Allen ADC-7300 ADK-C

[BomRav64]

Hello All,

I have been a avid follower of “The Organ Forum” but have never joined because I don't have a lot of experience or insight that hasn't already been provided several times over. I have really enjoyed all the information shared especially about Allen and Rodgers organs.

A couple of reasons I have decided to join is one for my curiosity in what one can do about converting and building Hauptwerk consoles and the other main one is my father and I recently acquired a Allen ADC-7300 from a church in Illinois and I had a few questions about the instrument.

The organ we had before was a three manual Rodgers with tone generators and a setter board for the presets. We now have this ADC-7300 and it sounds wonderful. It has a very lovely sound and works very well in my father's house. So here are a few of my questions, 1) The swell division has a MIDI draw knob but there is no mention of it in the owner's manual literature that came with the organ. What was the use for it then? And what could we use for it now? 2) There is also two blank draw knobs, one on the Swell and one on the Great. Is it possible to find out what options could've been offered for those knobs from that time period? 3) This question scares me to ask a little but the Swell division has about half the stops that go very very quiet. I can attribute it to one card because it only affects those stops. It is not a amplifier because I swapped the wire with the other Swell stops so the only other thing it could be is the tone card in the cage. What should be my next step or what could I do to possible do to help that situation? At current, I can turn the organ off and turn it back on and it works but I am afraid we are on borrowed time with it.

Any help at all is much appreciated. Thank you for all of y'all's time

I've attached two pictures, hopefully they come through. They are of the console and of the “new” sound chamber we built for the speakers

[John Vanderlee]

Others will chime in too, I'm sure. But the missing stops are probably from a common issue in the sound cage. There are little trimmer pots in there that develop "dead" spots. A little spritz of a good contact cleaner and carefully fully rotating them several times( after noting the initial position) will render miracles sometimes. Also do the same for the amplifier volume controls. You should have documentation(cage chart) with the organ that shows what voices go with which pots.

[John Vanderlee]

And BTW welcome! A beautiful instrument.

[SchnarrHorn]

Awesome instrument! You also have the beautiful console on steroids of years gone by that's apparently only standard with Allen 4 manual instruments these days. With a large instrument like that, it's also great that you have a high ceiling for the sound to bloom into.

I'll second John V.'s advice. Rotating the pots can help. Also, do a search here and in the Allen Organ owners group in this forum (which you may want to join) for guidance on voicing. jbird604 has some very helpful posts which I used to get my MDS Allen in shape (thanks John!!!). You may want to reverse the organ or at least rotate it 90 degrees to provide access to the back for a period of time while you tweak. Just a suggestion in that regard - set yourself a deadline. Adjusting voicing controls can go on forever and I'm assuming you want to spend your time making music, not adjusting controls!! It's better to spend a set time, close her up for a longer time and take notes, then go for a second round of adjusting, IMHO.

George

[toodles]

Blank drawknobs were provided for various functions: one use would be MIDI on and off (for a division, or for the whole organ), accessory chimes (i.e., real mechanical chimes provided not by Allen), vibrato (a more theatrical tremulant) option, bass coupler function, and "brass choir"--a specialized reed stop, usually, or a zimbelstern (again, not supplied by Allen). Any of these would be semi-custom to the individual organ, and so no mention of them in the manual.

[AllenAnalog]

Congratulations on the acquisition of this lovely instrument. Having that very tall ceiling entry hall and giving up room in a bedroom for a speaker chamber is certainly a luxury many would envy. I'll add a few comments to the good advice you have already received.

If that is the only MIDI control on the organ, the MIDI drawknob on the swell may control MIDI OUT for the entire organ rather than just the swell division. But it might be a "prepared for" drawknob. The difference is whether there is a MIDI translator board inside the organ. This was an option, not a standard feature. I've attached a photo of my retro-fit MIDI translator board so you know what to look for. It may be in an entirely different location than where I chose to mount mine. Some organs had optional external MIDI In/Out connectors on a box mounted under the keyboards, others just had the connectors on the printed circuit board inside the organ.

If you do indeed have the MIDI board installed, the MIDI In can be used to play the organ (notes on and off only, no stop or piston control) from MIDI files that have been set up for the correct channel numbers for a 3-manual ADC organ. MIDI In is always active. MIDI Out is what is controlled by the stop tab(s), drawknob(s) or tilting tablet(s). You can use that MIDI output to control any external MIDI device like a synthesizer, electronic piano or sequencer recording function.

