punkdISCO Posted March 4, 2014 Report Share Posted March 4, 2014 Hi all 5+ of my MB6582 encoders are very flaky. I got the MB6582 second hand so can’t be sure how old it is but either way, it’s a bit rubbish that 1/3 of the encoders should fail within the first 5 years. No worries, ill replace them (got a post in the group buy forum if anyone is interested). I’m going to order the recommended Alpha dials from Mouser.com Alpha RE160F-40E3-20A-24P So, last night I removed one of my encoders. I was hoping my encoders were inferior/cheap encoders however, to my surprise, my existing encoders are also made my Alpha(!). I can’t see a part number so I can only assume they are the same part as the ones I’m about to re-order. Question: are these Alpha encoders cheap/rubbish? Is it normal for 1/3 to fail in the first 5 years? If so, is there a superior encoder I can use? If I replace all 15 encoders, I was kind of hoping they would then be good for life, not just a few years… Thanks, Paul Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Altitude Posted March 4, 2014 Report Share Posted March 4, 2014 there are some debounce settings in the firmware that you can mess with Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hawkeye Posted March 4, 2014 Report Share Posted March 4, 2014 Hi Paul, hm, this is very interesting - my MB6582 Alpha Encoders are rock solid, the best encoders I´ve ever had, even after four years of heavy usage they feel like new, unlike many encoders in commercial synths, the worst are the ones in my Waldorf Micro Q :-). Bought the Alpha Econders @ mouser in 2010 Mouser P/N 318-ENC160F-24P. Many greets, Peter Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
punkdISCO Posted March 4, 2014 Author Report Share Posted March 4, 2014 Hey Peter - I cant be sure my current ones are the same part number as yours, but they are defo "Alpha". So yeah, I have just ordered 20 new ones (same as yours) but from jameco in the US as £35 to my door rather than £55 from mouser!! Anyway, I don't know the history of my MB so hopefully once I swap them out, they will remain rock solid for years to come. Im getting 5 spare plus, Im going to keep the non-faulty existing ones as a absolute last resource.. Thanks for the reassurance, Peter.. Paul Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Altitude Posted March 4, 2014 Report Share Posted March 4, 2014 (edited) Paul, Might want to read through this: http://www.midibox.org/dokuwiki/doku.php?id=encoders&s There are different settings for different encoder types in MIOS Edited March 4, 2014 by Altitude Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scifo Posted March 6, 2014 Report Share Posted March 6, 2014 I have issues with my Alpha encoders that I bought from Mouser. For example, if I turn CUTOFF clockwise going from 000 towards 255, it sometimes jumps a few steps counter-clockwise randomly now and then along the way, which is extremely annoying. If I turn the knob really slow, I don't have this problem. If it's the encoders fault or a solder/building issue, I cannot tell. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hawkeye Posted March 7, 2014 Report Share Posted March 7, 2014 (edited) Have you removed the detention of the encoders? (See ) If you have done it, there might not be enough pressure on the metal lid - you have to bend it towards the encoder wheel afterwards to avoid bad contacts. Mine still run rock solid on the standard MB6582 firmware. Many greets, Peter Edited March 7, 2014 by Hawkeye Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
punkdISCO Posted March 7, 2014 Author Report Share Posted March 7, 2014 Have you removed the detention of the encoders? (See ) If you have done it, there might not be enough pressure on the metal lid - you have to bend it towards the encoder wheel afterwards to avoid bad contacts. Hi Peter Yeah, I did remove the indents on CutOff and Res but some of my other encoders are also erratic. I have ordered a full set of Alpha replacements and will DEFO not be removing the indents as don’t want to take the risk again. Btw, what are the recommended non-indented encoder? I have been through the archives but all the part numbers/suggestions seem to be indented. Thanks, Paul Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hawkeye Posted March 8, 2014 Report Share Posted March 8, 2014 (edited) Hi Paul, sorry, can´t help you with non-indented encoders. If you carefully manually remove the detention, it should work. Another failure point (also for Alphas) is that maybe after some use, the encoder case is not firmly closed anymore (metal brackets getting loose) - if there is any kind of wobbling, the encoder wheel will not have good contacts - here is a quick tip: There has been a lot of discussion regarding Bourns encoders quality lately, so i would stay away from them, but I guess there are always production quality differences, even from the same brand :smile:. Many greets! Peter Edited March 8, 2014 by Hawkeye Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
