The Hammond Organ Consoles

[ebufford]

So watching this I see the new one out now which is the Mini-B is not the first full Hammond with only 2 sets of drawbars. The old XB5 1993 version was designed the same way. Interesting!

[ebufford]

The model E had 2 volume style pedals..hmm..what did the other pedal do?

[Hamaround]

@ebufford The E was a concert organ with a 32-note radial arc PedalClavier instead of the flat 25-note pedal board. It was designed like a pipe organ with the AGO pedals, an expression pedal and pedal position indicator for each manual, additional pedal drawbars, and four toe piston presets.

[paulj0557]

Played guitar 20 years before I tripped over an organ...this is an awesome jam and just got to know, who is playing guitar on this? So melodic all the way around.

[Hamaround]

@paulj0557 I have no info about the recording - It came from the Hammond Organ web site promoting the New B-3 several years ago.

[Hamaround]

@paulj0557 Did a quick search here ya go - Mystery organist no more! Thanks to Tuber, cheshire1uk. Thank you Keith. Hammond B-3 - Tony Monaco plays, "The Best Things In Life Are Free".

[paulj0557]

@Hamaround Thanks, does it say who is playing guitar? Deserves mentioning, super player!

[Hamaround]

@paulj0557

I think this was the line up

Tony Monaco - Organ,

Robert Kraut - Guitar

Louis Tsamous - Drums

[ebufford]

@Hamaround I met Tony and he is a REAL down to earth guy! Great personality and he has a ball playing the organ! You can't help but laugh with him watching him play the Hammond! He gets into it!!!

[2screenboy101]

I have the hammond 2002 B3 at my church it was really expensive like $2,500

[Hamaround]

@2screenboy101 More like $25,000

[2screenboy101]

@Hamaround lol at least it was in good shape eccept it was out of tune by the time we had it by the 3rd week

[TrueYears]

@Hamaround Are you talking about the actual organ or everything in it? cos the hammond B3 my brother in law bought was 4900 and in total it was like 12K after all the shit he bought for it

[Hamaround]

@TrueYears - The price of a new B-3 MK2 is around $27,000 and a Leslie 122XB is $3.200. Even the new MINI B is $13.500 but that includes the Leslie. Could be your brother in law bought an older used B?

[TrueYears]

@Hamaround Its a used, B-3 MK2 which actually cost him around 21K I called him and asked him to confirm it. I didnt know these things went that high..........................

[Hamaround]

@TrueYears - Yep that's why I'm still playing my Concorde - It took me 40 years to get it and at 64 I don't have another 40 left to get a B-3 MK2

[ebufford]

@Hamaround lolol!!!

[patsaxon]

The Hammond 825 was in the mid 1980's, taking the place of the 820 model. I remember as I used to sell Hammond organs back then. Sadly after the buy out of Hammond, Suzuki does nothing for the home organ line or the 935 church organ, based on the 825. I was sad to see the factory shut down as Hammond use to prmote "Made in the USA, made for you". Now Lowrey organs are now made in Malaysia as they shut their factpry down in Chicago.

[HM2028]

Nice vid..thanks

[tonypower333]

what is the title of song ?

[gregallman11]

I have a 825 abnd can send a picture if you want. I have been trying to find out more about this organ (a manual) but no luck so far.

[Hamaround]

@gregallman11 The 825 was introduced in 1991 to compete with Rogers and Allen church organs. It was built by Suzuki and was an early attempt at using digitally produced tones to produce the sound of a pipe organ. You may be able to find an owners manual at hammond organ.com. Other than that, I know very little about this model.

[theflyingmusician1]

I've just been given a hammond organ :D chuffed to bits!!!

[decatlon14]

thanks for the answer

[decatlon14]

What do you thing about the X66, is there anything special about this organ? I heard that this organ didnt come with leslie efect, is that true?

[Hamaround]

@decatlon14 - Quick answer yes it was a very special organ in many aspects even though the B-3 / C-3 is the model most wish they had. The X-66 like the B-3, X-77 and other consoles built by Hammond had no internal speakers and required a stand alone Leslie or speaker cabinet. In the case of the X-66 the 925 Leslie paired well. Here is a link to an X-66 web site that explains how special the organ was. nshos.com/X66Contents.htm

[mschorer]

Missin the M3 in the Video, or did I just not see it?

[Hamaround]

@mschorer - This video is strictly console organs watch my Hammond Spinet video and you will find the M-3!

