ROLI hardware is disposable garbage when the batteries die

Gravitas

@johnfromberkeley

before you trash them why not try
finding an experienced enough
electrical engineer to open one up
and find out if the internal battery could be replaced with an equivalent power supply or a way to provide external power or even to do a tear down?
I don’t think the technology is that obscure, obviously you will void the warranty.

johnfromberkeley

@Gravitas said:
@johnfromberkeley

before you trash them why not try
finding an experienced enough
electrical engineer to open one up
and find out if the internal battery could be replaced with an equivalent power supply or a way to provide external power or even to do a tear down?
I don’t think the technology is that obscure, obviously you will void the warranty.

I was going to attempt the tear down myself. Any nerds on the SF Bay Area who want to bust open a Roli Loop Block?

Gravitas

@johnfromberkeley said:

@Gravitas said:
@johnfromberkeley

before you trash them why not try
finding an experienced enough
electrical engineer to open one up
and find out if the internal battery could be replaced with an equivalent power supply or a way to provide external power or even to do a tear down?
I don’t think the technology is that obscure, obviously you will void the warranty.

I was going to attempt the tear down myself. Any nerds on the SF Bay Area who want to bust open a Roli Loop Block?

I would’ve offered but I’m in London.

I’m equally as curious.

rs2000

@Gravitas said:

@johnfromberkeley said:

@Gravitas said:
@johnfromberkeley

before you trash them why not try
finding an experienced enough
electrical engineer to open one up
and find out if the internal battery could be replaced with an equivalent power supply or a way to provide external power or even to do a tear down?
I don’t think the technology is that obscure, obviously you will void the warranty.

I was going to attempt the tear down myself. Any nerds on the SF Bay Area who want to bust open a Roli Loop Block?

I would’ve offered but I’m in London.

I’m equally as curious.

My guess is that there are no screws and it has a glued case, right?
Any stickers to pull off to reveal screws?

Phil999

@animal said:
ideas for seemingly bricked batteries:
Leave them plugged in (wall adapter) for longer time (2 days, through the night).
Wrap them in plastic and put them in the freezer over night, let them warm up again naturally (leave them alone for some time, depending on weather conditions, don‘t put them directly in the sunlight), then plug them in, again, and for a long time, too.
Repeat the process (until you‘re finally fed up).
I‘ve had quite a few batteries (different devices) come back to live this way. Takes patience, though.
Good luck!, cheers, t

that seems to be a good idea to try out if the device cannot be opened. I didn’t need to do it yet, but the day will come. Thank you for the tip.

topaz

I opened a loop block, found a suitable battery but still dead, and would not charge .

Fortunately EU law apparently had a 2 year warranty so roli replaced my 19 month old unit.

topaz

rs2000

@topaz Cool, thanks for the pics!
Any tips on how to open the case without damage?

found a suitable battery but still dead, and would not charge .

😳

Gravitas

@rs2000 said:
@topaz Cool, thanks for the pics!

+1

Any tips on how to open the case without damage?

found a suitable battery but still dead, and would not charge .

😳

I’ve seen the photos and I’ve checked to see if replacements can found.

If there are no screws maybe it requires some sort of solvent to
loosen the adhesives without
damaging the blocks themselves?

topaz

There is a rubber cover moulded to the bottom so had to be damaged to remove, them it’s simply screws to remove.

Roli thought the firmware had corrupt so just me a brand new one.

@Gravitas said:

@rs2000 said:
@topaz Cool, thanks for the pics!

+1

Any tips on how to open the case without damage?

found a suitable battery but still dead, and would not charge .

😳

I’ve seen the photos and I’ve checked to see if replacements can found.

If there are no screws maybe it requires some sort of solvent to
loosen the adhesives without
damaging the blocks themselves?

rs2000

@topaz Many thanks 👍🏼

Gravitas

@topaz

Thanks for this.
Did they send replacement firmware or the replacement chip that holds the firmware?

topaz

Brand new unit.

@Gravitas said:
@topaz

Thanks for this.
Did they send replacement firmware or the replacement chip that holds the firmware?

Gravitas

@topaz said:
Brand new unit.

@Gravitas said:
@topaz

Thanks for this.
Did they send replacement firmware or the replacement chip that holds the firmware?

Hhhmmm.

