Dead pads

[MrTom]

Hi,
New here. I've just taken delivery of a second hand sp404sx. It was sold with a few issues.
The isolation button Works / doesn't illuminate
Lo-fi Doesn't work / doesn't illuminate
Bank B/G illuminates / doesn't work
Pads 3, 7, 11 illuminate / don't work at all on any bank.

Is there anything anyone can recommend looking for to bring the pads back to life please? I've stripped It apart and used 99% alcohol on the pcb to no avail.
Sorry if this is in the wrong forum and thanks in advance for any advice offered.

-Tom-

[Lou-E]

do sp 404 pads work via buttons presses or those contact strips things. Ive never built up the courage to really take it apart and I cant find any images online of the inside of one of those things.

[MrTom]

do sp 404 pads work via buttons presses or those contact strips things. Ive never built up the courage to really take it apart and I cant find any images online of the inside of one of those things.

Hi Lou
They work via contact. The underneath of the pad has 2 X C shaped bits of rubber membrane (at least I think it's rubber) I've tried giving each button a good whack and also adoing a foil strip to both Pieces of membrane on one of the faulty pads. Also cleaned the the pads and pcb with 99% alcohol. I think they're contacting fine. Wondering if anyone has sent theirs away for repair.and the costs incurred?
Thanks for the interest.

[Lou-E]

yea id say to give that a try, i know some peeps here have gotten replacement membranes for the pads. Looks a bit pricey from the support page im lookin at so you go ahead and decide if you want to do that yo.

[scopebeats]

i remembered there was a thread about it... here it is, hope it helps

http://sp-forums.com/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=15035&hilit=pad+fix

[MrTom]

Thanks for the replies guys, I really don't think it's a contact issue as ive cleaned the pads and pcb. I've spoke to a friendly chap called John who deals with out of warranty repairs for Roland. Here is his reply to my initial email outlining the same faults as in the original post.

It's likely a data line that scans the switches you mentioned is missing. Whether this is due to a break in the circuit or a faulty component is hard to say at this point so difficult to give you a cost. However to give you some idea, if it was due to a broken data line that could be reasonably easily traced the cost would be around £50 plus return carriage.

Looks like she's going away.

[Crane]

Just to throw my .06 cents into the pot here. For you and future searchers of 'dead pads"
just cleaning the pad membrane and board wont fix a contact issue. I have had great results using CRC Dry Graphite Lube for fixing bad contacts on my electribes and I believe I used it on my sp-505.
I take a fine tip paint brush (like you get in a water colors kit) and spray the CRC into a sandwich bag. Then paint (re-paint) the carbon back onto the membrane (only the black parts).

To verify if it is a fault of the pads you can turn it on while it is opened (or put it together without the membrane in it) and use a wire to touch the top half of the connection to the bottom connection of the board and see if it reacts as a pad was being hit.

[kel]

Instead of sending it to get repaired, use this stuff called Caikote. Take the rubber pad thing out and paint Caikote along the edges of the buttons that aren't responding, just make sure not to connect the paint between any two buttons or they might interrupt each other. I used this stuff to fix my 404 when a bunch of my pads weren't responding. good luck

[Saladolar]

I'm affraid this is the only way to solve the problem of dead/loose pads for og404 : Roland Europe told me new pads aren't available anymore...

[LORD BEATJITZU]

http://www.instrumentalparts.com/51000006879.html

[Saladolar]

http://www.instrumentalparts.com/51000006879.html

Pads for sx AND og ? How to deal with the "fonction" pad on the og404 ?

[abuse_it.s_ok]

Hey there. i m new on the forums, but i have been reading for quite some time , and i ve found great help from you guys and gals in various problematic situations in my adventures using my sp404
Now is my turn to grin about 5 or 6 pads and buttons on my 404 that dont work properly.
well a friend suggested using alluminum foil to put right between the pads and the connections on the motherboard.

Should i? any1 tried that as a perm fix?
Theres also another dude saying that a pencil can be used to just pain t over the connections. I suppose i should not screw with those so i dont "perm fix" my pads for good... or is it OK?

[tuffgenius]

bump

lost pad 11 entirely as of recently, and the loop button is well on its way out.

[Sharris]

I found the below info doing a search (also check out above posts for more info, like what Crane suggests. If any of my pads/buttons stopped working I would open it up, do the below & do what Crane says above). Below info is regarding the sp303, but should be similar for all sp's.

I recently traded for a 303 and found some of my pads not working due to bad connections and was able to fix them at home with a little tlc so before you buy anything try this:

1) take out pads from the unit (if its your first time taking your 303 apart make sure you first take off the knobs and get all the screws out before trying to yank it apart. if you have to pull anything hard, you probably missed a screw so double check!)
2) scrub the connections on each individual pad with rubbing alcohol using a q-tip until they are no longer shiny. (make sure pads are on a hard and even surface when cleaning and ONLY apply pressure to the stiff part of the pads. Mine were very old and i ended up ripping a pad out fiddling with it too much)
3) dry the connections with a new q-tip
4) test pads before putting everything back together

BAM! didnt have to buy anything and its all working like new

[tuffgenius]

Thanks for the reply, Sharris !

Unfortunately, none of the people in my area certified in Roland & Boss repairs have ever worked on something of the sort.

Does anyone know how to remove knobs?
If so, guess I'll take it apart and get a good dusting. Can't really afford another one rn, so if anyone knows someone that is more well versed than myself in repair I'd much rather ship it to them.