[istvanmaria2]

Gyönyörü álom hangszerek,fasztasztikusak.Kös­zönöm.

[JasonEldur]

our church just got a Hammond Monarch model 16522. It's got a Leslie speaker/animation? Shouldn't there be 2 separate power supplies (120volt I mean), 1 for the organ, one for the speaker? Sorry if my terminology is off

[Hamaround]

@JasonEldur The Monarch was built in the mid 70s and replaced the Concorde as Hammond's state of the art flagship organ. It has a built in Leslie speaker two separate amplifiers for the main and Leslie speaker with a single power supply. If you have a stand alone Leslie that was sold for the Monarch it has an internal amplifier and power supply and simply plugs into the back of the organ.. Hope this helps!

[JasonEldur]

@Hamaround thanks so much

[ronkat81]

also the 825 which I have never been able to find a picture of and the 935...

[ronkat81]

thanks for the great vid... I grew up with the hammond 820 in churches I played for.... I know I'm going to catch alot of flack for saying this, but for my money nothing beats the 820 especially with two external Leslies connected! Whew what bass and like you said a clean rich sound. Just a coupe of years ago I finally got my own 820 and can send you pictures if you ever want to update the video! I drove still the was to Portage michigan from NC to pick it up after winning an Ebay battle!

[crazykeyscj34]

what about the 820 hammond

[Hamaround]

@crazykeyscj34 - Indeed the 820 was an institutional model introduced in 1981 built primarily for churches. In putting the video together, I did miss several or could not find pictures of the model at the time. Thanks for your input!

[amtrc]

you forgott the hammond grand 100 the biggest hammond the was made

called a G100 i own 2 of the check it out alot of people din't like them but they were for git cathedrels

[Hamaround]

@amtrc • Model Grand 100 (G-100) (1963-1965)

Indeed the biggest Hammond ever made. It has a 32-note pedalboard, an extra large tone generator and a complex vibrato scanner, stops instead of drawbars and a huge external double wide rack mount cabinet containing the power supply, 5 motor-driven tremulants (single motor drives 5 scanners with a single belt) and the audio speakers (3 Dynaco Stereo 70's plus a Dynaco Mono amp for the bass)

[ak47s762]

dude what the hammond composer?

[Hamaround]

@ak47s762 The Composer was a Spinet organ Hammond released in 1982 similar to the Aurora series.

[ak47s762]

@Hamaround but it is still an originall hammond right? I am asking because i am going interested in buying one. I'm going to check on out tomorrow ( i mean a hammond composer 144).

[Hamaround]

@ak47s762 - Yes, it is a Hammond - It was made after Hammond switched from their mechanical tone generators to solid-state generators. Sounds much different than the earlier classic Hammond sound such as the B-3, M-100, T-100, etc. I own a Concorde that was sort of the big brother relative of the Composer. They both have great sound but it's not the gutsy, traditional sound that made Hammond famous.

[ak47s762]

@Hamaround First of all thank you for great help. Second of all, i am not sure if this is relevant but can you determined the approximate value of a hammond composer 144?

[Hamaround]

@ak47s762 - Depending on the shape it's in I wouldn't pay more than a couple of hundred dollars. Not a big demand for organs of that type and in most cases people are just happy to give it to a good home.

[9emgie]

Organy Hammonda to epokowy przełom w konstrukcji instrumentów klawiszowych-elektrycznych i elektronicznych,wspaniałe niepowtarzalne brzmienie,chwała konstruktorom a zwłaszcza L Hammondowi

[Hamaround]

@9emgie - Dziękujemy za Twoje komentarze. I nie mówić lub odczytać Polski, ale funkcja tłumaczenie MS Word brała ona dla mnie.

Thank you for your comments. I don’t speak or read Polish but the translation function of MS word did it for me.

[omrixeren]

You missed a few models.. model AB model A102 and more

[Hamaround]

@omrixeren Yep tried as hard as I could to provide info on all of them but missed many - Listed the ones I missed and the year they were introduced under the video description, thanks for watching and paying attention.

[xavier3961]

I love my CV w/ 122RV it is my tool to release stress.

[Hamaround]

@xavier3961 - Much better than going to a shrink!

[Hamaround]

Missed the Model AB it was produced from June 1935 to October 1938 with around 4000 units made. The model was the same as a model A, but was enclosed in larger B style cabinet. Thanks to Peter0656 for pointing it out

[Peter0656]

You missed out the Hammond Model AB !! but nice job!

