Earlier this week "J" got all excited on You Tube when he found a video clip of someone playing an elderly Technics GN9 organ - we all know what that is, right??? - but the sound coming from it was unmistakably that of the Wurlitzer organ in the Blackpool Tower Ballroom
To cut a long story short it turns out to bit a bit of technology coupling a Roland Fantom XR device with some theatre organ sample sound cards. It's amazing.

Does anyone happen to have experience of one of these sound expanders?

I have a feeling that one will appear in the house before TOOOO long and be coupled to my digital Eminent two manual classical organ.

Shan't complain. Must admit, I'm excited by the prospect.

Sorry to mention theatre organ ssshhhh on the V O Forum. Don't shoot me for witchcraft
Someone introduced themselves on here not so long ago, said he/she played theatre organ and classical organ, got welcomed by forum members and hasn't made a further appearance yet. Lurker?

From sunny cornwall and the trusty iPhone (another plug...)

I haven't experienced the specific hardware you mentioned, but I have played an Allen toaster which had an added box of tricks. There were sone theatre type tibia noises on this. It made for a very effective rendition of the karg-elert valse mignonne.

We've mentioned the gadget to an organist friend of ours who knows someone about 30 miles away who has one.

Now awaiting an invitation to go see hear.

The website if anyone is curious is "Total Transformation Technology"

GOT ONE

AMAAAAAAAAAZING !!!!

Hello All

I'm new to the forum. I saw the post on Theatre Organ in a Box - I'm the guy on YouTube with the Technincs GN9! If anyone requires any advice or assitance regarding TOIAB then I am more than happy to help.

Regards
Mark

Hi MCharman

May I be the first to welcome you to the forum - fellow Technics owner Hooray!!!

How long have you got!!

We bought a TOIAB two weeks ago from Reg Rawlings

Amazing sounds - love it!.

However, Reg installed it to work on my Eminent (not John Mann type Eminent!!) Classical digital organ, and it works fine - split keyboard, lower octave traps, etc., except that we cannot get the pistons on the organ to operate the box. I've a feeling that the MIDI on the Em. is too rudimentary. An Email to "Cathedral Organs" who supplied it has brought no response......!!

Now........we also have a Technics GA1 and are able to get the box on the upper manual with swell pedal control using the single manual patches.
If we put on the full combinations, it plays fine, but with NO swell pedal control (Reg said we might need a gadget from Canada for that)
What we really would like is for the panel memory pistons on the GA to select predetermined voices from the box. We are told it is perfectly possible (without buying a MIDI piston gadget) but can we configure the organ and the box to do this.....can we 'ell-as-like.

Any assistance - tips - advice most gratefully received.

The next stage will be to invite Reg and Mrs. round for lunch to sort it out. Fortunately he lives not too far away

but...........LOVE THAT TOIAB

pm me if you'd rather.

oh, yes. Sorry for referring to your GN9 as "elderly"

Hello

Can't really comment on the Em, as I don't have much experience there.

As for the GA1 you should be able to get the panel memory pistons to select any pre-determined combination. The usual way would be for the GA to tell the Fantom which combination to select. For example if you wanted the "mighty wurlitzter" which I think is combination 32 (if memory serves, cause I am not at home at the moment) then you need to program the GA to instruct the Fantom to select that combi
i/e 0-->33. It is 33 because the GA will have a "0" setting, so you would have to add an extra "1" to the combi that you want to select.

As for the swell - if you can get this to work with the single manual option, then I suspect that there is a way to make it work in combination mode. The best bet is to follow your own advice and ask Reg round. He is a top fellow and always very happy to help.

Hope this is some use?

Regards
Mark