Vintage Synth Explorer Forums

yo! new blood here. long time lurker .. now with a problem

i finally got meself a matrix-1000, but it ain't working for me

when i fire it up, it usually wont play the first note i hit. it helps if i play several random notes and go back to first one. then it'll play. but then others won't. only if i press (the note) several times. then, other notes won't play either ... arghh

it almost seems like a midi problem, bad keyboard. but i've tried several, including different sequencers, hard'n'soft

i've had it for some days now, and it only seems to get worse

is this a question of dying CEMs?

to me it more seems like a bad midi input responder. help much apriciated

don't mind if you get all techy and dirty with me, i can handle that. +20 years experience with (audio) electronics, but analog synths are a new frontier ...

many thanx in advance

sismofyt

Play a series of notes, or even the same note multiple times. Does every 6th note not play?

If it's every 6th note, you have a dead voice.

Sounds like a dead CEM. Good think about the Matrix 6R (and probably the 1000) is the chips pop in and out - no need to get out the soldering gun. I don't remember the CEM number, but there are 2 sizes. There is a wider one for the Matrix 6 and a skinny one for the 1000. I've ordered a chip for my 6R years ago and they sent me the skinny one at first. I think ordered directly from Oberheim/Gibson back then.

I believe Synth Tech still has some of the CEM 3396s that the M1000 and the 6/6R use. BTW, if you ever need a new 3396 for your 6R and you can't find a wide one, there are narrow-to-wide adaptors available.

However, I'm not convinced that this particular problem is a CEM problem -- I'm inclined to agree with the OP that it's a problem on the CPU side. If it is a CEM problem, it sounds like it's on voice 1. One way to find out might be to swap the 3396's around.

hello good people

thanx for the response. i forgot to say that the 'midi on LED' flashes correctly, so i'm sure the matrix is getting all the notes. i'm sure it's not only the sixth note, it's more than that. and quite random

if it's a CPU problem, then i'm toast, right?

if it's a CEM problem, then i'm happy to say that the seller provided me with six of them

i'll do some swapping during the weekend then

cheers

sismofyt

oh, does anybody know which CEM is what voice? my schematic is quite unreadable

maybe it's printed on the pcb?

sismofyt wrote:oh, does anybody know which CEM is what voice? my schematic is quite unreadable

maybe it's printed on the pcb?

NOt sure if the 1000 is set up the same way as the 6R, but on the 6R, there are dots or periods on the display that light up whenever a voice sounds. Just figure out which voice is having the issues, open the chassis and replace the voice chip - they should be lined up in a row. I don't think they're numbered, but should be easy to figure out. I did this with my 6R many years ago.

That's cool that the seller hooked you up with extra chips.

Best of luck!

aha! i've been in contact with the seller and he has most helpfully suggested it's outta calibration and i should make it do it's little routine. my probs should then be fixed

time to rtfm

yeah, cool with the CEMs. i looked around and they're are 35$ each i think? i got six for 100$ and the matrix for 500$. not bad considring that synths (well anything really ) is twice as expensive over here in euroland

succes!

self calibration did the trick

have a nice weekend folks

cheers

sismofyt