THE AUSTIN PREMIER QUADRUPLEX

• • • the story of the revival of the ultimate system of player organ roll manufacturer • • • Story and Photos by Ray Brubacher

In the first thirty years of the recordings were made on the special twentieth century, the musical in­ recording instrument in the factory terests of the country saw the de­ studio. Many eminent of velopment and perfection of a great the day were put under contract to many kinds of automatic musical make recordings. Among the more devices running the gamut from the prominent of these were Lynwood small nickelodeons to the automatic Farnum, Chandler Goldthwaite, Nor­ player violin. In the field of organ man Coke-J ephcott, Charles R. Cron­ construction, nearly every major ham, and William Fearnly. The first builder spent considerable time and roll recorded by the company for financial interest in the developing sale in their catalogue was entitled and marketing of an automatic play­ Ramona. ing mechanism similar to that of the It is indeed fortunate that these playing devices, which would The console of the Petty residence organ - An noted players left a legacy such as operate his pipe organs; at that time Austin Quadruplex orgain. these splendid recordings in the days these were enjoying a great deal of before high fidelity recording was popularity in private residences of to the monumental series of record­ even thought of. It is also unfor­ the ultra rich as well as in churches, ings being produced by Everest tunate that the perfection of the theatres and mortuaries. Records entitled Archive of Piano Premier Quadruplex came so late in Some of the systems such as the Music numbering some twenty discs the twenties, in fact, just in time for Moller, Welte-Mignon, Link, Estey on which are heard some of the the depression to spell an end to all and Wurlitzer achieved a very high greatest piano virtuosi of the past activity in the field. All told, there degree of perfection, that is, that the such as Paderewski, Saint-Saens, were less than twenty player units paper rolls controlled not only the Hoffman and Gershwin. It is virtual­ constructed and of these, only one notes that the organ would play, hut ly impossible to determine that rolls remains attached to its original in­ also operated the swell shades, and are being played, so very realistic strument. This is in the auditorium the registration changes. However, is the recorded sound. of the Aetna Life Insurance Building these systems had one major short­ By the middle of the 1920's the in Hartford. It is of interest to note coming. The paper rolls for most Austin Organ Company of Hartford, here that consumer prices for the players were about the same size Connecticut, having experimented rolls available in the catalog were as those of the conventional player with various types of organ player determined by the weight of the piano rolls and therefore they were mechanisms and each time being roll. All recordings were weighed on not capable of controlling the entire unsatisfied with the all too mechani­ a dial type kitchen scale and prices resources in terms of all the notes of cal quality of reproduction, decided which ran from four dollars for a all manuals and pedals, as well as to start over with a clean sheet of recording of Beethoven's March the most subtle degrees of manual paper, and virtually designed a com­ from the Ruins of Athens to eleven and pedal articulation which could pletely new player system. The end dollars for Debussy's Afternoon of a only be realized through a live per­ result, through the efforts of F. B. Faun were determined in this man­ formance. Austin and a staff of devoted musi­ ner. All rolls were hand played and During this time, the Ampico and cian-minded engineers, came the were not mechanically punched Aeolian Duo-art sys­ Austin Premier Quadruplex Player. from an orchestral score, a method tems were perfected, thus opening The name Quadruplex was closely frequently resorted to by other roll the door for further experimentation tied in with the system Austin felt producing companies. by organ builders. The Ampico and most practical for an automatic play­ After the depression, no more rolls Duo-art systems both gave the pian­ er mechanism in that the roll gave were made, and the perforator mech­ ists making the rolls a very complete complete and independent control anism was disassembled and stored. contrul of attack, volume level and over three manuals and full pedal, No one company was producing rolls phrasing which could he very accur­ plus the control of registration and because the development of the ately reproduced on any piano hav­ all swell pedals and crescendo pedal. home electronic portable organ ing the proper playback mechanisms. Therefore, these rolls were designed spelled a virtual end to residence Interested readers are here referred for a three manual organ, and all installations. february, 1969 8 In the fall of 1963, William E. Petty, a manufacturing superinten­ dent for Westinghouse and a resident of Fort Defiance, Virginia which is a small township five miles north of Staunton in the Shenendoah valley, and an organ buff of the first order, took delivery of a three manual twenty-two rank which came from a Scarsdale, New York residence. The Estey had a player Some of the pipework in the Petty residence Austin Quadruplex Organ. attachment and one of the unique luminous piston consoles in which all the stops are in the form of three­ were also designed and constructed quarter inch diameter pushbuttons in his shop. Solid state electronics with the stop name engraved on was to replace the electro-pneumatic translucent plastic. When the stop action originally used by Austin. By pistons are pushed , a light comes on summer of 1967, the perforator was behind each button indicating that complete, and Petty was able to lo­ the stop is drawn, and the light goes cate William Fearnly who came to out when the button is depressed Fort Defiance to re-record that first again. Petty, enthusiastic over the Austin roll Ramona in honor of the idea of having an organ that could historic occasion. play by itself , soon learned of the It was decided that another, more stortcomings of his existing system, reliable console would soon be need­ and resolved to do something about ed, and in the spring of 1968, a three manual Austin console was located, Bill Petty seen discussing the Austin combination it. Hearing of the Austin Quadruplex action with veteran organ builder and inventor system and immediately recognizing and its specifications were altered to Edwin Link (left). ' its merits, he was able to track down comply as closely as possible with a player unit which was installed on the original Austin studio recording an Austin Organ in a , instrument. Let us now examine the Ohio residence. Upon purchase of component parts of the Quadruplex the unit with eighty rolls, and its player system in detail. connection to his instrument, Petty THE CONSOLE: The console is began to wonder if by chance the the standard Austin type with all original roll perforating machine electric action which plays the organ would still be in existence. Upon the in the usual way. The console and basis of correspondence with the Austin capture system combination Austin Company, he was invited to action were completely reconstructed come to the factory to see what was in Petty's shop. The essential addi­ left of the original unit. A fire in tions to the console consist of hold and play indicating lights to let the ,,,,., the factory some years previous had know when he is actually The Quadruplex player showing the five section destroyed all but the actual punch expansion tracker bar. assembly with none of the control­ recording the roll. The console con­ ling units in existence. There were trols the roll perforator unit in all no instruction manuals of any kind ways, that is the playing, registration to direct the setting up of the instru­ . changes, crescendo pedal and swell ment. However, Petty, being some­ pedal operation, tutti, and all coup­ what of a mechanical and electronic lers. wizard, was not daunted and in the THE QUADRUPLEX PERFORA­ summer of 1965, obtained from Aus­ TOR: The perforator mechanism tin the punch assembly. consisting of the punching mechan­ ism, paper feed, and takeup spools Upon its delivery to his home, is driven by a one horsepower single Petty began the design of the perfor­ phase motor. The perforating unit ator. Supporting frames, paper feed, produces up to two hundred and paper takeup, time delay circuits, forty holes across the width of the pulse and binary coding circuits paper at the rate of thirty-one holes Close-up of Quadruplex perforator.

