Is it worth buying a real Hammond?

[Jim Alfredson]

I'm picking up an A100 for free next week. Got my '74 B3 with a 122 Leslie for free. Got my '58 B3 for $20. I've scored many A100s for free or under $400. Got a BCV for $400 once. A CV with a 31H for $400 and a C2 for $200.

 

Just got to keep your eyes and ears open and scour the classifieds.

[CrimsonianKing]

I'm picking up an A100 for free next week. Got my '74 B3 with a 122 Leslie for free. Got my '58 B3 for $20. I've scored many A100s for free or under $400. Got a BCV for $400 once. A CV with a 31H for $400 and a C2 for $200.

 

Just got to keep your eyes and ears open and scour the classifieds.

 

Jim, i need your address!

[Rphende76]

Good morning all!

 

      My advice echoes a few others: If you can afford an M3, grab one. Don’t chop it, it won’t subtract any meaningful amount of weight. Keep it home, learn technique on it, refurbish what’s needed: replace the felts, possibly rebuilt the vibrato scanner, etc (if needed).  
 

   For gigging: use what you’ve learned by playing to find a tone on a clone that is close AND get your hands on a real Leslie. It’s incredible how even some lousy clones can sound through a real Leslie. 
 

that growl (distortion) you’re looking for? It comes a couple of ways. I added a 1/4 out by installing a Trek II product that has a volume knob.  When you run a line out of the organ and into a speaker / Leslie, you can achieve any level of growl you like by turning up the volume on the organ and adjusting the amplifier on your speaker/Leslie.  
 

regards!

 

 

 

[Rphende76]

I’d also like to add, respectfully, an A100, B3, C3....M3 all have the same Tone Wheel, percussion, vibrato.  In terms of the A, B, C series...the difference is the furniture (wood style).  A Hammond A100 is a wonderful instrument that in some ways has more then B3, for instance, internal speakers!  
 

 

 

[lightbg]

Nothing like resurrecting a zombie thread for some light reading on a Sunday morning🤦‍♂️

[Doerfler]

[Dave Bryce]

So cool reading this thread, especially since I've become an A100 owner since it was originally started.  A fine reminder why it was essential to save all of MPN's history.

 

To that end, thank goodness for finally having a decent search engine.

 

dB

 

 

[Shamanczarek]

My first Hammond was an M-3 which I bought in 1971. Back then they were worth more and I had to pay almost $1000 for it. I got two new Leslie 147s with preamp pedal for a little less than I paid for the organ.

I sold the M-3 when I got a C-3 a few years later. Then went Hammond-less all through the 80s when polysynths took over. In the early 90s I got another C-3 for $200 but had to let it go for lack of a place to keep it.

 

In the 2000s I got an L-122 for cheap and then got an M-102A. Sold the L-122 when I got another C-3. Of the spinets the M-3 is most like a B-3. It has the same keys and similar tabs for vibrato and percussion. It only has one 12" speaker so doesn't sound so good without a Leslie. I liked the L-122 a lot. I think the cabinet looks the best of any of the L models. It is a simpler design without the mechanical chorus/vibrato but has the self-starting motor which Keith Emerson put to good use for his off-pitch theatrics in the L-102 model he favored. The internal amplifier  powers two 12" speakers using EL84 tubes like some popular guitar amps. The spring reverb in the one I had was the best I've ever heard.

 

I still have the M-102A. I like the 102 cabinet design a lot although if I could find one I would get the M-162. The M-102 has a separate reverb amp and speaker for a spatial effect. Even so the reverb in the L sounds way better.  The M-100 sounds the best of any spinet without a Leslie. The Celeste Chorus Vibrato is gorgeous sounding and not found on the console Hammonds. There are slight differences in the M-100 amplifiers from the early to later models. I think the M-102 came out later than the M-101 or M-111 models. In England the M-102 was very popular. There were no M-3s there so in the 60s the only spinet choices were L-100 or M-100. The M-102 was particularly popular because it could be purchased in a split cabinet model which was easier to transport. There were very few B-3s in England at the time so when a band got big enough to graduate to a console it was usually a C-3. Later in the 70s as many British bands became wealthier they often imported B-3s to England and spinets fell out of use for the most part.

[Adan]

My primary question would be, is there a reliable Hammond tech nearby?  Do they make housecalls?  Are they using a cane, or a walker?  Who is the next-nearest tech, and what's their cholesterol level?  Would they graciously accept the gift of a Peloton?  Does the third-nearest tech already have great-grandchildren?  Can they operate a GPS, or do they still drive while holding a map against the steering wheel?  

 

If I knew I had tech support, I would absolutely get a real Hammond because it's totally worth it.  Like owning a Steinway at a fraction of the cost.  For myself, having relocated during the pandemic, I still have to do my homework to figure that out.

[Outkaster]

Unless your doing 90% organ working gigging with the real thing isn't that practical.  It should be your main axe.

[obxa]

Real Hammonds are like convertibles, everyone should own one at least once in their life. 

 

We need a "where are they now"  update from the OP on what he ended up with!

 

 

[pinkfloydcramer]

After having to get an A100 up the front steps to my music room, no way in hell would I take it to gigs. There is one player in town who still does that on occasion though, and he's kept his  B3 and 122R looking nice.   

[Legatoboy]

The point about Tech's availability Adan brought up is real, especially for Console models (A/B/C etc).... especially for a 1st time Hammond owner..it does take time to learn the ins/outs of what has to be taken care of regularly and what to be careful of and keep an eye on...

 

But you may want to start looking for a M or L series Spinet as a starter Hammond and get your feet wet that way, that was my progression before owning my CV and then B3 and I would bet a lot of other folks and both those models can be bought in the $100 to $400 (USD) dollar range in many locals in the USA in good workable condition, sometimes they are 'free' just to be taken away.... still I would read up on the main maintenance points even for those models..(oiling routines, general technical overviews and design etc..) to learn the basics of care for the instruments or just talk to other players/owners .. Leslies, also... you don't have to be an electrical tech to know what to keep and eye on and be aware of for any of the models...as a player. 

 

[Delaware Dave]

Hammonds are in high demand even if not totally working.  The risk is low even if it breaks, you'll find a party to purchase as long as the organ is fairly priced.

[Outkaster]

I have known two techs that have died that were awesome and well known. Sal Azzarelli in Buffalo NY and John Schubarg in Syracuse NY.  Both did amazing work and died within 5 years of each other.  Guys at their level are very rare.  There are a lot of supposed techs out there that post on Facebook tech page all the time.  Just because you

can do something doesn't mean you should.

[uhoh7]

Don't forget the pedals!

 

I'm lucky to own a RT-3, which has the full church organ pedal set. You might not use them at first. But many roads trace back to great church music, of all stripes, Bach's chorales have been studied by keyboard players since he was around himself, and to this day are unmatched for harmonic complexity in short form. They are arranged to be sung, and are not that easy to play, but organists will usually play the bass on the pedals. 

 

Seems impossible at first but you keep at it and slowly it comes, and with great effect on a real hammond. 

 

Obviously they are not practical to take to a gig. Mozart and Beethoven were dragging their fortes to cutting contests over the VIenna cobblestones, as a matter of course. Our keyboards do that well, but in both cases if you have some space, the real thing is inspiring and often simpler to use