The Circuitbender guys may
know something about flashing
eproms and similar.

I wonder if they would know something about the Roli’s though it’s a far more modern instrument.

https://www.circuitbenders.co.uk/

BroCoast

Battery is standard LP752440. Good to know

johnfromberkeley

redditor u/catwithphotoshop found a solution: They said the batteries in the roli blocks are “non replaceable” I found out you can replace them with a baby monitor battery

I guess the solution is pretty much above as well. I never realized it is a simple baby monitor battery. I'm going to try opening one of my control blocks that's dead.

Gavinski

Happy for you! I hope Roli have been following this, and all the other complaints that people have been writing about them left and right on the Internet. The number of missteps taken by this company is huge.

@johnfromberkeley said:
redditor u/catwithphotoshop found a solution: They said the batteries in the roli blocks are “non replaceable” I found out you can replace them with a baby monitor battery

I guess the solution is pretty much above as well. I never realized it is a simple baby monitor battery. I'm going to try opening one of my control blocks that's dead.

chocobitz825

I think, to be honest and fair, roli is operating like many companies these days that produce hardware. They don’t tend to have their own factories as much as they find some place in China that can produce their product. They crowdfund their products and charge high price because they’re not your Apple or Samsungs. It costs then a lot to keep the lights on. Their warranties are limited and generally their designs are not repair friendly. They are all pretty much at constant risk of running out of cash and going out of business.

Unfortunately for all the really cool stuff coming out, it’s a buyer beware market right now. Their lack of repair support is unfortunate but I like to believe it’s not malicious, but just a lack of infrastructure for companies trying to compete right now. Just go on knowing that in 5 years your gear will be discontinued or replaced by a newer model.

Gavinski

There are too many aspects that sucked - these things are really expensive to have the number of problems they do.

Major, major firmware problems that lasted over a year and made it impossible to use two blocks together without constant stuck notes.

The uselessness of the Noise app compared to Equator, even worse in standalone - the process of making songs in that standalone... What on earth where they thinking? (I'm not even going to mention how frustrating it was that the swam sounds were not AU - this is not Roli's fault I guess, but it was certainly a bummer).

Lack of a dashboard app for iOS.

The need for a (very overpriced) touch block to conveniently change the 5D settings - and the lack of a simple alternative. And it only worked in Noise standalone anyway, so basically useless.

These settings should have been changeable using cc messages from any midi controller - or even better, changeable on the device itself.

Many people mentioning problems of, within a short time, the silicon keypad coming away from the metal.

Inability to change batteries, as mentioned.

Modular set-up meaning 24 keys on a block instead of 25 - that one key really makes a difference.

A few of these problems, I wouldn't mind. But all of them together added up to a bit of a smack in the face, I'd say.

chocobitz825

@Gavinski said:
There are too many aspects that sucked - these things are really expensive to have the number of problems they do.

Major, major firmware problems that lasted over a year and made it impossible to use two blocks together without constant stuck notes.

The uselessness of the Noise app compared to Equator, even worse in standalone - the process of making songs in that standalone... What on earth where they thinking? (I'm not even going to mention how frustrating it was that the swam sounds were not AU - this is not Roli's fault I guess, but it was certainly a bummer).

Lack of a dashboard app for iOS.

The need for a (very overpriced) touch block to conveniently change the 5D settings - and the lack of a simple alternative. And it only worked in Noise standalone anyway, so basically useless.

These settings should have been changeable using cc messages from any midi controller - or even better, changeable on the device itself.

Many people mentioning problems of, within a short time, the silicon keypad coming away from the metal.

Inability to change batteries, as mentioned.

Modular set-up meaning 24 keys on a block instead of 25 - that one key really makes a difference.

A few of these problems, I wouldn't mind. But all of them together added up to a bit of a smack in the face, I'd say.

We’re gonna have to get used to getting smacked in the face like this often. I have yet to see any new makers that are doing better with their hardware and software. It’s all a mess of overpriced hardware, under supported software and discontinued product leaving customers in the wind.

mlau

@chocobitz825 said:

@Gavinski said:
There are too many aspects that sucked - these things are really expensive to have the number of problems they do.

Major, major firmware problems that lasted over a year and made it impossible to use two blocks together without constant stuck notes.

