Analog Keys Question/French 79 performance

  1. The label on the bottom has the serial number and manufactured date on it.
  2. Make sure the firmware is up to date.
  3. Mechanicals are always things to watch on older equipment. So pay attention to the keys, joy-stick, encoders and buttons. The keys in particular.

Great synth ! Enjoy yours.

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The pots can lose precision but are fairly easy to fix (well on the A4 anyway…not sure what you need to take apart on the Keys!).

I have had an issue with the sound output which was resolved by pushing in the ribbon connector cable internally. Most of the issues that come up with the A4 are pretty easy to fix. Mine’s getting on to 7 years old. I can’t imagine you’ll have too many issues.

This is quite a robust synth.
My Analog keys might have 7 or 8 years.
Let it on for 24 hours to be sure the display look nice, mine has some mark on the display which disappear after one or two hours of use.
Yes, check keybed, knob, joystick and if everything seem to work fine.
And then enjoy :slight_smile:
It is a quite complicated and long synth to master, but really rewarding, and you can pilot your Digitone with it quite easily.

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As on all Elektrons, you can run test mode holding Function before power on.
Run test with trig 1.

Then you can check the screen more easily pressing trigs 1/2, leds…

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I’ve been hammering on mine for years, it’s never given me a bit of trouble. It’s one of the most solid digital devices I’ve ever owned.

Welcome to the club, for many it’s a never-sell synth.

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(and @psychetropic may have one of the most used AKs of all time :slight_smile:)

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You are worrying unnecessarily because the analog circuitry in the A4/AK is built from modern components and should be good for decades.

I bought my AK from a guy who looked like he just returned from a musical camping trip, and it was fine. No noticeable sonic differences from my old Mk1 A4.

Will do all of those. Thanks! Much appreciated!

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Thanks - I’m probably over-stressing because, as I said, this is my first ever used synth (and first ever instrument out of production.)

Didn’t know about the test mode - that is valuable info! I’ll do that first thing. When you said “pressing trigs 1/2” that confused me a bit - are you saying I press them down halfway? Not sure how to interpret that. Could you please clarify?

Thanks!

Very reassuring to hear! Thanks!

That is exactly the sort of thing I was hoping to hear. And you’re right; I often DO worry unnecessarily about analogue gear. Here’s an example of why: Last year, I bought my “dream amp” for my bass - An Aguilar DB-751 tube amp. This thing is a big, 45lb monster that many consider the best amp available for bass. I bought mine from a reputable dealer, new, and when it arrived, it had a fan noise that was very… “wrong”. I returned it to the manufacturer - which cost me $180 because of the weight, and they said it was working as intended. Well… it wasn’t. I know because my friend has the same amp, and I played one at a shop. They don’t make this metal to metal fan noise. So, they sent my amp back, and I was stuck with it. $2900.00 for a piece of kit that I can’t bear to play because of the maddening issue. It’s a lemon, and the manufacturer doesn’t want to acknowledge it. So… it’s upstairs, in a closet, brand new, and my only option is to pay a tech about $300-$400 to put in some sort of aftermarket fan which will then void any warranty.

So, I’m probably in sort of a paranoid head space at the moment. I am excited though. I think I’ll love this thing. I’m just curious why they didn’t offer the Mark II in a keys version.

Thanks again!

Great to hear! I have a feeling I will be keeping it around for a long time! (Bo Beats just posted a vid saying it’s his “desert island” synth that he deeply regrets selling.)

Thanks!

1 and 2 ! :content:
One trig is full white screen, the other is full black. On my AR MKI having a slight display problem, it was more obvious with this screen test procedure, also common to all Elektrons.

Every button press should correspond to a different led combination.

On newer Elektrons you can also test all leds colors, Encoders…

Link for the curious (don’t think new members can’t post links)

It is lovely stuff - didn’t know they used an AK! I’ve listened to their album Olympic to death.

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Ahh! OK. Yes, that makes sense! One of the first things I will do. Thank you!!

That’s the one! Thank you! (One error I made was thinking that he performed “Remedy” in that session - he doesn’t. It’s definitely worth checking out separately, though!) He does do a fantastic version of “Hometown” in that session, however!

Concerning French 79 performance:
Impressive. Not what I’d listen, but really good live performance, with also very impressive light show, camera movements…

Major caveats: not enough time / focus to check all the gear used…:pl:

this perform is the best with the AK

On the analog keys it’s worth checking the LEDs above the keys (which shows which pitch is being played on a track). That’s the only thing not working on mine (which I’ve had for ages); one or two of the LED’s are dead (might be easy to fix, but to me it’s quite cosmetic so I haven’t even bothered investigating).
Just play each key on the keyboard and they should all light up. Otherwise I haven’t had any problems with pots or displays, but I haven’t toured with the thing or treated it badly.

Every time I turn it on and play it I’m surprised how good it sounds, which is weird because I had trouble getting it to sound “fat” or “warm” when I first got it. Now I have a couple of patches that are extremely bassy, fat, warm and analog sounding. Like always with Elektron gear they are journeys and take some investment.

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