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  • Needing help to select a New Church Organ

    I am currently looking for a replacement for our Church Organ, and am trying to decide which companies to go with. Our current "dinosaur" is an Allen T-15b. In doing my research, I'm trying to keep the following in consideration:
    1) Our church is no cathedral (seats about 200 people tops)
    2) Most of our congregation is elderly, which means fixed income.

    I'm looking for a good digital organ, preferably three manuals, although I would be willing (although reluctant) to go down to two. My organ teacher's instrument is a four-manual Berghaus pipe organ (about 87 Ranks). I'll pause a while while I have a drool session over it. I definitely want an AGO pedalboard, a 32' Reed, and 16' Manual stops. Most importantly I want quality. I have already been in contact with three companies (Allen, Johannus, and Phoenix). Any other advice is greatly appreciated.

    PianOrgan
    PianOrgan


    So Many Pipes, So Little Room!!

  • #2
    Consider a Viscount with Physis Technology

    Hello,

    You should certainly consider a Viscount with Physis Technology. What area of the country are you from? I could put you in contact with the appropriate dealer. Or for more information, visit my website www.whiteselorgans.com

    You are so wise and thoughtful to truly consider all options. Your church is blessed you are not a closed minded person! Physis Technology is something truly unique and unlike anything available in the marketplace today. Don't hesitate to contact me with any questions.
    Joshua Dove
    Managing Director
    Viscount North America
    www.viscount-organs.com

    President/CEO
    Whitesel Church Organs
    www.whiteselorgans.com

    Comment


    • #3
      I live in Northeast PA. I was looking at some of the Physis organs, and was wondering about the Unico 500, pricewise, of course.

      PO
      PianOrgan


      So Many Pipes, So Little Room!!

      Comment


      • #4
        Just to give you a very rough idea of prices, at the time of launch about 18 months ago I obtained the following prices for the European market:

        Unico 300 - €16,490 (US$21,500)
        Unico 400 - €19,990 (US$26,000)
        Unico 500 - €33,990 (US$44,200)

        If money is tight, then the Unico 400 makes more sense. It has the same number of stops but has stoptabs instead of drawstops and is substantially cheaper!

        You might also want to consider Viscount's Prestige (sampled) range, which are cheaper than their Unico (modelling) counterparts and to my ears sound just as good.

        Other brands you might want to consider are:
        Rodgers - http://www.rodgersinstruments.com/
        Johannus (whose website is not afraid to show prices! They do have several US dealers and have a large budget range) - http://www.johannus.com/en-us/
        1971 Allen Organ TC-3S (#42904) w/sequential capture system.
        Speakers: x1 Model 100 Gyro, x1 Model 105 & x3 Model 108.

        Comment


        • #5
          That pricing is inaccurate. Remember, you have an ocean to cross to get to the U.S.

          PianOrgan, I'd be happy to speak with you about Physis Technology, and give you contact information for your local dealer. I do not give telephone numbers in the public forum though. Thanks!
          Joshua Dove
          Managing Director
          Viscount North America
          www.viscount-organs.com

          President/CEO
          Whitesel Church Organs
          www.whiteselorgans.com

          Comment


          • #6
            Originally posted by nullogik View Post
            You might also want to consider Viscount's Prestige (sampled) range, which are cheaper than their Unico (modelling) counterparts and to my ears sound just as good.
            While nullogik considers Viscount's sampled technology as good as the Unico stuff, IMO the sound of their sampled organs is sustantially better!

            I fail to understand all the hype about Unico organs; basically reworking of quarter century old technology which other organ manufacturers abandoned a decade ago in favour of superior sampled sound. Other than Viscount, to my knowledge, the only remaining organ manufacturer still using this ancient technology is Veritas. You will find the Unico kind of systems referenced under names such as Bradford Technology or Musicom.
            2008: Phoenix III/44

            Comment


            • #7
              Originally posted by Josh View Post
              That pricing is inaccurate. Remember, you have an ocean to cross to get to the U.S.
              I did mention that the price list was for the European market.

              Feel free to post the USA list prices if you have them to hand.
              1971 Allen Organ TC-3S (#42904) w/sequential capture system.
              Speakers: x1 Model 100 Gyro, x1 Model 105 & x3 Model 108.

              Comment


              • #8
                Thanks to all for the advice so far. I have heard from Viscount, Rodgers and Phoenix so far. As far as pricing goes, I'm going out on a limb to say that Rodgers may be out of the running, as their only 3-manual model (588) is priced at about $40K without the optional external speaker system. The other models in the series seem to have the same stop configuration, which is confusing to me. I have not seen any pricing from Phoenix, and Viscount seems to be appropriate (price-wise), but still in the looking stage on those. Keep in mind that our small (200-seat) church does not need a large organ, nor can we afford anything large. I'm trying to stay within 20-35K for the entire package if I can.

                PO
                PianOrgan


                So Many Pipes, So Little Room!!