9 bombarde per second allowing the fastest trills a spring disengages the punchholder lates the steps into three series of and runs to he faithfully recorded on from the oscillating bar. Therefore, holes punched in the paper in any the paper. The paper speed through an exact reproduction of the manual of the seven following combinations: the perforator is one hundred and and pedal technique of the organist 1 thirteen inches or nine feet, five recording the roll is possible. 2 inches per minute. Diameter of each ROLL PAPER: The paper used 12 paper punch is .04 7 inches. Each for the new Quadruplex rolls was 4 punch is operated by a standard determined from a chemical analysis 1 4 organ pneumatic operating on ten of the original Austin roll paper. 24 inches of vacuum, and is electrically The paper for the new rolls is manu­ 124 parallel to the chest primaries. Be­ factured by the Minerva Paper Co. sides having a separate hole for each During the playback, another three and is their type MG dry waxed note of the three manuals and pedal, sets of binary coders retranslates this machine glazed bleached kraft 30/ 35 there are three holes for the great­ information providing the seven pound stock, .0025 inch in thickness. choir box, three holes for the swell steps of expression and crescendo. The perforator will cut two master box, and three holes for the crescen­ rolls plus one on a hacking paper, REGISTRATION: When a stop is do pedal. These operate on the bi­ the purpose of the hacking paper drawn or retired, or when any com­ nary principle which will he explain­ being to insure a clean cut on all bination piston is used, a momentary ed later. There are a series of track­ holes. Width of the paper as it goes pulse of electric current is generated ing holes in the center of the roll into the perforator is 21¾ inches and by a pulse generator. This short for keeping the roll centered, and it is automatically sheared to 21½' pulse causes a series of solid state another series of holes that runs 6 inches as it emerges from the perfor­ time relays to sequence; they first continuously to operate the five sec­ ator. The roll is wound on a spool activate a thirty-six pole double tion expanding tracker bar which of which the ends are 21/a inches in throw switch which disconnects mo­ automatically expands or contracts diameter. Maximum capacity of each mentarily the top octave of the pedal to compensate for moisture content · roll is approximately ten minutes and the bottom and top octaves of of the paper. It is interesting to note playing time. Each feed spool of the choir manual, throwing these here that unlike all other roll play­ blank paper will give a minimum of thirty-six circuits from notes and ing devices, the paper edges are not one hundred fifty to two hundred connecting them to whatever stops utilized in any way to control the rolls and is ordered in three hundred are on. This action which takes less tracking which results in longer life pound lots. than one-quarter of a second, punch­ for the paper. In addition, the rolls es two registration control holes in do not have to he spooled tight in EXPRESSION AND CRESCEN­ the paper and also whatever stops order to operate accurately. DO: There are seven stages of ex­ have been drawn. This action does pression on each of the two swell not affect the playing in the normal The basic principle of operation pedals and seven stages of crescendo manner and allows the player to play of the perforator is a notched oscil­ that are available through binary right through the stop changes. lating bar and a corresponding notch coder systems. Since three holes are in a punchholder which engage used for each expression pedal and In the playback, a similar proce­ when any given key is depressed on three holes are used for the crescen­ dure in reverse occurs. The two reg­ the console. The number of holes do pedal, each pedal operates three istration holes cause another t~irty­ punched depends on how long the sets of binary coders which through six pole switch to change the key key is held. When a key is released, a series of plug in type relays trans- circuits to a latching relay circuit.

