D50 screen shows weird characters

[nwns]

Hi

Just got a Roland D50 and the screen is behaving weirdly, shows a few normal characters but mainly a bit weird.

Any ideas?

[muzines]

Does the D50 otherwise work ok?

Have you tried resetting/initialising it? Have you replaced the battery at all?

[BJG145]

^^^

I expect a fresh battery and a reset would sort it, though from a quick look on Google you might need to restore the factory patches via Sysex.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=THhlkBz--e0

[nwns]

Is there a factory reset option for the D50? I couldn't find it.

Yes it works perfectly other than that.

Vendor said it recently had a battery and it clearly worked before he shipped it, I'll try a new battery anyway as it's easy. I don't really want to have to return it... I love a D50

[muzines]

First hit on Google:

Press and hold "SPACE" & "DATA TRANS" buttons while you power up. This only resets the D-50's system, it shouldn't reset the patches.

[nwns]

Roland's list of factory resets didn't have one

[nwns]

It didn't help though.

Will pop out and buy a CR2023 tomorrow.

[nwns]

Battery change not helped

[BJG145]

Having changed the battery, you'll now need to clear the memory...

https://www.sweetwater.com/sweetcare/ar ... -settings/

...then restore the factory patches via Sysex.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=THhlkBz--e0

[Martin Walker]

I actually had several patches in a commercial sound bank on my trusty Korg M1 that had been created using a 'randomiser' utility that put totally random numbers into all the parameters.

This resulted in both corrupted titles (like those you've currently got on your D50) and weird sound effects.

As others have said, resetting after installing a fresh battery should resolve your problem.

Martin

[BJG145]

I actually had several patches in a commercial sound bank on my trusty Korg M1 that had been created using a 'randomiser' utility that put totally random numbers into all the parameters. This resulted in both corrupted titles (like those you've currently got on your D50) and weird sound effects.

I expect you'd enjoy norns...

(No, that's not garbage...that's the UI.)

[Martin Walker]

Norns - fascinating!

Now that reminds me that I really must create/record some proper music with my Gecho Loopsynth soon.

I have great fun doodling with it, but should treat it more seriously - like Luca Longobardi here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7fYzaDq5YR0

EDIT: And what should I spot a few seconds later from the same guy but Gecho Loopsynth into Norns!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z8B38bxAWg4

Martin

[Eddy Deegan]

I never owned a D50, but I did own a D10 and I have a feeling that the battery isn't the problem here. The corruption on the screen in the photos strays well beyond the data fields maintained by dynamic battery-backed memory.

If there is a chip/data fault it would be an issue with the ROM holding the hard-coded strings that form the labels for various voice parameters. As to which ROM that is or how to fix it I cannot say. The fact it works OK other than the display is probably a good sign but I'd be inclined to reach out to Roland and ask them for some input on which chip(s) to consider suspect.

They probably don't sell them any more but you might be able to find a dead or damaged D50 cheap on an auction site from which to salvage one or more replacement chips.

Before doing any of that, I'd be inclined to open up the case and see if there are any dry joints or cracks in the connections associated with the ribbon cable going to the LCD. It could be that the corruption isn't ROM based at all, but one or more bad connections are corrupting a bit or two of data being fed to the LCD, which would also explain the issue shown in the photos and would be a relatively easy fix (just renew the solder joints and/or add a fly-lead to cross a broken PCB track) if that was the case.

[BJG145]

If you power on while holding INCREMENT and the 0 SPACE button it should report ROM version and battery level, which may be a way to check the display circuit.

[Folderol]

My first thought was defective ROM or display connections.

[BJG145]

Now that reminds me that I really must create/record some proper music with my Gecho Loopsynth soon.

These pocket-sized setups are all the rage now. I like those experiments by Luca you posted...almost theatrical.



(For a moment I thought that was an OTO...I've been looking for one of those for ages.)



...then there's Hainbach with his ST50...



...or Mark Harris and his Pico/Organelle.



So anyway, here's my suggestion...dig out that dadamachines automat and set it up with the Gecho. That would be neat.

[Martin Walker]

So anyway, here's my suggestion...dig out that dadamachines automat and set it up with the Gecho. That would be neat.

Wow great links BJG145!

Yes, I must dig out the Dadamachines Automat, but first I must explore the Gecho Looposynth and Koma Field Kit combo

Martin

[muzines]

Anyone else on the edge of their seat over the drama of whether this lovely but poorly D50 is resurrected or not?

[Martin Walker]

Anyone else on the edge of their seat over the drama of whether this lovely but poorly D50 is resurrected or not?

I'm not unduly concerned, as long as the sounds themselves emerge faithfully - sometimes having a few corrupted characters in the graphic display can add a level of intrigue to the proceedings

Martin

[nwns]

Well I have sorted the screen, it was a connection to the main board, took them all off and cleaned up the connections. All lovely now. D50 making lush sounds and looking great all over again. Thanks for all the help guys.

[muzines]

Good result!

[BJG145]

Good to hear! Kudos to Eddy for figuring this one out...

[Eddy Deegan]

Well I have sorted the screen, it was a connection to the main board, took them all off and cleaned up the connections. All lovely now. D50 making lush sounds and looking great all over again. Thanks for all the help guys.

Yay! Excellent result