I think I'm in Paradise!

[dalangdon]

Over the weekend, we upgraded our electronic organ to a Kimball "Paradise"!

It's one of those campy-as-hell, florid style organs with all the fun built-in rhythmns (samba, beguine, etc) and "magic chords".

While I can read music, I never took piano lessons, so it's a fun, easy way to play music that sounds halfway decent. Plus, there's always loads of Kimball sheet music out there on eBay, so you don't get stuck trying to play the same few songs over and over with only a variation on the rhythym.

My best friend's kids love it as well, just as I loved playing with my Aunt's Kimball when I was a kid. That's why we put it in the basement ;-)

 

[jasonl]

Back to the 70s

Oh yeah, I so wanted one when I was a kid. Love those lounge-lizard sounding drum beats and everything.

 

[kevinpreston8]

My dad's project

You may find this interesting.

Anyone remember Schober organs?

My dad built a Schober organ in 1971/72. It is their "theater organ" and he still has it. It came in a kit, and it was electronic but no ICs. Dozens of circuit boards which had to be soldered together. It came in cases of resistors, capacitors, books, an amp, a woofer and two smaller speakers. My dad did not even opt for the finished wood option and stained all the wood himself.

He finished it and we played on it for years. Our previous organ had been a little Magnus, nothing like Dan's Kimball, more like a glorified harmonica.

Anyways, the Schober did not have the "percussion section" which had the "stops" but they didn't do anything. It does have a complete, slide in pedal "clavier" that is the only thing not working now. My dad has threatened to fix the organ for 10 years, but the pedals still don't work. The pedals are all fitted, polished wood. As in real wood...there is no veneer on anything.

The most bizarre option was called a "Reverb-a-tape". This was a continuous big loop of tape. As you played, it recorded what you played and played it back almost immediatly...in other words, a playback head right next to the record head. The result was a supposed concert hall effect. I always wanted him to add this option and the percussion section, but it never happened.

Very strange, interesting stuff. What I liked about it the most is that it got my dad to stop blasting those terrible pipe organ records he would listen to.

 

[toggleswitch]

You work that organ, boy.

Can't tell, but does it have foot pedals/keys as well?

 

[dalangdon]

Toggle, it has foot pedals, but with the "Magic Chord" feature, who needs 'em? ;-)

It also has sort of a "wah-wah" lever that you play with your knee.

 

[petek]

Yay! I gave mine up for the move and took it to the Mennonite Thrift shop. I'd had it for nearly 30 years and was sad to let it go but it weighed a ton. Nice thing was it had a real Leslie speaker built in with tremolo's and celeste that could switch with the main speakers or solo. Wonderful full organ sound. Ah well. I've already seen about 3 for sale in junk/thrift stores here already but nothing yet I would bring home. I'm still hoping a decent Gulbransen will pop up or a better Hammond. Dan. just out of interest check inside the expression pedal on the sides to see if there's a footswitch for vibra something.. unless that knee switch on yours might be the same thing.. mine was in the pedal like most Hammonds have.

 

[frigilux]

Very nice! It's as colorful as a bag of jelly beans.

 

[scott55405]

Very fun! I remember these were huge in the 1970s, really the thing to have.

...there's basements in Seattle? Who knew!

 

[dalangdon]

Oh, we have basements....

At least the older houses do. But they usually have things like submerged creeks under them (like a house I lived in that had to have the washer/dryer up on blocks because of that) or are somewhat torqued due to seismic activity (like our current house - everthing has sagged forward since the 1965 earthquake)

We're high and dry, but somewhat askewed ;-)