Foldback Mod Origin

[theseacowexists]

Reading about the foldback mod and doing it to my M-series got me to thinking - when did doing this mod become a thing? I'm hoping that maybe some of the folks who were around when Hammonds were new, or who have been working with them for a while, might know a thing or two.

Did buyers know they weren't getting foldback when they bought spinets? Doesn't seem like something a salesperson would be keen to point out! Who first realized that the mod could be done? I can't imagine that there were as many "donor" organs for spare key contacts or busbars back in the day. Similarly, I imagine that some of the more famous spinets, like Keith Emerson's or Matthew Fisher's, would have been stock (no foldback).

[geoelectro]

Reading about the foldback mod and doing it to my M-series got me to thinking - when did doing this mod become a thing? I'm hoping that maybe some of the folks who were around when Hammonds were new, or who have been working with them for a while, might know a thing or two.

Did buyers know they weren't getting foldback when they bought spinets? Doesn't seem like something a salesperson would be keen to point out! Who first realized that the mod could be done? I can't imagine that there were as many "donor" organs for spare key contacts or busbars back in the day. Similarly, I imagine that some of the more famous spinets, like Keith Emerson's or Matthew Fisher's, would have been stock (no foldback).

I started working on Hammonds in 1975. Back then doing modifications was limited to the pros who had their own techs and even that was typically limited to FX loops or otherwise playing with the audio. Going inside the manual was mostly unheard of. The average buyer didn’t understand foldback. If they preferred the sound of a console over a spinet, the choice was to buy the console. Foldback, more keys, more pedals etc. is what made the console have more value over the spinet. Not putting foldback in a spinet was likely a descision based on general acceptance and costs. I would be surprised if the average salesman even understood foldback (or lack of) in spinets. If they did they just accepted it as normal.

I believe the foldback mod became a thing when the internet became a thing. By then spinets were cheaper so the possible liability of making the mod was minimal. Seems like everyone second guesses Hammond now while back in the day it was just accepted.

Geo

[peterb_2795]

I first became aware of the foldback modification via Geoff Williamson (AU) site well over 10 years ago. There is (10 years ago) an archive copy here: http://web.archive.org/web/200802241...t/foldback.htm

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Going back nearly 40 years ago, when I first became interested in Hammond organs, they were top shelf prices (even the lowly L-series) when compared to the many others that were invading the home at the time. I find it difficult to believe that anyone would have wanted their organ modified back in the day when the thing had (relatively speaking) cost an 'arm and a leg'. On top of that, the Hammond servicing was almost a 'secret squirrels' business and only the few (mainly professional muso's) would have considered modifications to enhance their sound....

For most people back then, adding a Leslie was about the most aspirational modification at the time... I even remember the times when dealers were actively discouraged from offering Leslie speaker products alongside Hammond organ sales. Where I lived, the guy who had the Hammond dealership also sold Leslie speakers - but you had to walk down the street to a different premises that he owned and traded under a different name !!!

HTH
Peter

[David Anderson]

I would speculate that the foldback mods became popular when spinets became very cheap, so people with DIY inclinations who didn't want to pay for a console organ could get spinets and could approximate the console organ sound via the modifications, which they could do on their own time.

I've never heard of anyone paying a professional tech to do a foldback mod.

[Thor Hammerdahl]

Adding foldback to the hammond spinet takes time, organization & patience; but, it can be a meditative activity that is worthwhile to enriching the limited harmonics of a stock spinet. I have successfully added foldback to 3 spinets & am currently adding foldback to an L100 in a friend's studio. word to the wise: beer & hammond organ maintenance do NOT go together.

[peterb_2795]

... word to the wise: beer & hammond organ maintenance do NOT go together.

Touche' see my tongue in cheek post on similar lines... lol o)

https://www.organforum.com/forums/sh...ldback+WARNING

[Steve Leigh]

Hi,

I did not invent foldback - but in 1995 Bec and I bought / found ~ 50 M3s, M100s, and L100s, all around the Tampa area. Most of them were just worthless "giveaways". Some were in super condition, and we just gave them away.

I've never done the foldback process, but we surely did ship out (for free) the longer (full length) spinet busbars and key contacts - especially to Europe and Australia. I could be wrong, but I think Magnus got a "care package" from us, and likely, Lars (Dr. Foldback).

We spent many days parting these "curbside" Hammonds, and generally kept (or rebuilt) the parts that were "console-usable". And the spinet self-starting motors and capacitors - they went all over the US.

I've never even done a foldback process. (I always used consoles.) But we sure supplied a LOT of the required parts.

[theseacowexists]

I believe the foldback mod became a thing when the internet became a thing. By then spinets were cheaper so the possible liability of making the mod was minimal.

I think these two points explain it more than ever. Steve's 1995 haul of spinets and subsequent parting of them sort of coincides with the rise of the internet. Heck, I sure wouldn't have known about it without the internet!

Good points all around though. Thanks everyone for chiming in.

[tiredoldgeezer]

Don't wanna start a big fight, exactly, but I kinda disagree with a few assumptions made here.

1. People of ALL types, not just techs, were diving into Hammonds from the early-70s on, that I know of. Of course, it wasn't widespread. It's not widespread now, either. It isn't tough technology. Not now or not then.

2. I've heard spinet explanations all over the place, but Hammond was not in the business to preserve tone or musicology. Hammond was in the business to sell organs. They knew their customer base and made these decisions before most of us were born. Spinets were for chapels. Many thousands of chapels ranging from hospitals to small churches to funeral homes. They found their way into many living rooms of civilized middle-class homes. Even a few good sized boats. Point being, the last thing they wanted was "scream" like you'd want from a Leslie because, after all, Leslie hookups were few in the first place. They engineered a gentle, subdued tone for their known customer needs. Relaxed. Phlegmatic. Pretty much everything a stage musician is not after. After all, they wired 18 contacts of the 1' rank to *ground*. That certainly wasn't a money-saving operation. But there it is.

Adding foldback to a spinet is exactly as Thor said. Meditative. It's kinda fun. I've done two. One with just contacts and no resistance wires (resistance is all the same in spinets). Had to wire and solder resistors. That's a LOT of work and be sure to have plenty of heat shrink. But i had done something similar to an old A (not A-100, Model A) to replace a few notes, so it wasn't foreign. I've done one spinet with wired contacts pulled from another spinet. I preferred that way. Still a lotta work but more enjoyable. Incidentally, OLD spinets have contacts that differ and are non-standard. Not all, just the 'top' contact. So disassembly has to be monitored. Ran into that one the hard way. Threading the bus bars is also kinda fun.

Spinets are not wired 1-9, top to bottom, either. The missing contacts are in the upper ranks, but inside, those contacts are in the middle. This is simply a mechanical issue to ensure spring and rebound.

Another interesting part was changing the lower manual. There's 9 busbars, but you only get 8 drawbars. So i just set mine up with 9 drawbars, 1 for each, like usual; which was remarkably easy because i was chopping the pedals, anyway. But the ranks were different. The lower manual has an extra rank of something like 4 2/3 foot squeezed in there. So it's harmonically different.

Anyway, it's all good. The spinet I'm working on right now is going to be a 'test bed' for some ideas I wanna try on my C2. Got a few more schematics to do, but i'm in no hurry.

TOG