Vintage Rhodes and wurlys, Ken is the best for repairs, and refurbs. Super thorough, great ears and decades of knowledge. If you're looking for the best, this is it. read more

I brought in my Minimoog that I originally purchased in 1973. I wasn't about to give it to just any tech. It came back as good as I remember, actually better with various upgrades. If you have an heirloom, museum worthy keyboard and you're looking for the master, this is your guy. read more

The community of gear repair shops in Los Angeles is not so great. I've had many more bad experiences than good ones, but with Ken it's always been a good experience! I recently ordered a 2-tier Straddler from Ken for my Rhodes MK1 to stack more keyboards on top of my Rhodes. Not only is the straddler fantastic, he politely returned my call and answered my question about the setup with kindness and ease. In the past he's also answered any questions I had about my Rhodes, always giving detailed and generous responses. Too often people at repair shops make you feel dumb or try to rush you with your questions/concerns but Ken really listens and respects your concerns. I felt compelled to come on here and write this because I love when small businesses like this really care for their customers and Ken is a prime example of this! Thank you Ken read more

Ken Rich Sound Services - My '72 MK1 Fender Rhodes with the 2-tier straddler so that I can stack my OB-6 and Minimoog on top, works great! - Musical Instrument Services Near Me - Van Nuys, California

When I found Ken, I was advised by a reputable piano repair specialist in LA to contact Ken. He referred to Ken as the best Keyboard Specialist in all of Los Angeles. Ken did not live short of the gentleman's claim. When I met Ken, I brought in my original condition Juno 106 Synthesizer I acquired from a friend over 10 years ago. Ken spent much time and patience in working with me to explain the condition of the board, his recommendations to service the board and suggestions for what I may like to do regarding the board. His experience and wisdom were invaluable to allowing me to transition this board over to a keyboard lover that could cherish and take care of the board. I would strongly recommend Ken to anyone in need of their board to be repaired or any other restoration of the highly specialized world of keyboard repair. He is honest, loyal, hardworking, and cares deeply for his customers! read more

Ken Rich Sound Services - Juno 106 Synth "insides" - Musical Instrument Services Near Me - Van Nuys, California

Owner was rude and aggressive! I won't recommend this service for musical instruments!

I have to agree with all the positive reviews for Ken Rich. I've never really had a tech like Ken. He is a passionate and uncompromising perfectionist and I dig it - he is a true maestro of his art. If you consider your Rhodes a true classic instrument, and care how it sounds and plays, then you can't find anyone better than Ken. I believe he has me and my instruments' best interests at heart and I wouldn't trust them with anyone else. He's made my Clavinet C sound and play like a dream and I fully expect him to do the same with my Fender Rhodes - which he will be rebuilding into an active Stage model for me. Ken is also a very nice and interesting guy to talk to. He won't tell you what you want to hear just to sell you his services, he'll tell you what he'd do to make it perfect. He is a friend of the late Harold Rhodes and also a curator of the finest vintage electric pianos in the world that he hand-selects and re-builds to better-than-factory spec. If all you want is a cheap, quick and dirty tuning, go somewhere else. If you want your Rhodes, Wurli, Clav or whatever to play and sound like it was really meant to - or even better - then Ken is definitely your guy. He deserves 6 stars! read more

I have an older Technics digital piano whose keys started clacking loudly after a steady 18 years of playing. As replacement parts are no longer readily available from the manufacturer, none of the other repair shops that I contacted around the L.A. area would even entertain the likelihood of a successful repair on my trusty, daily-played piano. Ken tried to talk me through a self-disassembly, but I ended up toting it across town for him to take a look at in person, where he was super friendly, reassuring, and very knowledgeable. Nonetheless, it was to my great surprise that he came up with an unusual repair plan and had it ready for pickup within the week. Not only that, but he really hooked me up with a ridiculously reasonable repair fee. He's a rare bird in an era of "throw it away and get a new poorly-built one," and I'll be recommending him to anyone who will listen, as well as returning with future repair needs. read more

