@yahoogroups.com, steven pistrich <wasteking1@...>
wrote:
i have both a polaris and a prophet o8...they are very diffrent in
sound. But  the 08 sounds thin compared to the Polaris.      of the 7
diffrent synths i have owned  NOTHING sounds as good as a polaris. (
not roland/korg/waldorf )      others may be more versatile, or have
diffrent bells and whistles, but the polaris sound is amazing.  so
KEEP IT ALIVE       (i havent tried an andromeda....or new moogs)    

the ribbon cables are not hooked up if powered on, the silders always worked with dead panels but will it make a sound, or make the computer crazed?

Also to do the ribbon repair soldering you really need a temp controlled soldering iron at <400f
Im waiting to borrow one to finish mine.

As far as other synths compared to the Polaris, with its 2 VCO, 4-Pole Filter, fast ENVs and great MIDI for the time, the alternative are there just much more expensive, some dont sound anywhere near as high fidelity as the Polaris, but many have more control functions on the panel and reliability.  CS poly yamahas, OBs' , Prophet 5, Jupiter 8, Synthex, Newer analogs.  The Juno 106, Jupiter 6, Polysix, Prophet 600 and Akais all offer less.



To: chromapolaris@yahoogroups.com
From: chris@...
Date: Tue, 9 Sep 2008 18:34:05 -0700
Subject: Re: [chromapolaris] Re: Battery replacement fears...

> Anyone know what a Polaris does when...the ribbon cables are
> not hooked up if powered on, the silders always
> worked with dead panels but will it make a
> sound, or make the computer crazed?

The ribbon cables for the left-hand panel (the one that usually gives
the most problem) only carries signals for the buttons. If the cables
are not hooked up, the computer should be happy and simply assume that
no buttons are ever being pushed.

You will be able to make sounds OK - as long as the sounds are already
present and the Polaris is set up.

If you are looking to create a sound from scratch - to tell the system
to 'tune' itself (via the panel) - then you'd be stuck without the
connections (since they're all done with switches on the left).

While on the general topic of the panel and the ribbon connector, I'll
follow up to an earlier note of my own (below):

----- Original Message -----
From: "David Clarke"
To: <chromapolaris@yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Friday, August 04, 2006 1:13 PM
Subject: Re: [chromapolaris] Re: Ressurecting memb switch death


...
> I'm a little surprised that with the huge number of companies that
> will make
> custom membrane switch panels that no one has decided to try to make
> one for
> the Polaris (if even only for their own personal use) (sure, some of
> these
> can do fancy things - like have built-in LEDs which will be very
> expensive
> or be waterproof to 10 atmospheres - but others do what are
> essentially
> plain-jane panels).
...
----- End Original Message -----

I got cranky during the last repair I did on my own Polaris, took my own
advise - and the attached is what resulted. Hopefully I won't be
worring about the cable for at least the next little :->

[More info to come later (after things aren't quite so busy around
here).]