Instructions On How To Open Up The Genos.

[Pianoman]

As more people occasionally encounter a problem that requires opening up the Genos, I
think I should post instructions on how to go about it.

I had a problem with a dislocated key back in October in the middle of my gig season, and
had no choice but to open up the Genos myself, to fix the offending, thus saving time but
voiding my warranty.

Jerryghr, another member here, had suggested at the time that I should post the
instructions on how to go about it,  in a separate topic.

I have been quite busy since then and had completely forgotten about it but here are
the instructions.

I hope that this will come in handy for someone when the need arises.

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OPENING UP A GENOS:

You flip it over and lay the keyboard on something soft.
I used a winter feather filled bed cover.
.
Then you first remove 3 of  the 7 special screws that are  in front of the Keyboard where all the
Jacks and other connectors are.

Those are the 2 outer ones, plus the middle one, which would make it screw number 4.
When you are done with removing all the below mentioned screws, you can remove the rest
of the front screws.

Then you remove all the screws around the edges of the Genos,  15 in total.

Lastly you remove the 6 screws closest to the USB Stick, hold both halves of the  Genos
and flip it again right side up.
Then gently raise the top of the Genos a couple of inches,  starting at the back and pulling
towards you, where the keys are.

It will open cleanly without any problems, being mindful of not tugging at the  connecting
cables inside of course.

When you are done you just reverse the procedure, starting with the top screws in front,
then the middle screws near the USB Stick, and lastly the 15 screws on the edges of the
Genos.

Best Regards,

Abby.

[Stijn]

I think this video may also help. It shows in detail how to replace the Main variation buttons.
It's not in English but I think it is pretty clear on how to proceed.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Td0D4r1_ASw

Stijn

[Pianoman]

Good Video Stijn.

I thought that I should post the above as a standalone topic in case someone might want
to refer to it in the future.

Perhaps others might also post their experiences.
I only got as far as reinstalling the key in it's socket.

Best Regards,

Abby.

[Esa]

Thanks Stijn 

Esa

[Lee Batchelor]

Thanks Abby!! I just hope I never need your instructions .

[tyrosaurus]

Thanks to Stijn and Abby.

After watching the video, don't you think that  the Genos switch button top assembly looks cheap and nasty, especially when you think how much you paid Yamaha for the keyboard!

The actual switches themselves are so called 'tactile switches' rather than the very cheap and nasty 'conductive' switches used on the PSRs, and tactile switches are usually reliable, but the flimsy flexible plastic 'hinges' on the actual button tops that push down on the tactile switches look unlikely to stand the test of time even on keyboards only used at home!

I'm sure that we will see more failures of Genos buttons if they are all manufactured from the best 'chinesium' plastic like the ones in the video!

I wonder if Yamaha's 'legendary' customer service will extend to replacing this 'cr*p' at no cost if ( or rather, when?) they fail - presumably though it would be with more of the same cr*p!

People talk about the extra features on new keyboards such as Genos and the PSR-SX models, but how long will the hardware last if it is made to what seems to be the very cheapest specifications? 

Not as long as earlier models, I bet!   


Regards

Ian

[EileenL]

Most of the Genos keyboards have at least a five year warrantee and my shop gave me six so I am not to concerned about the buttons. I have had my genos for two years now and it is used a lot but buttons still work fine.

[Lee Batchelor]

Five-year warranty, Eileen? In Canada, we get one year. Yamaha needs to be more consistent and stop with the favoritism. What are they afraid of - that perhaps we'll leave our Genos out on the snow-covered back porch in July ?

[tyrosaurus]

Hi Eileen,

Yamaha's warranty for the 'EEA' (European Economic Area - which includes the UK, and will continue to do so after 'Brexit', should that happen!) for Genos and similar keyboard instruments is 24 months.

https://download.yamaha.com/files/tcm:39-627776#page=32

Yamaha do have 'Warranty Extension Campaigns' for some products but currently there are none for Genos (or PSRs).

Any 'extended warranty' after 24 months for Genos in the UK is a dealers/suppliers warranty and is not supported by Yamaha's European arm,  Yamaha Music Europe GmbH. 

Although I would expect Yamaha as a company to still be around in two years time, you can't guarantee that all dealers/suppliers will be, especially in this economic climate.  If a supplier goes bust, then their extended warranty is not worth anything!

Hopefully no-one will need to call upon Yamaha's or a dealer's warranty for any Yamaha keyboard since their keyboards tend to be (or at least used to be) quite reliable and well built, but are you really saying that the switch button assembly shown in the video appears to be good quality and likely to last!   Only time will tell.  I suppose that if you never use these buttons then they will last for ever!
.
Personally I would much rather have the keyboard built to last many years (like they used to be) rather than have to rely on any warranty to cover Yamaha's penny pinching in manufacturing,  but from what I saw of the switch assembly in the video, I doubt that they will last many years!  Believe me, I would be happy to be proven wrong about this, but from what I have seen the button array does not appear to be designed with longevity in mind! 

Chinese companies are well able to produce quality components if they are paid a suitable rate.  People are quick to condemn China for the quality of their manufactured goods, but I suspect that more often that not, it is the customer who dictates the quality by the amount that they are prepared to pay!

Whilst I could easily replace these defective switch buttons (assuming that Yamaha UK would actually sell me the parts!), many owners would need to take the keyboard to a repair technician and pay their typically vastly over the top prices to get it fixed.

Yamaha seem to have problems with their software/firmware at the moment and I accept that such things can be notoriously difficult to even spot, but they must surely be able to foresee any hardware problems resulting from manufacturing penny pinching and preempt them by specifying better quality components, or at least exercise better quality assurance/control of them.  After all we have paid 'top dollar' for the keyboard!

Maybe coming from a Tyros4 (which I still have, as well as the so-called upgrade product Genos) has elevated my expectations in Yamaha's build quality!


Regards

Ian