Johannus Opus 27 or Ahlborn-Galanti 2300

[Guest]

I am new to this forum, but I have been reading many posts lately as I have been searching for a home practice instrument. I am considering purchasing a new digital organ and have visited the local Johannus dealer to play the Opus line of organs. I was impressed with the quality of sound for the price and have been offered a good deal on an Opus 27 with the orchestral voices option. For a little less, I can get an Ahlborn-Galanti 2300 which seems to have more features but from a dealer several states away. I have not been able to actually sit at the console of the A-G 2300, so I only have the manufacturer's website sound samples to listen to for comparison. If I opt for the A-G 2300, I will be buying it sight unseen, and that makes me a little nervous.

Does anyone have experience with the lower end of Ahlborn-Galanti's lineup or with Johannus? Any insight would be greatly appreciated!

[arie v]

Hi,

Something a little odd here. The A-G 2300 should retail for much more than an Opus 27. The A-G 2000 or 2100 would seem to me to be more comparable models to the Johannus.

Sounds like the A-G is either a distress sale, or a used instrument.

In any case, I do not recommend buying an organ sight unseen. May save you a lot of grief, if it turns out you don't like it.

AV

[Guest]

Thanks for the advice. It sounds a little too good to be true to me as well. If I were to consider the A-G 2100, for instance, what seems to be the general consensus of sound quality and build quality compared to Johannus Opus 27?

Also for about the same price, a local Rodgers dealer has a 5 year old Insignia 577 and a 7 year old Allegiant 657. Any opinion on how all these models stack up against the others?

BC

[tkosiorek]

one thing to consider is if in the future you need repairs,Johannus or Galanti will let you repair the organ yourself or any technician can repair it with Johannus or Galanti tech support,rodgers won't let anyone but their dealers technician work on the organ and you are at the dealers price for the repairs.and believe me they are not price competetive.

[tkosiorek]

anymore all the newer organs are built as cheap as possible,they all have computers in them and all you are really paying for is the sampling of pipe organ sounds, and the cabinets they are mounted in,

[arie v]

BC,

Not to belabor the fact, the best way to judge an instrument, is to actually see it in person, and spend some time with them, not 5 minutes, but several hours. That way you will know how it feels to play it, and also whether you may be able to live with the sound.

If one were to consider any of these models for a church, I would say the AG would get my nod, simply because I believe a good external audio system should be a starting point. The A-G has far more audio options than any of the others mentioned here. Internal speakers tend to be mediocre, sound emanates from the wrong place, and you just can't get sufficient volume out of them, unless you get the whole console shaking. Even for home use, external audio, along with voicing will sound better, than just internals.

Also, in my view, any and all these organs to sound at their best, need to be voiced, and properly setup. This can radically transform the overall sound of them. This is usually not done, as it costs money to do so, some dealers even don't have a clue how to do it. So, many organs, even with the latest technology sound terribly ho-hum.

Build quality is going to be similar among a lot of them. If you want superior build quality, be prepared to pay big time for it.

The Allegiant and Insignia models from Rodgers are very similar. The big difference is in the build quality. The Allegiant is made in the US, and is better built, with a better sound system, and so sounds better than the other one.

Have I muddied the waters here?

AV