PURE
Hammond
Since its introduction in 1955, the Hammond
B-3 has become the essential performance tool for the worlds great
keyboard players. The instantly recognisable B-3 sound is
synonymous with the world of popular music, while no concert stage
would seem complete without a B-3´s imposing wooden
cabinet.
B-3 design specifications
Now, for
the first time Hammond have exactly replicated the original B-3
design specifications with the introduction of the New
B-3.
Sound generator system
The unique
B-3 sound is reproduced by a revolutionary
newly designed sound generator system
(96DigitalToneWheels™), which recreates all of
those wonderful idiosyncrasies of the Tone wheel generator which
have eluded all previous digital systems.
Almost all comtemporary electronic musical
instruments generate their sound "on the fly" : this means that
wheneven a note is pressed, the computer figures out which key and
sound-characteristics are needed and fetches this information out
of a sample-table from the computers memory-banks.
This
information is then processed to produce the actual sound. All of
this happens within milli-seconds after any key is
pressed.
In contrast to the above the New B-3 has an "
all-note
continuous " sound-generator: Inspired by the original
Hammond tone-wheel generator in which 91 wheels are spinning
continuously, the new generation Hammond is producing every single
one of 96 sine-waves all the time...
Each of these 96 signals
is mapped to the multi-contact system, which is again inspired on
the original B-3 : whenever a key is pressed each of the 9
corresponding drawbar sine-waves is "un-blocked" by its individual
contact...
The implications of this are
staggering...
just think about it for a while...
think about
the dynamics involved... instead of any note needing to be
retrieved any generated after the key is pressed, the sound
is actually already there, but is being detained by the
key-contact, ready to spring out...
This explains the
incredible dynamic sound experience that only Hammond creates...
you will be impressed by the sheer massive pressure-wave that this
instrument can release...
It all has to do with "continuous
tone-generation "
Another aspect is the polyphony : over
are the days of 16, 32, 64, 128-note polyphonie... over are the
days of "note out-phasing"... every single drawbar-note is
there... all the time... that's what we call "
all-note generation".
Only Hammond,
inspired on the longest tradition of drawbar-generation, can offer
you the experience and emotion of such truely "virtual tone-wheel
generation"...
Waterfall keys & harmonic
drawbars
Two, 61 note, B-3 style, waterfall key,
keyboards allow for the essential performance characteristics of
the Hammond masters, especially effortless palm glissandos. While
four complete sets of
nine traditional harmonic drawbars and twenty four reverse colour
key presets achieve total ease of set up.
Mechanical multi-contact system
It
is by utilising several tone varying features that the B-3
performs so uniquely. Upper and lower pitch foldback subtly
effects the overall sound, while, probably, the most important and
interesting feature is the nine key contact system operating on
each key. These contacts connect from each of the nine drawbar
pitches and by pressing a key slowly each pitch level can be
determined, high to low. This system created the earliest form of
touch response for tone variance as well as expression. This mechanical contact
system is also responsible for Hammond´s famous key click noise,
an unintended feature that became an essential component of the B-3 character. The new
B-3 incorporates a complete mechanical contact system, totally
unique in a modern instrument.
B-3 expression curve
Sound dynamics
are controlled by an exact copy of the original B-3 expression
curve incorporated in
the new instruments foot volume controller.
Knowledge
The challenge for many
years has been to recreate the look, sound and feel of this
legendary keyboard instrument. Only Hammond has the
qualifications and
knowledge to accurately achieve this
Now the B-3 is re-
born...