Normally your ENSPIRE will inform you that an update is available, and will apply it at the push of a button. However, if you don’t have an internet connection, or if your ENSPIRE stopped mid‑update or the app now won’t cooperate, the fastest, least‑painful fix is an offline USB update. If you can’t connect with … Read more
If you’re struggling to read your Yamaha Disklavier or Clavinova floppy disks, you’re not alone! This guide explains why older Yamaha disks often look unreadable to PCs, what tools reliably extract the files, how DD/HD media mismatches and drive issues cause read failures—along with what to do to recover your songs. Yamaha Disks Have Copy … Read more
I frequently receive requests from customers reporting that their keyboard or Nalbantov floppy disk emulator can’t read their USB stick. Usually, the issue is that the USB stick isn’t formatted correctly as a FAT32 device, or that it’s corrupt. I’ve created this guide to explain how to format your USB sticks in a manner that’s … Read more
A customer recently asked me to upgrade his DKC-500RXG floppy disk drive to a Nalbantov USB floppy disk emulator. I’ve recommended the Nalbantov emulator for many years. It has no moving parts and a capacity of 1000 floppy disks on a single USB stick, and is an excellent replacement for the original floppy disk drive. … Read more
The Yamaha PPR-200E remote control plays a key role when converting the Yamaha DKC-800 to a DKC-850. In fact, it isn’t possible to change the PianoType parameter without a working remote control! I’ve also been collecting signals from other Disklavier remotes, such as the PPR-103E for the Mark III, and even the PPR-100 for the … Read more
In my Disklavier Upgrades guide article, I make reference several times to DKC-850 conversion cables. These are the cables you use to connect your older Yamaha Disklavier to a newer DKC-850 control unit (or a DKC‑800 converted to act like a DKC‑850). The original conversion cables were provided by Yamaha as part of the DKC-850 … Read more
The E3’s DKC-800 control unit can be repurposed as a DKC-850 upgrade system with nothing more than the correct power adapter, a single DIP‑switch change, and one adjustment to your settings. Now that the DKC-850 upgrade kit is discontinued, this approach is one potential way to bring your old Mark I, II, or III Disklavier … Read more
Unlike full E3 systems, the DKC-800 and DKC-850 piggybacked upgrades are powered by external AC adapters, such as the PJP-PS02. The original Yamaha Disklavier E3 installations use the Disklavier’s power supply, but these piggybacked installations require their own source of power. I recently had a customer reach out to me using an aftermarket power adapter, … Read more
Are you having problems with stale cookies? I recently assisted a customer via email who was having trouble using his Disklavier Piano Radio. I discovered the solution on Kevin Busse’s website; he in turn learned the solution from Yamaha’s Noah Jolly. You can read more about Noah Jolly on his website, Ground Grown Circuits. The … Read more
Yamaha Disklavier floppy disk drives are a notorious point of failure. Yamaha Disklaviers used floppy disk drives that were quite excellent for their time: They had all-metal frames, precision stepper mechanisms, and reasonably tolerant analog read electronics. Thirty-odd years later, however, these mechanical drives are far past their life expectancies. If you have an older … Read more