I found ken through visiting the Rhodes website and it lists him as a technician in the los angeles area. Upon arrival in his shop, you will find everything from mini moogs to hammond's and a everything in between. Ken took my 78 suitcase and brought breath back to her. Ken loves to chat and explain his history in this business however, much of it is very informative. He charges $100 per hour but thats an fair rate since you can't just find anyone to work on these vintage instruments for various amounts of reasons however, what I loved about Ken's approach is he believes in salvaging and repairing the old parts (where applicable) to retain that "sound" that we are always searching for. So in reality, you are getting what you pay for.. He runs a clean shop and that says a lot about the people repairing our babies. I highly recommend him and give yourself some time because it spends time with each customer and makes sure you understand the process along with which is will be performing. read more

Well, here is one for the books: I live in Salt Lake City, Utah, which is over 700 miles away from Ken Rich Sound Services in Venice, CA. Over the past couple of years, I have taken many vintage keyboards over that distance, on multiple occasions, to Ken to rebuild and restore, including a Fender Rhodes 73 Suitcase, a Rhodes 73 with Satellite speakers, a Wurlitzer 200A, a Wurlitzer 140B, a Hammond B-3, two Hammond A-100s, and three Leslies: a model 122, model 147, and a model 145. En route to a recent gig in Salt Lake City, due to my own error, I did not properly secure one of the Leslies in traveling, and it rolled around in my trailer, smashing one of the big 6550 power tubes. After replacing the tube, and (I thought), removing all the glass shards and pieces, I noticed that the Leslie now had two distinct problems: a delay / intermittency with a drop in volume level in switching from chorale / slow to stop, or stop to tremolo / fast, and a loud noise when the Leslie was switched on fast speed. Over Face Time, Ken listened intently to the Leslie, and suggested swapping out the 12AU7 tube on the 122, which immediately fixed the delay / intermittency / drop in volume (apparently, the rolling around also damaged that tube). He then had me turn the Leslie on its side, and yet another piece of the broken tube came out, which was impacting the speed, and making (obviously!) that loud noise when switched on fast / tremolo! Duh! He dropped everything to assist me, probably spending almost a half hour on the phone to fix my problems, all at no charge to me (and, again, it was my fault that this happened!). I have to ask: how many people would do that for you, and gratis, to boot? As I said in an earlier review, he is the rarest of individuals: supremely gifted in talent, craft, intelligence, creativity, problem solving, combined with a beautiful heart. I am extremely lucky and fortunate to have found Ken Rich Sound Services! Thank you!!! Signed, Extremely Grateful: Steve Lindeman read more

I just received my Rhodes and Hohner Clavinet back from Ken Rich here in my loft studio in Detroit. To say the work Ken performed on these two instruments restored them back to their original 'like new' or even 'mint' condition would be an understatement, even an insult to the artistry of his craft. I've had my Rhodes since '74 and never EVER has the action, tone as well as the installation of the Vintage Vibe stereo vibrato been so inspiring to sit and play. The touch and response is something all keyboardists need to feel to believe. I never thought I'd own a Rhodes that plays like this. Repetition, spring back, feel of the keyboard bed are all in harmony with one another. Impeccable feel. Truly unbelievable. And then there is the complete overhaul on my Clavinet which I sent, truth, held together by a pant belt mid case, unplayable, electronics not functioning as well as some switches unswitchable and broken. It now looks polished new. Damper/mute slider fully operational, all keys evenly play with an amazing feel and I couldn't resist and had Ken add a whammy bar of his own design that at the risk of sounding repetitive has to be felt to be believed. It's electronics we're overhauled as well and is as quiet and clean as can be. What else can I say? I wouldn't hesitate a moment to ship another keyboard cross country out to L.A. for Ken to perform his magic on. I am eyeing my Wurlitzer here. read more

I've been a client of Ken's for about a year. He's done fantastic work on my Wurlitzer. He's always very transparent and takes the time to sit with you to work out what the best options are for you and your gear. Price feels really reasonable for the service you're getting. I'll never take my electric piano anywhere else. read more

I bought two items from Ken Rich Sound Services and a day after ordering off of their website, they emailed me saying that I needed to pay $10 more for shipping. I bought two items and the shipping ended up being a total of $30. I received one item but not the other. Why not ship them together? When I opened the package containing the MK1 Rhodes Straddlers, they looked really scuffed up, like they were used (not shipping damage). I'm not really happy with the company and how they do business. If you do business with them, then expect to pay for extra shipping after you check out. read more

