Casio CZ/ VZ/ FZ - Pro Series

tony- i considered doing this a while ago but didn't take it any further.  I
was gonna consider a simpler conversion.  I had a very very dead CZ1000
(sorry- volume knob is probably in a landfill by now) and took the thing to
pieces- its very crammed in there but controls are split across 2 PCBS so i
thought it might be possible to cram into a 3u or 4u unit.  One of my main
worries was drilling the front-panel.  I have access to a decent bench drill
but I know nothing of 'square' hole drilling- you suggest re building the
control system which would certainly get around this problem.  I would also
say that the ribbon cables between the boards are very short and very
fragile.  As for rebuilding the control system i take my hat off to your
vastly superior knowledge and determination!! good luck- I'd love to hear of
your progress.  Oh also- a CZ101 obvioulsy has much smaller boards and real
buttons- probably a better candidate for your purposes.

jim

-----Original Message-----
From: Tony Reynolds [mailto:grondak@...]
Sent: 31 July 2001 15:55
To: CZsynth@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [CZsynth] CZ 1000 Rackmount Conversion?


Has anyone ever attempted this?  I want to do it for the fun of it.
I'd take a CZ, disconnect the keyboard controller, and try to cram it
into a 2U rackmount case.  I'd do stuff like:

* move all the circuit boards into the case
* provide a non-TRS audio out
* consider a "real" power supply
* keep the main LCD screen because I don't think I can /reprogram/
the CZ controller :)
* volume slider -> volume knob

I don't think that all those panel switches will fit in a 2U case.  I
want to replace them.  My thoughts are to design a custom panel
switch system with features like:

* move all onboard switches to a set of "soft switches"
* a 2nd LCD unit to display the parameter you're selecting for edit
* I'd use a cheesy BASIC Stamp II microcontroller to implement it
* if necessary, I'd design custom ICs (GAL) to support the project

New to the group, here's my cheesy introduction:

Got a CZ1000 in trade for a video camera about 10 years ago.  It was
pretty much ragged out-- it'd been dropped many times, and 9 black
keys were missing.  I found spare parts on the web, got new screws
for everything, cleaned up some cosmetic issues, fixed some
electronic issues with the audio outs, and now have a 99% restored
unit.  The only thing I'm missing is the volume knob.  I won't
destroy this unit for my conversion. :)

If anyone has a CZ101/1000 in their graveyard: ie, one that works via
MIDI but the keys are shot, I'll buy it for a reasonable price.  If
not, I'll get one from a Ebay seller.

If I do this, I'll post pix/keep a journal as the conversion
progresses.



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