punkdISCO Posted March 8, 2014 Author Report Share Posted March 8, 2014 Hey Peter - thanks for that link. I had not seen it before so good pointer.. Im going to stick with the dented encoders as don't want to run the risk of them failing again. thanks again, Paul Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
C_04 Posted March 12, 2014 Report Share Posted March 12, 2014 Hi Guys - why you not use ALPS encoders? These Alpha are crap encoders. ALPS you may buy for about 1,5$/pc - is that so expensive? I use in my SIDO only ALPS encoders and im sure they are for years. I use the same type that YAMAHA did in their samplers A3000 for example. Cheers C_04 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sneakthief Posted March 13, 2014 Report Share Posted March 13, 2014 (edited) Omg you're recommending encoders based on the fact they were used in the Yamaha A3000? You realize that those were the most notorious for going bad, mainly due to oxidation? Edit: More info... http://todbot.com/a3k/knobs/ http://www.gearslutz.com/board/electronic-music-instruments-electronic-music-production/420780-knob-replacement-yamaha-a3000-korg-kaoss-pad-3-a.html http://www.ex5tech.com/ex5ubb_cgi/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic&f=24&t=000047 Edited March 13, 2014 by sneakthief Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
C_04 Posted March 13, 2014 Report Share Posted March 13, 2014 (edited) Not for that they were in Yamaha A3000 - i just said that they were there. And my Yamaha has at least 10 years old. Also my Akai has ALPS encoders which never been replaced. Anyway encoders are your choice - buy what you want. I use ALPS. Cheers Edited March 13, 2014 by C_04 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blatboy Posted May 24, 2014 Report Share Posted May 24, 2014 I'm also having problems with some of my encoders. That said, I never thought it could be the encoders. I've been troubleshooting my MB-6582 again (I'll start a new thread on this soon, sorry to threaten everyone here haha) and I have noticed possible short circuits where I don't think there should be. Whether this is a bad soldering job somewhere (possible) or the encoder itself, I donno. I have the same problem that Scifo has... on the cutoff and also on my main selection encoder to the right of the LCD. I will explain the short circuits etc in more detail once I get my ducks in a row. Could be tonight... I'm using the Alpha encoders...I didn't take the indentions out though. I kinda like them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blatboy Posted May 24, 2014 Report Share Posted May 24, 2014 I have issues with my Alpha encoders that I bought from Mouser. For example, if I turn CUTOFF clockwise going from 000 towards 255, it sometimes jumps a few steps counter-clockwise randomly now and then along the way, which is extremely annoying. If I turn the knob really slow, I don't have this problem. If it's the encoders fault or a solder/building issue, I cannot tell. Yeah. I have that problem on about 9 of mine, in varying degrees of badness... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hawkeye Posted May 25, 2014 Report Share Posted May 25, 2014 (edited) Hi Blatboy, <offtopic>Good to hear from you - many greets to NYC!</offtopic> Regarding the alpha encoders - hm, mine still rock the house, but am beginning to wonder, if there have been a few bad batches lately :smile:. If you have not sealed them up, you could try opening them, and bending the metal lip upwards (towards the encoder wheel) - this should improve contact - i did it with mine after removing the detentions. Many greets, Peter Edited May 25, 2014 by Hawkeye 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blatboy Posted October 2, 2014 Report Share Posted October 2, 2014 Alas I didn't remove the indentions... they never bothered me... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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