the Amazing Roland C-30
  • hartleymartin
    Posts: 1,447
    The best offer I have had is to come into the shop/showroom to play it and see what I think. At the price the local dealer is asking, it will be cheaper to buy from the UK or USA and ship it here.

    The Cantorum II is being sold a few place in England for about a third of the price of a new Cantorum VI here in Australia, and the Cantorum VI is about half the price. They could charge me 300 pounds for shipping and it would still work out cheaper, not to mention I can deduct 20% from the price for VAT (will probably have to pay the 10% GST here in Australia instead).

    I somewhat envy this guy who has both the Cantorum II and Cantorum VI on keyboard stands:
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=weX3glvhxqw

    If you have not seen it, this guy's set-up is exactly what I'd like to have:
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bk8CfTuqB04

    I'm becoming convinced that it is worth having this sort of set-up so I can take the Cantorum on it's own to retreats, masses, and other places that don't have an organ.
  • JulieCollJulieColl
    Posts: 2,465
    You might need a van or truck to haul all the parts, but this contraption is very impressive. Does it need an amp as well?
  • hartleymartin
    Posts: 1,447
    If done right, I reckon that I could put all the components into the back of a hatch-back with the rear seats down. I've transported a pedalboard and organ bench before. These take up the most room. I'd look into the possibility of designing a knock-down organ bench and some sort of stand for the two keyboards, though I would be using a 61-note keyboard and not the 88-note that appears to be used here.

    Designed properly, I could probably use some hollow steel or aluminium framing which would plug into the pedalboard, which would form part of the stand to set up the two midi keyboards. I imagine that I would have to carry a keyboard amplifier as well.

    However, the Cantorum VI with an amp and stand and maybe a small stool would be sufficient for smaller gigs such as retreats when I only have to play basic service music.

    Looking into the possibility of getting one shipped from the US or UK, as the local dealers are asking rediculous prices.
  • noel jones, aagonoel jones, aago
    Posts: 6,605
    Think before you leap. If you buy it out of the country the moment that you have a problem of any kind, the local people are going to tell you to get help from the UK. They have no responsibility for service on product purchased outside their territory. When they become a dealer, they agree to provide service - and that's part of what you pay for. Buy it from a foreign country and you are out of luck - even the manufacturer will tell you that. They, too, do not want "orphan" equipment not working right giving them a bad name.
  • hartleymartin
    Posts: 1,447
    Well, there is the advantage that they offered a no-interest repayment scheme of $500 down and $150 per month for two years. However, this would mean that I need to do at least an average of two gigs per month for the next two years to pay for it. I suppose I could always write it off as a business expense (purchase of equipment) if I effectively operate at a loss.
  • noel jones, aagonoel jones, aago
    Posts: 6,605
    I'd use a laptop with HW playing the free version and use the shareware/Prib organ for this before I'd go into debt....if you could just get a midi keyboard with touch that you like. I'd canvass organ tuners/repair people where you live for a used keyboard off a pipe organ that had tracker touch - then buy and wire in the MIDI interface and you are on your way - saving a lot of money.
  • hartleymartin
    Posts: 1,447
    The trouble is that I don't have a laptop powerful enough to cope with the requirements of hauptwerk, and to buy one will... well, by the time I buy that, the midi set-up, etc, it's starting to add up.

    On the up side, I am helping a friend to design and build his own Midi Organ Console with Hauptwerk, so I may change my mind. I am still rather attracted by the convenience of an all-in-one keyboard-organ unit though.
  • JulieCollJulieColl
    Posts: 2,465
    It's true that you need a powerful laptop for the Hauptwerk. I have an industrial-strength Dell M 4700, and we downloaded the trial version of Hauptwerk and set it up on my son's Yamaha workstation.

    Actually, my son did all the configurations. The result was pretty awesome, and he set it up so we'd have some good options even with 4 drawbars, but it's definitely an awkward set-up, to say the least, and I'd be reluctant to go into an actual performance with all those wires and machines. Talk about tempting fate, esp. with me at the controls! : )

    Another downside: the Hauptwerk download was definitely causing problems with my laptop but as soon as we uninstalled it, everything returned to normal.
  • Adam WoodAdam Wood
    Posts: 6,451
    you could, theoretically, buy "desktop" computer guts and rack-mount them. this could give you a cheaper way to get more powerful engine.
  • francis
    Posts: 10,668
    or you could buy a used small tracker...
    Thanked by 1Gavin
  • hartleymartin
    Posts: 1,447
    francis - Not many of those around in or near Sydney, Australia at a price comparable to an electronic or digital organ.

    I envy you guys in the USA and UK. I saw a listed on ebay in Milwaukee for a 9-stop practice instrument for $1500. If that came up in Australia, I'd jump on it like anything.
  • francis
    Posts: 10,668
    hartleymartin

    the next time you (or anyone else for that matter) sees a used small tracker in that price range, email me immediately, please!
  • hartleymartin
    Posts: 1,447
    This is the original listing:
    http://www.ebay.com/itm/Wicks-Pipe-Organ-/181159116142

    Looks like the seller pulled it from ebay having found a buyer elsewhere.

    If it helps, this one is $4,000 - and is designed to fit under a standard ceiling:
    http://www.ebay.com/itm/Holtkamp-Pipe-Organ-/281123631462
  • Adam WoodAdam Wood
    Posts: 6,451
    http://www.ebay.com/itm/Virtual-Pipe-Organ-Midi-Organ-Console-in-Rodgers-Organ-Cabinet-for-Hauptwerk/271222644615
  • hartleymartin
    Posts: 1,447
    Indeed, just to put things in perspective, you can get a heck of a lot more digital organ for the same price as one with real pipes...

    ... says the guy who has been buying pipes to build a home organ for the past 12 months and probably spent nearly $1,000 in the process...
  • francis
    Posts: 10,668
    wow, adam... that's a great find.
  • francis
    Posts: 10,668
    hartleymartin

    but your inviestment in a pipe organ can last hundreds of years and the digital will only last 100's of days... and artistically, there is no comparison... i'd rather have a two rank tracker than a 200 rank digital.
    Thanked by 1Gavin
  • hartleymartin
    Posts: 1,447
    Francis,

    I am encouraged by your words. I hope that my home-organ project will turn out a good little instrument, which in the future could go on long term loan to a small church or chapel somewhere.
  • francis
    Posts: 10,668
    hartleymartin

    How far is your project to date?
  • hartleymartin
    Posts: 1,447
    Just about to finalise the purchase of the pipes. I have about half the pipes in my garage, the rest are on their way from England. I have also purchased a vintage wood manual which I believe was part of an electronic organ at some stage. I got the manual to save the trouble of having to build all those fiddly parts.

    When I have all the pipes, they will have to be measured, and the windchest and casework will be designed around these. I plan to use the 8' Stopped Wood bass octave pipes to form the sides, and a selection of the metal pipes (probably the Tenor octaves of the 4' Principal and the 8' Gedact) will be used to form the facade.

    With nearly all of the largest pipes off-chest, I can probably keep the windchest reasonably small.
  • JulieCollJulieColl
    Posts: 2,465
    This is quite exciting, Hartley! Hope you can post some pictures as you go along.
  • francis
    Posts: 10,668
    Yes! We would love to see the progress and the end result!
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