If you have the MIDI translator board installed, the swell uses channel 1, the great uses channel 2, the choir uses channel 3 and the pedal uses channel 4. So those numbers have to match the device you are controlling or the MIDI file you are using to play the instrument.

Let us know if you have the cage chart for the organ. It is an essential document for working on your instrument. If not, one of us can email it to you. Removing, cleaning the edge connector and re-inserting the TG-8 card for the affected stops (slot 21 or 22), along with "exercising" the pots may clear up your volume problem. As always, take static precautions and be very careful when inserting a screwdriver into those voicing pots. Do not put pressure on them. And note their position before moving them so you can return them to their original positions.

If you post clear photos of the two stop jambs and the tilting tablets, we can see and comment on any other custom features this organ may have.

[Hamman]

Yikes! opposite of my 5300! I may have mis-spoke on my comment below

[AllenAnalog]

The Allen MIDI documentation that I used on my ADC-5300 indicates that for a 2-manual ADC instrument the swell is on channel 2, the great on channel 3 and the pedal is on channel 4. Channel 1 is not used.

[Hamman]

Welcome to the forum! Nice looking console
Do you have a "Midi" drawknob for the great, choir as well? Or a Midi rocker tab for those manuals? It's function is to turn on the midi signal for that particular division...providing you have something hooked up with midi cables attached (assuming there is a midi matrix board inside the organ). Each division has its own channel number. On my 2 manual ADC5300, Channel 1 would be pedals, channel 2 would be for the great manual, channel 3 would be for the swell manual. The midi driven device you want to control would need to see the correct match up of whatever division you want to "drive" it.

[michaelhoddy]

On the MIDI knobs/tabs on ADC organs: This is something I learned from helpful folks here with the ADC8000. These are broad strokes, but most of the blank knobs (except for the ones that drive optional stops like the Swell Brass Choir that was available in your organ) and rockers are wired through to logic outputs on the USCM capture board, which your organ almost certainly has some version of if it has quad capture memories (early ADC organs had DM dual memory boards).

These logic outs can then be wired out to do any number of things: fire antiphonal or choir speaker relays, external devices like chimes or zimbelsterns, or to turn on or off the MIDI board divisions. The Allen ADC MIDI board can be wired to the USCM logic outs with each division's MIDI out being turned on or off separately, or with them all ganged together on a single knob or tab, hence the various iterations of MIDI control on different ADC organs, depending on how much control was desired and how many knobs or rockers they wanted to tie up.

[AllenAnalog]

A minor correction. The USCM-x is the console multiplexer board (which has the REMote outputs), not the capture board. The USCP-x is the two or four level capture board - a separate, much smaller board.

[michaelhoddy]

Absolutely correct- USCM is the multiplexer, not capture board. Thanks for the clarification!

[myorgan]

BomRav64,

Welcome to the Forum! Thank you for sharing the information about your organ, as well as the issues you're experiencing. I see you already have some of the best advice already.

Regarding the MIDI, if there is only one drawknob or rocker tab, then MIDI probably has been added to the organ, but the MIDI connections will be inside the back of the organ as pictured in Larry's post above (Allen Analog). I would guess if you want MIDI to be separately controlled on various manuals, you could have your MIDI device turn channels on and off, and that would serve you well. In my case on my ADC-4300, I hope to re-work the MIDI so I have a drawknob for each division.

Again, welcome to the Forum, and I look forward to your participation here.

Michael

[Silken Path]

My suggestion would be to put the organ on a heavy-duty rolling platform that you can use to roll it away from the wall and back into position. It gets OLD pulling and pushing on a heavy organ every time it needs to be maintained.

But it looks like somebody did a masterful job of getting it in there. Kudos to them. It's beautiful.

[mlaird]

A simpler alternative is to buy a bunch of those plastic gliders for moving furniture, and stick them to the bottom of the console. My dad did that for my mom's ADC-8350, which is similarly huge, and with work, he can slide it across his living room carpet by himself.

[Larrytow]

In my previous home that had nice hardwood floors ( like the OP appears to have there ), I had my ADC6000 sitting on squares of upside down carpet. I cut six 4" X 4" squares out of some commercial office type carpeting that I had laying around ( guess I collect stuff that looks like it could be useful for something - someday ), and put them under the corners of the console, and the back corners of the pedalboard. With the really tight nap of that sort of carpeting, I could move the console quite easily by myself. And NOT gouge up the floor !

[BomRav64]

I am sorry all, I am a chemical operator and have had a busy schedule since I initially posted. Thank you everyone for your input and advice. I will be posting more in the coming days. I do have many more questions.

Thank you all so much

Best Regards,
Gregory