Hammond Novachord at Sweetwater — Daniel Fisher

Daniel Fisher, Sweetwater’s full-time synth fanatic, gives an in-depth tour of the Hammond Novachord, which is widely regarded as the father of the modern polyphonic synthesizer. It debuted at the 1939 World’ Fair and featured 72-note polyphony, oscillators, filters, envelopes, and frequency modulation, which were used to craft its organic and otherworldly sounds. After a close look at all of the Novachord’s parameters and internal components, Daniel gives an impromptu performance while sweeping through all of the parameters’ values. Then, as an example of what it would sound like in modern times, Fisher plays the Novachord through an Eventide H9 Multi-Effects Processor. Only five fully restored Novachords are known to exist today. Joseph Fill and his son, Justin, poured more than 2,000 hours of work restoring this 1941 Hammond Novachord. They replaced countless components, rewired all the connections, and then cleaned and polished the internal and external surfaces by hand. Please feel free to contact Joe Fill if you wish to inquire about purchasing this beautifully restored piece of musical instrument history: [email protected] More info about the Eventide H9 multi-effects processor can be found at: http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detai... 0:00 – Intro 0:21 – Hammond Novachord Overview 0:51 – Novachord Refurbishing 1:18 – Novachord Performance (no FX) 6:55 – A Look Inside the Novachord 7:46 – Lifting Up the Inside Chassis 8:35 – Novachord Mechanical Vibrato 9:11 – Power Amp Tubes 9:22 – Novachord Into an Eventide H9 FX 9:35 – Novachord Performances (with FX) 32:17 – Thanks for Watching!