MATRIXSYNTH: Suzuki Omnichord


Tuesday, September 13, 2005

Suzuki Omnichord

Update:
"To my knowledge, the first Omnichord was introduced in 1981 (1982 in
the western hemisphere).
I think the 1975 model as advertised is as credible as a 1975 Buchla 200E. :-)

Senso"


Update: Shots of the original in via AH.

http://www.vintageplanet.nl/pics/sf2004/Omnichord-1.jpg
http://www.vintageplanet.nl/pics/sf2004/Omnichord-2.jpg

Omnichord 1

Update: Picture from Pimp Daddy Nash. That ain't made in 1975. That's just crapy advertising. Lame.

Omnichord midi

Update: Make sure to check out the comments of this post. I can't get through the title link to check it out for myself, but according to Pimp Daddy Nash (gotta love that alias : ) ), this unit has midi. One slight problem, midi didn't come out until 1983...

Update: From Bryan Carrigan via AH:

"Here's a track made with the omnichord beat, pad, and harp
pretty exposed in the intro. These are great for writing songs!

click on "tutelary genius"

http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/uhp"

Retro Thing has a post up on the Suzuki Omnichord, now the Suzuki QChord. The post got me wondering when this thing originally came out and if it was analog to start. Sure enough it was. The title link will take you to a site that has more info and shots, and actually has one for sale.

Omnichord

"Suzuki OmniChord OM-300 Model Analog Keyboard Synthesizer, c. 1975 (yeah right, this is the later model with midi), made in Japan, serial # 06300, ivory plastic finish, original box case."

Update via temp1 in the comments:
"Hi, the brown Omnichord OM-27 (ca. 1981) pictured is my Omniconcertino, that I modified with all the upholstry-tacks as body contacts and a guitar-pedal delay.

check here for more info and pictures of unmodified Omnis:

http://www.klangbureau.de/Omnicon_E.html

http://www.klangbureau.de/Omnihist_E.html"

3 comments:

  1. Hey.
    I am a bender and a friend just gave me an Suzuki Omnicord om 300.

    He is a new bender and only touched a few circuits but, now the whole thing seems to be sonicly altered. It is stuck in circuit bent mode without an on/off switch or anything to return it to it's orginal sounds.

    Do you happen to know what bend resets the sound or is there anything you've experienced that you can share? I love this machine, thinking of adding it to my regulars but only if I can get it back to normal and bend it again.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hi, the brown Omnichord OM-27 (ca. 1981) pictured is my Omniconcertino, that I modified with all the upholstry-tacks as body contacts and a guitar-pedal delay.

    check here for more info and pictures of unmodified Omnis:

    http://www.klangbureau.de/Omnicon_E.html
    http://www.klangbureau.de/Omnihist_E.html

    all the best,

    Joker Nies

    ReplyDelete
  3. beatrixjar - you can try dis-charging all the capacitors by using a wire to short the pins. Obviously be sure to power down and remove batteries first.

    Otherwise check the board very closely for stray flecks of solder which might be wedged between the legs of the chips. You can use a vacuum cleaner to remove them.

    Also make sure none of the resistors or caps are bent down flat and touching each other.

    I'm a circuit bender myself, and I've found that occasionally some machines can become 'perma-bent' just by touching pins on a fragile IC. I've killed a few good machines myself, and its always sad!

    As a general rule, ALWAYS use a small resistor or pot on your bend wire.

    Hope this helps........

    ReplyDelete

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