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Life at an Internet Startup by Keith Forsythe

How to Replace the LCD Display on a Roland Juno-G

So on this very snowy weekend in northern Virginia, I had enough time to try out replacing the defecitve LCD display on my Roland Juno-G.  This has been a common problem with this keyboard, especially with the the first units produced.  I purchased my Juno-G used from Guitar Center for $650 in December of 2008.  About 6 monthhs later, the display started to act strangley.  At first, the display was distorting.  Eventually, half to 3/4 of the screen went blank. 

After reading several blog posts about other folks having this issue, I called Roland Support.  They informed me I could buy the part for $135 or go to an authorized repair center.  Maybe it was my recent experience with embedded device software engineering, but I had the urge to try the repair myself for the first time.  So I ordered the part, and it was delivered a week later. 

So here are my instructions on replacing the LCD.  It took me about 2 hours, but I was really going slow :

  1. Get about a dozen small bowls or container to keep the screws organized.  Get little strips of paper.  When you remove the screws from a section, write a label of what the section is, put the label in the container, and put the screws in the container.  There are close to 50 screws, and you don’t want to confuse them. 
  2. Grab a philips screw driver, small wire cutters, and small needle nose plyers. 
  3. Remove the data wheel to the right of screen.  Keep pulling firmly and it will eventually slide off.
  4. Flip the keyboard over and begin removing the screws to separate the case.  You need to remove every single screw you see on the bottom of the keyboard.
  5. Separate the case. 

    Inside the Juno G

    Inside the Roland Juno-G

  6. Unscrew the mounting screws from the circuit board containing the jacks and disconnect any ribbon connectors that are in your way.  You should be able to flip the board back and over and out of the way.

    Juno-G Jack Board

    Getting Juno-G jack circuit board out of the way

  7. Next, unscrew the mounting screws from the motherboard on your far right.  You may need to snip a couple wire ties to make room to move the motherboard up enough to get at the center board.  Disconnect any ribbon connectors that get in your way.

    Juno-G Mother Board

    Juno-G Mother Board disconnected to free up the center board

  8. The LCD display is on the other side of the center circuit board, so you are almost there.  Unscrew mounting screws and disconnect any ribbon connectors.  There are a few screws hidden under black pieces of tape.  You also may need to cut some the the clear plastic sheets that back the circuit board. 
  9. Flip the center board over and unscrew the LCD display. 

    Juno-G Center Board and LCD Display

    Juno-G Center board flipped over to reveal LCD display

  10. Screw in the new display, and work backwards mounting the circuit boards back into place and reconnecting the ribbon connectors.
  11. Put the case back together and put the data knob back on. 
  12. Plug in, switch on, and get back to enjoying your Roland Juno-G.

I’ve got a little confidence now, so I suspect I’ll be trying more of my own repairs in the future.

December 21, 2009 - Posted by Keith Forsythe | Recreation | | 5 Comments

5 Comments »

  1. Hi,
    great write up on the repair! I try and do as many repairs myself as I can. Did you buy the LCD screen from Roland then? Do you know where to obtain LCD display screens? The screen on my Roland TD-20 is half blanking out and I would love to fix it myself. Any help is greatly appreciated!

    Comment by justin | December 30, 2009 | Reply

    • Thank you for the kind words. Yes, I bought the LCD screen from Roland Customer Support. Cost about 140 for the Juno-G. Took about 10 days to ship to me. There are a few third party websites that sell lcd display replacements. Try searching the google. If the TD-20 is similar to the Juno, then the replacement is definitely doable yourself. The ribbon cables made everything very easy.

      Comment by Keith Forsythe | December 30, 2009 | Reply

  2. hi, i have the some problem,,i dont know where can buy the lcd of juno G sombebody tll me?

    Comment by antonio rivera | February 5, 2010 | Reply

  3. and what is the cost of the lcd

    TY

    Comment by antonio rivera | February 5, 2010 | Reply

    • simply call Roland Customer support. The number is on their website. The part costs about $160 I think.

      Comment by Keith Forsythe | February 8, 2010 | Reply


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