Purchased a Brand New Red Farfisa Combo Compact after graduating the 8th grade in 1965 to start a Rock Band on my way into High School that lasted into November of 1968 my Junior Year (11th Grade) because 2 of our oldest members were getting drafted for the Vietnam war which broke our band up. At that point I didn’t want to start all over because I knew I had the same chance of getting drafted a year and a half later. Till then the band was a blast we had so many Gigs we played at. No complaints about the Farfisa Combo Compact it did the job but it was a bear to carry around from gig to gig it was so heavy. I always needed help with getting it around. I should mention I ran it through a New Fender Bandmaster amplifier with 2 - 12” Speakers and in my Wood Shop Class in High School I built another Speaker Cabinet that also held 2 - 12” Speakers attached to the Fender Bandmaster.
These have a low frequency output only when the pedal is connected. So you can use two amps. 1 bass 1 full range. When you bought these originally, there was amp choices. I bought mine with a dual 15 Baldwin bass amp. Front/rear firing 15 amp. Crazy!
I’ve got some of those old Baldwin solid state amps. I have a Baldwin electric harpsichord I use them with but you gotta love having a low end just for pushing a 15” and treble into a seperate amp. Ahead of their time!
Thanks for posting this demo video, and explanation. Very cool. Love the sounds! I think the $40-50 in parts to repair the onboard reverb would be cheaper than buying a decent quality reverb pedal, though more expensive than the $0 of using an amp’s onboard reverb. Thanks again for the concise, yet thorough explanation and demo! 😎
Thanks! Yeah on the reverb it’s more labor than time. Swapping the reverb pan transducers with cartridges would just take time. I’ve figured out you can get more verb out of them by swapping the trim pot that sits under the lid above the reverb switch or bypassing it all together but the reverb on these just isn’t something I worry about a lot unless someone really has to have it
I have a lot of the red ones and restored them also. I love farfisas. Nothing sounds like them! I think I was born at the wrong time bc I’m good at fixing these old analog circuits but terrible at modern tech even on my cellphone…
Congrats! I’m not trying to insult but some folks just don’t know that these need amp to work. You’ll have to plug into an amp for sound. If you do have it plugged in….There’s one thing you can try before it needs major work. If you open it up and pull the lid you’ll see to the back left a power supply. There should be 2 tubes in that under shields typically. Try pulling those tubes and cleaning the pins of the tubes or at the very least pulling the tube shields and rock them in their sockets. Make sure your volume isn’t cranked to 10! They all need recapped (replacing the larger electrolytic capacitors) in the power supply and divider cards which control the notes. They’re a lot to service properly but if you decide to send it to a tech let me know and I can refer someone close to you! Shipping these can be expensive itself. I’m in Cincinnati, Ohio if you happen to be within driving distance. Reach out to me on my Instagram or fb if you want to contact me directly. Instagram: dlaltick Facebook: Dustin Altick
Nice man! Wish mine sounded this clean and pure in tones as yours does. Do you know how I could fix some of the rocker tabs? This is for the section after the green switches. The Last 3 don't work on their own but works only when I have any of the other tabs on like the 8th foot stop or any of the others. I can't find any good videos on how to fix these organs.
The rocker tabs usually need a really good cleaning. I use denatured alcohol or 99% iso alcohol and have a bottle with a needle spout. Sometimes you can spray them down with contact cleaner and start to hear them try to turn on. Also clean the buss bars while in there. I usually saturate the spring contacts till I see the black oxidation flush off.
I’d also check for any breaks in your wiring. You can pull the whole switching assembly up with a few of those flat head screws/cup washer and locking washers they have mounted on the corners and maybe in the middle. I cannot remember
@@dustinaltick5220 Ah ok man, thanks for the info! I know nothing on the jnside of a Farfisa, a Vox Jaguar is a lot less complicated to me than these. But I'll have try this out and hopefully it works, gotta dig my organ out. But thanks again for the response!
Hi Dustin I would like to replace the electrolytic caps in mine but I dont know their values, could you help? also the B key on all octaves isnt playing properly,any ideas? any help would be greatly appreciated. thanks Darren
Well, let’s tackle the issue at is evident. First step is to replace the red falcon caps on the b card. Next would be to check the transistors which is a bit more involved. To recap the preamp there’s only a few electrolytics inside.
@@dustinaltick5220 I managed to get a copy of the schematic so if you need it or anyone else who is reading this for that matter, shoot me a message with your email and I will send it. Thanks for your fast reply and help Dustin, very much appreciated!
