Leslie speaker

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The Leslie speaker is a specially constructed amplifier/loudspeaker used to create special audio effects utilizing the Doppler effect. Named after its inventor, Donald Leslie, it is particularly associated with the Hammond organ. Separate Leslie speakers were a "must have" accessory for all Hammond owners, particularly after its characteristic sound was popularised by such acts as Procol Harum on "A Whiter Shade of Pale", Lee Michaels (Do You Know What I Mean), or the Spencer Davis Group on "Gimme Some Lovin'". Another wide user of the Leslie Speaker is the sixties psychedelic band, Steppenwolf.

Although the Leslie speaker and the Hammond organ are spoken of as one organized musical system, Hammond never owned or manufactured any speakers or parts for the Leslie Corporation, much less advertised for it. Hammond refused to package any Leslie speakers with its organ sales using, instead, its own speakers which produced virtually no "Leslie like" special effects. Hammond did grudgingly repair Leslie units, only when asked to, in order to cement the bond of loyalty between itself and its customer base.

Contents

[edit] History

[edit] Development

Don Leslie, at the outset, was refused hire by the Hammond Organ Company, but did work for the local electric company, in a contract with Hammond, to replace the old fifty cycle rotor tone generators with the new sixty cycle units, in customers' homes. The speaker's first name, in 1941, was the "Vibratone". (The name was used later by Fender Guitar Company for a speaker system and effects unit designed to mimic a rotating speaker. Fender also used the name "Leslie" after Leslie sold his company, in 1965, to CBS, which had also acquired Fender.) From 1941, when the first units were produced, the speaker went by several names including "Brittain Speakers", "Hollywood Speakers" and "Crawford Speakers", before returning to the name "Leslie Vibratone" in 1946. Seventeen years after it had rejected him, Leslie offered to sell the company to Hammond. After thirty days he had heard no word from Hammond. Don Leslie said: "After seventeen years, the thirty day period is up. Too late".

Leslie never advertised his speakers. After demonstrating a prototype (a rotating baffle in a hole in a small closet with a big speaker in the closet near Leslie's home organ) with Bob Mitchell, an organist with radio station KFI near Los Angeles, a contract was made to install another prototype in the station's studios, where Mitchell would be the only organist authorized to use it. Mitchell was so impressed that he even tried to patent the speaker, but discovered that he couldn't. Soon afterwards, Mitchell became an organist with the Mutual Broadcasting System, and played a Hammond with the Leslie on its shows. The national exposure was swift and sure. Organists, professional and amateur alike, wanted to have "that sound". The Leslie of that time was over sixty inches tall (about the size of a modern refrigerator), and was named the 30A. Don Leslie made a whole series based on the 30A, called "Tall Boys" (31 series). In the 1950s, Leslie introduced the 21H for use in homes, concert hall venues and smaller radio sound stages.

Today, Leslie parts are available from a number of sources. There are also websites with plans (and photographic examples) for constructing a Leslie speaker, with much improved electronics and speakers. On the web, one can see a 500 W high performance Leslie.


While normally used with an organ, because it is a separate unit, any musical source, such as an electric guitar, as heard in Cream's "Badge" or Pink Floyd's (who have also used the Leslie speaker on a piano in "Echoes" and on backing vocals in "Time") "Any Colour You Like", can be played back through a Leslie speaker, creating a wide range of surprising and dramatic effects. However, this method requires a preamplifier/power unit accessory, since the Leslie by itself is incompatible with microphones or outside instruments, being interfaced with an organ via a multipin cable connector which also carries AC power. John Lennon's voice was processed through a Leslie speaker for the highly experimental song "Tomorrow Never Knows" on The Beatles' 1966 album Revolver. Ozzy Osbourne sings through a Leslie speaker on the song "Planet Caravan" on Black Sabbath's 1970 breakthrough album Paranoid. Jerry Garcia's voice was processed through a Leslie Speaker on the song "Rosemary" from the Grateful Dead album Aoxomoxoa. Pete "Overend" Watts of the band Mott the Hoople linked his bass through a Leslie on the track "Alice" from the album "The Hoople". Tori Amos also makes much use of a Leslie speaker on Boys For Pele, a highly experimental album with piano, harpsichord, harmonium, and clavichord. On such songs as "Horses", the Leslie effect is made obvious as it is switched on and off for different parts of the song, itself a continuous piano piece, allowing for a strong comparison in the piano's sound.

