I bought a second hand MidiFighter 3D and only now after trying a few different mappings have I noticed that one of the buttons (the top right one) does not work. The light around it goes on, but when I press it nothing happens. Is there a way for me to open up the device and try fx it? Or am I more likely to cause more issues than resolve any?
First i’d try spraying it with some contact cleaner and see if it looses up any debris that might be stuck in there and prevent it from making contact. LEDs live on the unit’s board so the fact that works is a good sign.
If the button itself is defective and you know your way around a soldering iron you can fix it yourself, else i’d suggest taking it to a local electronics repair shop and have them swap them for you. The part you need is a Sanwa OBSC-24mm button.
Opening up the unit is fairly easy with 4 Phillips screws hidden behind the feet (held by double sided tape) and a handful of more screws of the same type holding down the board. Do note that all 16 buttons need to be unsoldered in order to free the top and swap the defective one.
On the bright side, this is a great opportunity to customize your 3D with color buttons if you are into it and give it a deep clean to make it last another decade.
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I have sprayed a bunch of contact cleaner on it and still not working, also doesn’t feel stuck or anything. So I guess I will have to get a local electronics person to replace it, I am terrible at soldering so won’t attempt to do it myself. Are all Sanwa OBSC-24mm buttons compatible? Do they all have the RGB lights around them or is that a separate component?
Yes, just make sure you get the 24mm size. RGB lights are on the 3D board, not the buttons. The clear rings on these is what let it show so I wouldn’t grab one with a colored ring. Totally fine to put say the one with the red core and clear ring
Cool! I ordered one black one to replace the broken one, and since shipping was going to be the same ordered some nice colours to customise my MF 3D if it works.