Doric Organ

The Doric Transistorized Organ is a model of combo organ produced in Italy in the 1960s.^[1]

Doric organs were also sold under the brand name Ekosonic and were marketed as being the "lightest on the market" at 30 pounds (14 kg).^[2][3] Much like early Farfisa combo organs, Doric organs featured a monophonic bass section and a polyphonic lead which emulated other instruments by using transistor oscillators and a frequency divider section. The Doric never achieved the same fame as Farfisa and Vox organs, perhaps due to limited distribution and a lower price point.

The Doric 61TT featured controls activating

• Vibrato On
• Vibrato Full
• Saxophone
• Horn
• Viola
• Diapason
• Trombone
• Reed
• Flute
• Oboe
• Cornet
• Violin

The control for stops operates like a pipe organ, in a push-pull manner, activating 4', 8', and 16' stops.

Although the Doric organs sold in the United States operated on standard 120 V power, the cable connecting the unit to a wall was unique, and, as a result, many organs are sold without plugs and users are forced to either replace the jack with an IEC standard, fashion a plug from appliance cords, or buy expensive vintage cables. The power supply that the jack connects to converts household current to 9 V DC.

Inside the Doric is a line of circuits labeled with the syllables of solfege, each generating a given tone in a scale. At the far left is a single circuit for the bass notes which shares a circuit board with the solid-state vibrato mechanism. As with many organs of the same vintage, Doric organs often have problems with electrolytic capacitors which overflow or burn out over time.

Citations

Sources

• Information on the Doric Organ on Combo Organ Heaven
• Video of a broken Doric Organ