The classic Leslie is still made and sold to this day, though similar effects can now be obtained via analogue electronic devices and digital emulation. Chorus and phase shifter devices can mimic the sounds produced by a Leslie speaker; in fact, early phase shifters like the Uni-Vibe were specifically marketed as low-cost Leslie substitutes for guitarists, and used a foot-operated fast/slow switch. Many agree that nothing can reproduce the sound of a Leslie speaker heard in person, but some digital emulations of the Leslie doppler effect have become virtually indistiguishable from the sound of a recorded Leslie speaker. Logic Pro's EVB3 tonewheel organ emulator is considered by many to have the industry's best Leslie simulation.[citation needed]

[edit] Models

[edit] Model 122

The Model 122 is the classic two speed 40 Watt tone cabinet most commonly used with Hammond console organs, such as the B3, C3 and A100 models. Some organists connect two or more of these to their organ for a louder and more widely-spaced "surround" effect. A modern reproduction is the model 122A. This is the Leslie of choice for recording studios or other sonically demanding applications due to the quiet operation of the Model 122's differential signal input design. Leslie Model 142 is identical to Model 122, except that it is housed in a 33" tall cabinet, and thus slightly easier to transport than the 41" tall Model 122.

[edit] Model 147

The Model 147 has the same cabinet, speaker and mechanical components as the Model 122; however, the amplifier input and motor speed control circuits are different. This is primarily because this series was designed to be "universal", which means it could be connected to other brand organs other than Hammond. The signal input is "single-ended", allowing a more simple connection to organs that have a built-in speaker system, as the Hammond A100 or a Wurlitzer. The Model 122 input is a differential, "double-ended" or "balanced line" design that is provides for cancellation of any spurious noise that may be present. Also, the motor speed switching uses a separate 120 vac signal, rather than the dc voltage control of the Model 122. In operation, the noticeable differences between the Model 122 and the Model 147 are the Model 122's lower suceptibility to induced noise, and a delay between operation of the speed control and the actual change in speed. Just like with the 122 and 142, the Leslie Model 145 is identical to Model 147, except that it is housed in a 33" tall cabinet, and thus slightly easier to transport than the 41" tall Model 147.

[edit] Model 125

The first model to have two speeds, the model 125 was introduced in 1963. Leslie produced two editions of each model, one for Hammonds (H) and one for Wurlitzer (W). Many organists still use combinations of these editions. Leslie also made an edition for Conn, the 50C, the first Leslie to have two discrete channels.

[edit] Model 16

The smallest Leslie is the Leslie Model 16, made in 1970. It has a Fender-like speaker body and a rotating foam dispersion block. It was built for rough club touring, was portable, and had "Leslie" written on the front. It was also released later as Fender/CBS's "Vibratone". Stevie Ray Vaughan used this model on the song "Cold Shot" from the album Couldn't Stand The Weather. It can also be heard on Cream's "Badge" and Jimi Hendrix' "Little Wing". With supplies decreasing, its availability is becoming limited.


[edit] Model 760

One of the favourite models for gigging Hammond X5 owners, the Model 760 is still a popular choice for organs with 9-pin connectors, despite being a "solid-state" model.

[edit] Design

The Leslie speaker consists of two driver units - a treble unit with horns, and a bass unit. The key feature is that the horns of the treble unit (actually only one working horn, but a dummy horn is used to counter-balance it) and a sound baffle for the bass unit are rotated using electric motors to create 'Doppler effect based' vibrato, tremolo and chorus effects. The rotating elements can be switched between two speeds (or stopped completely by means of optional "brakes"), and the transition between the two speeds produces the most characteristic effects.

The resulting sound is instantly identifiable as that of the Hammond organ, frequently heard on psychedelic and rock music of the 1960s and 1970s. Unlike a high fidelity loudspeaker, the Leslie is specifically designed, via reproduction of the Doppler effect, to alter or modify sound; faithful reproduction has never been part of its appeal. Much of the unique tone is owed to the fact that the system is at least partially enclosed, but with linear louvres along the sides and front so that the unit can vent the sound from within the box after the sound has bounced around inside, mellowing it. While many organists prefer the fast "vibrato" setting, the Leslie's slow speed produces a lush "chorus" effect which suggests the sound of a pipe organ in a large hall or church much more effectively than static speakers can. The Leslie might be considered an electro-mechanical sonic effects machine. Many rock and roll organists have turned the box around to expose the horn's rotation for a visual effect, and in the hope of projecting a more powerful sound from both speakers. One can see such a reversed placement in The Band's movie, The Last Waltz, the film Woodstock, and Phish's DVD, It.

[edit] See also

[edit] External links

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