Hammond Notes

Laurens Hammond and his invention

History

Invented by Laurens Hammond in 1934

• Inventor
• Cornell graduate
• Invented a clock using a synchronous motor - making it reliable on varying AC current

Organ was one of a list of ideas for use of motors

How It Works

Tone Wheels - generation of tones

Additive Synthesis - combing tones in harmonic sequence

Drawbars - mixing the harmonics

Presets

Key Click - the sucessful defect

Effects

• Percussion
• Vibrato

Speakers

Models

Consoles - A, B, C, D, E

Spinets - M, L, T

Interesting Links

Wikipedia's Hammond entry - hey, what else do you need?

Theatre Organs - Hammond FAQ - really good info on the Hammond AND the Leslie.

Technical Information for Hammond Tone Wheel Organ - copied directly from the service manual.

Hammond as in Organ - the Laurens Hammond Story - from an unpublished book written in 1972.