Hello everyone. I've had this CONN organ for quite some time now, but I have no idea what model it is. My searches on the net have given me no results. I believe it was manufactured in the late 60s. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Also, possibly take a stab on its value. It's a bit dusty in the pictures, but is in good to very good condition. Everything functions very well, and there are only a few scratches and wear marks. I also have a matching opening organ bench. Thanks
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I wish everyone would post decent pix like this when needing an ID! Thanks. [Y]</P>
I can positively tell you that this is a model 431 Caprice, from 1964. The matching picture in my ' Organ Blue Book' is very clear. I'm not sure when the Caprice started using the ITO (Independent Tone Oscillators) used in their larger models from the 5xx Minuet upwards, but I have a feeling it's later than this. If I'm right, this puts your Caprice among the 'lesser' Conns, but still a nice old instrument!</P>
Value? We're always honest here, and its monetary value is zero. It's nice, but it's not a sought-after 'classic', and you can pick up something later, bigger and better for almost nothing or even free. Sentimental value is something different entirely, of course!</P>
Anyway, we hope you're not going to sell it, but are going to play it and look after it!</P>
Andy G</P>
It's not what you play. It's not how you play. It's the fact that you're playing that counts.
I purchased a large Conn Service Repair Manual collection several weeks ago on Ebay. I have a copy of Caprice Model 430 Style 2 Type 3 with a match to the pictured cabinet and rack. This service manual describes the use of 53 basic manual tone generators. "Each generator is a modified Hartley oscillator circuit, using 1/2 of a 12au7 duo-triode tube." The view of the back off shows a very basic set up with 5 generator assemblies, two speakers, expression pedal, amp/power to the right and beneath that the pedal assembly. If the tone is good and tubes remain reasonable this should serve as a great starter organ for a do it yourselfer!
Yes, great pics here. I remember this organ so well since I had a demo record of it as well as brochures of this one. It is a small but interesting organ. I would have given my eye teeth to have owned one, but alas my folks were too poor or better yet too tight to even purchase a starter organ for me to have as my own. I always had to go to the church to practice which was a blessing.</P>
I just wanted an organ so bad at that time when I was young, and any quality organ would have been a treat to have at home in order to say I have one at home. I remember the earlier Minuet by Conn that I enjoyed so much at a church where gospel singings were held, but this one does have the long rocker tabs so unique to Conn, but not the upper pitches up to 1 3/5' on the upper manual.</P>
This organ does have some variety, but not as much as others. However, it would be worth having, and I would take it if not for the distance. Thanks for posting the nice pics.</P>
James</P>
Baldwin Church Organ Model 48C
Baldwin Spinet 58R
Lowrey Spinet SCL
Wurlitzer 4100A
Crown Pump Organ by Geo. P. Bent, Chicago, Illinois
Organs I hope to obtain in the future:
Conn Tube Minuet or Caprice even a transistor Caprice with the color coded tabs
Gulbransen H3 or G3, or V.
Wurlitzer 44, 4410, 4420, ES Reed Models, 4300, 4500, Transistor Models
How many loose pages? At lot more since I've been on here! There is a print shop that will spiral bind it for me, so I'll wait until a few more come out. So far I haven't lost any pages - just lost my 1973 copy, darn it!</P>
Andy</P>
It's not what you play. It's not how you play. It's the fact that you're playing that counts.
Hi gents - are there any websites that give a relatively good, or even full, listing of organ models? I would also like to check some organ IDs from the '70s, when I was kid and wanting one badly. Lowrey, Kimball, Conn, Hammond, etc. - are there any sites with a good listing, ideally with photos?
