Drawbar Organ

Hammond XK-1

By Stephen Fortner

Clonewheels. Wanna-Bs. Virtual B-3s. Combo organs. There are almost as many names for this genre of keyboards as there are models in it, but the mission is singular: Re-create the sound of the legendary Hammond B-3 organ and rotating Leslie speaker. Hammond�s new XK-1 is meant as a more compact, less expensive alternative to their flagship single-manual organ, the XK-3, which we reviewed in Nov. �04 and will revisit in this issue, as it�s the core of the Pro-XK system reviewed on p. 58. Though the more modest XK-1 connects neither physically nor electronically to the XK system and has fewer controls on it than the XK-3, Hammond didn�t cut back on anything to do with sound quality. Competition is keen in this area, though. Does the Hammond name buy you the Hammond mojo?

Overview

If you�re familiar with clonewheel organs from the past several years, the XK-1�s size is right between their discontinued XB-2 and current XK-3, and smaller than a Roland VK-8 or new Korg CX-3. As with most organs that put the drawbars to the left of the keyboard, the unit is just a hair too wide for standard 61-key cases made by companies like Gator and SKB.
The XK-1 is capable of upper, lower, and pedal parts, with an adjustable split point and a cool �manual bass� function that makes the pedal part playable at the bottom end of the keyboard. Though it won�t work with the XLK-3 lower manual (see p. 58), its two MIDI in jacks let you plug in a MIDI controller for the lower manual, and/or a pedalboard such as Hammond�s XPK-100. Full polyphony means you can lay a couple of weiner dogs across the keyboard with all drawbars out and not lose any notes.

The Raw Sound

There�s no question about it. This is Hammond�s best-sounding clonewheel yet, except perhaps for the full-on New B-3 Portable, which is an altogether different beast in too many ways to get into here. Though modeling has been a big buzzword in B-3 simulation, the core drawbar tones on the XK-1 are sample-based. Don�t think that�s a step backward, though. The XK-1 uses the same �long loop� sampling method as the five-figure New B-3, and the resulting sound is warm, rich, and full. The drawbar tones interact with one another musically and pleasantly, the way they would on a vintage B. I pulled different drawbar combinations as I held various intervals, octaves, and close-voiced chords, and heard no phase weirdness, harmonic beating, or any other sonic undesirables known to show up in earlier generations of clonewheels.
Alongside a Clavia Nord Electro 2, with effects turned off and EQ set flat on both, the XK-1 was brighter, with more defined drawbar frequencies. For example, if I started with all drawbars out (i.e. at full volume), then removed one of the top four, it was easier to tell which tone was missing on the XK-1. By contrast, the Electro has a way of smearing the tones together. It�s difficult to qualify one of these footprints as �better.� Unscientifically, I�d liken the Electro to playing the already-recorded and produced sound of a Hammond B-3 from one of your favorite songs, and the XK-1 to playing a �raw� B-3.
On a real B, harmonic percussion � that all-important jazz �ping� � sounds very organic, almost like somebody tapping a mostly-full glass with a spoon. The XK-1 nails this, especially in the lower registers, which is where many clonewheels show a synthetic quality that reminds me of those organ hits that seem so ubiquitous in house music. The percussion also does two things not possible on a real B-3. First, you can select a mode where key velocity affects percussion volume, which I thought was a nice expressive touch. Second, you can have the second and third harmonics sounding at the same time.
Foldback � the re-cycling of very high or very low drawbar tones as you move up or down the extreme ends of the keyboard � is adjustable, and though the XK-1 lacks the individually tweakable virtual tonewheels of the XK-3, ten tonewheel sets offer more than enough variety when it comes to leakage, frequency response, and other character details. There�s even a �Cheap Transistor� set for that Vox/Farfisa sound made famous by bands like The Doors.

