Atlantic City Convention Hall Midmer Losh Blower Startup

[AllTheStopsJB]

That sound is almost as awesome as the pipe organ itself is!

[bombarde1701a]

Its time for another CD...

[jazzkeyboardman]

Yeesh....sounds like a frigging jet plane starting up, not a pipe organ......

[theenforcr55576]

Do these blowers run up a huge electric bill?

[techedtchr]

@theenforcr55576 225 HP is about 166 kW. Since power is metered in kWh, you would multiply the power draw by the number of hours that the organ is running. So this would translate into 166 kWh for every hour the organ is running. At roughly $.10 per kWh, that comes in at about $17 per hour. Of course the organ isn't running 24/7 so that's quite reasonable actually.

[falaqdad15]

How do you calculate inches of wind?

is it from PSI and CFM (or CIM)?

[MRLOL785]

@falaqdad15 CFM, I think

[AnalogGuy1961]

@falaqdad15 Inches (or cm) of wind water column and pounds per square inch are measurements of pressure. The conversion factor is 0.036. I've never run across psi units in organ work - if for no other reason than100" wind sounds a lot more impressive than 3.6 psi! Cubic feet per minute is a measure of wind volume. Blower specification is based on the required volume at a given wind pressure; e.g., 1200 cfm at 4" wc

[bombarde1701a]

Maybe I should go again just to see this..

[kb7dqh]

Music Educator's Journal, January 1960:

"Wind for the pipes is supplied by eight motors with a combined output of 395 horsepower. These motors can supply 36,400 cubic feet of air per minute at anywhere from 3-1/2 inch to 100 inch wind pressure"

With the new motors there is nearly as much horsepower in the main chamber blower set as was in the whole organ when first built.

I am surprised they went with a motor-generator for the low voltage DC supply, although doable "off-the-shelf".

[Diapason427]

I love this video.....awesome!

[midmer455]

Glad you like it. Come visit us and see all of this in person

[Diapason427]

Would love to! Thanks....happy holidays!

[seaquestatari]

Only parts of this masterpice are working. There are a group of people restoring it so one day it will be fully playable.

[T321Q]

I wouldn't wear a necktie in that room.

[flippy941]

lol

[glenn3rd2004]

This organ is only partially functional. Over time, it was allowed to deteriorate to the point that some parts were sold for scrap. It's a deep shame that such a majestic instrument was allowed to fall apart. If this organ was on the list of National Landmarks, it was surely not treated like the landmark it deserves to be. We need to take steps (including obtaining government funds) to fully restore, preserve, and maintain the Midmer Losh pipe organ for generations to come.

[midmer455]

Glenn3rd2004. You are correct that the Midmer Losh was not treated as the landmark it is. However, I know of no parts of the Midmer Losh or the Kimball that were sold for scrap. Even the original DC blower motors are still in the building. Joining and supporting the efforts of ACCHOS is the best way to ensure the futire of these two magnificent instrument.,

[glenn3rd2004]

I hope what you said is correct. I'll consider contributing to the efforts of ACCHOS to hopefully ensure that the Midmer-Losh and the Kimball organs (among others) stay in existence for a long time to come.

[mythbuster789]

the man with the white hemd is standing funny !

[mythbuster789]

das ist einzigartig !

[brb21592]

is this organ not functional at the moment? just curious?? please reply back

[mathewbailey08]

4200 horsepower total? My God!

[Wa3ypx]

Wow how many RPM and what torque? Do they start on one voltage but run on another?

[cabletim88]

What voltage(s) do the motors run at? 416, 480, 4160? or something else?

[ThirtyTwoFoot]

Very impressive. Bet they drain the national electricity grid!!

[BayAreaBiker2001]

I have read a joke that the organist would call the power company just before the concert due to the organ's power requirements.

[chem100]

I'd be afraid of one flying apart. That would not be too pretty either. Seriously, very impressive. Thanks for posting!

[cheetawolf]

what are those rubber things on the shaft for?

and i really like the wind up of the low pressure one :)

[midmer455]

The rubber things on the shaft are flexible couplers to take care of vibration isolation and any minor alignment problems.

[flippy941]

im suprised Your on here Cheetawolf!

[andyth0mps0n]

it is good to have an update...... thanks

[spootyrat]

Being fed into these blowers would give you a very bad day.

[midmer455]

Fortunately, the Hall is very solid and there is no real floor vibration. No lightning issues at the hall. The primary blower room is actually under the stage. The others are spread throught the hall. The blowers are started by a motor starter panel next to the main console. They can be individually started in each blower room.

[KE5RHD]

I used run a 1 M gallon municipal pool and those look much like our pump motors. I can imagine what it feels like standing near them as the cement floor literally shakes you up to your eyeballs. We had lightning issues being at the top of a mountain so we had huge isolation capacitors. It phased the circuits by discharging the capacitors in sequence. Prior to installing the TPI units, we would loose function with the smallest power glitch. Not good if you need to turn 1M gallons in 8 hours.

[midmer455]

The original motors were DC. A lot of the hall was DC when built. There were rotary converters in the Hall.

[vegunited06]

ok, to anyone who's heard the 64foot stops recently, what it's like? i've never heard a 64er myself, does it shake thee entire hall? and it's a big hall too? i've heard it makes people feel nausus? do the seats shake?

[midmer455]

We used the 64ft last week during a tour. No, the hall does not shake and it you do not feel sick. Work is progressing on both organs. The new Peterson relay for the Kimball is being wired in to the chambers and we may be able to use it with a laptop and midi before the console is returned from rebuilding. The ML in the arena has, in addition to the 64' 10 32' stops. You will feel wind from the mouth of the very large pipes when the are played. The 64' is on 35 inches of wind.