february, 1969 10 These two registration holes precede SPECIFICATION FOR THE WILLIAM PETTY RESIDENCE ORGAN the stop holes by J.{6 of a second WITH THE AUSTIN QUADRUPLEX PLAYER AND ROLL PERFORA­ which allows a break in the key circuit to cause the stop holes to TOR. operate the proper latching relay, Pedal Swell ( third manual) after which the entire operation re­ 16 Open Diapason 16' Bourdon turns to normal play. 16' Bourdon 8' Gedeckt 16' Violone 8' Viola The question of whether there is 8' Octave 8' Viol d' Orchestre a future for the Quadruplex system 8' Flute 8' Viol Celeste must remain unanswered at the pres­ 8' Cello 8' Muted Viol ent writing. There exists the possi­ 4' Principal 4' Flute 2' Piccolo bility that a competitively priced Swell to Pedal 8' 8' Oboe Swell to Pedal 4' portable player unit might be con­ 8' Vox Humana Great to Pedal 8' structed to play the Quadruplex rolls three blank tablets Great to Pedal 4' 16' Swell to Swell and that the unit might be easily Choir to Pedal 8' 4' Swell to Swell attached to any organ. It is hoped Choir to Pedal 4' Unison Off that such a possibility might soon Great ( second manual) Tremulant become a reality, and that if so, to­ 8' Open Diapason day's generation of prominent organ­ Choir (first manual) 8' Grossflute 8' Grossflute (Great) ists might come to the Petty resi­ 8' Concert Flute 8' Concert Flute (Great) dence to record for posterity their 8' Violincello 8' Unda Maris talents on paper. 8' Salicional 8' Violincello (Great) 4' Harmonic Flute 8' Salicional (Great) Mr. Petty wishes to thank Mr. F. 8' Trumpet 4' Harmonic Flute B. Austin, president of Austin Or­ Three blank tablets 8' Trumpet (Great) gans, Hartford, Connecticut, for his Great to Great 16' 8' Clarinet advice and continuing interest, and Great to Great 4' Harp Swell to Great 16' three blank tablets to Mr. Al Miller, also of Austin Or­ Swell to Great 8' Tremulant gans, for information and invaluable Swell to Great 4' Choir to Choir 16' assistance in the redesigning of the Choir to Great 16' Choir to Choir 4' complete Quadruplex player and re­ Choir to Great 8' Swell to Choir 16' cording system. A complete specifi­ Choir to Great 4' Swell to Choir 8' Chimes Swell to Choir 4' cation of the organ follows: Unison Off Unison Off

MECHANICALS 14 general pistons - 8 of which are above the swell manual and 6 are toe studs on the bottom left of the foot hoard. 5 pistons for Pedal, and 8 pistons for each manual which operate respective manual stops and the pedal NOW division. Tutti button and toe stud affecting the entire instrument. Great to Pedal, Choir to Pedal, and Swell to Pedal toe studs. an exact Blower - Orgohlo with 5 h.p. single phase motor. duplicate of the Vacuum Blower for Player Unit - Orgohlo with 1 h.p. three phase motor.

FAMOUS HOWARD "WONDER" SEAT

5 F.O.B. 16000 DES MOINES, IOWA Also Howard seat replacement castings and Wurlitzer Black Cap magnet coils.

KEYBOARD ENTERTAINMENT PRODUCTS MANUFACTURINGCO. 2117 40th St., DES MOINES, IOWA 50310 l The Quadruplex player relays, pulse generator The Quadruplex perforator showing the paper feed. and binary coders.

11 theatre organ bombarde