Update: I posted this video over 6 years ago. My encoders are still working fine. Watch my newest videos to see it. It's important to mention for me because some smart asses won't stop mentioning how I did everything wrong. AND YES, I GOT IT, THE MUSIC IS TOO LOUD! But this video is like a hundred years old and I won't change anything...
I recently discovered your video when searching for a fix for the encoders on my Waldorf Q. I first noticed problems about a year after I purchased the Q (second hand). Twisting the knobs back and forth seemed to help. But after letting the synth sit untouched for several years, none of the encoders worked at all. I decided to follow your lead and disassembled and cleaned all 58 encoders! They were covered with grease, which migrated down from the shaft. The Q encoders have an o-ring, which is supposed to prevent the grease from spreading to the disk surface. It obviously didn't work. I cleaned them with alcohol and then coated them with Deoxit. They all work now. Many thanks!
I'm saving same issue with MWXT(!) 🥺 I have to ask: How LONG did it take for you to do this... I CAN do it - just not sure I have the patience [43 encoders]. I'd rather work on music (plenty of other gear and software) but thought of selling (or using again) my XT until I realized encoders were acting naph. :-/ Much thanks! antfactor [at] gmail
@@antfactor I don't know how difficult it is to disassemble the XT. The Q wasn't easy; even harder to reassemble. You have to remove all the encoder knobs, and depending on the type of knob, you may, as I did, have to use a putty knife to pry it up. (Put a piece of paper under the putty knife so as not to scratch the surface). You then have to open it up and remove the circuit boards. Removing, cleaning, and reinstalling 1 encoder takes a few minutes. Plan on spending an afternoon. Cleaning my 58 encoders took about 2 & 1/2 hours, but the total job probably took 4-5 hours. It was well worth it. Check out my TH-cam video entitled, Waldorf : Review and Demo
If all else fails you can just replace the encoders, I had the same problem with my Arturia origin as the encoders started to fail so i replaced all of them, they are only £1 or so each but you need to desolder them. I dont think the problem is grease as they will have some lubricant on the contacts to reduce wear but it more likely that over time this loses it effect. The metal on metal wear then creates a metallic coating or track across the contacts, this will then have an effect like shorting some of them out and not allowing the correct operation. When you clean then you are removing this metallic contamination so they can work correctly but you are also removing the contact lubricant. Before you reassemble them you should put some contact lubricant in there so they will last longer.
Yes, I'm also wondering about the longevity of the encoders without any lubricant. There are contact cleaners which contain lubricant, such as Teslanol Oszilin t6 which would probably be a good idea here. WD-40 is not really a lubricant and I wouldn't use that here.
If you get one of these new, go to the auto parts store and get 1/4" ID o-rings and put one under each knob, in between the case and the encoder. it seals them from dust and they last forever... get a thick one, also you could seal them the way radios have been sealed for decades with felt pads
Absolutely. Prevention is MUCH better than cure. And cheaper. Waldorf seem to achieve the great and miss the obvious on things like this. But it's easily fixable.
Those digital encoders are well sealed; the problem isn't dust getting into them, it's oxidation of the metal contacts, tracks and wiper fingers. Note the stripes seen on the tracks; the dull looking parts are oxidized. Polish them with a pencil eraser, then clean with alcohol and a Q-tip.
It's nice that someone shows this. Encoders and potentiometers do need grease to work smoothly. As your video shows, the problem is that the viscosity of the grease is too high, that creates gaps between signals. If you had dropped silicone in it, it would push the excess grease to the sides and it would work again too. That's a good fix for when you have a ton of encoders. Usually, high viscosity doesn't block signals but it seems that this encoder is highly sensitive.