I think the pre amp in mine is what died. As has happened twice over the last 33 years, ONE of the dinky clear plastic key "hooks" breaks and then ALL D and Eb notes are reversed. When I paid fifty bucks for mine in 1988, the guy selling it made a point of NOT playing the D and Ed keys.
If all the d and eb are reversed id check the tuning or the wires to the cards they could be reversed but my guess is the cards are so out they’re backwards. The preamps rarely are the issue. Typically the germanium transistors short but even before that the red falcon electrolytics are notorious in failures
@@Hobbes1964 yeah any tremolo pedal or pitch shifting vibrato would work. There’s a couple magnatone style vibrato pedals then of course the boss tremolo. I really like the cheaper dano vibrato pedal but it’s more like a univibe.
When I restore these I do have to be heavy handed as I’m trying to test for a failure so I can fix it before it heads out. If I were just playing I would be much easier on them but the last thing I want is someone getting it there and a switch breaks.
I've seen one of these for 65€ with a broken key spring. Should I give it a go or will it become a money pit? My dream transistor organ is the Deluxe but it costs 500-1000 here 🥲
For the price I’d go for it. They can be a money pit if you take them to the wrong tech. It took me a year to figure these out and now I enjoy the challenge of a beat up one. Join the combo organ and farfisa groups on Facebook and all the techs love to help people who decide to fix their own organ
Purchased a Brand New Red Farfisa Combo Compact after graduating the 8th grade in 1965 to start a Rock Band on my way into High School that lasted into November of 1968 my Junior Year (11th Grade) because 2 of our oldest members were getting drafted for the Vietnam war which broke our band up. At that point I didn’t want to start all over because I knew I had the same chance of getting drafted a year and a half later. Till then the band was a blast we had so many Gigs we played at. No complaints about the Farfisa Combo Compact it did the job but it was a bear to carry around from gig to gig it was so heavy. I always needed help with getting it around. I should mention I ran it through a New Fender Bandmaster amplifier with 2 - 12” Speakers and in my Wood Shop Class in High School I built another Speaker Cabinet that also held 2 - 12” Speakers attached to the Fender Bandmaster.
And how's your back now?
These have a low frequency output only when the pedal is connected. So you can use two amps. 1 bass 1 full range. When you bought these originally, there was amp choices. I bought mine with a dual 15 Baldwin bass amp. Front/rear firing 15 amp. Crazy!
I’ve got some of those old Baldwin solid state amps. I have a Baldwin electric harpsichord I use them with but you gotta love having a low end just for pushing a 15” and treble into a seperate amp. Ahead of their time!
Thanks for posting this demo video, and explanation. Very cool. Love the sounds! I think the $40-50 in parts to repair the onboard reverb would be cheaper than buying a decent quality reverb pedal, though more expensive than the $0 of using an amp’s onboard reverb. Thanks again for the concise, yet thorough explanation and demo! 😎
Thanks! Yeah on the reverb it’s more labor than time. Swapping the reverb pan transducers with cartridges would just take time. I’ve figured out you can get more verb out of them by swapping the trim pot that sits under the lid above the reverb switch or bypassing it all together but the reverb on these just isn’t something I worry about a lot unless someone really has to have it
I had one in 1972. It was red. I used a silvertone amp with a 15 and horn. Oh the memories
I have a lot of the red ones and restored them also. I love farfisas. Nothing sounds like them! I think I was born at the wrong time bc I’m good at fixing these old analog circuits but terrible at modern tech even on my cellphone…
I have had*
me too have one RED , it's Farfisa Compact Combo (not The Luxe) my dad buy me in 1969
Silvertone!
the chorist ( tune its old intune LA 432) ( not same modern A 440)
I tune most of these to concert a so it’s not 7 cents off to the band but I do like 432 and enjoy the sound with stringed instruments
Hey man. I was just given one those keyboards and plugged it in but I get no sound. It goes on, at least the light does but no sound. Any ideas?
Congrats! I’m not trying to insult but some folks just don’t know that these need amp to work. You’ll have to plug into an amp for sound. If you do have it plugged in….There’s one thing you can try before it needs major work. If you open it up and pull the lid you’ll see to the back left a power supply. There should be 2 tubes in that under shields typically. Try pulling those tubes and cleaning the pins of the tubes or at the very least pulling the tube shields and rock them in their sockets. Make sure your volume isn’t cranked to 10!
They all need recapped (replacing the larger electrolytic capacitors) in the power supply and divider cards which control the notes.
They’re a lot to service properly but if you decide to send it to a tech let me know and I can refer someone close to you! Shipping these can be expensive itself. I’m in Cincinnati, Ohio if you happen to be within driving distance.
