RARE 1974 Vako Polyphonic Orchestron, w/ record disks! (One of only several dozen made!)

Now THIS is one cool piece!

When this came into our shop, we were blown away... this Vako Polyphonic Orchestron is truly a piece of history.

An estimated total of 70-100 ORCHESTRON units were built before production ceased after a couple of years. 

Its rarity and popularity amongst lo-fi enthusiasts makes the Orchestron highly sought after.

From Wikipedia:

The Vako Orchestron is a keyboard instrument, which produces its sound through electronic amplification of sound pre-recorded on an optical disc. It is the professional version of the Mattel Optigan.

Vako Synthesizers Incorporated, founded by electronic instrument pioneer and former Moog technician and salesperson David Van Koevering, started to build improved versions of the Optigan under the name Orchestron in 1975. Intended for professional use as an alternative to the Mellotron (hence the name Orchestron), it featured improved recorded sounds over the Optigan. The Optigan was an organ that played its sounds from light scanned graphic waveforms encoded on film discs. The sounds with the highest fidelity were on the outer rings of these discs. These outer rings were used for the Orchestron sounds to improve the sound. Although the model A Orchestron is identical to the Optigan, the model B, C, and D models follow the designs of the Chilton Talentmaker. The Talentmaker was taken out of the market after Optigan's manufacturer – Optigan corporation, a subsidiary of toy company Mattel – threatened to sue Chilton because of patent infringements.

Some Orchestron models included sequencers and synthesizers. These were the larger model X and Phase 4 units, though very few of these made it past the prototype stage. While the same fidelity limitations of the Optigan applied to the Orchestron, these instruments were built to be more reliable and were used successfully in commercial recordings. 

The band Kraftwerk made heavy use of the Orchestron on their albums Radioactivity and Trans Europe Express. 

In 1974, The band Yes used the Orchestron on their Relayer album. The Orchestron wasn't a commercial success, though. 

An estimated total of 70-100 units were built before production ceased after a couple of years. Its rarity and popularity amongst lo-fi enthusiasts makes the Orchestron highly sought after.

------------

Unfortunately, this piece is in partial / non-working condition. It powers on, and a light comes on inside the slot where the record disk is read, the spindle for the disks still works, and all of the volume, pitch, etc. knobs still work. The instrument, when plugged into an amplifier, does not produce the signature orchestron sound. Unfortunately, nothing comes through but the percussiveness of the keys and the humming sound of the record being read.

We are not experts with repairing a piece like this, but that doesn't mean that it cannot be repaired. with the retail aspect of our store, we simply do not have the time or resources to invest into repairing this. 

----------
The Orchestron Record disks included in this lot are as follows:
Pipe Organ (Test Disk)
Violin Disk
Flute (Test Disk)
Vilolin (Test Disk) (3X quantity)
Vocal Choir Disk
Cello Disk
Hammond B-3 (Test Disk)

Only several dozen of these were ever produced, and this is your chance to own a piece of history! Join the likes of Foreigner and the Arctic Monkeys and add this piece to your collection today!

Please note, the following link provides more pictures of a SIMILAR Orchestron, but it is NOT ours! We are providing these photos so you can see another SIMILAR piece to ours for extra insight to this rare instrument. Again, the photos in the following link are NOT ours, nor are they of the instrument for sale, they are here merely for your learning pleasure:


The video embedded in this post is from a kind YouTube user who uploaded a video of his Orchestron in action. Again, this video is NOT ours, nor is the instrument in said video. We are providing this video so you may see and hear what this instrument is capable of in working condition.