OBERHEIM SYNTH

I am just in the process of replacing some tact switches on the front panel PCB which have stopped working properly, but unfortunately I didnt realise that when removing the round grey buttons that sit on top of these switches they should be pulled straight upwards, and before I knew it I had bent the tiny plastic pin that holds the button on the tact switch, and it snapped off. Needless to say I am a bit annoyed with myself. :) Thankfully I managed to get all the other buttons off ok.

So I would really very much appreciate if anyone has a spare button or 2, I would be very happy to pay for it, or if anyone knows where I can get one. I looked at syntaur.com but it seems they are out of stock. So any help would be most appreciated. Thank you.

Following on from my earlier post, I found out that a second grey round button that fits on the front panel tact switches had weakened so much the small connector end of it broke off. So I need 2 replacement buttons if anyone can help with those.

I also just wanted to WARN other users against using the following tact switch as a replacement for the original switches on the Matrix 6R.

https://www.alps.com/prod/info/E/HTML/Tact/SnapIn/SKHC/SKHCBEA010.html

I ordered 25 of the above switches since they look like they are exactly the same as the original switches on the front panel board. However, after desoldering all 23 original switches and then soldering in the new switches, when I tried to put the round grey buttons into the small holes on the top of the switches, it turns out this hole is too big on the new switches, so the buttons will not stay put. This means that the buttons will more than likely fall out when placed back behind the front panel display. I tried all sorts of things to get them to stay put, other than to glue them which I dont want to risk. I do have some silicone glue which might work, but I would prefer to replace with some switches which the buttons fit properly, or find a different type of button with similar specs to the original grey buttons but which fit the new alps switches.

If anyone has any ideas on this, I would be grateful for any help. Thanks in advance.

Hi Malte,

Thanks for the idea, that it definitely worth thinking about. I have to find a friend who is as good at mechanical engineering, or else invest in a dremmel kit maybe. If I cant find any spare buttons maybe this is the best solution and would certainly be a lot stronger with a nice metal pin instead of that puny plastic nipple :)

To conclude this thread, I was able to fix the 2 buttons which had the plastic pins snapped off by following the advice from Malte Rogacki. I drilled a small hole where the plastic pin was, and inserted a small metal pin in its place. So thanks again Malte for that great idea.

I was also able to use the Alps SKHCBEA010 switches as replacements even though they have a larger hole in the top of the actuator than the original switches, and by placing the Matrix 6R so it was sitting on its back panel, I placed the buttons on the switches, then carefully put the front panel pcb back inside the Matrix, using gravity to hold the buttons in place on the switches. Once the front panel pcb was screwed back in, all the buttons are held in place supported by the round cutouts in the metal frame of the case, and the front panel cover. After testing for several hours and pressing all the controls, the Matrix 6R works perfectly once again.

Hope that helps someone else sometime :)