"The Robb Wave Organ was reputed to be musically superior to the Hammond Organ. It was designed by Morse Robb in Belleville, Ontario, who attempted to reproduce the sound of a cathedral pipe organ by amplifying sounds generated by a series of rotating metal cylinders."
Musically superior to a Hammond I think not. That is if the music on the video is indeed the ropp wave organ. It sounds like an old pump reed organ I played once. But I am interested in the history of this organ. Was it earlier than the Hammond and what uses it was intended for and in what venue it use actually used? Things like that.
According to the hyperlink, or was it said by the Prof. in that video, sound sample is from the prototype! Do you really beleive Hammond prototype sounded better? Being big fan of Hammonds, I am not quite sure.
Longtime in the clock business, Hammond knew the right people in the States - Ford, Rothschild etc., to finance and develop his project. Robb sunk in the Great Depression. The rest is history. Could it be different?!?...
BTW one of the Italian clone-wheel use very "similar" Robb TG.
Hammond financed his own projects, he turned down an offer of finance from Ford.
I built a basic TWG like the Robb in 'Physics Club' at school when I was about 14. Great fun cutting up Meccano wheels in the metalwork shop then off to the physics lab and mounted them on shafts driven by a variable speed motor. Tones weren't filtered at that point, they went straight from home made pickups into a preamp and amp - and an oscilloscope to see what we were making.
Then one of the team discovered that if you didn't tighten up the screw on the wheel, and tilted the shaft just a little, it would slowly make its way along the shaft, then fall off the end, bounce on the lab floor and race across the lab at high speed. OK until the physics teacher opened the door, walked in and nearly got hit! We had to play safe after that!
The waveforms we produced were complex, we didn't really understand what we were up to but, given time, we would have made it work, with a series of notes keyed via old piano keys and simple contacts keying the audio. Alas, we moved on to new projects at the end of that term.
It's not what you play. It's not how you play. It's the fact that you're playing that counts.
That sounds like a cool project Andy.Its a blessing you didnt spend more time getting your tg organ fully up and running.Even back then it was out dated tech. :-)
"The Robb Wave Organ was reputed to be musically superior to the Hammond Organ. It was designed by Morse Robb in Belleville, Ontario, who attempted to reproduce the sound of a cathedral pipe organ by amplifying sounds generated by a series of rotating metal cylinders."
Hammond financed his own projects, he turned down an offer of finance from Ford.
I built a basic TWG like the Robb in 'Physics Club' at school when I was about 14. Great fun cutting up Meccano wheels in the metalwork shop then off to the physics lab and mounted them on shafts driven by a variable speed motor. Tones weren't filtered at that point, they went straight from home made pickups into a preamp and amp - and an oscilloscope to see what we were making.
Then one of the team discovered that if you didn't tighten up the screw on the wheel, and tilted the shaft just a little, it would slowly make its way along the shaft, then fall off the end, bounce on the lab floor and race across the lab at high speed. OK until the physics teacher opened the door, walked in and nearly got hit! We had to play safe after that!
The waveforms we produced were complex, we didn't really understand what we were up to but, given time, we would have made it work, with a series of notes keyed via old piano keys and simple contacts keying the audio. Alas, we moved on to new projects at the end of that term.
It is now obvious that the failure of Robb/Gilbert organ revival had nothing to do with...Robb. :)
However I must admit that was quite a challenge, and could be even for a serious lab.
Thanks for those links, Mr. Robbins. If you are not already a member, you may be interested in the Electronic Organ History group. Send me a Private Message (PM.)
I saw an article where they said there will be a midi opperatable sampleset of the organ. Do anybody have more info about it and where to download the sampleset?
We process personal data about users of our site, through the use of cookies and other technologies, to deliver our services, personalize advertising, and to analyze site activity. We may share certain information about our users with our advertising and analytics partners. For additional details, refer to our Privacy Policy.
By clicking "I AGREE" below, you agree to our Privacy Policy and our personal data processing and cookie practices as described therein. You also acknowledge that this forum may be hosted outside your country and you consent to the collection, storage, and processing of your data in the country where this forum is hosted.
Tweet
Comment