Elta
- Kid Line Keyboard (My Music Center variant
with key lighting)
This toy keyboard is a very close variant of My Song Maker (see
there),
the successor of My Music Center.
Its special feature is that it has key lighting.
On eBay I saw that the original trade name on the box of this
instrument was "Kid Line Keyboard". The LED PCB and CPU are labelled
"922", which seems to be the hardware class name of this thing. An annoying
flaw is that any press on drumpads reset volume to almost maximum.
different main features:
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only 32 mini keys
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key lighting (red LEDs in white keys)
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only 1 built-in speaker
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different intro jingle
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drumpads reset volume to almost maximum (except in "samba" mode)
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no "one key play" mode
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no "demo all" button
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CPU "922-CPU REV-1, CPU=UCT" (23 pins + test pin, COB module)
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19 demo melodies
 |
 The
CPU has besides its 23 normal pins an unconnected solder pad labelled "Test"
near its COB chip. |
notes:
The drumpad volume flaw does not happen in "samba" mode, thus it is no
electrical problem, and when the volume is set even higher (there are 2
steps left), it doesn't reduce it to the previous value again, thus it
is clearly a software bug. You can even set the volume to the lowest value
("volume dn" buttons stops beeping), play a drumpad (sounds loud), and
further "volume dn" presses still don't beep and do nothing despite the
instrument is on full volume now. Only when you press "volume up" and "volume
dn" again, the volume is set lowest again, thus apparently the internal
volume register of the sound generator in the CPU gets out of sync with
the volume control setting that is apparently stored in a separate variable
in memory. (I haven't examined the hardware closer yet.)
Like with Casio ML-1, only the
white keys have LEDs and the key lighting shows a lit key for the current
note, while the next key flashes to indicated that the player shall wait
for correct timing. Wrong pressed keys also play their note, but the lit
key stays lit and the accompaniment repeats in a loop until the correct
key is pressed. The Chicco
- Sing 'n' Dance Orchestra (also based on the My
Music Center hardware family) did not flash and behaved way more
crude here, although it has an "any key play" mode that does not exist
on this Elta.
Unlike My Song Maker, when keys are pressed during a demo musics,
it starts no different demo but instead mutes the melody voice for a bar
to permit the player to improvise to the accompaniment of that demo.
The demo melodies of this instrument are:
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Jingle Bells
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Say Hello
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We Wish You A Merry X'mas
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Home Sweet Home
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Row Your Boat
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Joy To The World
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Little Brown Jug
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Hark The Herald Angles Sing
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The First Note
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Are You Sleeping
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Twinkle Twinkle Little Star
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Happy Birthday
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Little Bee
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Wiegenlied [a lullaby]
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Silent Night
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Mary Had A Little Lamb [plays disharmonic]
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Oh X'mas Tree
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Long Long Ago
-
Yankee Doodle
Most of these tunes sound like on My Song Maker, but some are different
(e.g. "Mary Had A Little Lamb" plays very disharmonic and unlike the false
claim in the My Song Maker manual, this keyboard really plays the
tune "Joy To The World".
| removal
of these screws voids warranty... |
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