Leslie and Other Effects

I was initially puzzled that the XK-1�s Leslie effect sounded clearly better than it�s bigger brother, the XK-3. There was a deeper Doppler effect and a more discernible sense of circular motion and of two virtual rotors moving independently. Fast speed with high drawbars out is my acid test for Leslie sims � it�s where many of them get squirrelly. Not so here. In fact, I compared it with the rotary effect in Apple�s EVB3 organ plug-in for Logic, about which we said, �It�s hard to imagine an electronic effect getting any closer to perfect� in Nov. �04. Both editor-in-chief Ernie Rideout and I had a hard time telling EVB3 and the XK-1 apart. I contacted Hammond, who confirmed that they had indeed improved the XK-1�s Leslie effect, and that this will be part of a future software upgrade for the XK-3.
How does it sound next to the real thing? I played it alternately through my reference Leslie, a vintage 142 restored by Keyboard Specialties, and its own simulation through Genelec studio monitors. I could tell the difference, and so could anyone. There�s no substitute for being in a room next to the real thing. But if the standard is duplicating a miked Leslie as heard through a PA or in a recording � the only fair standard for any electronic simulation, in my opinion � it�s good enough to please even critical listeners.
I have nothing but praise for the vibrato and chorus. They sound just like the real thing. I did notice that cutting vibrato in while holding keys down causes a little break in the sound, moreso than on the XK-3, but this is not that big a deal. Overdrive is warm and tubey up until the knob hit about 2 o� clock, where it gets buzzier. Onboard reverb is perfectly adequate to put some space around your organ sounds.

In Use

The XK-1 performed superbly at two live gigs I brought it to, one in a 200-person club, the other in a large hotel banquet room. Whether I wanted a percussive but laid-back sound for my attempted Chester Thompson imitation on �What is Hip,� or full-out scream for my 15 seconds of limelight on �Dance to the Music� by Sly and the Family Stone (�Ya might like to hear my organ . . . �), my first guess at a drawbar registration always brought up just the sound I had in mind � and I�m giving the XK-1 some credit for this. With some clonewheels I�ve played, there�s a bit more tweaking of drawbars and EQ after the fact to get the character I thought I�d already dialed in. In other words, the XK�s sound interacts with a room in the way I�ve come to expect from a real B. Speaking of EQ, it sounds quite natural when you do need it. You select the band you want to boost or cut (bass, midrange, or treble) with the �Tone Type� button, then turn the dedicated knob.
At the first gig, I also discovered I really liked turning the overdrive on, but with the knob all or almost all the way down. This added presence and even seemed to enhance the Leslie simulation a bit, so I did it when soloing as well as notching the volume up.
My one significant criticism is about sequencing the XK-1 with a computer, which may not be a high priority for some hardware clonewheel buyers. Upper, pedal, and lower parts default to MIDI channels 1, 2, and 3, respectively, but to hear the correct part play back what I�d recorded, I had to toggle from the �Seq.Record� to the �Seq.Play� template in the XK-1�s MIDI menu. Otherwise, the pedal sound would play back the part, no matter how I had channels assigned on the computer. This is because �Seq.Record� merges signals from both MIDI in ports, as well as the XK�s own keyboard, on the assumption you have a second manual and pedalboard connected. If you don�t, a workaround is to turn MIDI thru or echo-back on in your sequencer app, set up three MIDI tracks for upper, lower, and pedal parts, and just leave the XK in �Seq.Play� mode. This disables local control, so remember to re-enable it (most easily done by re-selecting �Seq.Record�) before going to the gig, or you�ll wonder why the keyboard isn�t making any sound!
Kudos to Hammond for including pitch and mod wheels, and up to three-zone velocity-sensitive control of external sound modules. I wouldn�t recommend the XK-1 as the sole MIDI controller for all your soft synths, but with some programming, you could conceivably take just it and, say, a little half-rack ROMpler to your next casual for a really easy load-in. Budget-minded buyers will also appreciate that the XK-1 uses a standard 1/4" input for the expression pedal, not the custom job found on the XK-3, which requires Hammond�s EXP-100 pedal.

Conclusions

A few short years ago, I considered Hammond less adept at duplicating �the Hammond sound� in a portable, affordable package than keyboard giants such as Korg and Roland. I stand corrected, and quite happily so. This is a world-class clonewheel. If you need a single axe to cover Clav and electric piano as well as it does organ, the XK�s extra voices won�t blow you away � they�re in the �supplemental but cool� category. For that reason, it�s not the full-on �Electro killer� we�ve seen some people speculating about online. But if it�s all about ballsy, rockin� B-3 sound, great keyboard feel, Leslie simulation that runs with the best of �em, and a fistful of real drawbars to grab instead of MIDI faders or increment buttons, the XK-1 steps up to the plate and slams one into the stands. Not only has Hammond taken their name back; they�ve taken home a Key Buy award for this excellent piece of work.
http://www.hammondorgan.co.uk/xk1.htm