Fender Rhodes Premium Felt Dampers - 88 Key Set

Description

Hey folks,
NOTE: Tall bass damper felts are now available for late 70s model Rhodes.
Please add a note to your order if you need these taller bass felts.
After A LOT of R&D we're happy to re-release our dampening felts for the Fender Rhodes.
They are by far the finest dampers available for the Fender Rhodes.
We make them in house using the highest grade Japanese damper felt and red braided European cloth and cut them using our custom built felt cutter.
Here's why they're better:
High density felt - for a cleaner let off
Red backing - stiffens the felt and reinforces its shape and position
Proper felt grain for long lasting dampers
Premium Materials - literally the best available
Cost - a much better set at a similar cost to any other felts available.
Notched - immediate and thorough dampening plus tine training.
Glue included - how neat.
Being notched they dampen more consistently and thoroughly.
They hold/train the tines in position and reduce the movement of tines while they are not being played.
Fender actually experimented with notched dampers but unfortunately they used low-quality foam/felt that did not hold up well over time.
I should note that flat/square dampers are easier and will often install with fewer adjustments but we feel the difference is worthwhile.
Each set comes with an equal amount of bass, mid and treble felts with a handful of extra felts of each size.
It also comes with TWO tubes of glue with application nozzles so you won't run out.
Installation: (we'll try to add a video at some point, but it's really very simple)
Start by scrapping off the existing damper felts with a razor blade. Don't cut yourself!
Once you have the felt removed continue to work at the glue until you're down to clean metal.
Now is a good time to adjust the angle of the damper spring so that the end is parallel to the tine.
Also, you may need to bend them up or down to get them at least close to the same level.
(You can do this later while you're fine tuning - but it's much easier to get a good head start.)
Begin applying the glue (we supply an excellent glue, but we've used hyde glue in the past as well with good results).
I personally like to put a dab on the bottom of the felt, place the felt on the damper spring and move it around until the glue is spread evenly....but basically however you do it, make sure the glue is applied evenly on the whole surface.
Now just work down the line and place all your felts at the very end of the damper springs.
The "crossover" points (bass to mid to treble) don't matter too much and we supply you with enough to have some flexibility. The only place where it can be a bit tricky is on the treble end where you want to make sure you're using the smaller treble felts until you have room to begin using the mid felts - it can get pretty tight in the treble section.
Once you've applied all the felts let the glue set. Seriously, let the glue set. 24 hours is best.
Is it tomorrow yet? Ok, time to adjust.
First, play the keys and notice if any tines don't line up properly. You may need to adjust some of the tines.
It helps A LOT if you're using our grommet set which will stabilize and align your tone bars. Old grommets and crooked tonebars often mean a lot more adjusting. But either way, if you're careful you can gently bend and retrain your tines a bit, but if they're way off just loosen them from the tone bar and re-set them.
Next you can fine adjust the angle of the felts. Parallel is best, but a little off doesn't really hurt.
Now you want to look at the let-off. Make sure that not only is the tine coming up high enough to fully dampen the tine, but also that it lowers enough when the key is pressed to the let the tine ring without obstruction.
If it doesn't you should first look at your bridle straps which connect the hammer to the damper spring. If those look alright then bend/adjust your damper spring up or down accordingly.
You can also look at your balance and front rails to better level your keys and adjust key travel. Check out our video "Fender Rhodes: Front Rail Fail" to understand a bit more about that.
Lastly:
I should say that these seem like a lot of things to look at and check....but most of the boards we do usually only need one or two small adjustments and the whole process only takes an hour or two.
Combined shipping discount applies.
And of course, you can always ask us questions!
We're here to help and we're very proud of the products we offer here at Avion Studios.
Thanks for looking!
Avion Studios