I have cleaned numerous digital encoders used in home-theater receivers. The real problem isn't dust (those controls are well sealed), it is *oxidation* of the metal track and wiper fingers (notice the visible striping effect even after removing the grease from the metal track). Polish the metal track with a pencil eraser and remove the oxidized lines (modern white vinyl or "plastic" erasers might not contain sufficient grit ---- no sand, silica or pumice ---- so try an old fashioned pink pencil eraser, or a gray or blue ink eraser). Polish the metal wiper fingers as well, carefully, and clean the metal surfaces with Q tips and alcohol. You can put a thin coat of clear silicone grease or teflon "super lube" on the track before you reassemble the control; it may not be strictly necessary, but thats how they were apparently manufactured, with grease on the contacts and a thicker, more viscous silicone camping fluid on the shaft and bushing. I don't think the damping grease on the shaft has "migrated" onto the metal contacts, they seem to be two distinctly different types of lube.
PERFECT SOLUTION...EXCELLENT VIDEO..!!!!..I HAVE ENCODER PROBLEMS ON MY BLOFELD.............i will try and attempt this fix but i' am a little Nervous bending and breaking those edges to get the actual encoder off...what happens if on or 2 breaks of the same encoder,,,then what do you do...lol
Makes me wonder if you could just spray some contact cleaner down between the encoder’s axel and the housing and achieve the same effect without disassembly?
Really great video. I sold my Blofeld for this reason. I have missed it ever since but not the dodgy encoders. Now I see there is a fix I'm going to get another. Thank you!
I'm really glad you made this one, because the Blofeld keyboard I purchased (used) recently has an issue with the right encoder knob. It seems to function fine when programming a patch, but it took me 10 minutes to name it before storing. It was ridiculous. Jumps all over the place, and in no incremental order. That, and main data encoder detents are very subtle and mushy. I'll take your info, and see if I can find out if I can apply it to my keyboard.
Thank you! Well done tutorial. And yes, the WAY loud music makes this nearly impossible to hear. It's also not great music for voice at any volume, string sounds eat speaking in the mix. Do you still have the files? You'd do the world a huge favor if you upload this again with no music. Cool music on its own though. Is it your Blofeld?
There was some substance in the encoders of my blofeld that reminded me high density silicone fluid. I saw this liquid before in the video tripod heads. I think it supposed to stay around the shaft but it is leaked down to contacts area. As the result tough encoders. I used silicone grease for replacement and encoders work fine but the force required is slightly different from one to another.
I think it does not make a big difference because the synth was lying in every possible position in a storage room for a few weeks before delivered and will most likely be in every possible position within the next years in your studio ;) Plus, encoder movment will spread the grease too.
Actually you see everything you need to know so that you can mute me here. But anyway, thanks for your feedback! I'm going to respect this for my next videos!
Thanks a lot! It took me less than an hour to fix it all. Without this video, I didn't dare to bend those encoders lips to open them. But it was pretty easy. My encoders were full of greasy stuff, and after removing it (I used some alcohol) it works fine. And the rotating is less sluggish as well. I also repositioned the contact strips by bending it carefully btw, which helped too I think.
hey man, thanks a lot! Unfortunately I have this encoder problem on my 2 days old Blofeld so it can't be the dirt.. is this a common problem also on brand new machines?
My Blofeld worked properly in the beginning and the problems started some years later. Could it be that the device was stored for a longer time? It could be that the lube started to flow into the contacts during the storage. But a new Blofeld should normally work perfect...
Andrea Avellino I had this problem with new and used/old blofelds. If it's a new one, don't make the same mistake I did. Send It back as long as you have garantee. At Birthday I will buy a new one. It will be the fourth. Sold the other two due to gas/money problems. One had faulty encoder and buggy os behavior.
@@AndreaAvellinoVideo I had this problem with four encoders. The latest firmware fixed two. Now I must clean the other two... In fact I will clean them all. Thank you for posting this super helpful video. Maybe we should remove a little bit of grease from the encoder shaft?
the "happy encoudaz" - mine are still unhappy. thanx alot for this cos i already wanted to do the capacitor trick, but gonna clean them now. did you remove the grease from axis n shaft? just for avoiding soldering
Hello. I'll probably have to replace the encoder, can you please tell me the right one to buy? Thanx in advance, and congrats for these awesome series of tutorials
Any follow ups on how long the encoders last after the de-greasing? It's hard to believe they're really supposed to run dry like that but maybe it does work long term - that's why I'm asking. Thanks!