Reach out to me on my Instagram or fb if you want to contact me directly.
Instagram: dlaltick
Facebook: Dustin Altick
does anyone know what power cable these need? I just bought one but it doesnt have a power cable
Most are wired internally to mains but if you have an international model it may have a power jack
Nice man! Wish mine sounded this clean and pure in tones as yours does. Do you know how I could fix some of the rocker tabs? This is for the section after the green switches. The Last 3 don't work on their own but works only when I have any of the other tabs on like the 8th foot stop or any of the others. I can't find any good videos on how to fix these organs.
The rocker tabs usually need a really good cleaning. I use denatured alcohol or 99% iso alcohol and have a bottle with a needle spout. Sometimes you can spray them down with contact cleaner and start to hear them try to turn on. Also clean the buss bars while in there. I usually saturate the spring contacts till I see the black oxidation flush off.
I’d also check for any breaks in your wiring. You can pull the whole switching assembly up with a few of those flat head screws/cup washer and locking washers they have mounted on the corners and maybe in the middle. I cannot remember
@@dustinaltick5220 Ah ok man, thanks for the info! I know nothing on the jnside of a Farfisa, a Vox Jaguar is a lot less complicated to me than these. But I'll have try this out and hopefully it works, gotta dig my organ out. But thanks again for the response!
Anyone know where to get black keys for the bass section? I have 3 broken and they're hard to find. Do other organ keys fit?
I should have some
I’m sure I do. I have a parts duo all farfisa combo keys are the same. Can’t say for the later models but I’m sure I have the keys. Which notes?
Cool video mate, just restored mine Compact Deluxe. Can you tell for how much you sold this one?
I think maybe 900-1100 I honestly can’t remember
Decent, thanks 👍
Hi Dustin I would like to replace the electrolytic caps in mine but I dont know their values, could you help? also the B key on all octaves isnt playing properly,any ideas? any help would be greatly appreciated. thanks Darren
Well, let’s tackle the issue at is evident. First step is to replace the red falcon caps on the b card. Next would be to check the transistors which is a bit more involved. To recap the preamp there’s only a few electrolytics inside.
Electrolytics replacement fix about 90-95% of the problems in a farfisa
@@dustinaltick5220 yeah thats what I figured, they just dont have the values on them so not sure what to replace them with
@@milehigh61 can’t make out the values on them? Offhand I can’t remember but I think the cap closest to the tuning coil is 47uf 25v maybe
@@dustinaltick5220 I managed to get a copy of the schematic so if you need it or anyone else who is reading this for that matter, shoot me a message with your email and I will send it. Thanks for your fast reply and help Dustin, very much appreciated!
I think the pre amp in mine is what died. As has happened twice over the last 33 years, ONE of the dinky clear plastic key "hooks" breaks and then ALL D and Eb notes are reversed. When I paid fifty bucks for mine in 1988, the guy selling it made a point of NOT playing the D and Ed keys.
If all the d and eb are reversed id check the tuning or the wires to the cards they could be reversed but my guess is the cards are so out they’re backwards. The preamps rarely are the issue. Typically the germanium transistors short but even before that the red falcon electrolytics are notorious in failures
is the vibrato shifting pitch on these 60s fafisas?
The vibrato is transistor based but not true pitch shifting like on a magnatone with the varistor pitch shifting vibrato
@@dustinaltick5220 any suggestions on a vibrato pedal to nail the farfisa vibrato?
@@Hobbes1964 do you have a farf that’s not working in the vibrato? Or just using a plug in with midi?
@@dustinaltick5220 using a keyboard with a farfisa tone and no vibrato. thinking a vibe pedal may work well for it.
@@Hobbes1964 yeah any tremolo pedal or pitch shifting vibrato would work. There’s a couple magnatone style vibrato pedals then of course the boss tremolo. I really like the cheaper dano vibrato pedal but it’s more like a univibe.
Early B52s!!!!
I love the organ but wish you didn’t hit the controls so hard.
When I restore these I do have to be heavy handed as I’m trying to test for a failure so I can fix it before it heads out. If I were just playing I would be much easier on them but the last thing I want is someone getting it there and a switch breaks.
Simplemente hermoso..
I've seen one of these for 65€ with a broken key spring. Should I give it a go or will it become a money pit? My dream transistor organ is the Deluxe but it costs 500-1000 here 🥲
For the price I’d go for it. They can be a money pit if you take them to the wrong tech. It took me a year to figure these out and now I enjoy the challenge of a beat up one. Join the combo organ and farfisa groups on Facebook and all the techs love to help people who decide to fix their own organ