From dsurkin@optonline.net Mon Jul 25 18:38:27 2011
Subject:Re: Crumar Mojo

In 1975, when I realized it was too difficult for me to move my M-3 chop (my father, an engineer, designed a wooden stand that looked good and was so sturdy it supported my Rhodes on top of the M-3), I looked into the Crumar organ. I decided upon the Hammond X-2 (hey Bobby, I bought it special order from Tom at Huntington). I admit that the Hammond name clinched it for me. They were both top-down-divider-circuit organs with similar sound and deficiencies (no Leslie sim, no overdrive, and frequency-modulation vibrato instead of a good scanner effect). The X-2 had only 49 keys, and its case was too rounded to stack easily.

Anyway, the X-2 through my Leslie 147 actually sounded okay on stage. I credit the over-driven Leslie more than the organ circuitry.

The Ace Tone GT-7 (Ace Tone became Roland) was far better in action, connectivity (built-in Leslie pre-amp!) and sound. It came out around 1978, I think.

So there were other clones around; they were just harder to find. Furthermore, the cover bands wanted keyboard players with a Rhodes, a string machine and a lead synthesizer (I wound up gigging with such a rig for about three years). There just wasn't a big market for clones back then.

--Dean L. Surkin