The Modern Hammond for the Tonewheel Obsessed
At Sweetwater, the name Hammond commands respect. It’s synonymous with the classic tonewheel organs such as the B-3 that played an outsized role in the music revolution of the 1960s and ’70s. In the digital era, Hammond assumed a leadership role in developing cutting-edge “clonewheel” organs that deliver those legendary organ sounds. Now, the B-3 experience reaches a breathtaking new level of realism with the Hammond XK-4 Portable Organ.
Next-gen Modeled Tone Wheel 2 sound engine
Equipped with Hammond’s powerful next-gen Modeled Tone Wheel 2 (MTW2) sound engine, the XK-4 brings sounds to life by meticulously reproducing the 91 tone wheels that drove all vintage Hammond organs. This advanced technology re-creates imperfections such as pitch and volume fluctuations that gave vintage Hammonds their distinctive sound. It also gives you unfettered freedom in customizing your tone. Hammond’s latest tube modeling system reproduces coveted vacuum tube warmth, while vintage Hammond “matching transformer” emulation fleshes out the sound with fullness and harmonic richness. Add in the tactile feedback of nine real drawbars, and you have the hands-on ability to tweak your tonewheel organ sounds to perfection in real time.
The tonewheel experience — and more
Hammond’s proprietary 9-level virtual multi-contact system delivers the distinctive feel of the mechanical multi-contact keyboard of a vintage Hammond organ. What’s more, if you connect any of the optional Hammond MIDI pedalboards, you’ll also get multi-contact feel on the pedal keyboard. Of course, the latest cutting-edge Digital Leslie algorithm is onboard, and it painstakingly models the airflow of Leslie rotors, faithfully reproducing their unique tone and 3-dimensional effect. Complete with the latest Digital Leslie and a selection of Italian, British, and Japanese transistor combos as well as classical and theater pipe organs, the Hammond XK-4 is a stunning achievement, and a worthy inheritor of the title, “King of Instruments.”
Hammond XK-4 Portable Organ Features:
- 61 semi-weighted, velocity-sensing, waterfall-style keys; 9 drawbars
- Pitch bend and Modulation wheels; Master EQ
- Traditional drawbar organ tone reproduced in detail by the new MTW2 sound engine
- 9-level virtual multi-contact system
- Intuitive and logical interface gives you easy access to all functions
- Color display for quick check of performance status and programming data
- User-assignable knobs and switches can be used to control internal functions and external devices
- Master EQ allows for instant tweaking in any performance environment
- Onboard Digital Leslie with advanced algorithm models the airflow of Leslie rotors
- Italian, British, and Japanese transistor combo organ sounds
- Classical and theater pipe organs
- Effects: Vibrato, Chorus, Multi-Effects 1, Overdrive, Multi-Effects 2, Matching Trance, Leslie, Equalizer, Reverb
- Multi-contact feel on optional XPK-130G/XPK-200G/XPK-200GL MIDI pedalboards