[midmer455]

THe 100 inch is 50 HP, the others are 75 HP and 100 HP. They start up on Westinghouse variable frequency starters. There are 7 blowers total of 600 HP. There is a 5 HP motor for the DC generator, 143 Amps at 14 Volts. The Kimball has a 30 HP motor for the primary Spencer blower and a 5 HP motor for the booster blower for the tuba. The Kimball power supply is solid state.

[johntdso]

The sounds you hear are the motors being started across-the-line. The 100 inch blower motor is a 2 pole 3 phase motor probably 60 or 75 HP 3 phase operating at 3550 RPM. The other 2 motors are probably 75 or 100 HP and run about 1775 RPM. The long windup is due to the mass inertia of the blowers themselves.

[spootyrat]

Perhaps the motors are on soft-start controllers as well?

[advisorC101]

Amazing!

[sniper887]

Anybody know why large motors like these make that sound on start up?

[GrandMasterIV]

I don't think that sound is the motors themselves; I think its the massive blowers that the motors drive

[compton357]

the sound at the start is the motors getting up to speed, the rushing sound is the blowers.

[JoePeterzak]

The sound is caused by the intense magnetic field which shakes and rattles the iron of the wire windings and the iron case like a loudspeaker.

[vegunited06]

im don't understand wind messurements, but is this wind really powerfull? like a real gust!? say if the power of wind from this room was coming out a pipe a yard in front of you? is it strong enough to blow you over? is this like serious serious wind?

[willowthebored]

100 inches of wind pressure is the highest wind pressure any organ anywhere in the world sits on. If you stuck your head in the Grand Ophecleide you might feel the air moving, but that would probably be more from the vibration of the pipe itself than the air pressure. If you just stuck the blower by itself and pointed it at you, though, you might get blown over :D

[jazzkeyboardman]

Be sure your seat belt is fastened and place your tray in the upright position. Refrain from smoking. And enjoy a great organ concert. Yeessshhhhh!! I hope they restore this amazing behemoth of a musical instrument, as playing it one day is on my "bucket list!"

[vegunited06]

what's the largest pipe on the actaul organ that wind has to go through? those are some bad ass blowers

[acchos]

largest pipe is the 64ft dulzian.

there are ten 32ft stops, two of them on 50" wind. Most stops are on 15" wind. There are 4 stops on 100" wind, 10 on 50" wind.

there is also over 33,000 pipes, so it all needs alot of wind to get all those pipes to sound.

[eh4891]

Nothing like the sound of a three phase electric motor starting up, I LOVE IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[spootyrat]

Man alive, I think I'd be scared to be near the 100" unit - sounds like a jet engine!

[Piparkakkumauste]

Engine's size is impressive. And the startup sound.

[caliopterix]

The original motors were DC. They started rather slowly. The new ones are 3 phase AC. They start very quickly. I heard that the new ones snapped the shafts when they were firs installed. The linkages you see are torque converters to allow "soft start." One has to understand that everything about this organ is unique regardless of it's size. To quote Tim Hoag: "It's an organ on steroids."

[ccoraxfan]

I don't know anything about the original motors, though I can say that if they were DC they were a rare species indeed, for most electric organ blowers have used 3-phase AC power, especially since the 1920s.

As for the rubber shaft couplings, they are not "torque converters". Their purpose is to allow for inevitable slight misalignment between the blower shaft and the motor shaft without wearing the bearings. They are common on direct-drive (shaft to shaft) machines.

[steviebboy69]

hi very impressive, and such large motors.

i liked the start up sound. you wouldnt want to get clothing caught in those shafts. it would be goodnight irene, i think,.

[pierrelebatteur]

WoooW, it's very very big electric motor!!

[theblackhand2]

That's some serious hardware powering the organ.

[Maxxarcade]

I've had this on CD for years, and finally my dream of seeing it on video came true.

Some day this organ will be rebuilt, hopefully sooner than later :-)

[Renatodonadio]

Quote. I downloaded the audio file from the site (that one in which you can hear the curator prompting before startup) and always wanted to see the beasts live

[Organgrinder010]

The power is immense. Just incredible.

[seidelin]

Thanks acchos for posting this - i love this organ with a passion.

Please.., when will it be possible to sign up online for membership ?

Payment is really a project here first going to the Bank and then to the Post Office sending a mail by air to the US.

[tempetiger]

Reminds me of those Spencer blowers at the Organ Stop Pizza place in Mesa, AZ. It uses 3 20hp blowers tied together (60 hp total) with another 20 hp used as a backup.

I love the sound of them.

[rauschquint]

I love listening to these things.

When I was young and my parents went to choir practice at the church, I'd park myself outside the blower room in the basement and listen to it run. Though the 5-inch Kinetic at the church, with its peaceful train-engine sound, ran considerably quieter than the ones showed here, which sound more like jet engines rev'ing up :)

The two green-box blowers in this video have the distinctive form of those manufactured by Kinetic Engineering.

[WBBugleBoy]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't one of the blowers 600+ horsepower?

[acchos]

Thats the total for all the blowers combined

[Orgelduedler]

I thought the organ has 1200HP in total? Was that earlier or is that a wrong fact?

[worldlinerai]

It's around 600HP in total. 1/2 of what you thought.

[Orgelduedler]

I maybe mixed something up with that. But it is just enormous to hear that big electric engines. :)

[hottrodscars]

Thank you for posting these items re the Midmer-Losh organ, I like to see all aspects of it! Lance - Rockford, IL

[danielwh1881]

Is any of this Instrument playable yet?

[diysgog]

I second that.  Bit of a dark horse this instrument. What's the current situation I wonder.

[theremin137]

"Low pressure blower" - all things being relative!

WOW, what an amazing and glorious sound even the blowers of this might pipe organ make!!