Re: The best electronic (pipe) organs.

[M1994]

Re: The best electronic (pipe) organs.

I'm aware. I've never been that far out east though. Place I'd like to
visit. I got places along the way I can stop over for a night for free
essentially.

[Bombarde32]

Re: The best electronic (pipe) organs.



Calgary?! Wow ... Not to discourage you ... but that is 2000 miles away ...</P>


Of course you're welcome to come ... but just wanted to make sure you knew how far it was. It would be about 36 hours if you drove it straight through.</P>

[M1994]

Re: The best electronic (pipe) organs.

If I do come down then I'm coming from Calgary Alberta (pending
financial situation). Isn't that wood just gorgeous? Very talented
group of people building these.

[Bombarde32]

Re: The best electronic (pipe) organs.



I've managed to get it up on Photobucket. The links are:</P>


http://i66.photobucket.com/albums/h2...bEngraving.jpg</P>


http://i66.photobucket.com/albums/h2...ogressPic2.jpg</P>


I can't wait to hear it either.</P>

[clumber]

Re: The best electronic (pipe) organs.

A good site for a shared photo album is www.shutterfly.com

Can't wait until you hear it!

Andy

[Bombarde32]

Re: The best electronic (pipe) organs.

Where are you coming from? I'll post on here when it's done and what I think of it. I need to setup a free photo site somewhere so I can post pictures as it goes along. Anyone have any ideas? Last week they installed the swell/choir/crescendo pedals, the keyboards and a few other misc parts. The woodwork on it is GORGEOUS! WOW! I'm partial to oak to begin with ... but the grain and texture of their wood is superb. Hopefully it sounds as good as it looks. :o)

[M1994]

Re: The best electronic (pipe) organs.

That sounds great. I'd love to have 3 50 stop organs. And yeah, maybe
the other companies have made advancements. I still have only played a
Phoenix when it comes to digitals newer than 2000. Ohio? That sounds
like a plausible trip actually. Would take 2 days, but I'd love to hear
that thing.

[Bombarde32]

Re: The best electronic (pipe) organs.



Hello all!</P>


Perhaps it is time to revive a now dormant thread. Be forewarned ... I'm going to be discussing our new Phoenix. But perhaps the other companies have made some advancements since we last chatted and there is a new king of the hill so to speak?</P>


Our church ended up going with a 3 manual + pedal Phoenix PD350. It is drawnknob and has an American Classic, French/Baroque and Orchestral spec on it. The versatility of this will be phenomenal compared to our existing organ. The stop list came out better than I could have hoped for. I will punch it in if anyone is interested.</P>


Installation is supposed to be the first week of September if anyone wants to come by and hear it after that. Findlay Ohio. Our existing organ will be removed to an organmuseum in Columbus Ohio July 31st.- Jim</P>

[Bombarde32]

Re: The best electronic (pipe) organs.

Oh my, I have no idea what it will be in the end. We are getting a PD350 (or is it 355 now?) with drawknobs. It will be four suites and I'm going to push for an American/English, French and Baroque specification with a possible orchestral suite as a fourth spec. I will take a look at the specifications that Phoenix suggests but frankly I don't know what useful input I will have. I'm only familiar with the sounds of our current organ which is fairly limited. It only has 13 ranks unified to 17 stops. But also, not all of the stops are very well labeled. For instance, the stops say 'Flute' or 'Open Diapason.' Well, I know for a fact one of the diapasons is way to stringy to be a diapason. But what is the proper name? I dunno. Same for the flutes ... I have no idea what kind of flute it would be. So I don't have much knowledge on what stops sound like and what would work together as a cohesive instrument.

I do know that it will be a purely digital instrument. Unless someone steps forward with the extra money there will be no pipework as our organ needs a new reservoir, new pump, new swell motor, some pipework replaced, the windchests re-sealed and a new relay. Yikes! All told ... about 43k in repairs plus the cost of hooking it up to the digital.

As far as speakers ... ?? ... I believe the PD350 has 8 channels of audio so whatever it takes to get all that speaking. Don and Jim Anderson showed us their accousticubes so I'm sure those will figure in there somewhere.

The two specialty items I want is one of the flutes to be named after a prior organist and the sforzando button to have a little chrome ring around it saying "Go Baby Go!" -Jim :O)

[clumber]

Re: The best electronic (pipe) organs.

Congratulations... searching is hard work, and it's nice to know that you and your church have reached a decision...

I know it's early, but can you provide details on what you are getting? manuals, speakers, stops? What will your voicings be? Drawknobs?

Andy

[Bombarde32]

Re: The best electronic (pipe) organs.

My wife made similar comments about the Phoenix when we heard it. She hadn't heard the other brands but couldn't resist a trip with me to Toronto so decided to come hear it. She thought it sounded superior to our existing pipe organ (which truthfully, it does).

I've posted a lot through this thread about our churches search for a new organ and in case anyone is interested ... I thought I would post the result. We ended up going with Phoenix. Both the Rodgers and Allen dealers were mortified. Neither could believe they lost the bid. But Phoenix was a better price, a superior sound and had a better built console. That to me, is a good combination! Fortunately, our trustees agreed :O)

Now all we need is a D&B report and we will be in business! I'm hoping to get a fall installation. (well, next week would be better ... but fall will do).

[radagast]

Re: Bombarde32...

>What exactly is a glockenspiel?


A percussion instrument with a series of metal bars tuned to the chromatic scale and played with two light hammers.

[Bombarde32]

Re: Bombarde32...

What exactly is a glockenspiel?

Re: Bombarde32...

Heh, broken plates, brings back memories.
I enlarged a Rdogers 340 theater organ some
years ago, adding mostly more output channels
and beefing up the speakage.

The organ had a rather puny and inadequate
32' Bourdon which the owner wanted to make
bigger. I changed all the coupling capacitos in
the preamps to about 10 times the original values
to get more very low end out.

The on to the 500 watt amplifier driving two
speaker cabinets, each about the size of a
refrigerator and having a JBL 18" driver in a
JBL-designed cabinet. Before we turned it back
down, he hadn't broken any plates, but we heard
a huge crash from the kitchen about 40 feet away,
some heavy stainless pots had walked off the
countertop and crashed to the floor.

After he "soundproofed" the house, we turned
it back up, and it was magnificent! We had to mike
the mechanical glockenspiel so it could be heard
with the organ.

[NYCFarmboy]

Re: Bombarde32...

wow.. 64' stop for a residence organ.. hmm.. voice it softly (grinning)

My Mom's Rodgers 550 has I think just two 32' stops.. a 32' Bourdon and a 32' Bombarde (or maybe its called Contra Bombarde 32') ...

anyhooo... before we voiced them down, if you would pull either of those stops the house would go into earthquake mode...

she collects plates, the walls are covered everywhere... I broke at least two plates so far that I know of just by pulling a 32' on the pedal.

we have since voiced the 32's down considerably..the house still rumbles but nothing gets broken anymore.

<laughing>