External rotary slow/fast switch

[SYOTR]

I enjoy the simulated Leslie on the WK-7600 but I do not like the location and operation of the rotary slow/fast switch. for me, it is awkward to find the button and press it on the fly while playing. I am used to a Hammond with a real Leslie and a lever type switch mounted on the front edge of the keyboard. (50 years ago) 

I had to open up my Casio 7600 to fix some noisy keys, so while I was at it, I decided to make provisions for an external rotary fast/slow switch. I found the correct points on the circuit board and soldered two wires across where the button touches the board. I connected these wires to a 1/4" jack with a 1000 ohm resistor in series. I drilled a hole in the back of the keyboard and mounted the jack there. I plugged in a sustain foot switch to the jack. 

Now I can use my foot to switch speeds without taking my hands off of the keys. It works great and does not affect the function of the original pushbutton. 

I can upload some photos and provide more details if anyone is interested.

[Vorbis]

Great idea!   

 

Definitely would like to see pictures and details how you installed the alternate switch port.  

 

I too had the Hammond/Leslie setup and you had to swipe your hand over the Leslie Speed switch.   Mine had a center off position and if you wanted to shutoff the rotary you had to take a bit longer to put the switch in the middle position.

 

CTK 900

WK7500

[Jokeyman123]

Good to see another modder seeking to improve features-my reasoning for most of mine. and yes, the PX560 with footpedal to switch Leslie speed makes a huge difference. I would like to see a picture-I can only switch leslie on/oof in software with an older Casio-the PX575, and I've wondered whether it would be possible to create an on/off pedal connection internally but have no schematics. I've done enough circuit-tracing/troubleshooting-if I can see which board and solder points-I might be able to find the same within the PX575-my PX350 also has no such function button-and i bet there is enough circuitry in common with the WK, might be able to do that one too.

[AteS]

I like this idea, It’s a good thing to add extra or better functions to your keys.
 

Was thinking to do this kind of thing to the buttons for variation/fill on my cdp-s350.

i often miss a chord after searching for the right button while playing.

A foot switch is easier to use, anyway for me.

 

But first have to wait for the end of my warranty.

 

So very interested to see some photo’s.

[SYOTR]

Here are the steps I followed to make this modification:

1. Flip the keyboard upside down and remove all of the visible screws. 

2. Turn it back over and lift off the center section.

3. Remove screws holding the left top panel and lift it off.

4. remove screws holding the front section of this top panel to the main part.

5. Remove the 3 screws holding the circuit board to the front section of the panel. Picture 1

6. Flip over the circuit board and peel off the rubber switch buttons. Picture 2

7. Locate the two solder points that are connected to the slow/fast switch pads. Picture 3

8. Solder two wires about 1 foot long to the solder points. Picture 4

9. Solder the other ends of the wires to a 1/4" phone jack with a 1000 ohm resistor in series on one side. (polarity not important) Picture 5

10. Cover the resistor with heat shrink tubing or tape. Picture 6

11. Drill a hole in the back of the left speaker panel and mount the jack. Pictures 7 and 8

12. Plug in a sustain pedal to the jack and test that it works OK. Picture 9

13. Reassemble the keyboard in reverse order.

 

 

 

[Jokeyman123]

Nice, thanks for the pics.

[Vorbis]

Very good details and pictures.   Thanks for the how to project and the idea to begin with!

 

CTK900

WK7500

 

 

[DaveMcM]

For those who would like to add similar functions to their instrument but don't have the experience, skill or guts to crack open the case of your keyboard and start soldering-

MIDI Solutions makes a number of useful little boxes. Several of which would solve the issue of the OP without taking a chance on causing permanent damage to the instrument.

 

Here's one solution-

Footswitch Controller

 

Or another-

Pedal Controller

 

[Jokeyman123]

These are and have been great devices-but Dave, the WK's and CTK's don't have midi din ports-would need an extra host box to connect these-unfortunate but a great idea for the rest of the Casios with DIN midi. It's real nice this company is still in business. Got me thinking-the PX350 is my other Casio-has midi din ports-I'm looking at the expression pedal box too. Definitely a good idea there. How's gigs? All our local usual music events, except for smaller individual restaurants who can still book 1-2-3 piece groups, are cancelled. A shame as in September we have some pretty good "music days" in Hawley, Honesdale and here in Milford. Even local jam nights are still pretty much closed down for now.

[DaveMcM]

What, no 5 pin din ports! How 2020.   Sorry, I was unaware of the I/O offerings on the models in question. Then by all means, heat up the iron and start melting that lead free solder. ;).

 

Yes, the MIDI Solutions boxes are very cool. I have the Event Processor Plus that I have used to solve multiple problems in the past. I even have a number of Anatek Pocket Pedals from way back; Pocket Pedal, Pocket Record, Pocket Sequencer, Pocket Filter, MIDIMatch and the Wind Machine (for use with Yamaha BC series breath controllers). Anatek was located across the big pond (Lake Superior) in Thunder Bay, Canada.

[Jokeyman123]

Yes I've been looking at the Anatek products lately-love the older midi equipment, it is still quite advanced especially considering how all but the priciest equipment is now "dumbing down" midi features it seems. But the Anateks since are so rare, are pricey on eBay and elsewhere. The sequencer and recorder look interesting.  I'll have to look at that Pocket Pedal again.

