JV 1080 that smells like fish and won't turn on anymore...

[bnji112233]

Hello, I found a JV-1080 in a basement that hadn't been used for a long time. It was working perfectly until it shut down with a message like "low internal battery." I then decided to change the battery inside, but now there's a strong fishy smell inside when I open the device. Also, the screen doesn't fully light up; it flashes rapidly, and the MIDI button also flashes.

Any repair ideas? I tried changing the power cable, but nothing changed, even though the battery is in the right direction. Thanks!

[James Perrett]

Does it have any expansion cards fitted? If so, try removing them.

Some electrolytic capacitors can smell fishy when they leak so I would check for leaking capacitors. If it works when you remove the expansion cards then there is likely to be a leaking capacitor on one of the expansion cards. If it still doesn't work with the expansion cards removed then you have a problem on the main board.

I would advise against a complete replacement of capacitors - if you aren't experienced with electronics and soldering you risk causing more problems than you solve. Most Japanese electrolytic capacitors are actually very reliable - there are just one or two known types that cause problems.

[bnji112233]

Yes, there are several expansion cards. I'll try removing them tonight to see how it goes... But even more bizarrely, I have the same problem with the display flashing, etc., even with the battery removed.

Thanks for your reply.

[Wonks]

Probably needs resetting to factory defaults as the internal RAM is now corrupt. I had a D50 that had a low battery and it did a similar thing until I restored the factory programs from a memory card.

[BillB]

It's worth being aware of issues with the Expansion board capacitors:

https://modwiggler.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=196025

I change the caps in my JV-2080 Expansion boards, not too difficult.

[Hugh Robjohns]

The issue is unlikely to be related to the battery change. More the passage time left unused and expired electrolytics.

Follow the advice above to narrow down the likely problem area.

...or maybe the fishy small is because leaving the unit unused so long, it has now lost its musical sole...

[tacitus]

No hope. It’s totally haddock …

[BJG145]

+1

Sounds like it's tanked.

[ajay_m]

Normally this specific odour is related to the breakdown of phenolic thermosetting plastics; bakelite was the historical example, highly unlikely of course in this context. However apart from caps I would certainly look closely at stuff on the high voltage side like connectors and sockets and whatever just in case something has started to disintegrate. And also the PCB(s) as well. This does sound potentially like something that may be associated with the high side of the power supply and hence needs urgent remediation.

[tacitus]

… urgent remediation.

Or fixing, one might say!

[ajay_m]

Ah yes... I've been infected with jargonitis, I suspect - I write too many knowledge base articles in my current job where you have the issue, a mitigation process (some kind of workaround that'll get you out of trouble while we go and whinge at the devs to fix it properly) and a remediation process (where it gets fixed properly and is usually 'this issue is resolved in release x.y').

[bnji112233]

Thanks for all your replies. I'll test it out tonight when I get home from the studio!

However, I'm a little worried. Do we agree that if the device is turned off, there's no risk of fire? Thanks.

[BJG145]

Ah yes... I've been infected with jargonitis

No problem, it's only a mild case.

I recently had an email which began: "I'm Adam, and I shall be triaging your"...[something].

It's only when you start talking about triage that you need to worry.

[ajay_m]

However, I'm a little worried. Do we agree that if the device is turned off, there's no risk of fire? Thanks.

Unplugged from the mains, yes, you're pretty safe. Turned off, not necessarily if something has degraded on the high voltage side. It's sometimes the case that caps or varistors are placed across the mains input before the primary power switch. I would err on the side of caution until the issue has definitely been resolved, remediated or 'fixed' depending on your jargon preferences.....

[bnji112233]

Indeed, removing the cards works! If I understand correctly, the battery is only used for preset memory? I'd also like to change all the capacitors on my cards because I've seen that this is a recurring problem with these cards, which can sometimes explode!

However, I've only done simple soldering to repair XLR cables so far. Is this dangerous? I don't have a soldering iron yet. Can you recommend any Weller? Thanks.

[James Perrett]

I don't have a soldering iron yet. Can you recommend any Weller? Thanks.

If you don't have a soldering iron then it might be better to find someone more experienced who can do it for you. As I remember it, the capacitors are fairly small and the PCB tracks can be easily damaged if you aren't careful.

[Wonks]

Seconded. De-soldering is a lot more complicated than soldering, and there's a big chance you could damage the cards if you don't have enough experience.

Learning to solder is very useful, but first buy some easy kits to start with, and then practice desoldering components from old PCBs.

[ManFromGlass]

Sometimes used cards come up for a good price on some sites. I can’t imagine cheaper than a good soldering iron but you might get lucky.

[Dashanna]

I took delivery of an expensive old synth recently that had been in storage for many years.
Plugged it in, switched it on... bang! flash! smoke! and the smell of burning fish.

Turns out it was only the RIFA capacitors exploding, used on the mains voltage side for RF filtration, and not even necessary for the synth to function. They are notorious for going bad in storage, and then exploding when powered again. An easy fix, and pretty obvious to the eye which components they are.

This might be one of your issues, but clearly not the whole of it.

Faulty capacitors can leak fluid and damage circuits, so the sooner this is examined by someone who knows what they are doing the better.

[OneWorld]

How about the 'chips' are they OK?

[FrankF]

Really, there's a time and a plaice for these kind of jokes.

[OneWorld]

Really, there's a time and a plaice for these kind of jokes.

Yes, have you fin-ished?

[Martin Walker]

I took delivery of an expensive old synth recently that had been in storage for many years.
Plugged it in, switched it on... bang! flash! smoke! and the smell of burning fish.

Turns out it was only the RIFA capacitors exploding, used on the mains voltage side for RF filtration, and not even necessary for the synth to function. They are notorious for going bad in storage, and then exploding when powered again. An easy fix, and pretty obvious to the eye which components they are.

All joking aside, RIFA capacitors blowing up are indeed a common occurrence - it happened many years ago with my Revox A77, just before I was about to sell it.

[FrankF]

No, seriously, I hate that fishy smell, it really gets up minnows.

[ManFromGlass]

Does that give you a haddock?