Anyone who has anything negative to say about Ken Rich is either a competitor or completely clueless. I have taken several of my instruments to him and they always come back perfect. He's the most knowledgeable keyboard tech I've ever met (by far) and NEVER cuts corners. He's not "cheap" but don't most rational people understand that you get what you pay for? His work is far from cheap. I've taken keyboards to Advanced Musical Electronics and others, waiting twice as long, paying the same (or more) and not been 100% happy with the results. Besides being a great guy and always taking the time to explain everything, every single time, he is in my opinion simply the best in the business. read more

Not recommended --- Ken Rich is always critical of other techs and some musicians (probably the ones who don't use him), and is very expensive. But his work is sometimes not good -- I had a B-3 amp that another tech had to re-do, and he found that Ken had cut several corners on it. Ken will also always push you to buy additional features like add-on reverbs, etc. If you don't have the stomach for expensive, eccentric, and aggressive, take your keyboard somewhere else. read more

Ken is amazing!!! Well worth the time and money to take your gear to him and either replenish, refurbish,rebuild whatever you wanna call it. He gets the job done 2nd to NO ONE! Don't hesitate to leave it in his hands you will be satisfied and it gets done the 1st time. read more

I came to this guy about 6 months ago (I know, I should have written this sooner) for help with an unusual instrument that he's never seen in person. I am a Scottish bagpiper, and I brought my electric pipes into his shop. He took one look at the box, and knew what he had to do despite never working on anything like that before. Ken was a true pro and helped me out in an actual hour of need, as I had an important performance with my band the next week. He fixed everything, made sure that the problem wouldn't arise again and treated me like a rockstar. Thank you Ken!! Everything is still in tip top shape thanks to you!! read more

Ken has worked on my guitar amplifiers, both vintage and modern, for many years. The work is always topnotch and the costs fair and reasonable. read more

Completely blown away by the restoration work on my '74 stage 88. Ken seriously knows his shit! He brought this instrument back from the brink and it sounds absolutely glorious! Can't recommend him enough. The work was completed in a timely manner. They won't waste your time or money, and the price was very fair for the high quality attention this instrument received. I'll be going back! read more

Had an amazing experience with Ken. As others have stated, he is passionate about what he does and about doing a great service for his customers. My Wurly had an intermittent crackling noise issue, and was exhibiting the frustrating "mechanic syndrome" bit where the problem occurs, but not when the mechanic is examining it. Long story short, Ken was persistent and solved the problem. Ken is a very bright, interesting, knowledgeable good guy with a ton of integrity! read more

I brought in my Yamaha electric piano to Ken because it was not powering up. I tried replacing the AC power supply but it was still not powering up. I looked up Yelp to find someone who can fix it. It took me a while to finally find someone who is specialized in electronic piano. I picked Ken because he had great Yelp reviews. I spoke with him briefly on the phone about the issue with the piano and he sounded very knowledgable and friendly. When I met him face to face, he was very professional and knowledgable. He was able to figure out the problem and fixed it very quickly. I really appreciate his professional expertise. I highly recommended Ken and will be returning with any future repair needs. read more

Ken Rich has rebuilt 3 Hammond organs ('47 CV, '59 B3, '64 B3) and 4 Leslie cabinets (145, 122, (2) 122 RV's) for me. His work is impeccable. Finely detailed, robust and ready for the road. I would not take my vintage keyboards anywhere else. read more

I don't recommend Ken Rich for Hammond Organ or other keyboard work. He is arrogant and conceited, charges a small fortune, and often skimps on proper work. Between his questionable work and his hours of bombast and bragging, you will regret going to him. I've had much better work, and have gotten better sound, from using other LA area keyboard technicians. read more

Ken is the best. That's all there is to it. I drive all the way across town when I could use a local guy and I never regret it. Everything he repairs for me works and SOUNDS GREAT! And a little added bonus, good conversation. read more

just got my wurly back and it sounds better than it ever has before, honestly better than I could've ever dreamed first night I literally played it until I passed out, action feels like butters and it sounds soo expressive; all sensitive and mellow at low dynamics but with a barky bite at the perfect spot if you dig into it, oh man I can't deal Ken's a great guy with an insane amount of knowledge, also spoke with Ken's wife and one of his associates - everyone there is awesome gonna to send Ken my minimoog to get calibrated as soon as I can I cannot give these people enough praise and appreciation so grateful this place exists read more

Ken is the pope, the closest living connection to the god of all thinks funky. Ken was made in the image of God and can serve all your vintage piano needs. Highly skilled and highly ethical, I'd trust this guy with my first born. read more