Blah Blah Cafe, the Jean-Michel Jarre forum

[Armandox]

Yes yes yes!!! I am chuffed to bits with my latest addition, the one and only E310U. It needs a little work on the register and key contacts (the dust-devil has had it's time with it). But the wooden casing looks impecable and it came with the original glass sheetmusic-stand and all books, which is rare nowadays! Here's some pics:




After the restoration and cleaning has been done I'll make that samplepack of it. Grtz,

Armandox.

[Jakob BC]

Congrats! I can't recognize the synth on the top of the Eminent... what is it?

[Armandox]

Congrats! I can't recognize the synth on the top of the Eminent... what is it?

It's an E-pro Spirit, a Dutch made analog synthesizer. I believe I have one of the few still existing examples of this synth (never saw it anywhere). I remember buying it somewhere in to 80's for a nickel and a dime. Needs restoration badly, but I never sold it, because I think it has some real value if it is fully functional again.

[radek tymecki]

congratz man
I remember when i had to drive 1250 km to get mine

[Equinoxe]

Welcome to the 310 Club!

[Armandox]

Started today with the 'revision' of my 310. Today it was the upper manuals turn. I had to fiddle with almost every keyspring in there, but now I got the manual noisefree. There's some keys (2 Bb-keys ackwardly) which need response-tuning and alignment (they grind the subsequent A). Also I need to work on the keyboards action a little. Some keys play too light, some too heavy (I actually like a bit heavier action, so you really have to 'work' the keyboard). That's a job for tomorrow. Then also the low manual is due, which is a real mess regarding noise, so lot's more of soldering todo! Actually the lower-manual is quite fiddly to tune up and harder to reach... You almost need surgeons-hands to work on that part. But I'm very excited as my E310 is nearing perfection! And ahhh... still looking for that MIDI-kit, but I think a Dutch firm here has them...

[Equinoxe]

Started today with the 'revision' of my 310. Today it was the upper manuals turn. I had to fiddle with almost every keyspring in there, but now I got the manual noisefree. There's some keys (2 Bb-keys ackwardly) which need response-tuning and alignment (they grind the subsequent A). Also I need to work on the keyboards action a little. Some keys play too light, some too heavy (I actually like a bit heavier action, so you really have to 'work' the keyboard). That's a job for tomorrow. Then also the low manual is due, which is a real mess regarding noise, so lot's more of soldering todo! Actually the lower-manual is quite fiddly to tune up and harder to reach... You almost need surgeons-hands to work on that part. But I'm very excited as my E310 is nearing perfection! And ahhh... still looking for that MIDI-kit, but I think a Dutch firm here has them...

When you say Tune up and Soldering ...What exactly are you doing to the Keybeds??

And when you refer to heavy or Light Key responses what are you doing to change the action,you merely only have the Key trigger eyes(White plastic oblong needle eyes as I refer to them) which slide Back or forth on Aluminium Lifters,and move up or down as the keys are played to trigger the Notes

this merely only alters the Trigger times(Which is like a simple Attack) and you have to have them all aligned correctly which is Bloody tricky to get right,because they're so easy to move(I do believe Eminent had a special tool for doing this back in the days of servicing)if you move the Whole Key assembly on the Bolts which hold the subframe it can screw things up even further,and be careful if you remove the Key sub assembly you Don't damage the Springs on the note triggers,if you remove any of the Aluminium lifters from their Eyes the Key triggers will drop which can damage the Spirings these are really delicate and can easily pop out and be irrepairable.I think each trigger has either 3 or 4 (Or maybe more)Springs on each key


There are no tensioners to alter the Keyaction,this is an Organ were talking here which only really work on an On/Off Principle,they don't have velocity reponses,if the Keys feel heavy or grinding then there not aligned correctly(Either with the Whole subassembly alignment) or the Bushes under the keys are either worn or moved to create friction on the Key spacings,the Key action of the eminent should be light,if its sluggish then the Trigger eyes need aligning correctly the Keys don't sit on any circuits for Aftertouch or velocity responce,they only have a rubber bush and this is at the bottom of the travel of the keys(Like a stop) nothing more,if there not in the correct position (with the two lips facing up square on the prong) they may cause resistance on the Keys as they travel this would make them sluggish and heavier to play than other keys
Over time the Keys will be out of alignment and some keys sit Lower than others its part of the wear and tear of the Pressure of playing a simple realignment will remedy the spacings,but its always wise to check the Bushes too

Its been a while since I Serviced and overhauled my Eminent Must be at least 6 years or so now,but it was an extremely delicate time removing the Keys and cleaning everything,pretty easy to do,but very military to how everything has to be reassembled.Really all it needs is one major overhaul,then it should merely only need a tune up periodically,Infact the only thing I have had to do in those 6 years or so was replace the LightBulb in the Swell Pedal

Unless you wish to remove the Lower Manual and totally Overhaul the Rubber bushes and clean the keys,then you can simply remove the top manual and work on the lower one without too much fuss,If I recal lcorrectly you could lift out the Manuals with the metal subframes anyway once you unbolted them

The eminent should have survived pretty well in those casings anyway,worst thing that could happen would be temperature damage,in the worst case left in a cold garage and the sodler joints crack or worst suffer damp or condensation damage,infact Dust should really be the biggest problem for Most eminents if they're kept inside a Home.