The uselessness of the Noise app compared to Equator, even worse in standalone - the process of making songs in that standalone... What on earth where they thinking? (I'm not even going to mention how frustrating it was that the swam sounds were not AU - this is not Roli's fault I guess, but it was certainly a bummer).

Lack of a dashboard app for iOS.

The need for a (very overpriced) touch block to conveniently change the 5D settings - and the lack of a simple alternative. And it only worked in Noise standalone anyway, so basically useless.

These settings should have been changeable using cc messages from any midi controller - or even better, changeable on the device itself.

Many people mentioning problems of, within a short time, the silicon keypad coming away from the metal.

Inability to change batteries, as mentioned.

Modular set-up meaning 24 keys on a block instead of 25 - that one key really makes a difference.

A few of these problems, I wouldn't mind. But all of them together added up to a bit of a smack in the face, I'd say.

We’re gonna have to get used to getting smacked in the face like this often. I have yet to see any new makers that are doing better with their hardware and software. It’s all a mess of overpriced hardware, under supported software and discontinued product leaving customers in the wind.

Better than getting slapped ... do not buy it !

steve99

@johnfromberkeley said:
redditor u/catwithphotoshop found a solution: They said the batteries in the roli blocks are “non replaceable” I found out you can replace them with a baby monitor battery

This is a really useful post with a potential solution to the problem. Let's celebrate that rather than making unhelpful proclaimations. I get a lot from my Blocks and don't regret buying them at all.

It's obvious that Roli are never going to recommend a third party solution, they have that in in common with 99.9% of other manufacturers using rechargeable lithium batteries in their products. We should all know by now that if you open stuff up you can probably do something about it, what really helps is when people share the relevant information.

u0421793

What the hell is a “baby monitor” and why choose that particular obscure product as the way of naming the battery? If anything, it’s a quadcopter battery.

Better still, say it like it is, it’s a 3.7V 1800Ma LiPo.

steve99

@u0421793 said:
What the hell is a “baby monitor” and why choose that particular obscure product as the way of naming the battery? If anything, it’s a quadcopter battery.

Better still, say it like it is, it’s a 3.7V 1800Ma LiPo.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07H5QHZB6?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

This is the link from the posted thread. The third wire is apparently not common, the baby monitor battery has it, so it is relevant information.

EDIT: here's a UK amazon link I found for something similar after some un-thorough research, check yourself before buying.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Sp803048-Battery-Replacement-Lithium-Monitors/dp/B07K1J433J

Jocphone

@steve99 said:

@johnfromberkeley said:
redditor u/catwithphotoshop found a solution: They said the batteries in the roli blocks are “non replaceable” I found out you can replace them with a baby monitor battery

This is a really useful post with a potential solution to the problem. Let's celebrate that rather than making unhelpful proclaimations. I get a lot from my Blocks and don't regret buying them at all.

It's obvious that Roli are never going to recommend a third party solution, they have that in in common with 99.9% of other manufacturers using rechargeable lithium batteries in their products. We should all know by now that if you open stuff up you can probably do something about it, what really helps is when people share the relevant information.

+1

cabo

I also had an eye on Roli (the Songmaker Kit) but their keyboards are out of stock for months now, so it definitely doesn't look good for them. I'll get me a Sensel Morph instead in the next days.

johnfromberkeley

@cabo said:
I also had an eye on Roli (the Songmaker Kit) but their keyboards are out of stock for months now, so it definitely doesn't look good for them. I'll get me a Sensel Morph instead in the next days.

I have both. The morph is very accessible.

Gavinski

I noticed that Roli stuff is out of stock on their site, definitely a very bad sign. Be careful with the morph - there is currently a firmware bug. It seems to affect some but not all devices though. Make sure you test the numerical pads (if you get the thunder overlay) or the top of the piano keys (in the piano overlay) very carefully for responsiveness.

Gavinski

But apart from that I really like the morph

Wrlds2ndBstGeoshredr

@Gavinski said:>
The uselessness of the Noise app compared to Equator, even worse in standalone - the process of making songs in that standalone... What on earth where they thinking? (I'm not even going to mention how frustrating it was that the swam sounds were not AU - this is not Roli's fault I guess, but it was certainly a bummer).

The Roli SWAM instruments are not even IAA. They don’t connect to any other app. Don’t buy them.