So much for a rebirth of Generalmusic. No signs of recovery so far. That´s really a pity! Those WK-Keyboards definitively were ahead of their time when they appeared on the market. The sound was and is really great, the styles are largely realistic, been programmed „musically“ and without those annoying and idiotic auto-fills that repeat after every 8 bars (which you still can find in some current keyboards!). Piano and string- sounds were incomparable at this time, and the drumsets sounded much more like real drums than elsewhere.

I still enjoy my 25 years old WK 6 in my living-room to practice for my performances and I would basically not be afraid to even use it on stage if I had to. In this place I´ve been playing a Ketron Audya instead for more than a decade after having tried KORG and Yamaha before years ago. Ketron actually is the only manufacturer that makes two sounds for the left hand available, and that´s what I got used to – as also the GEM WK-Keyboards offered that feature, which has been essential for me since then! So I can play a percussive sound and/ or a pad sound with my left hand and the same time. I´ve got no idea why Yamaha and Korg don´t have this option.

As I am so convinced and satisfied of those GEM-Keyboards I recently bought a hardly used WK 4 in a terrific optical condition. Unfortunately some unexpected problems occurred after having tested it in more detail.

So I´m afraid I can´t get any further without outside help.

Of course it was clear to me that the battery would no longer be usable, but also the floppy drive fails its service, so I can´t neither store nor get any data into the keyboard. This could to be a real problem, for as far as I found out no more spare parts seem to available.

And there´s at least another serious defect.

It´s impossible to change the tempo of a style. Every time I try to do this the tempo in the display is going crazy and I can´t set it in any reasonable way.

As you might imagine, so my initial joy about buing a keyboard in supposedly very good condition was significantly dampened!

Now I turn to the members of this forum in my need for help.

Does anybody perhaps know where to get spare parts. I at least could find a Varta Battery 4,8 V but with a significantly lower capacity,
and much smaller than the original one. But where could I get a floppy? And maybe it´s not defective at all and the problem lies in the system of the keyboard.

Does anyone perhaps have experience with GEM?

Thank you for any help!

P.S.: Is it possible to use any data of my WK 6 (styles, registrations etc.) for that WK 4?

I'm afraid I can't help you with your GEM. With vintage electronics there's always the possibility of sudden unexpected failure. Plugging them into an uninterruptible power supply (UPS) and maintaining reasonable temperature and humidity helps, but the risk remains. As far as two sounds for the left hand, any brand's middle-of-the-line or top-of-the-line arranger has enough flexibility to do that with clever use of MIDI. You would have to add some outboard gear like a sound module, and possibly a hardware MIDI interface such as MIDI Solutions modules, etc. My $.02.

Maybe here you can find some info : https://www.music-service.nl/

or Here : http://www.toetsenservice.com/

Or try to search in Italian language with translate

For a keyboard that old, maybe it’s worth looking for secondhand non-usable ones being virtually given away, and you can cannibalize them for parts…

Just FYI, but the Roland G 70 used to have two lower parts AND manual base part, if you are looking for something that sounds great and may still be within its usable window.

I used to have two (I always try to keep a spare Just in case…!) And I still have one left. It still does some tricks that my newer BK9 cannot do. And the basic GrandX piano has yet to be equalled by any arranger I have played! I can’t tell you how many sessions I did using that piano instead of the studio’s baby Steinway! Keep your eye open for one, they are heavy for live use but worth it! I gigged mine for well over 10 years. Bombproof…

Thank you for your answers. As for my WK 4 I won´t give up hope for now – at least I have found a suitable battery …

Regarding the left hand issue I´ve been practising Teds' suggestion for about ten years, while using my KORG i30 on stage. Many styles were okay then, some sounds as well. But for an acceptable piano sound I used a yamaha-module, and some more modules for realistic drum sounds, bass etc. So I had to transport and assemble quite some racks, which took time and energy. That was the price for an almost perfect sound!

I am now 76 years and glad to have all that stuff in one keyboard (Ketron Audya 5). Of course not everything is really perfect now, but largely acceptable, especially in relation to my age and my limited physical abilities. You know, as get older you become a bit more comfortable (and always a little lazier).

My only new focus is using an iPad Pro with my BK9 for solo sounds...

SWAM saxes are incredible compared to sampled saxes, and I really have the hots for Pianoteq8's pianos. Beautiful, dynamic, and an amazing 'Condition' slider which turns an unrealistically 'perfect' tuning into something a bit more played in, one of my pet peeves about sampled pianos. How often do we get to sit down at a piano straight after the piano technician has JUST tuned it?

Give me 30min on it, it starts to not be so perfect, and that's the sound I like!

My BK9 is 'close' to perfect, and the iPad Pro fixes any weaknesses. That's about as much extra gear as I want to haul!

If you had a Wersi you wouldn't need an iPad as you could add the plug-ins onboard, thus you would have a fully integrated instrument. (Add the Roland style convertor and you could have all your styles as well)

Bill

And I would be hauling a 55 lbs+ keyboard around (plus a 35 lbs flight case!)! And about $7500 poorer (before I had spent a penny on extra plug-ins)! Instead of a 20 lbs keyboard and a 1 lbs iPad....

Home organs are great in the living room. On the road, not so much!

Not to mention that SWAM Model horns and strings are a quarter of the price for iPad than they are for the desktop version! I have the full solo strings and solo saxes collections, and getting them on the iPad saved me about $1000…

It must be nice when money is no object and somebody else moves your equipment for you! 🤣💵💵💵🎹