[Hamaround]

@Peter0656 Sorry don't know how I missed it, thanks!!!!

[Larsky1010]

My first Hammond was a B-A with the internal player mechanism removed and a vibrato unit to replace the ghastly tremulant it was built with. The console was huge and heavy. I got it in 1954 when it was already 15 years old. It burned up in a church fire in the late '60s. Quite a machine!

[Hamaround]

@Larsky1010 - Great story - I love to hear the tales of how they got their first Hammond etc.

[barndlsd]

Thanks, this was very educational for me.

[Hamaround]

@barndlsd - As it was for me when I put it together - Thanks!!!!!

[compukenny]

As a youngster I was taking organ lessons as well as piano. I didnt have an organ but was lucky enough that the church in my neighborhood had a fantastic old theter organ that I was permited to practice on. I quickly learned what a magnificent instrument was. You can make the Hamond do amazing things.

[Hamaround]

@compukenny Thank for the comment - There was never an organ like it nor will there be in the future.

[vstman]

Damn this so gives me them shivers. As a happy amateur keyboard player this gives me the lust to pwn the keyboard so hard.

[Hamaround]

@vstman - Glad you enjoyed it I had a ball putting it all together

[ewe2oobes]

that is the most crazy delicious sound ever..play on

[Hamaround]

@ewe2oobes - Yep I fell in love with the sound when I was around 9 years old listening outside a club in Niagara Falls, Canada to someone inside playing Canadian Sunset on a Hammond - I was hooked for life!

[ewe2oobes]

Oh man that is the most crazy delicious sound ever..

[patsaxon]

I really never liked these older tone wheel organs Hammond organs. What was great that they combined the tone wheel generator and transistors, and other components to create new sounds and features. But the Concord 2307 was the best Hammond organ!

[Hamaround]

@patsaxon -

The old tone wheel organs with tube amps had and airy, gutsy, dirty sound that could not be duplicated in the transistor models in part because of the grid modulation inherent within the vacuum tube. The sound of transistor amps and preamps were just too clean.

[ConnorEdge]

song?

[DonaldFranklin67]

@cowgirl4124 Talk about finding a transformer for the model Hammond organ you have, I read of people who restored 1950's vintage RCA color TV's, they had to order parts like that, from a company in England for those sets, I surmise the model Hammond, you are talking about, is one that is vacuum tube powered, and uses the tone generator wheel shaft, am I correct?

[daviobigd1]

Wonderful,I'm going to watch and listen to this a hundred times.Thanks.

[Hamaround]

@daviobigd1 Thanks - So glad yopu enjoyed it!

[daviobigd1]

Absolute kick ass,my old man been kik'n ass like this for years and loved when I shared with him.THANKS MAN.

[Hamaround]

@daviobigd1 Your welcome!

[194243abcd]

hammond the king any questions?

[UTURN8888]

Great "Joey" tune!! Of course, there ain't a bad one!! 

[hemnjc]

Highly informative!!!!!

[Hamaround]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[bloodnokian]

I've just got a Hammond 9822k, for free. Sounds great! Not quite the real deal but it has a revolving Leslie speaker which is all that matters.

[lennarddek]

@bloodnokian Has a 9822K (a bit) the real Hammond sound?

[bloodnokian]

@lennarddek it sounds almost the same but you need to play around with the lsiders and buttons to get it as close as possible.

[lennarddek]

@bloodnokian Okay, thanks

[koasterkav]

That was very nice! Was that you playing the new B-3? Is it just as good as the origional B-3 models? Sorry for going off subject, but I remember you posted a video of the old Thriller roller coaster at Euclid Beach Amusement Park. Great stuff!. A friend of mine lived in Cleveland OH as a child and remembered it.

[Hamaround]

@koasterkav - No its not me playing found it on the Hammond Web Site demoing the new B-3

[Ghostkid202]

Thank you for showing the history of Hammond organ's.

[Hamaround]

My pleasure Hammond organs are a true American treasure

[georgebatmandm]

Wonderful video and I hope more accompany it. A great job. Hammond made music all over the world!! The best!!

[georgebatmandm]

I used the Elegante" and Aurora Classic,  w/722 Leslie as a back up when we re-built the theatre organ, Opus 101, 3/16 in The Sunnybrook Ballroom, Pottstown, PA. It filled the ballroom and many people thought it was the pipe organ. I'm glad there is still interest in Hammond organs. Someday, organ will hit the charts again...