Thank you very much! very useful! had two encoders almost dead and now are working smooth perfectly. Im not pro with this matters, but watched your video and say... lets go! and im happy. by the way, Waldorf put cheap encoders, i have my kitchen pans more clean!! thanks a lot!!!!!
this video looks like an answer but some questions remains... i see you have capacitor settled on your encoder and on other blog i found that this was the solution but can't understand if it's the right way. is this a capacitor problem or a dust and overgrease problem? and if it's a grease problem, after clean, i have to put something like contact oil to prevent the abrasion of the encoder or i have to leave it dry? .......or maybe i have to do both?! sorry for my bad english
Thank you for your question :) I tried the capacitors first but it did not help (well, a little, but not really). That's why I tried to clean the encoders and that helped finally. It is indeed a problem of dust und grease. You can leave the encoders dry because this grease is only for the axis and the mechanical parts to perform smoother. So you don't need the additional capacitors and no new grease, spray or oil.
I wouldn't recommend it. An encoder is not a potentiometer. Moreover, the encoders don't have any holes, so that it's hard to get any substance into the encoder without opening it. And if you manage to put some spray in, all you get is a soup of contact cleaner, lubrication and dust inside.
![[tutorial] Disassembling Waldorf Blofeld Synthesizer](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/T-DhxaFUbK4/mqdefault.jpg)
![[tutorial] Disassembling Waldorf Blofeld Synthesizer](/img/tr.png)
![[talk] 10 facts and tricks of the Blofeld](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/sbWhrzPj2Wc/mqdefault.jpg)
Update: I posted this video over 6 years ago. My encoders are still working fine. Watch my newest videos to see it. It's important to mention for me because some smart asses won't stop mentioning how I did everything wrong.
AND YES, I GOT IT, THE MUSIC IS TOO LOUD! But this video is like a hundred years old and I won't change anything...
love the music and Your voice, it sounds super cooool, like synth-wave thriller. Love it and love this tutorial, watched till the end!!!
Haters gonna hate…
Loved the music! Thank you for making this video :)
I recently discovered your video when searching for a fix for the encoders on my Waldorf Q. I first noticed problems about a year after I purchased the Q (second hand). Twisting the knobs back and forth seemed to help. But after letting the synth sit untouched for several years, none of the encoders worked at all. I decided to follow your lead and disassembled and cleaned all 58 encoders! They were covered with grease, which migrated down from the shaft. The Q encoders have an o-ring, which is supposed to prevent the grease from spreading to the disk surface. It obviously didn't work. I cleaned them with alcohol and then coated them with Deoxit. They all work now. Many thanks!
I'm saving same issue with MWXT(!) 🥺 I have to ask: How LONG did it take for you to do this... I CAN do it - just not sure I have the patience [43 encoders]. I'd rather work on music (plenty of other gear and software) but thought of selling (or using again) my XT until I realized encoders were acting naph. :-/ Much thanks! antfactor [at] gmail
@@antfactor I don't know how difficult it is to disassemble the XT. The Q wasn't easy; even harder to reassemble. You have to remove all the encoder knobs, and depending on the type of knob, you may, as I did, have to use a putty knife to pry it up. (Put a piece of paper under the putty knife so as not to scratch the surface). You then have to open it up and remove the circuit boards. Removing, cleaning, and reinstalling 1 encoder takes a few minutes. Plan on spending an afternoon. Cleaning my 58 encoders took about 2 & 1/2 hours, but the total job probably took 4-5 hours. It was well worth it. Check out my TH-cam video entitled, Waldorf : Review and Demo
If all else fails you can just replace the encoders, I had the same problem with my Arturia origin as the encoders started to fail so i replaced all of them, they are only £1 or so each but you need to desolder them.
