Roland Verselab MV-1 Internal Battery mod

[@vertigev]

This is awesome man! Turns the MV-1 into the best groovebox on the market.

[@synth-studio]

I couldn’t agree more! (Although I think the Polyend Tracker is a close second!)

[@joshmoneymusic]

Probably the most underrated groovebox on the market. I think the only reason it doesn’t get more attention, is brands like Elektron and Polyend are newer, and end up trending more on social-media. But beat for beat I really think the MV-1 has them all beat.

[@synth-studio]

Yeah, me too Josh. I bet if the Verselab’s learning curve wasn’t as harsh, it would be making a lot more headlines… especially in the MPC competitor arena.

[@pyrotek45]

i think it would get more attention if you could actually edit the sounds on it like the mc 101 or 707, otherwise it feels like a preset machine.

[@RetrOGz]

I have all the elektron boxes, 5 different MPCs, Cirklon, rare sequencers.. I love the MV-1. It is so easy to pump out good quality beats.

[@tommyk88888]

Its not so much the learning curve as the crippled workflow

[@BASILEMOJO]

absolutely right.... no other groove box beside the Zencore has 128 Voice Polyphonie..can sample and has over 3000 Presets (i have 6000 with all extensions....)

[@futureworldmachines4407]

You're a brave man doing this, but you did a very good job and it still works! Well done. 👏

[@synth-studio]

Thanks for saying so :) And I’m very happy it still works 😅

[@cresshead]

i agree.. flip... well done! i'd have prefered making a deeper extra undercase/tray to sit the verselab into so i didn't need to hack the interior at al! ..i'm a whimp on taking a dremel to a groovebox though!

[@synth-studio]

I’ve actually designed a few concepts of that exact idea, but for the 1010music BlackBox.

[@robwill2792]

I performed the mod and very satisfied! Thanks for sharing your ideas with the community.

[@synth-studio]

Glad to hear that, Rob! Did you do anything differently?

[@SuperEgido]

Roland should learn from your fantastic solution to turn the MV-1 into a true stand-alone machine.

[@synth-studio]

I bet they could do a LOT better job that I did, too!

[@budspencer7540]

Do you know if any USB - DC (same connector of course as the MV-1) will do or does it need to be a specific cable like the one you used? would you know what DC connector it is?

[@HygieneHiphop]

I don't really know - not an expert on this, just used off-the-shelf stuff but still works like a charm with the MyVolts!

[@tobiaslofi]

Saw your post on Instagram and came to find this video. I will never do anything like this. But I learned a few things about that Usb to dc cable and that the rather weak LEDs do get even weaker on usb. Actually your website links not to the myvolt cable but to a UDC-25 cable by Roland themselves. But maybe I can find a very flat batterypack to put under the verselab or a thin and long one to put at the side? You’ve given me ideas ! Thanks

[@synth-studio]

Yes Tobias... pretty much any battery can work. I think if you found a particularly thin battery, that would fit inside without modification, perhaps. But you'd still have to charge it somehow. Something like this Mophie geni.us/mophie-mini

[@LeRoy3rd]

Random odd question: Do you, by chance, have pictures of the verselab circuit boards and chips? I'm doing a bit of research for a video I'm making, and would just as soon avoid opening up my verselab if pictures already exist (Google search didn't turn up anything useful). Mostly I'm just looking for clarification on RAM and internal storage.

[@synth-studio]

I don’t - just what’s in this video. Sorry. It’s not hard to open it up though.

[@martimcflyrhc]

F Roland, they didn't honor my warranty and wanted to charge me $130 to fix the broken CTRL 1 knob. So needless to say, I'm not worried about voiding the warranty. Sent it to them in 12/2023 they have not sent it back to me 4 months later after months of calling and trying to get in touch with their dumpster fire customer service. This and my Juno DS-88 are the only Roland products I've bought and never buying anything else. Love the Verselab, hate the company who made it now. Anyway, cool video dude, rant over.

[@DEATH__EXE]

crazy cool!!

[@synth-studio]

haha glad you liked it! It’s a dream to use. Still going strong. DAW-in-box.

[@theeunseen1156]

What would it take to have you do this to mine? I'm too scary to attempt this LOL

[@HygieneHiphop]

I don't offer the modification as a service, but I may be open to selling mine (the one in the video) if interested.

[@theeunseen1156]

What about trading mine for yours? I know the manager at Roland and she only charged me the 40 dollars labor fee and 10 dollars to ship it to have it fully serviced and repaired. I will even throw in the 40 sdz sound kits I have for the verselab.

[@theeunseen1156]

kzbin.info/aero/OLAK5uy_kBeS7PkFzlSq-W5VqBtnyw6yfaVRDSupI&si=cL3Dm3IWziXr-kY7

[@synth-studio]

That’s very thoughtful and generous but no thank you. I’d prefer to keep the modified one that I have.

[@theeunseen1156]

@@synth-studio i was asking hygienehiphop about his since he said he would sell his. I can do him one even better cuz I can give him a verselab back and he can just remod that one . I just don't want to take any chances by taking mine apart I would rather just get one that's already modified if possible

[@HorstDerHoden22]

why myvolts when it can be powered off usb?

