Got to play a real Wurly for the first time this week...

[Doerfler]

At my college there were student wurli's in every dorm building.

 

I just saw one for sale last week at a music store in Ashvlle, NC. Can't remember the name of the place, it's a block away from the Moog factory. They were asking US $4000.00 for one of those models.

[Art-0252]

As a musician in my mid- twenties it's mind boggling to think that there was a time when Rhodes and Wurlys were just common practice instruments instead of the highly-sought-after coveted classics they've become today. I've been wishing for a real Rhodes or Wurlitzer for years now ( and scanning Craiglist for one in decent shape constantly just to have someone beat me to it when there occasionally is a listing in my area) , but a recent encounter in a local music studio made me rethink my idolization of the rhodes at least. I got invited to check out this awesome music studio where I live a few weeks ago which has all of the instruments I've ever dreamed of playing : A wurli 200a, Mk1 Stage Rhodes, Hammond B3 with a Leslie, Clavinet, Juno 106, Prophet 5 etc. It has been a dream come true getting to know the owner and getting to play some of these instruments that I had only played the vst or Nord emulations of. That being said, the action on the Rhodes is nothing like what I thought it would be: sluggish and clacky, similar to the fatar tp/100 action I hated on my old studiologic keyboard. It's made me wonder, are vintage electric pianos really worth the high prices they go for nowadays and the upkeep necessary to maintain them? Is the experience of playing the real thing really as sublime as some of us younger idealists picture it to be ( compared to say when I play keyscape with the action on my CP88) ?

[zxcvbnm098]

As a musician in my mid- twenties it's mind boggling to think that there was a time when Rhodes and Wurlys were just common practice instruments instead of the highly-sought-after coveted classics they've become today. I've been wishing for a real Rhodes or Wurlitzer for years now ( and scanning Craiglist for one in decent shape constantly just to have someone beat me to it when there occasionally is a listing in my area) , but a recent encounter in a local music studio made me rethink my idolization of the rhodes at least. I got invited to check out this awesome music studio where I live a few weeks ago which has all of the instruments I've ever dreamed of playing : A wurli 200a, Mk1 Stage Rhodes, Hammond B3 with a Leslie, Clavinet, Juno 106, Prophet 5 etc. It has been a dream come true getting to know the owner and getting to play some of these instruments that I had only played the vst or Nord emulations of. That being said, the action on the Rhodes is nothing like what I thought it would be: sluggish and clacky, similar to the fatar tp/100 action I hated on my old studiologic keyboard. It's made me wonder, are vintage electric pianos really worth the high prices they go for nowadays and the upkeep necessary to maintain them? Is the experience of playing the real thing really as sublime as some of us younger idealists picture it to be ( compared to say when I play keyscape with the action on my CP88) ?

 

The experience of playing a Wurlitzer, Hammond and Clavinet will be an enlightening experience. The others..potential less so.

 

I've played many a Rhodes, and owned and played one for several years when that was what you had. In my experience, most sucked, a handful sucked slightly less, and one or two played fairly nicely. To be honest, in the day you (or at least I) just put up with it and didn't think much about it. My recollection was I was more concerned with getting the gain up (I had a Stage 73 that had super low gain) and trying to get a decent amplified sound that wasn't muddy. The action was what it was. Plus, I only knew one other player that had a Rhodes....I didn't know enough people to even have those conversations or play more than a couple of others back then.

[drawback]

Great question, and the reply was pretty much what I was in the process of posting.

[confidence]

Yeah. The magic in the sound of some of these instruments is undeniable, but the practicalities of keeping them in reliable playing shape were a PITA. I had a Rhodes, also back in the day, that had one note insanely brighter than all the others. It was the B over middle C. I fiddled and fiddled with it, changed the tine position all over the place, damped various things etc. but for some reason was never able to fix it. No internet for finding stuff out in those days, and I didn't know anyone techy near me for advice.

