The Eat at Joe's Kawai K5000 Message Board Digest
Display Backlight Reliability


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Re: Re: OS Gripes - And do/will any of our ideas /wish lists in here, get back to
Kawai???- Or is this a waste of breath? (Hoping not)
 Sunday, 16-May-1999 11:05:41

      216.192.109.59 writes:

      I guess I don't find the K5000 "not remembering" all that
      inconvenient either, but as for leaving the synth on, I think it's wise
      to remember that the K5000 has an electro-luminescent backlight on
      the display. I have a TG77, it has an almost identical
      display. Most of the TG77's you will find now have dead or dim
      backlights. I've been told that there is nothing you can do
      about this with this kind of backlight, they simply get dimmer
      with age, getting "spotty", and then give out completely. The
      K5000's display may be bright now, but with this kind of backlight
      eventually it will give out, so I personally don't leave it
      on if I don't have to.
      Other kind of backlights last longer, like cold-cathode florescent
      or LED backlights. I don't know if the K5000's display
      will be a readily available part in the future since this kind of
      backlight is not used so much anymore.
      I wonder if installing a switch (where I don't know, in the back
      somewhere) between the main power supply and the
      inverter that powers the backlight would be harmful. (Though I
      wouldn't bother with it) Also, some LCD's have backlights
      that can be seperated from the display (if it needed to be
      replaced) but probably not on this one. Anyone know the specs
      of the K5000's display?

      Francis

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Display aging - anyone know the mfg./part # ?
 Monday, 17-May-1999 20:03:30

      216.192.86.1 writes:

      Are service manuals available for the K5000 or are they available
      to only authorized Kawai repair personel? Has anyone
      opened up thier K5000s or K5000r to take a look? Although most
      people probably have new K5000's, and the synth's
      not that old overall, eventually there may be some needing
      replacement parts (like the display).
      My TG77 is probably from 1991 or 2, so it's probably around 8
      years old. Maybe electro-florescent displays made more
      recently than this are more reliable and last longer, but the
      K5000's looks pretty much identical - high pitched-whine
      inverter and all.
      I've sometimes see displays with the same "dot-dimensions"
      available as surplus (like at www.allelectronics.com), but these
      display types have a lot of variations and I wouldn't know how to
      identify the right one. I know a guy who did this fantastic
      LCD replacement on his TG77, replacing it with a "cold-cathode"
      florescent backlight, the kind the Kurzweil K25000's
      use, very bright, crisp, and purple. (He said he had to chip
      plastic from the front panel assembly to fit it, but as a bonus, the
      power supply doesn't produce a high-pitched whine - these
      backlights use a tiny thin florescent tube, which I think can be
      replaced, though they're supposed to last a very long time....
      What kind of space is available inside the K5000s and R I
      don't know, has anyone opened up thiers?).
      I know it seems like I'm fretting about a problem that doesn't
      exist yet, (my display is still beautiful), but it does kind of suck
      that Kawai chose this kind of backlighting , so when age catches
      up with them this will be a major bummer for a synth with
      such a graphical interface.
      I think K5000's will probably hold their appeal for a long time to
      come, so this might matter some day.

      Francis


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