[@synth-studio]

I already had the MyVolts cable, so it saves me a button press when I turn it on (because I hate the low headphone volume when battery-powered.) Also, it's nice to have the USB port free for MIDI controllers, but I find that I don't use them very often.

[@TechnoShamanism]

Also, this way you can still use phantom power on condensor mics

[@zigcorvetti]

How heavy a task would it be to upgrade the RAM on the MB to support more vocal/sample time?

[@synth-studio]

Not sure that’s how it works. I have no idea.

[@StephenMcLeod]

BEARDED BROS UNITE

[@synth-studio]

Ha! 🧔

[@cookinwood]

i just purchased all the things to do this to mine. i really looked at and measure the interior and am going to install a male to female flush mount usb c like the ones that are used in dash board on the right side rear of the device. thank you for your guidance and bravery! you said you bricked it…. how did you unbrick if this does happen to me?

[@synth-studio]

Keep trying to run the latest software update. Each time, delete the update file from the SD Card and empty the trash and then copy a fresh update file there before running the update again. Trust me.

[@cookinwood]

@@synth-studio it’s so strange because now that i’m pre testing before tear down, the oem power supply doesn’t even power the device. argh!

[@HygieneHiphop]

@@cookinwood They can be fussy! How did it go?

[@cookinwood]

@@HygieneHiphop it turned out great... So great I did it to my mc-101 and am currently working on my SmplTrek.

[@HygieneHiphop]

@@cookinwood awes9me!

[@aliasghar907]

how long does it last on battery? Also what size maH is your powerbank ?

[@HygieneHiphop]

I've never fully depleted it, so long enough for a few hours. The power bank is 10k MAH

[@robwill2792]

What is the model of the power bank?

[@synth-studio]

It's the Anker Powercore Slim 10000 PD (523 - geni.us/anker-10k) I think the 313 model MIGHT also work (geni.us/4So6s6) and it's cheaper, but YMMV. Both models come in black or white.

[@BASILEMOJO]

any powerbank work....no nned to install it inside,the guy is a nerd

[@db7643]

Not wishing to sound critical, but curious why you didnt do something like 'add' a compartment the bottom rear of the case for the battery. This wouldhave the benefit of tilting the device towards you like those mpc or maschine stands, and would not add greatly to the bulk or significantly affect portability. Or for even greater flexibility - and probably not any more complex than your hack - you could do the above but with a removable battery compartment/stand, either simply with a big strip of velcro, or with a couple of thumbscrews.

[@synth-studio]

Good and fair question. I wanted it to look clean-almost factory-and I use a different stand to tilt it, which I prefer kzbin.info/www/bejne/qHObpGabm9Gafac

[@professorplums722]

Does anyone gave the schematic for this device? Bought ine broken cheap hoping to fix but nothing obvious showing when I check inside. Alternatively any close up pics of the main motherboard (the one with the power socket on it). I have concerns components may be missing as someone was in here before me. Ay help appreciated. It is not jn warranty, I tried Roland for the schematic but they won't release it in "health and safety grounds" 😀. I dud try and stop this vid but I can't see in enough detail. Thank you in advance.

[@synth-studio]

I don’t have the schematic, but it may help to share the symptoms you’re experiencing. Also, have you removed the circuit boards from the bottom shell of the device and checked them underneath? I’m not an electrical engineer, but I know things can go wrong on either side. If you do indeed have interior electrical components entirely missing, you should see empty harness sockets or unused mounting screw holes… something like that.

[@Niiokaija]

Hello guys I just bought the roland servelab MV1 and there's no sound output what so ever since I turned it on I've done everything I can to get the sound but still no sound can can someone help me out

[@synth-studio]

Hi Emmanuel, consider joining the Facebook group if it is available in your country: facebook.com/groups/3561867747371033/ the folks there are very helpful. Ask your question there, you’ll get many more people to help.

[@austropop1970]

How long does it run with that power bank?

[@synth-studio]

I’ve gone for two hours and not depleted it, but haven’t tested further than that.

[@BASILEMOJO]

with a 10000Mah you can run the Verselabs for weeks......

[@frederiqueaubailly]

HELLO CAN I SEND YOU MINE,??

[@synth-studio]

Hi Frederique! I would be willing to do it, but I’m afraid that the cost wouldn’t make sense for most people, nor could I guarantee that I wouldn’t brick it.

[@BIG1TOWER]

Im not brave enough to do this. I would just use a anker powerbank. I do think you can run it on usb power

[@synth-studio]

Yes, you can totally run it on USB power. In fact, in this video, the power source I installed IS the USB battery bank I was using for it externally. I just put it inside and ran a MyVolts cable to the DC plug.

[@johnfrytey1331]

Tr8s maybe install baterry 🙀

[@synth-studio]

That would be cool!

[@JAAPIOJO]

That's very cool but whould it not be extra cool if you can mod in a extra memory like a ssd 2tb card. Who uses extra cool right. I mean Epic. Oh and some speakers, lol.

[@synth-studio]

All those things would be cool too, they just aren’t pain points for me.

[@BASILEMOJO]

Dude this is a waste of time (and lost of garantie) t work with just a simple power bank