                Comment


                • #9
                  PO -- I'm a p.k. and know alot about the strict budgets of a small church. There are some good late model instruments out there from churches that are huge and have moved up to state of the art. There's great depreciation in these models and unless you already have 20K in pledges you will probably find something for half the cost that has alot of life left in it.
                  You wouldn't be retiring a 15 (which I happen to admire for its rich old sound) at this time if money was no issue. I think most of them retired 25 years ago.

                  Tried to find the old church advertising site but it seems no longer available. Theater Organs.com sometimes has good ads. And Ebay (though high priced) gets a few good instruments). Best wishes for a rewarding search effort.
                  Last edited by OrgansR4Me; 01-27-2012, 06:00 PM.

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Try:

                    www.churchorgantrader.com

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Again, thanks for the advice received thus far. In looking at prices, I believe Allen may be out of the running, as they are out of my price range even for a two-manual instrument. I did see something nice in the Viscount line, but am waiting on that just yet. I requested a pricing packet from Phoenix, and am waiting with anticipation for that to arrive. They truly sound like incredible instruments. I did get an offer from a member here (who shall remain nameless) for a Rodgers 835B instrument which includes 8 speaker cabinets (4 FR 1.7LX, 2 SW7.5LX, and 2 Walker 1103W) for about $25K. If they don't mind, I would like to see what the rest of the group thinks about this instrument. It is located about 2 hours from me. It also has the PR-300S Sequencer as well as the Sound Organ Library .

                      PianOrgan
                      PianOrgan


                      So Many Pipes, So Little Room!!

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Are you only considering new instruments? There are several used instruments (Check out the CraigsList and eBay threads on the Organforum) available from time to time. I can send you a PM with the price of the instruments I've purchased/obtained, and I'm sure they're in your church's price range. Of course, I've only purchased Allen instruments, but it makes sense as I can technologically move from one instrument to another (i.e. MIDI board, Sub-Bass crossover, tone cards, etc.) more easily. I realize that's not one of your considerations, though.

                        Let me know.

                        Michael

                        P.S. If your church is interested in a pipe organ, perhaps the pipe organ clearinghouse could help you. The 3-manual would probably be out, though, as well as significant cost for installation & maintenance.
                        Way too many organs to list, but I do have 5 Allens:
                        • MOS-2 Model 505-B / ADC-4300-DK / ADC-5400 / ADC-6000 (Symphony) / ADC-8000DKC
                        • Lowrey Heritage (DSO-1)
                        • 11 Pump Organs, 1 Pipe Organ & 7 Pianos

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          To answer Myorgan's question about new instruments, I would like to get a new one if possible, but if there is a reasonably priced used one in my area, I will most certainly consider it. I have a used instrument in my list to look at, along with some that I hope to narrow down before long. I'll have a rep from Phoenix at our church in a few days, and maybe he can shed some light on a suitable organ. I'm also thinking Viscount, as their Vivace series (especially the Vivace 90 Deluxe) is around $20,000. I'm still open for more ideas, if anyone has one. Craigs List didn't have anything I wanted. As far as pipe organs, I know the somewhat high cost of maintenance they have, so I'm afraid I'll have to go electronic. Sorry to those to love pipes, but the budget comes first.

                          PO
                          PianOrgan


                          So Many Pipes, So Little Room!!

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            New Viscount Organ

                            My home church just bought a 3 manual sampled Viscount (the only size available) about a year ago or so for a sanctuary that sounds like it's about the same size as yours (seats around 200). I honestly wouldn't recommend it. We were also replacing an old Allen and needed something desperately. The organ cost around $54000 (with lighted drawknobs). I helped the Viscount rep voice it and I was not impressed with the quality of the sampled stops--particularly the reeds. That being said, it was very easy to customize the stoplist and all the personnel were very nice and highly professional. The main reason we chose Viscount was that it was the cheapest option considering the features we wanted. However, I must also note that the size of the stoplist was a bit too large for our sanctuary, but Viscount did not have a smaller 3 manual option. It does sound better than what was there before, but I wish the committee had been more deliberate and had thought longer-term.

                            Also, remember that for almost all of the electronic organ companies out there, the stop choices are not set in stone. Generally, the number of voices per division is limited to what is on the website or brochure, but you can customize the particular stops included. For example, if the Swell has twelve stops, you can essentially choose whichever twelve stops you like. In general, it is a good idea to follow rules that a pipe organ builder would follow, but ultimately it is up to you. So, since you said you wanted 32' stops in the pedal and 16's on the manuals, there is nothing stopping you from having that even on a small 2 manual organ.

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              Hello - Cunningham Piano Company in Philadelphia is the Rodgers Organ dealer for Eastern Pennsylvania. We would be happy to visit with you about your interest in a new organ for your church. Please give me a call at 215-991-0830 (office) or email me at [email protected] and let's talk about your situation. Thanks! Don McFarland

                              Comment

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