[georgebatmandm]

Thank you for the loving memories of the Hammond days! I played and owned many of them. I also have a very extensive Hammond organ collection of brochures, sales books, promo items, hand outs, catalogs, Hammond books with plate photo's, promo records, organ manuals, chord organ, drawbar registration instruction books, etc. The best electronic organ ever made!! It filled many people's ears and life with music, even till this day!

[satelliteamps]

Great video. Missing the Model G. I've got one if you need a picture.

[Hamaround]

Thank you. As you may know the G was built from 1941 to 1944 and was really a model D with different cabinetry built for government use. I missed a few of the Hammond consoles, left others out because of time restraints and thank everyone for reminding me, and or introducing me, to models I forgot about or never knew existed. This has really been a fun project and Im glad so many enjoyed and were interested in the video.

[satelliteamps]

I do have the same (very limited) info on the Model G. Nice little oddity. Thanks again for doing this video. Really enjoyed it.

[scarfacesw]

at 3:44 you have the Colonnade marked as a Commodore from 1985 which is the organ I bought from Chicago Craigslist.

[Hamaround]

Thanks I know I screwed up a couple!

[cowgirl4124]

I have an f-100 Hammond, do you have any info on it?

[Hamaround]

The Model F-100 was called the Extravoice and manufactured from 1961/1964. As you know it is a single manual organ and as such really didn't fall into the category of a console or a spinet. Thats about all I know! I did have to repair one many years ago!

[cowgirl4124]

Yes, But I'm having trouble finding a rebuilt or new transformer for mine. The organ was my grandmothers and it needs to be repaired...can't find anywhere to get the part!

[mrspivvy]

a great vid!!!

How about the X-5? one of the first properly portable hammonds?

[Hamaround]

The X-5 was not a true console

[mrspivvy]

oh right, ok,my bad

[TheDustpile]

If Hammond closed down in 1985, how come the organs still came out? Did some other company use the name?

And where's my own organ, the Hammond 123J2?

[Hamaround]

Suzuki built organs for Hammond prior to the company closing their doors, they purchased the Hammond name and continue to manufacture organs today.

This video featured the Hammond console organs to my knowledge the

123J2 (Romance) is a spinet.

[pojug]

Thanks to Laurens and my father(R.I.P.)im owner of L-122 and C-3 and i think im gonna buy one more coz i grow up with those machines and.......:)

[angie4josh]

I saved a Hammond C3 from a throwout here in Australia. some crazy japanese church threw it out not knowing what it was. long story short, I sold it and made $4500 profit.

[yesfan157]

I just tonight came into possesion of an old Hammond J322 from '68. Top keyboard doesn't work quite right, and none of the F#s work, but the rest of it sounds great, and it was free.

[blessedbethename]

I would love to know who put the "Home Model B-A in the house...lol..that thing was HUGE...

[Bauer931]

hey guys, last week, i walked around our baker shop, and i saw a real Hammond organ. But its none of these, which were shown here. It was very simple, completely wooden, with no displays or else. There was a big " I ♥ Hammond" Sticker on it. It had a very strange speaker, two horns on a motor, they were spinning around. In front of them two microphones. The sound was Really nice. They played much great songs. A guy with a Saxophone was playing too. I could upload a video. But bad quality.....

[GateStudios]

It's amazing how the original Hammond Organ Company began, ceased to exist and then came back as a new company...Suzuki has done a good job resurrecting the Hammond name.

[iplayloud2]

What's the song playing ? Charlie Christian ?

[Hamaround]

Not sure it was on Hammonds web page demo of the new B-3.

[whatthehallbetch]

whatever it is, its awesome

[bigrara99]

whats the diff between bv and b3 models

[Hamaround]

The BV was an earlier model than the B3. It was just like the Model B but with vibrato. They also made a CV same organ different cabinetry.

[CableguyDK]

Nice view - but what about the Hammond CV? I think it is from in the late 40's

[Hamaround]

Yep the CV was built back in 1948 same era as the BV. I tried by best but did miss a few.

[UTURN8888]

Ur not missing many! Great look back!

[Gillyyorkie]

How very interesting many thanks for posting

[dancraggs]

Interesting video - nice to see the evolution, as it were.

What's this music, by the way? It's awesome =)

[Hamaround]

It was featured on the Hammond Organ site as a demo for the new B-3. Sounds a little like the song "The best things in life are free" taken in many directions but I have no idea who is playing it!

