Hybrid Organ

[gangalf]

We are a church and have a limited budget.

We are looking at renovating our console. We have a 8 rank pipe organ.

Our builder has offerered 2 options:
1-adding a 4 rank wind chest
2-creating a hybrid using a Viscount Prestige-70 with 7 of our existing ranks of pipes.

Both options will cost us the same.

Any thoughts or advice.

[Krummhorn]

Hi gangalf - Welcome to Magle International Music Forums.

This should make for an interesting poll, but before I vote, a couple questions come to mind, if only for my own clarification:

1. seating capacity of church,
2. how many digital ranks would the Viscount have,
3. what are the existing 8 ranks and,
4. what would the additional 4 ranks be.
5. which rank gets eliminated if you add digital voices?

Thanks

[gangalf]

1-Seating capacity of church: 400

2-Digitial Ranks: 34

3-Current Ranks:
Stopped Flute 8'
Principal 8'
Gamba 8'
Celeste 8'
Dulciana 8'
Oboe 8'
Diapason 8' (only unique Great division pipes today)
Bourdon 16' (only unique Pedal division pipes today)

4-Additional 4 ranks (can be changed) Would form the Great Division:
Principal 4'
Flute 16'
Dulciana 8'
Mussette 8'

5-If we went hybrid we would elimate the celeste rank only and the existing pipe work would form the Great division.

Of our current 32 stops - 10

[gangalf]

1-Seating capacity of church: 400

2-Digitial Ranks: 34

3-Current Ranks:
Stopped Flute 8'
Principal 8'
Gamba 8'
Celeste 8'
Dulciana 8'
Oboe 8'
Diapason 8' (only unique Great division pipes today)
Bourdon 16' (only unique Pedal division pipes today)

4-Additional 4 ranks (can be changed) Would form the Great Division:
Principal 4'
Flute 16'
Dulciana 8'
Mussette 8'

5-If we went hybrid we would elimate the celeste rank only and the existing pipe work would form the Great division.

Of our current 32 stops - 10 of them are based on the Stopped Flute 8'.

[Krummhorn]

Hi gangalf

Thanks for posting the stop list info and answering the other questions .
Seems as though adding the digital voices would round out the timbre of the organ nicely. My church organ is 9 rks - I've been trying to convince the parish to augment it with digital voices for over 10 years ... the wheels of progress in a church do turn ever so slowly. We will be interested on any follow-up information on the decisions being made and which direction your church decides to go. Keep us posted, ok?

[mrg]

Hi Gangalf

This is a hot topic for me because at my church we have made the decision to go with a hybrid solution to extend our existing 2 manual pipe organ, which completely lacks reeds and mutations. We have agreed a spec and price using the digital system from Phoenix Organs. I went to listen to a hybrid installation using this system and it was almost impossible to tell which were the digital versus the real pipes. The price is extremly reasonable too.

We still need to get approval though from the diocesan organ advisor before we can proceed.

I'd be happy to share some of the detailed notes I've prepared during the course of this project. Let me know if you'd like me to email these to you.

Martin