I dont think the problem is grease as they will have some lubricant on the contacts to reduce wear but it more likely that over time this loses it effect. The metal on metal wear then creates a metallic coating or track across the contacts, this will then have an effect like shorting some of them out and not allowing the correct operation. When you clean then you are removing this metallic contamination so they can work correctly but you are also removing the contact lubricant. Before you reassemble them you should put some contact lubricant in there so they will last longer.
Can WD-40 be some kind of lubricant? =)
Ha! One of my favorite science channel's host owns one of my favorite synths! Nice!
The strings are colliding.
Where do you recommend getting replacements from?
Yes, I'm also wondering about the longevity of the encoders without any lubricant. There are contact cleaners which contain lubricant, such as Teslanol Oszilin t6 which would probably be a good idea here. WD-40 is not really a lubricant and I wouldn't use that here.
whre do you get the replacemente encoders?
If you get one of these new, go to the auto parts store and get 1/4" ID o-rings and put one under each knob, in between the case and the encoder. it seals them from dust and they last forever... get a thick one, also you could seal them the way radios have been sealed for decades with felt pads
Absolutely. Prevention is MUCH better than cure. And cheaper. Waldorf seem to achieve the great and miss the obvious on things like this. But it's easily fixable.
Those digital encoders are well sealed; the problem isn't dust getting into them, it's oxidation of the metal contacts, tracks and wiper fingers. Note the stripes seen on the tracks; the dull looking parts are oxidized. Polish them with a pencil eraser, then clean with alcohol and a Q-tip.
It's nice that someone shows this. Encoders and potentiometers do need grease to work smoothly. As your video shows, the problem is that the viscosity of the grease is too high, that creates gaps between signals. If you had dropped silicone in it, it would push the excess grease to the sides and it would work again too. That's a good fix for when you have a ton of encoders. Usually, high viscosity doesn't block signals but it seems that this encoder is highly sensitive.
I have cleaned numerous digital encoders used in home-theater receivers. The real problem isn't dust (those controls are well sealed), it is *oxidation* of the metal track and wiper fingers (notice the visible striping effect even after removing the grease from the metal track). Polish the metal track with a pencil eraser and remove the oxidized lines (modern white vinyl or "plastic" erasers might not contain sufficient grit ---- no sand, silica or pumice ---- so try an old fashioned pink pencil eraser, or a gray or blue ink eraser). Polish the metal wiper fingers as well, carefully, and clean the metal surfaces with Q tips and alcohol. You can put a thin coat of clear silicone grease or teflon "super lube" on the track before you reassemble the control; it may not be strictly necessary, but thats how they were apparently manufactured, with grease on the contacts and a thicker, more viscous silicone camping fluid on the shaft and bushing. I don't think the damping grease on the shaft has "migrated" onto the metal contacts, they seem to be two distinctly different types of lube.
PERFECT SOLUTION...EXCELLENT VIDEO..!!!!..I HAVE ENCODER PROBLEMS ON MY BLOFELD.............i will try and attempt this fix but i' am a little Nervous bending and breaking those edges to get the actual encoder off...what happens if on or 2 breaks of the same encoder,,,then what do you do...lol
Makes me wonder if you could just spray some contact cleaner down between the encoder’s axel and the housing and achieve the same effect without disassembly?
Lol, the intense music in the background is making me scared to fix the encoders. I gotta mentally prep
Really great video. I sold my Blofeld for this reason. I have missed it ever since but not the dodgy encoders. Now I see there is a fix I'm going to get another. Thank you!
I'll sell you mine! The Blofeld is ok but I think I'd prefer a Deepmind 12.
im not buying one of these now i see how the encoders go
thanks for saving me money
That was exactly what I thought when watching the video ... but I've bought one already.
I'm really glad you made this one, because the Blofeld keyboard I purchased (used) recently has an issue with the right encoder knob. It seems to function fine when programming a patch, but it took me 10 minutes to name it before storing. It was ridiculous. Jumps all over the place, and in no incremental order. That, and main data encoder detents are very subtle and mushy. I'll take your info, and see if I can find out if I can apply it to my keyboard.
