Besides fixing broken keys, the technicians at Sequential Circuits routinely performed engineering prescribed functional tests on all Sequential Circuits instruments. A "Factory Functional" Test systematically checks every aspect of the instrument to assure that all electronics and features are operating reliably and within factory specifications prior to packaging any instrument for shipping. To assure operational performance and reliability, Wine Country ex-Sequential techs follow these same engineering prescribed procedures for any Sequential Circuits instrument sent for repair, restoration, or maintenance. Contact Wine Country to make your Prophet, or any Sequential Circuits instrument, operate at peak performance.
A Sequential™ MIDI kit is available from Wine Country for the Revision 3.2 or 3.3 Prophet-5 that offers MIDI IN and OUT jacks, with operation in OMNI & POLY Modes over 16 MIDI channels with program select & alternate release, plus response to incoming pitch wheel data in 3-ranges & current program MIDI data dumps. Instructions included. Estimate 2 to 3 hours for MIDI kit installation by a competent service technician. MIDI kits for the Rev 2, Rev 3.0, and Rev 3.1 are available from Kenton Electronics. MIDI kits are routinely installed into Prophet-5s by Wine Country Technicians.
The current Prophet-5 MIDI kit design eliminates the need for a 28-pin ribbon cable by connecting the MIDI PCB directly into the 28-pin socket on the CPU board.
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Directly above the MIDI board is the 40-pin Z-80 CPU. Located at the left & directly below the MIDI board is part of the 120 program memory upgrade, and the #E-040 back-up battery is at the lower right of the picture.
Seen inside the pitch mod box are the two #R-207 pots & associated wheels. The white clip fastened to the bottom of the left bracket provides a Pitch Wheel Center Detent.
The J-wire keyboard is seen at the right of the pitch/mod box.
Power Supply Reliability Upgrade
The Prophet-5 power supply PC board #5 is at left. Common power supply failures can be almost always avoided if reliability
modifications are properly installed between the power regulators and the power
supply board #5. A Prophet-5 with MIDI installed should also have the MIDI Diode Mod, a diode added in series to PCB#5 as seen located next to the small black capacitor at the top-center of the PCB right between the black & red wires. These modifications are routinely installed by Wine Country technicians.
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The power transformer is a heavy component. All Prophet-5 owners should confirm that their Prophet-5's power transformer is securely mounted to the bottom panel with 2 screws & nuts. A loose transformer can damage not only the transformer, but other components are well.
Prophet-5 Owner's Comments
September 2010 email from Al in Missouri regarding the repair of his Prophet-5 Revision 2:
"Thanks for your service!!! I'm glad someone is still around with enough interest and skill to keep these great machines alive. Before I was happy just to own one, now I'll even be happier to own one that actually works.
-al"
July 2010 email from Mark in California regarding the repair of his Prophet-5 Revision 2:
".. thanks again for the fine work on the Rev2... if I pick-up another SC Anything that needs work, you folks will be the first ones I call.
Mark D."
March 2010 email from Dan regarding the repair of his Prophet-5 Revision 3.3 with MIDI:
"Thanks again for your help, renovation/repair and software revision update. I'll recommend WCS if anyone inquires....
Sincerely,
Dan C."
2009 email from Gerry M. regarding his Prophet-5 Rev3.3 with MIDI that had been
repaired & restored by Wine Country:
"Thanks
again so much for your great work on my Prophet 5. It sounds, feels,
and looks absolutely fantastic. The keyboard feels like a new
keyboard, and everything is working perfectly. Much appreciated!!"
2009 email from Joe B. regarding his Prophet-5 Rev3.3 which was
repaired, restored, and had a factory MIDI kit installed by Wine Country:
"THE MIDI IS amazing!!! The keys feel great...thanx for the screws....I am blown away with this thing."
Rev 2 vs. Rev3 -- Why does a Rev 3 exist? The Rev 3 Prophet-5 was developed by Sequential Circuits as a direct result of the documented unreliability of the Rev 2 Prophet-5.
2009 email from Pierre-Luc of Switzerland regarding his recently purchased Prophet-5 Rev3:
"My
rev 2 sn. 437 went several times to repair. It had a big sound but I
sold it when it was working. My rev 3 is much more reliable
and I like the sound."
2007 email from Daniel regarding his Rev2 Prophet-5 sn 1114 after a series of unsuccessful repairs:
"I'm
just disappointed because the Prophet was perfectly (at least to my
ears) in tune before the voice went out and now it's unusable in poly
mode. I'm debating between a full restore, or selling it. Tough
decisions."
ORIGINAL Prophet Parts for Collectors
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ORIGINAL Sequential Circuits Model 851 factory program data cassette containing data for 120 factory programs available for $29.95 while supplies last.
An original Sequential Circuits Model 851 data cassette was included with every new Rev 3.3 Prophet-5, and is now available as memorabilia for collectors. If you just want sound program data for any Rev 3 Prophet-5, a cassette tape is available for $19.97 that includes the 3 original files of factory programs found on the Model 851, plus 2 additional files of 80 non-factory alternative programs. This sound program data will load into any Revision 3 Prophet-5, but is NOT compatible with a Revision 2 Prophet-5.
The fuse for the Prophet-5 and Pro One is installed into the back of the square Red fusecap, and the fusecap is then inserted into the square fuseholder. The fuse and Red fusecap remain slightly spring-loaded when properly inserted into the black square fuseholder. An ORIGINAL Sequential Circuits Fusecap with white ink on a Red cap is now available while supplies last.
