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[compasspnt]

I have both a B-3 (used to be Emerson's) and an A-100.

I really like the A-100 best.  It's a 1961 that was almost never played before I got it.  Still has great "new organ" key spring.

I used to record Booker T all the time when the MG's were recording.  At Stax we had a B-3, and at Ardent an A-100.  Booker always said he liked my A-100 best.

Sounded pretty good to me.

But I don't know what the difference is between an A and an H.

The difference I see between the B and the A, is that the A has extra console speakers (useless most of the time), and also has reverb.

Get this beast Tik.

[Bill_Urick]

AO-28 wrote on Sun, 25 March 2007 23:32

The 122 and 147 Leslies are identical except for their amplifiers - and are totally incompatable with each other! - the 147 was designed for single ended organs and contains a preamp tube - the 122 is designed for the balanced output, high output console Hammonds (B3,C3,RT-3 etc.) so it has a balanced input which goes straight into the phase inverter - hence the missing preamp tube...

Close. The 147 is actually the one that's short a tube. In both amps one 12AU7 drives a pair of 6550's. The "extra" tube in the 122 is used to drive a DC relay for the motor switching. In the 147 the relay is AC switched.

[Barkley McKay]

One of the major differences of the H range (and L range) with the A,B,C and M series organs is that they do not have a true scanner vibrato system, but a compromise bulit on a tube circuit, which does not quite sound as good.
Also I think the H and L's have an auto-start/run motor on one switch, instead of the separate start and run switches. This was how Keith Emerson was able to do those effects with his "Beater" L-100.

Barks

[Fibes]

I have a friend who said he was just given a B5 and I can't find any info on one. BTW it's not the portable one.

I'm thinking it's either a rare and wondeful beast I've heard rumors about or he has some bad info.

[flanger_folly]

Barkley McKay wrote on Mon, 26 March 2007 06:05

One of the major differences of the H range (and L range) with the A,B,C and M series organs is that they do not have a true scanner vibrato system, but a compromise bulit on a tube circuit, which does not quite sound as good. Also I think the H and L's have an auto-start/run motor on one switch, instead of the separate start and run switches. This was how Keith Emerson was able to do those effects with his "Beater" L-100. Barks

Yeah, that is how the L is setup... have one in my living room!

[Greg Dixon]

Barkley McKay wrote on Mon, 26 March 2007 21:05

One of the major differences of the H range (and L range) with the A,B,C and M series organs is that they do not have a true scanner vibrato system, but a compromise bulit on a tube circuit, which does not quite sound as good. Also I think the H and L's have an auto-start/run motor on one switch, instead of the separate start and run switches. This was how Keith Emerson was able to do those effects with his "Beater" L-100. Barks

I don't know about the latter variations, but my H100 definitely has the scanner vibrato. It's not working properly and I need to find a replacement. The H100s were actually meant to be an improvement on the B3. It has the larger, removable bass pedals, more percussion voices and extra drawbars.

Yes, it only has the one power switch.

[Barkley McKay]

Oops, you're right there!

Still a slightly different system though, as it is a double rotor scanner. According to the "Beaty in The B" this was an attempt to simulate the Leslie with a two-phase vibrato fed to two preamps and two treble spaekers in the cabinet. This complex design actually made it unreliable.
And according to Harvey Olsen (in the book) people still asked how to hook up a Leslie!

barks

[Tomas Danko]

Hey guys, this whole thread has made me dream that I played my L100P last night.

I did enjoy it, haven't done so in well over a year!

[theo mack]

compasspnt wrote on Sun, 25 March 2007 21:24

I have both a B-3 (used to be Emerson's) and an A-100. I really like the A-100 best.  It's a 1961 that was almost never played before I got it.  Still has great "new organ" key spring. I used to record Booker T all the time when the MG's were recording.  At Stax we had a B-3, and at Ardent an A-100.  Booker always said he liked my A-100 best. Sounded pretty good to me. But I don't know what the difference is between an A and an H. The difference I see between the B and the A, is that the A has extra console speakers (useless most of the time), and also has reverb. Get this beast Tik.

I cant find the link right now, (will add it later) but I remember coming across one of the organ freak sites saying " the best B3 is actually a A-100". It went into depth on the similarities to the B-3.

[Greg Dixon]

Barkley McKay wrote on Tue, 27 March 2007 17:45

Oops, you're right there! Still a slightly different system though, as it is a double rotor scanner. According to the "Beaty in The B" this was an attempt to simulate the Leslie with a two-phase vibrato fed to two preamps and two treble spaekers in the cabinet. This complex design actually made it unreliable. And according to Harvey Olsen (in the book) people still asked how to hook up a Leslie! barks

That's right, it definitely doesn't sound like a Leslie.... even when it is working properly! I keep the volume on the internal speakers right down and only use the Leslie.

[Tim Padrick]

The only difference between an A-100 and a B-3 is the cabinet, and the addition of amps, speakers, & reverb in the A100.  The C-3 also has the same guts as the B-3.  The RT-3 is the same as the B-3, but with some pedal extras.

A 147 amp can be converted to a 122 fairly easily - change the relay, add a tube socket, and change some resistors and capacitors.  I've done several.

[rankus]

Die BREMSSPUR wrote on Fri, 23 March 2007 00:28

He said that the preamp and distortion is what gives John Lord his sound, as well as of course, John Lord. tik

Hey Tik... if yer goin for that John Lord sound plug the Hammond into a Marshall guitar stack...  (IIRC that's the key to his sound)

In fact I had some luck routing the Native Instruments B4 into Amplitube pluggin ... Not John Lord, but reminiscent of his sound.

We have an L105 ?  that we got for free... fun to tinker with.

[rankus]

PS:  Speaking of oil and tonewheels, you should be aware that the tonewheels have little oiling cups that you need to add oil to periodically ...   Perhaps someone can let us know what type of oil is required... (Ours came with a liter jug of oil that will last a lifetime, so I have no idea what type of oil it is)

[Barkley McKay]

My Hammond came with 3 little vials of the stuff. Similar to Singer sowing machine oil.

you can get it easily from Goff Professional:

http://www.goffprof.com/shopping.jsp?p=39

They need oiling at least once a year. The same oil can also be used on the leslie as well.

barks

[Joe Black]

I oil my Model D and dust out the spiders once a year.

Now if anyone knows what kind of oil you put in an oil can reverb, please say so.