[SYOTR]

On 8/31/2020 at 9:35 AM, DaveMcM said:

For those who would like to add similar functions to their instrument but don't have the experience, skill or guts to crack open the case of your keyboard and start soldering-

MIDI Solutions makes a number of useful little boxes. Several of which would solve the issue of the OP without taking a chance on causing permanent damage to the instrument.

 

Here's one solution-

Footswitch Controller

 

Or another-

Pedal Controller

 

Those look pretty cool but pricey. My solution cost $27 including the foot switch.

[Jokeyman123]

The tough part is finding a contact point with different Casios to do this. The XW-P1 has a push button switch for Leslie fast/slow and the circuitry is probably very similar to the WK/CTK you've designed. I will be looking that over when I get the time. I wish all mods were so easy (relatively speaking!) 

[SYOTR]

5 hours ago, Jokeyman123 said:

The tough part is finding a contact point with different Casios to do this. The XW-P1 has a push button switch for Leslie fast/slow and the circuitry is probably very similar to the WK/CTK you've designed. I will be looking that over when I get the time. I wish all mods were so easy (relatively speaking!) 

Looking at the XW-P1, it appears to have the same group of three switches as on mine. I would not be surprised to find the same circuit board underneath.

[DaveMcM]

15 hours ago, SYOTR said:

Those look pretty cool but pricey. My solution cost $27 including the foot switch.

True. I was simply suggesting the MIDI Solution products for those folks that would like to add a footswitch but aren't as adventurous or handy as yourself.

[Jokeyman123]

Dave-these are still very powerful midi tools-unfortunate that many younger musicians go straight to software-and need to learn all the functions of the midi protocol anyway-which was all originally hardware based as you probably know-and being how many problems are caused by the USB midi data stream-look at all the posts about rfi, corrupt data, loopback problems-I would still prefer hardware solutions on a gig although I've used laptops for background DJ type music between sets or at open mic events-rare to be able to do what SYOTR has done. Interesting how many are revisiting (or visiting for the first time) analog or analog-type music instruments-there will always be a need to physically connect with musical functions as directly as possible-thus again-a very good switch mod, very worthwhile, but the midi solutions boxes are too-i think I'll buy 1-2 before this company too, alas! goes belly-up.

[Chandler Holloway]

This is a very interesting mod. I bet it would be possible to adapt a similar concept to the modulation button on the CT-X5000, which can also be configured to control stuff like rotary speed (either as a momentary switch or a passive toggle).

 

On the topic of external MIDI pedal control, I can highly recommend the MIDI expression series as an alternative to the MIDI solutions stuff. The name MIDI expression is a bit misleading because the jacks on these units can be configured to either footswitch or expression pedal operation, making them a bit more versatile than the MIDI Solutions offerings. They can even be used to send key commands (as in, emulating keystrokes on a computer keyboard) for extra DAW or software control. Check out the User Manual for more info on just how capable these units are.

[OogieWaWa]

Nice idea.  That button is in about the worst location they could have put it.

 

I was thinking of some sort of mechanical "button pusher" that would be a long straight "bar" above the keys but below the first row of buttons; one end resting on that button, the other end just on a small block.  Push down anywhere on the bar and it would depress the button.  Might need another pivot point below the button somewhere, just outboard of the keys.

 

But after seeing this, that got me thinking.  So are the contact points that you soldered to basically the same leads from the button itself, and this just jumpers around it?  It's a momentary contact pedal, correct?

 

Thanks, and again, good thinking!

[SYOTR]

On 10/19/2020 at 6:14 PM, OogieWaWa said:

Nice idea.  That button is in about the worst location they could have put it.

 

I was thinking of some sort of mechanical "button pusher" that would be a long straight "bar" above the keys but below the first row of buttons; one end resting on that button, the other end just on a small block.  Push down anywhere on the bar and it would depress the button.  Might need another pivot point below the button somewhere, just outboard of the keys.

 

But after seeing this, that got me thinking.  So are the contact points that you soldered to basically the same leads from the button itself, and this just jumpers around it?  It's a momentary contact pedal, correct?

 

Thanks, and again, good thinking!

Yes, these are the same points that the pushbutton connects to. Yes it is a momentary contact pedal. 

[Cman]

Thank you for the detailed pictures and modification steps WOW...this is way beyond my talents...thank you so much..

 

could an external leslie switch like the original Hammond ones be wired into the button somehow and attached to the side of the keyboard..

[SYOTR]

1 hour ago, Cman said:

Thank you for the detailed pictures and modification steps WOW...this is way beyond my talents...thank you so much..

 

could an external leslie switch like the original Hammond ones be wired into the button somehow and attached to the side of the keyboard..

The original pushbutton is momentary contact, push once for fast speed, push again for slow. The foot pedal I used is also momentary contact and simply wired in parallel across the original switch terminals and behaves the same way. While you could mount a switch to the front of the keyboard, the Leslie switch would not work as it was a single pole double throw switch.

[zamood]

What is the SysEx message for switching rotary speed that could be assigned to a MidiSolutions device? Could not tell clearly from the MIDI implementation guide.

Edited November 13, 2022 by zamood

[zamood]

MidiSolutions boxes are out of stock everywhere.

 

I was able to connect together the Ampero Control programmable footswitch with a DOREMIDI UMH-21 MIDI host box and it works! Only thing is that the WK-7600 indicator slow/fast indicator light does not toggle with the change of speed though MIDI in.