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September 19, 2021 - 6:53am
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cptcrusty1
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Old speakers to New - Allen DCS 3000

Hi, Noob here.

We purchased a 40 y/o Electric church organ for my daughter who is our church organist, and taking lessons, etc.

Long story short. It's coming with 43 lb speakers (2 of them) and a 12" subwoofer who were originally purposed for playing in a church, not a 12x14 foot room. Also, since they are so old, I figure newer stuff would probably be smaller, sound better, and be easier to fit in the house.

I'm looking for options. I can handle a soldering iron and basic electronics.

How would I switch them to more modern, smaller, speakers? Could I run it through some sort of tuner and maybe even setup headphones??

Thanks
Rich.

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September 19, 2021 - 7:37am
Kal Rubinson
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Before offering any

Before offering any suggestions, we need to know something about those speakers and how they connect to your instrument. If they are standard passive loudspeakers, the task is easy. If they are active/powered speakers, the specifics of the interfacing are necessary details.

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September 19, 2021 - 10:37am
cptcrusty1
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I believe they are not

I believe they are not powered, they just plug in with a couple wires. The amp is in the organ itself. I will go look it up.

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September 19, 2021 - 11:01am
cptcrusty1
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The model of the organ is an

The model of the organ is an ADC 3000. It has two HC-13 speakers. I'm not finding too many details on them, but the amp is not in the speakers.

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September 19, 2021 - 2:10pm
Kal Rubinson
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I did a little research and

I did a little research and cannot find any info about the HC-13 although there is some mention of them along with HC-12, HC-14 and HC-15. So, in general, they all seem to be 8ohm, 3 way speakers of, imho, moderate dimensions. I suspect that you might be able to swap them out for "more modern, smaller, speakers" but, without a subwoofer, you are not going to get adequate bass output from them (again, imho).

Since they are of rather common connection type, they (or their replacements) could be shared with an audio receiver (with a headphone output) using a simple switch. If you want to listen to the organ with headphones, you will need to buy/build a "line to speaker level convertor) for that.

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September 20, 2021 - 5:10am
cptcrusty1
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OMG Awesome answer... Ok. next

You've said a couple things that really get my attenntion so:
I can replace them with something more modern:
If the organ was going to be in a church, the speakers would be great... but... as it were, it will be in a "play" room, 12x14, that already has a mid-sized piano, shelves, lizard, an ungodly amount of 3D printed Star Wars things, LEGO's, etc. Yes... I know.. that's why it's the "play" room. Either way, I think we can probably keep the subwoofer, but the other two speakers will be hard to mount somewhere. The purpose for the organ is just practice, but we want full range sound, just not loud enough to be heard across the highway.

I would be very happy to plug the stuff into an audio receiver and thus, headphones, since my daugher likes to practice at 6am!!!! OR... 10PM... UGH! highschool kids and their homework... sheesh.

"Line to Speaker Level Convertor" Something like this?
https://smile.amazon.com/DS18-V5HL-High-Level-Technology-Aftermarket/dp/B07C723VT4/ref=sr_1_6?crid=C96R8WBEUEMW&dchild=1&keywords=speaker+level+to+line+level+converter&qid=1632139732&sprefix=Line+to+speaker%2Caps%2C200&sr=8-6

Thank you very much for you commentary, I greatly appreciate it.

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September 20, 2021 - 8:57am
Kal Rubinson
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That device is more than you

That device is more than you need since you will have only three speakers (L, R, Sub) but that's the idea. (You can also build one as it is just a couple of resistors configured as a voltage divider.)

The thought/plan I had was to connect the L/R outputs of the Allen to the speaker-to-line adapter and the line outputs of that to an input on the receiver. The receiver would now be the nexus of the system and, using it, you would choose source (organ, radio, turntable, TV, etc) and have it power the speakers (L, R Sub).

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September 21, 2021 - 7:38am
cptcrusty1
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The organ came!!! Muscled it

The organ came!!! Muscled it in with five guys and 1 kid (to keep the rose bushes off the helpers).
The organ only has 2 speakers. The speakers both have 12" subs, plus the other two smaller speakers and they are massive. I very likely will not have time to build something (too many other projects), thus I'm looking for options on what to use.

Since it's only 2 speakers and you said that it could be simpler than my last idea, what about something like this:
https://smile.amazon.com/PYLE-PLVHL60-Channel-Speaker-Converter/dp/B000ES9QNA/ref=sr_1_3?dchild=1&keywords=3+channel+speaker+to+line+level+adapter+home+audio&qid=1632160658&sr=8-3

IF that is the right kind of thing, I could acquire an older Tuner, then put a couple better, smaller, speakers, and a seperate subwoofer... I think.
I"m learning... steeeeep learning curve here.

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September 21, 2021 - 9:16am
Kal Rubinson
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1. Those are not subs in the

1. Those are not subs in the box. They are woofers.
2. That adapter is correct but I am concerned about its 50w rating. Depending on the output from the Allen, you may want more. 100w minimum.
3.

Quote:

I could acquire an older Tuner

You will need a receiver, not a tuner, because you will need the controls, switching and power amplifiers to run you system.

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September 21, 2021 - 3:20pm
cptcrusty1
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REceiver.... yes. too many

REceiver.... yes. too many technical terms... I'll try and contact the seller and see if they know. Otherwise I'd have to pull the organ away from the wall... which... I don't want to do.

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September 27, 2021 - 8:53am
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Went to Best Buy... great dissappointment.

I went to Best Buy to ask about this and all they could tell me was they would send an "expert" to my house to take a look. Their expert is half the age of this equipment and he just kind of blinked when I told him what I was trying to do. They had no idea. Very disappointing. They knew some info about the various speakers they had, but there were no experts there. Why am I just not surprised.

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September 27, 2021 - 12:17pm
Kal Rubinson
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I am not surprised either

I am not surprised either since they are unlikely to know anything about any products that they do not sell (and even then.....). If you need local help, a local commercial audio installer or a dedicated audio salon is more likely to have the expertise but, unfortunately, less likely want to help without a financial incentive.

Your best bet would be to find out if there is a local audio club with some tech-ey members. Where are you located?

EDIT: You might find some good help here: https://organforum.com/forums/

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