There is a site with a listing and I can't remember its URL, sorry. It's basically a database of model names and numbers, but it's far from complete. There's no on-line equivalent of the old Blue Books. Now there's a big project for someone - stop looking at me!</P>
If you go to the website for Organ Service Corporation, you can find a listing of models for Conn and Kimball. There is no model information for Thomas or Lowrey. Mostly it is just a list of model numbers, but there are a few that have links to see more detailed information.</p>
To find the model information, click on the brand name, e.g. Conn. Then from the Conn page click on Conn Organ Model Information.</p>
I hope this helps,</p>
Allen
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[quote user="srd6"]Hi gents - are there any websites that give a relatively good, or even full, listing of organ models? I would also like to check some organ IDs from the '70s, when I was kid and wanting one badly. Lowrey, Kimball, Conn, Hammond, etc. - are there any sites with a good listing, ideally with photos?[/quote]</p>
Currently own: Roland Atelier AT-90, Yamaha 115D, Roland DP-90SE, Yamaha PSR-S910
Jeez, that was a lot of scanning. Let's give that guy a big pat on the back!</P>
Now, if we can find an old copy, say 1973, it will give lots of the older models and makes. Anyone up for scanning it in.....</P>
Andy</P>
[/quote]</P>
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<SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Arial">We were just talking a few days ago about the sad condition of our Blue Books. I did think about scanning it. Luckily he beat me to it.'LOSCHA' saved me a lot of time. I just send him an email to express my gratitude and invited him to join this great bunch of organ lovers here on the forum. And so should everybody who downloaded the Blue Book[Y].</SPAN></P>
<SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Arial">Jimmy, thank you so much for the link!!!!!!!!!!!</SPAN></P>
<SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Arial">Have a musical day,<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" /><o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
You can download the entire 1986 BlueBook here ... someone made a scans of it. In 3 parts, PDF format - FREE!!!</P>
[/quote]</P>
Thanks from me too, Jim,</P>
I've done as Skip has, andprinted the whole thing out without resale values (I already have most of the original retails in $AUD)or anything handwritten, and am in the process of collating and binding the whole lot to have a hard copy copy on hand. </P>
However there's a few old skeletons in there from my days in the industry that I'd forgotten about. Back in my Lowrey/Kawai days circa 1976 there was a world wide shortage of low end Kawai's and Lowrey didn't have a product in the price range so we were forced to look elsewhere and ended up with a shipment of Galanti/Gem X300's- bad mistake!! [N]- took ages to clear. Turns out all the Kawai stock had ended up in the UK where some bloke called Gilbert was installing one in each of the English Stately Homes and one at Royal Ascot, where the trumpet sound is used to start handicap races in front of the Queen.[:P]</P>
The state distributor for Hammond in those days also handled Farfisa ("Fartfizzer" to us) and the dear old F. Leader (yuk) was always kept partially out of sight behind a L or T series, as the staff were embarrased to have to demonstrate the thing.[:|]</P>
And I found one for you, James, - how do you feel about a wonderful Viscount "Oklahoma Deluxe" - sounds corny, but that's what you grow in OK.</P>
What an interesting post. In Oklahoma we are known for our great wheat fields instead of corn. I guess some corn is grown too, but Iowa is the corn state. Right now there is a big wheat harvest going on and out in Western Oklahoma some of it is on the ground because ofthe railroad moving so slow to get the cars in there to load them. I read they have plenty of railroad cars, but some of the old tracks are worn out therefore the trains have slow orders. Yeah, slow orders, that sounds like me in more ways than one these days.[:)] Oh for the days to be youthful again, and find these organs so interesting. They are all so unique and the features interesting.</P>
When in OKC, OK one time I went to a large music store to see all the models, brands, etc. of organs they had on hand. A new shipment of Baldwin Organs had just arrived a few days before and they were all on the showroom floor. A salesman there invited me to a concert to be held in a few days by a professional organist such as you, Andy, and so many others here on the form are indeed. However, I didn't get to go to the concert as my time there was limited. The salesman told me, "all of these Baldwins are made in Italy by Viscount which equals no count." He told me that after I had played some on various models. I did find these unlike any Baldwin Organs I had ever known about so there was always something new. I saw the first Gem organ there too.</P>
Ian, AndyG, and others, do any of you know anything about these Baldwins I have mentioned? I think they were among some of the last new Baldwins I ever saw as they made a big change going into large church organs shortly after that time. It seems Church Organ Systems comes to mind.</P>
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James</P>
Baldwin Church Organ Model 48C
Baldwin Spinet 58R
Lowrey Spinet SCL
Wurlitzer 4100A
Crown Pump Organ by Geo. P. Bent, Chicago, Illinois
Organs I hope to obtain in the future:
Conn Tube Minuet or Caprice even a transistor Caprice with the color coded tabs
Gulbransen H3 or G3, or V.
Wurlitzer 44, 4410, 4420, ES Reed Models, 4300, 4500, Transistor Models
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