Roland XP-80
This time an instrument arrived with what initially seemed like a rather minor problem. One of the output channels was simply a bit quieter than the other. At first glance, it looked like it would be a trivial repair.
I was quite surprised when I opened the instrument and looked at the main board. A large number of the SMD electrolytic capacitors installed on it had leaked, and some of the electrolyte had damaged nearby components as well as parts of the PCB traces. In fact, I’m not sure how the instrument was functioning at all, although I assume it certainly wasn’t operating with full functionality.
As a result, I replaced more than 30 electrolytic capacitors, reconstructed several corroded PCB traces, and replaced a few damaged resistors. Finally, I also replaced a rather unusual EC16 encoder responsible for parameter adjustment, as it had been operating very imprecisely.
What initially appeared to be a simple repair turned out to be quite demanding in terms of time and complexity, but in the end the instrument was restored to perfect condition, producing a very clean and pleasant sound. While I was at it, I also cleaned the front panel as well as all the circuit boards (which required ultrasonic cleaning anyway due to the leaked electrolyte).