 

Eventually I just learnt to play solos without that note in them.

[bennyray]

Yeah. The magic in the sound of some of these instruments is undeniable, but the practicalities of keeping them in reliable playing shape were a PITA. I had a Rhodes, also back in the day, that had one note insanely brighter than all the others. It was the B over middle C. I fiddled and fiddled with it, changed the tine position all over the place, damped various things etc. but for some reason was never able to fix it. No internet for finding stuff out in those days, and I didn't know anyone techy near me for advice.

 

Eventually I just learnt to play solos without that note in them.

 

Same here put I put a guitar string on my clav back in the day

[mate stubb]

Playing a real Clavinet or Wurly is in fact sublime (assuming they aren't beaters.) That's because the action is unique to those instruments and has a major influence on how you play it. The clavinet action is so shallow, fast, and sensitive to your touch. Cranked thru a guitar amp you can make the strings sustain and feed back, and the cabinet is slightly microphonic so you can treat it like a percussion instrument, much like a Hammond.

[MathOfInsects]

My first "professional" keyboard was a rented Wurlitzer that we'd get for our gigs in jr. high and high school. I guess at some point in high school I must have gotten my own keyboard because I remember going off to college with one. One thing that has always stuck with me with was the way the cabinet would vibrate when you'd play, which would transfer to the keys. I used to love that lo-fi rattle against my fingers. I wish they'd work haptic feedback into DP's the way they do cell phones.

[SamuelBLupowitz]

I had a festival gig yesterday and after reading this thread I was really tempted to bring my Wurlie out. I used to do that quite a bit pre-Covid. But, upon reflection, I was reminded of the last gig I took it out for when a reed went drastically flat and I couldn't pull it up to pitch. It was the D above middle C, so I had to ditch using it and scramble to replace it. I got over the urge to bring it out. ð

The one time I broke a reed onstage was at winery show on July 4th 2019. We opened the second set with a cover of David Bowie's "Young Americans," and the piano part largely relies on rhythmically hammered octave Cs in the right hand around the moving inner voicings. Hearing the C at the top of that octave gradually start to go flat over the course of the tune was hilarious enough to offset the inconvenience at the time.

[El Lobo]

Playing a real Clavinet or Wurly is in fact sublime (assuming they aren't beaters.) That's because the action is unique to those instruments and has a major influence on how you play it.

Yes, that's what I remember about playing my Wurly in the early 70's. I believe that the action specific to the Wurly influenced Ray Charles' playing on What'd I Say? That bass line feels the way it does because of the feel you get playing a Wurly â the feedback of the action and the sound. I've spent my life wanting to play it with the sound and feel of Ray Charles. But of course, I'm not Ray. There are some things in life we just have to accept.

[BluesB3]

... but I remember there was a 60-cycle hum or buzz issue to contend with. I seem to recall that some smart electrical people figured out how to tame that eventually, I don't know how.

 

The 200A solved this. For the 200, there's a hum shield you can get that sits above the pickups and hammers. Easy to install and it works.

 

ð

 

Try the Warneck 200A amp if you really want "studio" quiet.

[vonnor]

I just saw one for sale last week at a music store in Ashvlle, NC. Can't remember the name of the place, it's a block away from the Moog factory. They were asking US $4000.00 for one of those models.

Damn! Is that what they're going for now, Dave? I borrowed $400 from my dad back in 1979 for a used one. Sold it for the same amount 3 years later.

 

~ BC

[esfusion]

Purchased a transistor model Wurly 140 in 1960 with a battery pack that didn't require plugging in. Probably should have gone the tube amp route, as I had impedance issues connecting to external amps. Discovered Bob Moog designed the Wurly transistor amp and visited him in Trumansburg, NY for some troubleshooting. He was just building Theremins at that point. Later customized my unit with a Lowrey organo module with organ switches installed beneath the Wurly keyboard. Frequently played both the piano and the Organo at the same time which sounded a bit like a B3 on steroids.. While the Wurly could deliver a sweet sound when played gently, the best effect came with really thumping the keys for a soul-satisfying boink, especially through overdriven tube amps. None of the current simulations achieve the full boink effect, probably because the sound engineers are afraid of breaking the reeds of the pristine Wurly specimens they were sampling. A real shame. I remember lugging all 70 pounds of the Wurly up flights of stairs and, as others have recounted, performing reed surgery during gigs. Will always remember my Wurly girl.

