Cause of failed note on Yamaha P37D??

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  • #9620
    david biller
    Participant

    Hi everyone! My high G stopped playing completely yesterday, and I’m at a loss. Opened up my melodica (Yamaha p37d) to check the reed and nothing seems amiss. It stopped working all of a sudden, and there is no sound whatsoever coming from it. Any ideas of what might be causing this, and how it could be remedied???

    #9621
    Alan Brinton
    Participant

    This is a not uncommon issue with Yamahas, David. Most likely, that reed’s gap needs to be adjusted, which is a simple procedure. Do a search in the Forums for “gap” or “gapping” and you will find all the information you’ll need on this.

    Another, much less likely, explanation would be that the reed has failed and has a fracture that’s not visible.

    You should also check to be sure the reed is not misaligned. Push it gently through its opening with a toothpick to see whether it catches on one side as it goes in and out.

    #9624
    david biller
    Participant

    I played with the gap, which initially didn’t appear to be all that different than others. What seemed different was that it was slightly overlapping an edge and so wouldn’t fall through the slot (or, when it did once when I was adjusting the gap, it wouldn’t come back up.) Upon further inspection, I found that it lacked the same springiness of other reeds. I took a close-up picture of the Reed, near its base, and it does appear to be fractured as compared to other functional reeds. I’d attach photos, but doesn’t seem it’s possible on this forum (correct me if I’m wrong.) I can also send photos by email if someone would be willing to take a look and provide their address.

    Meantime, assuming I’m correct it is fractured, is this possible/manageable to repair? I live in Brazil, so unfortunately I suspect it won’t be doable here. But still… Crossing fingers.

    #9625
    Alan Brinton
    Participant

    Look at my profile and you’ll find my email address, David. Whether I’ll be able to tell, I don’t know, but if not I can post the picture. Your photo has to be up somewhere on a Web site in order to link it here.

    Replacing the single reed can be done, but it would be cost prohibitive to have it done professionally. It’s not something I have tried to do. The best option is probably to order a replacement reed plate from Yamaha. There is information about that somewhere in the “Melodica construction, repair and maintenance” forum here. Delivery to Brazil might be a problem.

    Here’s something else to try first, though: When we tune our melodicas, we ping each reed, which can be done with a pin or a toothpick. Do this with the reed in the open position, swiping the pin upward at the open end of the reed. Do this first on another reed, and you’ll hear the intonation of that reed. If you don’t get the same kind of result with the G reed, if you instead get a muffled off-sound, the reed has gone bad. If you do get the true ping, then your problem can be addressed by lightly filing the side of the reed that’s catching. This is tricky to do. You don’t want to twist the reed, but some filing or scraping is possible, and it can be pushed a tiny bit toward the other side. If all else fails, you can buy me a plane ticket to Rio de Janeiro.

    #9633
    david biller
    Participant

    In attempting the ”ping” test, the reed fell right off, right along the line I believed was a fracture. No snap whatsoever, just fell off like a leaf from a tree. So I guess I have my answer… now on to finding a replacement reed plate!

    #9635
    Daren
    Keymaster

    How old’s your instrument David? A fractured reed should be covered by the warranty

    #9638
    david biller
    Participant

    It’s pretty new. I bought it in October! But ordered it from Amazon, didn’t think it was covered…

    #9644
    Alan Brinton
    Participant

    If you bought in October from Amazon, you should be able to return it to Amazon for a refund or replacement. Amazon returns are very easy, and the shipping is usually covered. I should have thought about that.

    I have only broken off a reed one time, and it was just as you describe it. It reminded me of how a thin slice of chocolate breaks.

    #9645
    David I Am
    Participant

    I had this exact thing happen and replaced it with an order from https://www.yamaha24x7.com/#/

    You have to create yourself an account but its free and then you can order parts. Here’s what my confirmation email looked like in part:

    Thank you for your recent purchase with us. Your Yamaha order is on it’s way.

    Your order details are:
    Order Summary :
    Order # 100284933
    Purchase Order # –
    Subtotal:
    $ 17.14
    Shipping and Handling:
    $ 7.95
    Tax:
    $ 1.29
    Grand Total:
    $ 26.38
    # PRODUCT DESCRIPTION LIST PRICE QUANTITY AMOUNT STATUS
    1 W4110210
    REED PLATE (HIGH) P-37D

    $17.14 1 $17.14 Shipped

    #9646
    Alan Brinton
    Participant

    I’m adding “reed plate” and “reed replacement” to the tags so this info will be easier to find here.

    #9649
    david biller
    Participant

    Thanks to all for your patience and help! I’ve messaged the Amazon vendor, waiting on reply, and messaged the person at Yamaha who handles this stuff to see if this is indeed covered by warranty. (FYI his name is John Carlson, and he’s at this email: jcarlson@yamaha.com And you need to provide a US phone number and your pianica’s serial number) Failing that, I’ll be buying from the Yamaha site, as David I Am did.

    Will post the final result. thanks again!

    #9654
    Daren
    Keymaster

    I recently returned a P37D to Amazon UK because a piece of the mouthpiece housing broke off. They told me to contact Yamaha directly, which I did. Yamaha told me to contact the seller, so I went back to Amazon, who apologised and asked me to return it for a refund

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