From rdobda@yahoo.com Tue Oct 05 17:04:14 2004
Subject:Hammond XK-3 + Leslie 2101


The Hammond XK-3

I've had quite an experience to date long since I first purchased
my
XK-3 back on 7-8-2004. However, the story really begins long before
that…

I'd played the Hammond XK-2 back in 1998, and my first impression
was out of sight. However, at the time, I went with the Alesis QS7
for its versatility of instrumentation. I still use the QS7 for its
decent Rhoads/Wuri/Clav-like sounds. However, through the years,
I'd
found weak spots in its organ sounds. I knew it was time to upgrade.

The concept of the Hammond organ seemed so much more flexible than
the "stock" organ sounds that came with digital keyboards. In
college, I had a Hammond M-101 spinet. Due to the nature of an
instrument being used and abused from the 1960's into the late
90's,
it went out of commission before graduation. However, I remember the
sound it had. The concept of taking that thing and building a
digital version, including all of the nuances of tonewheels,
overtones, vibrato, and the infamous Leslie Tone Cabinet was very
interesting.

This past spring, I test drove my friend's Roland VK-8. I was
quite
impressed. He tried hooking it up to his 70's Leslie, but it was
crackling (damn 30 year old electric instruments), so we used the
built-in simulator. The overall experience was a good one. The VK-8
also had the fat sound that comes from slight overtone distortion. I
knew I had to purchase a Clonewheel organ. I went to the instrument
store and checked out the Korg CX-3. I was very impressed with the
sound, but I didn't really like the interface. The buttons seemed
quite unnatural compared to the VK-8. The VK-8 was pretty analog-
like, and therefore, easy to navigate. If the CX-3 had a knob to
change values, it would be better ergonomically. Of course, I'd
also
played the XK-2 in the past. The advantage the CX-3 to the other two
was its two sets of drawbars. You see, I have a Casio (my first
keyboard, a 14-yr birthday present) with MIDI out. I needed to bring
it out of retirement.

At about the same time (this spring), the XK-3 was released. It too
had two sets of drawbars. It also had a knob to change values plus a
whole lot more. However, I'd never played the XK-3. Nobody
stocked
it around here. So, I did as much possible homework I could do
without actually playing it (worthless stuff like listening to
comparison mp3's over pc speakers). Then, I took a leap of faith
and
bought it here in Cleveland from Gerard's. It's been several
months
and I've been playing it religiously (as well as utilizing it in
the
band) since then. Here is a combined story about this nice
instrument, as well as the highs and lows of my experience with it.
Bottom line: I'm glad I've got it (along with my Leslie 2101).

Remember, the ultimate goal is to reliably reproduce the original
analog beast, but improve it by adding goodies like portability and
flexibility that come with a digital instrument. There are two
aspects with which we need to be concerned:

1. Musician/User Interface
2. Sound

Remember, we are dealing with an instrument here. You need to be
able to play it. The interface to the XK-3 is better than any other
Clonewheel organs I've played (noted above). It is the most
natural
of all. It took the native layout of the old analog Hammond
(including the reverse keys—you can't tell me it's easier
to press a
tiny button than a reverse key). It also has the native vibrato
knob, along with prominent buttons for all the other stuff. I use my
Alesis sustain pedal as a Leslie switch and my Roland pedal for
volume (I set the overdrive before the expression, but you can put
expression first). To this solid foundation for the Hammond, they
added digital features that made it better. The LCD readout is
pretty inclusive. It shows you the values of each drawbar so you can
catch up with the preset by looking at the screen (i.e. when you
change to a different one and the physical drawbars are not
aligned). It's all ergonomics!

Sticking with the essence of the original analog beast, the XK-3
includes the concept of tonewheels. There are 96-different "sine-
wave-like" tones arranged chromatically from really low to really
high, then staggered across the drawbars. The drawbars are set up so
pulling them in or out results in different overtones being more
prominent. Overtones are what make up the sounds of an instrument.
The reason a trumpet sounds different from a saxophone is because of
overtones. On the Hammond, you build various sounds by adding
overtones to a fundamental pitch. The drawbars are the first step in
this process.

The concept of overtones is quite intriguing. I also play the
saxophone. Let's say I blow a low C on the tenor saxophone. The
major tone that comes out of this is a concert Bb. A low C on a
tenor sax is made up of a fundamental "sine-wave" that with a
pitch
of concert Bb (116.54 Hz), plus a bunch of overtones (each sine
waves themselves, but with less amplitude) on top of the fundamental
sine wave which make it sound like a saxophone (instead of a sine-
wave).

On saxophone, it is possible to switch between the different
harmonics that make up the concert Bb. Changing the airstream from
my lungs through the horn by altering my throat and tongue
emphasizes different overtones that make up the overall sound coming
from the horn. From the low C, I can next play a C one octave above.
Those two C's are represented by the first and third drawbars on
the
Hammond organ. Next, I can go up to the next G. This is the 2nd
drawbar on the Hammond (between the other two). After that on my
horn is the high C (fourth drawbar). Then, I can hit up the next G
(fifth), then the C (sixth), and on and on (only with what they
call "altissimo" on the horn, because it is out of the normal
range
available when relying on the keys to control which overtones are
emphasized rather than just use your throat/tongue). Note that
saxophone overtones are slightly different than Hammond overtones
because the Hammond organ is a "well-tempered" instrument,
but
that's another can of worms.

Anyway, the XK-3's got it covered in this regard. It all comes
down
to mathematics. The concepts of the original organ are intact. On
top of this and other original Hammond concepts like the percussion,
the XK-3 has many goodies.