[Oaklandgirlpitlover1]

Jazz. Or "JAZZ ORGAN".

[hammondguille]

Dear Tom, definetily you have produced the very best educational video regarding Hammond Organs. I love these consoles and I own a A-105 which I bought new in England in 1976 to Bossey and Hawkes of London. I have kept it as a classic together with a Leslie 122.

[Hamaround]

Thanks I had a great time putting this video together trying to find the right pictures and music. It's good to know so many have seen it and appreciate my efforts.

Thanks!

Bob

[Oaklandgirlpitlover1]

I certainly do. I'm the organist at my church. And to me this music on the above mentioned clip is alot like how I play gospel sometimes. I had NO idea that there were so many variations of such a wonderful organ. Thank you for posting this. People need to know more about the organ.

[Hamaround]

I have played many of them in my 62 years and each has its own unique sound and characteristics. Hammond was, and maybe still is, the Cadillac of organs and they will be prized for years to come. Thanks for you comments!

[organguy2910]

What production tool did you use to create this video, and how did you get such great sound? Great Video. I own 3 hammonds, love my 2 H-100 models. I also have a m type, but not being used.

[Hamaround]

Nothing special Windows Movie Maker for XP and the sound I enhanced a bit using Audacity 1.2.6. Thanks for the nice comment about the sound.

[metubetomuch]

Great video. One of my favorites.

[tornspeedo]

One more thing. THIS IS AN EXCEPTIONAL VIDEO POST! It has gone right to the top of my favorites.I have finally got to see the old plant at 4200 West diversy. Thank you. I am touched. DT

[Hamaround]

Thanks so much for the wonderful comments.

[joetmack]

Thanks for posting. My first Hammond was a B-2 with a JR-20 tone cabinet. Hammonds will always be special to me.

[wireman525]

nice video of Hammond organ models, Bob.

BTW the name of the song is, "The Best Things In Life Are Free". As for artists, I would be guessing,,sounds like Jimmy Smith with Kenny Burrell.

[Hamaround]

Kind of ironic that the New B-3 that its being played on is one of the most costly organs ever!

[treemaniac]

Great video! I learned a lot; didn't know there were so many models. THANKS!

[Hamaround]

Thanks! I had fun making it and also was shocked at how many models they made,fact is

I missed a lot of them.

[nurseeroc]

COOL.

[Sycsa]

Thank you!

[Tonewheeldude]

Wery Interesting Video!And Now Lets see a Video of all the Spinett models:)

[Hamaround]

Way too many I don't think You Tube has enough storage space LOL!!!

[Hamaround]

I am working on it!

[fstanley35]

Wow!!! I love this video...love the music even more. You failed to mention the VERY COMMON Hammond CV, which I own (smile). In fact many of us (even the B3 players) have CVs as backup rigs or just around the house for practice because of their RICH sound.

[Hamaround]

Looks as if I may have to make a sequel. I knew I missed a few of the lesser known models, but how I left out the CV is beyond me. Thanks for the comments!

[Saxmaster1230]

to bad you didnt include the lesser known Hammond "Super B" from 1986 hammonds first digitally sampled organ

[Hamaround]

Thanks. I did my best to list them all,but knew I would miss one or two. In some cases there was just no info or pix available.

[OB5er]

Totally cool video ! Great insight of all the different models Hammond manufactured. Half of them I was never aware of. Some day, I hope to have one too. Until then, my (B3 wannabe)Oberheim OB-5 will have to do. Thanks for posting !

[drummerbigd3]

what the name of that song

[Hamaround]

I don't know, It's from a Hammond B-3 demo I found on the Hammond web site.

[mikeyboi24]

excellent video really cool! cheers dude!

[Tovarski]

Beautiful video! Thnx!!!

[steverabb]

This was a mighty fine and nostalgic look at my favorite instrument. So many different Hammond models I didn't know of. Most interesting, the 1937 Concert Model E with 2 expression pedals. The old Hammond building pics at the end...cheers!!! Thanks for a well put together presentation!

[Hamaround]

I too had no idea how many models there were. Glad you liked it.

[Organgrinder010]

Very nice! I know some of those organ's personally, from the NYCfarmboy site. :)

[Hamaround]

It took a while to get pictures of all the models. Lots of info on the tonewheel organs and their time line but not much after that. It was fun, but proves once again I have way too much time on my hands!