Gibson Balwin...

[Nullifier]

Did Baldwin build a Gibson Baldwin?? There's one on Craigslist but I've never heard of this one.

[Guest]

Gibson owns the Baldwin name, and produces pianos in China.

[Nullifier]

Can you tell if the organ is analog? The owner inherited the organ and know nothing about it, appartenly.

http://atlanta.craigslist.org/nat/msg/2758029533.html

[davidecasteel]

According to this article http://articles.latimes.com/2001/nov...iness/fi-64517, Gibson bought Baldwin in 2001. One presumes they would not have put their name on Baldwin instruments prior to that time. Baldwin was making digital organs in the 1990s, so one might conclude this instrument is digital.

David

[Nullifier]

This forum is so helpful!! Are there parts available for Baldwin instruments such as digital organs now or am I better off keeping the T 12B, in your opinion??

Al

[paulj0557]

It looks like an antique, a better organ than digital BS that Gibson has had produced in China...I think.
Now on the off chance it is digital and newer, it would be worth flipping to a church- they like new stuff for some completely ridiculous reason, and you could make some money on it...now I'm curious.
I'd go after the tone cabinet ASAP if they are willing to sell it separate you might as well get it, because someone else will right? Or go for the whole deal, looks great!
I'm curious what model organ you are looking forward to getting. Haven't read your thread lately. Have you considered Conn? Conn's have a beautiful individual transistor oscillator, or tube individual oscillator tone generators and really sound beautiful- don't think it gets any better than these tube Conn Classic models - 800,810,821
or these transistorized Conn Classics- 825,830 Have a listen- http://youtu.be/vTfdq8c0SeI

[jbird604]

That looks like an old analog Baldwin from the 1960's to me. Probably tube-type but could be first generation transistor generators. I think the seller is mistaken about the Gibson name being on it. Never heard of a Gibson organ made by Baldwin. I'll bet they went on line and discovered that Gibson now owns Baldwin and just posted it under that name not knowing any better.

If this were any kind of a modern organ it wouldn't have that big clunky music rack with a giant-size fluorescent lamp tube in it, if that's what that is. It would also have some presets or pistons of some kind. That enormous tone cabinet is a giveaway too, probably has a big tube-type amp in it, though it could be a Baldwin E3, which is an early transistor tone cabinet.

Not much of an organ for a serious player, but a curiosity for someone who likes antiques. There are people who like the old tube amps too. But the keying would be that old gradual-contact Baldwin thing that drives you crazy. The price is cheap enough, though, but moving it could prove difficult and expensive. Console probably weighs 300 pounds or more, and the tone cabinet 200 pounds.

[Nullifier]

Paul...

I do like most of the Conns I played. Unfortunately, I don't see them for sale around here much with the exception of spinets which I'm not interested in now.

Stand by. I have put in a call to the owner and they are supposed to call me when he/she gets home.

[davidecasteel]

The photo vaguely resembles an old Model 5 but there are details that are different. I think you'll have to get a model number before much can be said about it.

David

[Nullifier]

The owner called and told me it was a model 4. The first church organ I played was a Baldwin 5A. That would make it a toaster, right?

[davidecasteel]

Jan Girardot's Master List indicates that the Model 4 was first built in 1965, whereas the Model 5 was 10 years earlier. The Model 4 is listed as a TD (Transistor Divider) organ, with a 32-pedal AGO pedalboard and a 2-manual AGO console. There is an old thread on this Forum about the Model 4: http://www.organforum.com/forums/sho...-model-4-organ.

David

[Nullifier]

Thanks for all your help!!

[toodles]

I suspect it is a Baldwin Model 10; bigger than the 5, but same vintage. Tube dividers. For making music, I'd stick with transistor models, lower voltages and tube get to be absurdly expensive if they need to be replaced. Plus many interesting features and improvements in sound came with the trasnsitorizing of circuits!

Toodles

[Nullifier]

I asked the owner if there was tubes in the console and he said yes. And at first he said the organ worked great but later said it had some problems. It seems it belonged to his ex-wife who he said was an organist. I think I'll pass on this one.

[james]

The model 4 is a transistor model being one of the first if not the first Baldwin console model of this size to have transistors. When I first saw the pic and noticed the pistons I knew it was a model 4. Then I scrolled down and read where you mentioned the owners had called and told you it was a model 4. I knew all of the earlier Baldwin models since we had a Baldwin dealer here in town. I was in there often and knew all of the new models that came to the show room.

I once played on a Baldwin model 5 which was their first organ on the market. The model 5A is indeed a "toaster." It was all tubes of coarse, and built like a battleship. If you like the tone which is designed for church music, then I think the price is fair, but if they don't want it you might get it for less. As mentioned it will cost more than the organ itself to move it.