Thank you! Well done tutorial.
And yes, the WAY loud music makes this nearly impossible to hear.
It's also not great music for voice at any volume, string sounds eat speaking in the mix.
Do you still have the files? You'd do the world a huge favor if you upload this again with no music.
Cool music on its own though. Is it your Blofeld?
Just did this and it worked perfectly. Hardest thing was getting it back in the case properly. Thanks.
How is the lcd connected to the pcb?
There was some substance in the encoders of my blofeld that reminded me high density silicone fluid. I saw this liquid before in the video tripod heads. I think it supposed to stay around the shaft but it is leaked down to contacts area. As the result tough encoders. I used silicone grease for replacement and encoders work fine but the force required is slightly different from one to another.
thank you for posting this!!
following your instructions, i cleaned my encoders tonight and they work perfectly again.
Would it be better to use the machine upright so the grease doesn't run down onto the contacts?
I think it does not make a big difference because the synth was lying in every possible position in a storage room for a few weeks before delivered and will most likely be in every possible position within the next years in your studio ;)
Plus, encoder movment will spread the grease too.
May help...
but the music is much too loud
what makes it hard to watch! :-(
Actually you see everything you need to know so that you can mute me here. But anyway, thanks for your feedback! I'm going to respect this for my next videos!
CC helped, in my case.
i like this style, remembers me to a science documentation of the eighties
I love the music!!!
yeah, music is way too loud
Thanks a lot! It took me less than an hour to fix it all. Without this video, I didn't dare to bend those encoders lips to open them. But it was pretty easy. My encoders were full of greasy stuff, and after removing it (I used some alcohol) it works fine. And the rotating is less sluggish as well. I also repositioned the contact strips by bending it carefully btw, which helped too I think.
hey man, thanks a lot! Unfortunately I have this encoder problem on my 2 days old Blofeld so it can't be the dirt.. is this a common problem also on brand new machines?
My Blofeld worked properly in the beginning and the problems started some years later. Could it be that the device was stored for a longer time? It could be that the lube started to flow into the contacts during the storage. But a new Blofeld should normally work perfect...
I don't know, I will just return it to the store I guess, and get a new one. Tnx for the reply though!
Andrea Avellino I had this problem with new and used/old blofelds. If it's a new one, don't make the same mistake I did. Send It back as long as you have garantee. At Birthday I will buy a new one. It will be the fourth. Sold the other two due to gas/money problems. One had faulty encoder and buggy os behavior.
Hi Synergy, thank you for you answer! I seem to have solved the problem updating to the latest firmware 1.25 :)
@@AndreaAvellinoVideo I had this problem with four encoders. The latest firmware fixed two. Now I must clean the other two... In fact I will clean them all. Thank you for posting this super helpful video. Maybe we should remove a little bit of grease from the encoder shaft?
the "happy encoudaz" - mine are still unhappy. thanx alot for this cos i already wanted to do the capacitor trick, but gonna clean them now. did you remove the grease from axis n shaft? just for avoiding soldering
I just removed the grease from the contact plate.
Would it help to put o-rings on the shaft above the metal thread section so as to reduce the amount of dust that can get in?
I think it wouldn't help because the problem is rather the lube (in my opinion). Also, such a ring could hardly keep dust away.
thanks for making this - i'd kill to have my blofeld working reliably.
I've done work like this on older stereo receivers and if you have to do this multiple times bending the tabs will weaken them and they will break.
After years with it on a corner I just fixed it. It was so easy thanks to this video :)
Hello. I'll probably have to replace the encoder, can you please tell me the right one to buy? Thanx in advance, and congrats for these awesome series of tutorials
I think this is also how to fix the Lexicon encoders and probably many other devices. Thanks for doong the vid!
Any follow ups on how long the encoders last after the de-greasing? It's hard to believe they're really supposed to run dry like that but maybe it does work long term - that's why I'm asking. Thanks!
This video is more than 3 years old. I programmed a lot on the Blofeld in this time (i.e. two complete sound banks). The encoders still work.