Most notable is the fact that you can change tonewheel sets. The
organ comes with a completely different tonewheel set that does a
pretty damn good job of reproducing the Vox organ. I've always
been
a huge Doors fan, and this bonus was one that I was pleasantly
surprised to find. The Vox had drawbars too. However, the XK3 has
overtones that the Vox doesn't, so you now have yet another
dimension (in addition to overdrive and reverb).

The reverb is out of sight, including delay and reverse delay (try
that on for size, 70's beast!). I can even change the
"demo" button
to be used as a leslie on/off so I can do it with my right hand. It
also has a pitch bender that you can set up to mathematically bend
the pitch (like turning off the motor). The only questionable thing
I find is the modulator wheel. I have yet to find a use for it.

The ergonomics are great. On top of this (or, I guess under it),
adding second keyboard is a snap. The lower keyboard can not only
act as a lower tier, but you can layer the bass drawbars on to the
sound if you don't have a pedal board (these are more complex
waveforms, each consisting of more than a mere sine-wave). The only
shortcoming in this regard is the fact that unlike the original B-3,
when adding a 2nd tier, you can't turn off the vibrato on only
one
tier. Vibrato is either on or off for the entire instrument. This
sucks in terms of the ultimate goal of analog beast reproduction,
but it's not a show-stopper for me.

The other side of the coin is the sound. My Alesis QS-7's
rendition
of the organ was that it had a noticeable (by me) dead spot…right
where I most liked to jam out! No such thing on the XK3. The only
incontrovertible item in this regard is that it seems as though
there is actually a "loud spot" that goes from high-E on up.
For
example, 888000000 played on the high E is noticeably louder than
008880000 played one octave lower. Following the tonewheel concept,
there should be no difference here. I never noticed on my old
Hammond, but I would guess that these should logically sound at
exactly the same level with no dB difference. Anyway, I guess it
works out fine when I'm jamming out and I need to cut through the
rest of the band on a solo and I'm trying to scream.

The one big topic that goes hand-in-hand with the Hammond organ
sound is the Leslie cabinet. When I first got the XK-3, I was
somewhat bummed by the overall sound of the instrument. It had the
original licked in terms of the ergonomics, but the 1-dimensional
nature of the simulated Leslie through a single keyboard amp was no
comparison. I also had this feeling that it didn't have
enough "balls." It was almost as if the XK3 did a
"better" job of
the Vox than it did as a true Hammond. I then played it through a
Leslie 2101 and saw the light.

No matter what you get out of your keyboard, the sound reaches your
ears via a speaker. There is no comparison between a standard
keyboard amp and a real Leslie. First of all, the thing is spinning.
However, even when in brake mode, there are nuances to the sound
that go beyond the mere spinning that I don't feel are reliably
reproduced with a simulator. The sound is getting pumped through a
horn which changes the dynamic. Also, the Leslie 2101 includes
additional overdrive, which allows you to push additional harmonics
into the mix on top of those provided by the on-board tube amp (not
to mention the finite control of horn speed and direction).

I decided to try one out. Like the XK-3, nobody had the Leslie, so I
had to drive to Toledo to some dude's shed to buy one (he is
legit
though, I got to jam on some nice analog Hammonds as well as the New
B-3 for comparison). I was convinced when I realized the sound was
much closer to the original through a Leslie. However, the next day,
I had problems. The horn would cut out. I didn't want to drive
another 4-hour round trip for repairs, so I shipped it to Hammond in
suburban Chicago. Their service (Ray) was definitely on top of
things. I was in contact with the actual people working on it via
phone lots of times and I was without it for only 1 week.

When I got it back, that issue was resolved. But, the motor/belt
assembly was noticeably noisier when rotated in the normal direction
than in reverse. I called them again and realizing I was unfortunate
enough for this to happen, they offered to send me a new one so I
could send the lemon back (Leslie-less for 0 days, now that's
service). However, I had to wait a couple weeks because they were
awaiting a shipment from Japan. No matter, the minor inconvenience
was short-lived, and I was able to play through it well enough
(though my new one is much quieter).

The Leslie 2101 is pretty much the treble half of the Leslie sound.
It includes the infamous horn, and it also pushes out some decent
mid-range. It is considered a 150-watt amp, but my 100 watt
Yorkville blows it out of the water as far as power. I use that as
the "bass" part of the sound, which is directed out from the
Leslie
via ¼ jack after it is separated from the treble, which goes
through
the spinning horn. The benefit of the Leslie was that it came with
an 11-pin interface that allows me to use the Hammond to control the
speed and braking of the horn. Some Clonewheel organs (and even
rotating speakers) do not include this interface. The other beauty
is that I can turn off the Leslie (for the Vox sound) and listen to
it purely through my Yorkville Y100K (stationary mode). This is all
done via the buttons on the organ.

Anyway, I'm $3000 poorer, but the XK-3 ($2k) and Leslie 2101
($1k)
were worthy additions to my rig. There is nothing quite like the
sound of the Hammond organ coming out of the Leslie cabinet. This
setup (along with a decent keyboard amp for the lows and a
controller keyboard for the lower tier), won't let you down
unless
you are in a band where your guitar player cranks 50dB above you
(fortunately, I am not).

One final personal ergonomic matter is the distance between the
lower and upper tiers. I built myself a wooden stand to allow zero
space between the controller and the Hammond. This minimizes the
space between the two manuals (key beds). No issue here. I even put
my Alesis QS7 on top of the Hammond (with a minor addition to my
stand for extra support).

russ