[mate stubb]

Been happy with this one. Got a broken reed at the moment though LOL.

 

BTW, it cost $150 about 10 years ago. Very not bad.

 

http://www.hotrodmotm.com/images/hammond/shell59.jpg

[nadroj]

Regarding the action, I might get burned at the stake for this, but it was eerily similar to the Nord Electro 4 (SW) I had set up in the room next door. Just to try it out, I switched to a wurly sound once I was back at the Nord and was surprised at how close the feeling/sound was to the real one I'd just played. The real wurly just so very slightly slightly (a fraction, an iota, or as we say in Scotland, a bawhair) heavier, and less tightly sprung as well, obviously. Maybe the reason I liked it so much was because it reminded me of the keybed on the piano I grew up playing, which was an upright mini-piano with very light keys - it felt similar to that.

 

As others have said, the slight vibration from the amp added to the finger-ear connection. It was all round just a very enjoyable and smooth keybed to let your hands float over.

 

Saying that, having heard all of the stories about broken reeds and things going wrong, I'm quite content with having my Electro. It remains a close 2nd in terms of personal enjoyment, and is by far the closest feeling emulation to that particular studio wurly over any other keyboard with wurly sounds I've played.

[bennyray]

Imo a Nord E4 wurly sounds and feels nothing like the real Wurlitzer back in the day. I had one and know about the issues but don't get this twisted no comparison in sound and feel .Plastic keys vs reeds come on

 

Mic drop

[zxcvbnm098]

Been happy with this one. Got a broken reed at the moment though LOL.

 

BTW, it cost $150 about 10 years ago. Very not bad.

 

http://www.hotrodmotm.com/images/hammond/shell59.jpg

 

Damn...that is insanely clean! What's the backstory??

[mate stubb]

 

Damn...that is insanely clean! What's the backstory??

 

This piano is on semi permanent loan to me from my guitar player buddy. Another musician friend in the next town who owns a music store offered it to him at that price. I have no idea why, but we definitely didn't look the gift horse in the mouth.

[bjosko]

Is it original, or is it built into that case ? The legs seems like something from an italien inspired table because of the color, but the shape of them still reminds me of my old 200A as I remember them ( in another color), but it is also 40 year ago, my memory might be weaker.

[dodonnell]

Purchased my first Wurly 140 in 1965 for $150. Never knew if it would make it through a gig. Very noisy through the amplifier, especially if some dust got in the gap between the reed and the pickup. Had to get my father to drive me 20 miles to the only place that serviced it. An expensive proposition for a 15 year old making 50 cents an hour flipping burgers after school. Kept it for a year, then went through a series of organs: Elka, Esty, Gibson 101, Rheem. Got out of the USAF in 1972 and looked at the new, improved Wurly 200. The salesman at Glen Park Music in Gary Indiana said that the reeds never broke any more. He lied. Kept it for a year and got a Rhodes. The Rhodes had the same problem with the tines, but at least you could fix it during a gig, and didn't have to worry about the 300 volts of electricity around the Wurlitzer reeds. I would never own another Wurly. Just too many memories of being let down during a gig. And while I appreciate the reliability and versatility of my Korg PA4x, I understand the tactile feedback and tone provided by an electromechanical piano. My Yamaha CP70b fills that need, it's easy to get the occasional string for it, and the local piano tuner stops by once a year to tune it. Everyone should own a Wurly at least once, to understand its strength and its undeniable flaws.

 

Duane