@@SynthesizerVideo Nice! Thanks for the reply!
Thank you very much! very useful! had two encoders almost dead and now are working smooth perfectly. Im not pro with this matters, but watched your video and say... lets go! and im happy. by the way, Waldorf put cheap encoders, i have my kitchen pans more clean!! thanks a lot!!!!!
I just bough a cheap secondhand blofeld off ebay so your channel is really useful to me. Thanks. :)
this video looks like an answer but some questions remains...
i see you have capacitor settled on your encoder and on other blog i found that this was the solution but can't understand if it's the right way.
is this a capacitor problem or a dust and overgrease problem?
and if it's a grease problem, after clean, i have to put something like contact oil to prevent the abrasion of the encoder or i have to leave it dry?
.......or maybe i have to do both?!
sorry for my bad english
Thank you for your question :) I tried the capacitors first but it did not help (well, a little, but not really). That's why I tried to clean the encoders and that helped finally. It is indeed a problem of dust und grease. You can leave the encoders dry because this grease is only for the axis and the mechanical parts to perform smoother. So you don't need the additional capacitors and no new grease, spray or oil.
:) thanks a lot
Ciao Stefano, vedo che abbiamo lo stesso problema...non ho capito nel video con che sostanza pulisce gli encoder. è alcol?
grazie
Thanks man, great video for a well known problem!
Hope you can go on for another 6 years or more.
The Blofeld just made it through another 6.5 years ;)
Still on fire
Hi I don't understand how clean the encoder? alcohol?
Hi :)
You do not need anything. I used just the dry cotton buds (Q-tips). No alcohol, no other substance.
@@SynthesizerVideo In the video, didn't you say you put some contact cleaner on the Q-tips?
Que legal !! Vou fazer isso nos encoders do meu módulo Roland RA90 e no encoder do amplificador Fender GDEC. Obrigado.
Thank you! Now I Have a hope that I will fix my Traktor X1's knobs.
Thanks, it worked!
Your video about disassembling the Blofeld helped a lot, too ))
Thanks. I'll keep this video in case I need it. I'd be a lot easier to hear you without the loud background music. :)
I put a like for this Great video. Useful information! Music is a bit too loud.
Amazing solution 👍🏾 Thanks for sharing 🙏🏾
Great video, thank you
thanx, very useful. real cool music in the background too..
Thanks a lot! :)
That's my music: th-cam.com/video/AJwnOKzH8rM/w-d-xo.htmlm40s
Happened with my yamaha sampler too .
i think these are alps encoders ...
couldn't you just spray some contact cleaner in the encoder like you would for a dirty guitar pot?
I wouldn't recommend it. An encoder is not a potentiometer. Moreover, the encoders don't have any holes, so that it's hard to get any substance into the encoder without opening it. And if you manage to put some spray in, all you get is a soup of contact cleaner, lubrication and dust inside.
Better to get the Largo VST. Very similar to the Blofeld with no hardware problems.
Thanks for great tutorial! Worked 100% for me ;)
i think the grease inside was there for a purpose
Great video man , really
Excellent job
This works on mouses too
Thx u very much m8
05:25 wrong way of cleaning m8- up down is better plus fill in a little dose of contact lubricant,,stores sale them in spray* cheers;+)
Very very thx for this video.
Very nice!
Thank you very much! Very helpful! ;-)) Subscribed!
that's it ! Thaaaanks
Music too loud
I wish I had a metal tongue too! :p
Oh dear! Turn DOWN the LOUD music and this is then a 10/10 A+++++ video :D
MUSIC IS WAAAAAAAAAAAAY TOOOOOOOO LOUD !
Music way too loud, hard to hear what you were saying. Thanks.
That's true. This was one of my very first videos and I didn't know how to balance the background yet :)
Horror music!
could do without the irritating music
Gosh that music is too loud, too boring, and too pointless!!!
I bought my Blofeld w bad encoders. simply work some CAIG deoxit and presto-