The Organ Forum

I need to add contacts to a Conn 651 so I can run a set of orchestra bells and midi devices. Since I will be laying out a PC board for the contacts and MIDI output, I am wondering if there is any interest from other people for this? The hard part is designing the board, but not too hard to add aditional types of inputs. While I could design it for just what I need, is there an interest in a midi input board that can handle optical, magnetic, +12 or positive and negative keying?

If anyone is interested, let me know as I'll be designing the board in the next month. I know there are few choices for adding midi to pipe and electronic organs and I didn't like what I found, so I decided to do my own. I designed Digital Pipes years ago; a MIDI interface for Z-Tronics and even parts for bowling alley pinsetters which means I have done board and interface work so I'm not a "newbie" trying something for the first time. So it I'd like to know what people might want so I can design a versatile board that will do whatever depending on what parts it is populated with. I'm thinking of a 32 contact board that would run a percussion or could be butted end to end for a keyboard or run wires to the "whatever" contacts on a pedal board.

Any opinions on contact types? Magnetic? Hall effect? Optical? Standard organ wiper contacts?

I'd like to make boards available to budget minded people like me and you can assemble them yourself (the more boards I make at a time, the cheaper they are). Like I said, I know the midi choices are few and not much available for adding into an organ (I've been reading the other posts).

 

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Digital Pipes
http://pstos.org/instruments/wa/seattle/lajko.htm

Sounds like something I might be interested in.  I have an Allen MOS-2 that could use MIDI output and/or input (preferably output).  Would the boards you design also contain stop changes, etc.?

I think there are already such boards on the market.  How would your boards (other than being custom-built) be different?  DIY?

Thanks for making the option available to us.

Michael

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Allen Organs (505-B & ADC-6000), Frazee Pipe Organ (2/13 w/chimes),
Pump Organs (Estey, Sears & Roebuck, Mason & Hamlin, Chicago Cottage, Williams & Sons, Angelius, Cornish)
Pianos (Ivers sq. grand ca.1865, Ivers & Pond Upright-1929, Technics SX-PR600)

Well, I'm still in the early design and a month away from finalizing the schematic and moving into the physical board design. What would you be needing or wanting in the stop change area?

I'm looking at positive and negative keying possible as well as 5 to 12 volts so it could work with old pipe organs relays, solid state organ relays, Z-Tronics  or a set of add-in contacts. That's why I wonder if there is a preference is what people normally use: mechanical contacts, optical, magnetic or? 

Midi input to an existing organ is next to impossible unless it has 1 contact per key DC keying. With that, small relays can parallel the contact. If it is simple digital type keying, then driver ICs could mimic the key press. With something like my Conn 651, midi input is not possible. You have something like 8 contacts per key, each doing analog switching so tying into that is impossible.
 

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Digital Pipes
http://pstos.org/instruments/wa/seattle/lajko.htm

The Allen MOS series has multiplexed keying.  I made and sold a few midi adapters for that series organ.  Relatively easy to install.  For mechanical keying like piano or tracker,  Midi9 is a strip sensor that mounts under the keyboard.  For DC keying Artisan uMidi component system is an excellent, inexpensive and easy to program system which includes stoptab control and is expandable,  That's what I am using for pipe and swell shutter control added to my newer model Allen organ.   It has Midi in as well as out so midi files can play the organ and control the stoptabs as well.   I will be linking the pistons to the pipe stoptab capture system, again using Artisan components.