[Armandox]

There are no tensioners to alter the Keyaction,this is an Organ were talking here which only really work on an On/Off Principle,they don't have velocity reponses,if the Keys feel heavy or grinding then there not aligned correctly(Either with the Whole subassembly alignment) or the Bushes under the keys are either worn or moved to create friction on the Key spacings,the Key action of the eminet should be light,they don't sit on any circuits for Aftertouch or velocity responce,they only have a rubber bush and this is at the bottom of the travel of the keys nothing more
Over time the Keys will be out of alignment and some keys sit Lower than others its part of the wear and tear of the Pressure of playing

The keysprings I'm talking about are the little springs (5 in a vertical row) in the picture below. When the keys generate noise upon being pressed, they need to be delicately soldered loose while holding them with small pliers and turning them about 90 degrees. They get oxidised over time. When you turn them they have a clean contact surface again and all noise and crackle dissapears. This is the same way Eminent serviced their organs if keys where 'noisy' by the way...

When I'm talking about keyboard action I don't mean touch-sensitivity, which the organ does not posess. I mean the lightness or heaviness the resistance of the key is when I press it. This I certainly can tune by turning the springs under the keys (the big silver ones) which make it return to it's original position, thus tensioning or loosening it. This in return gives me a heavier or lighter 'action' (which obviously changes nothing about the sound).

In my Eminent the biggest culprit of noise problems is dust and oxidation. This is a know, but overcomeable problem. The keys on mmy E310 are all nice and level by the way... I also might want to add that I am not really planning on playing my E310 the JMJ way, but more, let's say The Meters way, the Herbie Hancock or the David Paich way, in the meantime also incorporating JMJ-sounds in our music. This in effect calls for just a little heavier keyboards which ask for a little more 'enthousiastic' playing...

[Equinoxe]

The keysprings I'm talking about are the little springs (5 in a vertical row) in the picture below. When the keys generate noise upon being pressed, they need to be delicately soldered loose while holding them with small pliers and turning them about 90 degrees. They get oxidised over time. When you turn them they have a clean contact surface again and all noise and crackle dissapears. This is the same way Eminent serviced their organs if keys where 'noisy' by the way...

When I'm talking about keyboard action I don't mean touch-sensitivity, which the organ does not posess. I mean the lightness or heaviness the resistance of the key is when I press it. This I certainly can tune by turning the springs under the keys which make it return to it's original position, thus tensioning or loosening it. This in return gives me a heavier or lighter 'action' (which obviously changes nothing about the sound).

In my Eminent the biggest culprit of noise problems is dust and oxidation. This is a know, but overcomable problem.

Ok Will bear that in Mind about the Springs,Are you twsiting and soldering the actual Spring contacts??you must have real steady hands to attempt that..those springs are really delicate,not too mention minute...

The Keys have a spring under them??I thought the return action was like a counter balance with those Aluminium spikes and they seesawed on a pivot

Can you take a Pic of the Key assemblies,I can't recall a spring under them,it was 6 years ago,They probably do have a spring under them,All I remember was those Rubber Bushes and the Keys having those Aluminium spikes glued into them,just jog my memory if you can,I have too many wires and gear setup over My eminent to lift the Hood and take a Peek.

Just out of interest do you have any Service Notes for the Eminent?

I recall there was a (Dutch??)guy who had it on his site but can't for the life of me find it now,I did have the service notes many years ago,but never backed them up and lost the PDF,when My hard drive crashed on the Old PC.

Would be good to have them again or if anyone Knows the URL to this Guys site(If its still online)

[Armandox]

Just updated my previous post
The site you are talking about is probably this one?

I'll post that pic of those springs tomorrow, as it's now dark here and my lighting is not sufficient (for the disabominable) phonecamera I have... It's likely I have one of the later models...

[Equinoxe]

Just updated my previous post
The site you are talking about is probaly this one?

No thats not the site,I recal the guy was simply a musician into Jarre too and had an Eminent and had a link to the service notes..


Thanks so much some valuble info on that site,a real gem



Yes Now I recall those Springs on the Keys,they were attached to the Keyboard black submetal frame at the rear of the key...and hooked around the key too,I thought you meant under the key itself,I could only remember those Plastic "Rockers" which I thought were part of the counter balance of the Keys

[Armandox]

Woahhh... this is some fast-paced posting... but you're more than welcome. The site is however translated by some stupid translator-bot or something, so some text might strike you a little ackward.

The site mentions contact-spray once or twice, I do however not endorse the use of any contactspray whatsoever. No matter if it contains fat/grease, alcoholic based or not, the use of contactspray always leaves little residues of dirt mixed with the spray behind. In fact contactspray over time tends to accumulate dust and dirt more and more quickly (I speak of very much first-hand experience here ). I strongly recommend using very fine sandpaper to (delicately) clean contacts and high-pressure air to rid of dust (again carefull with i.e. the register-selection wires which are attached to the tabs and turn a sound on and off, as they could snap).

The springs attached to the subframe are indeed the ones I'm talking about and which you can turn/tweak to give you just the kind of feel you want from the keys... They by the way have most, if not all the spareparts you'll ever need to get your E310 back up to speed...

Thinking of the MIDI-expansion for the E310U... Serviceagency De Bruijn (Dutch company) seems to sell them. For all non-Dutch readers... the English version of this site does not state this, but the Dutch version does... You'll all recognize the word 'midisysteem' on the frontpage when looking at the Dutch-language version... Besides that they sell most, if not all replacement parts for your E310's at very reasonable and affordable prizes to get your Eminent back up to par! Also all manuals, schematics, etc. for the E310 and many more organs can be aquired there for, as far as I can see very reasonable prizes... I'm not sure wether they do mailordering, but a quick glance at their website tells me they most probably do...