Moog Music Forum

I know some people have had issues with their other phatty's keys turning yellow, not sure if anyone else has had issues with their sub37 but i have noticed that by comparison with my other equipment the keys seem to be losing their white luster and have taken on a more yellow tinge. My home and studio are smoke free, i will note however that my studio space does have a skylight but none of my gear sees direct sunlight. I considered getting the cloth cover from moog accessories but i'm not sure if it will stop the UV rays from actually coloring the keys. Anyone else notice any discoloration?

how long have you had it? Maybe it's just memories of my grade school piano teacher, but I always wash my hands before I sit down at the synth. Not saying you have poor hygiene, just maybe oily hands?

I took delivery mid March 2015. I typically keep my hands clean lol. The keys on my new prophet 6 are noticeably whiter and so are the ones on my very old axiom midi controller in comparison. Like i said i've seen some of the lil phatty's have done the same thing with turning yellow.

Interesting. This has happened on a number of other modern synths with cheap Chinese keys (Alesis Ion for example).

I'll keep an eye on mine. I do NOT smoke, it's kept in a super clean home studio room, no sunlight on it and I also have it covered when not using it with the official moog canvas cover so if mine turns yellow it'll definitely confirm it as a problem. Had mine since April or thereabouts.

Hopefully just a bad batch of keys cos the Sub 37 does NOT deserve that!

Tell your Sub 37 to quit smoking cigarettes without filters

Sunlight turns the keys yellow! You couldn't smoke enough to make the keys color change. I
Always have curtains drawn when making music, after my friends LP keys turned yellow..he
Took a big hit when he sold it due to his atrium studio making his keys look like that. Even though
The synth played fine, it makes it look less desirable.

Novem

Hello Everyone,

Andy from Moog Tech Support here!!!

It is definitely unusual for keys to discolor this quickly on a synthesizer, and we will be happy to replace the keyboard for you if this is happening on a Sub Phatty or Sub 25.

As noted above, this usually occurs due to exposure to sunlight, or due to physical contamination from body oils and tar from smoking. But even this process is slow, and should not happen within months, more commonly this occurs after 5 years or more if left exposed to sunlight.

Please contact us directly for assistance with this matter:

Andy Hughes, Service Manager
[email protected]
828-251-0090 xt 221

Nate Marino
[email protected]
xt. 204

Taylor Mott
[email protected]
xt. 217

Thanks,
Andy Hughes
Service Department Manager
Moog Music, Inc.

Keep musical instruments covered always.

My LP was in the sun every day sitting near a window in my apartment. The keys yellowed over the course of maybe a year and a half or two years. I sold it to fund my voyager, and I took a hit on the asking price due to the discoloration. Oh wel.

I can't believe my luck... I just noticed today that there is one key on my XL that is turning yellow! No exposure to sun at all, no smoking, only been in the studio at home, and only had it for 16 months. Ugh.

I don't suppose it is possible to just replace one key?

well here we are 4 months away from this post being a year old. I am far out of warranty and don't want to bother the folks at moog about my keys being yellow...but just kind of curious how this could happen so fast. I went and bought a moog cover but it doesn't seem to have stopped the yellowing. Is it possible that the sun from my skylight did this in a matter of months?

Mine look exactly the same, but I have had it for just over a year if that matters. It does make the 37 look more retro tho

it has to be asked...are these Sub 37s keys being cleaned with something? a spray cleaner...or even a wet rag or something that could be doing it (in combo with the UV from the sun)

It's normally down to flame-retardant chemicals in the plastic. Over time, exposure to UV and oxygen will cause the yellowing to build up. You can use peroxide or bleach to remove the yellow but that would require completely dismantling the keyboard.

I'd be more concerned about the case of the axiom controller.