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Rocky Mount Instruments
Rocky Mount Instruments (RMI) was a subsidiary of the Allen Organ Company, based in Rocky Mount, North Carolina, active from 1966 to 1982. The company was formed to produce portable musical instruments, and manufactured several electronic pianos, harpsichords, and organs that used oscillators to create sound, instead of mechanical components like an electric piano.
The first significant instrument produced by RMI was the Rock-Si-Chord, which emulated a harpsichord. The best-selling and most widely used instrument was the RMI Electra-piano, that was played by numerous artists in the late 1960s and early 1970s, including Steve Winwood, Genesis' Tony Banks, and Yes' Rick Wakeman. Later, the company became a pioneer of digital synthesizers, including the Keyboard Computer and RMI Harmonic Synthesizer; both were used by Jean Michel Jarre. The company struggled to compete with digital synthesizers in the early 1980s, which led to its closure. A number of sample libraries featuring RMI instruments are available for modern digital keyboards.
The origins of RMI date to 1959, when Allen started using transistors in their organs instead of vacuum tubes. A separate division was set up to see if this technology could be used for portable musical instruments. A patent was filed in 1963 on the group's electronic keyboard design. Most models were designed at the company headquarters in Pennsylvania and manufactured in Rocky Mount, North Carolina, which led to the sub-division's name, Rocky Mount Instruments. Production started off in part of a former tobacco warehouse, before moving to a 60,000-square-foot (5,600 m2) factory employing 100 staff.
The first models produced were combo organs in early 1967. The Explorer cost $845 and was a four-octave instrument that had a dedicated oscillator for each key, and was fitted with a "flying hammer" mechanism that repeatedly made or broke the oscillator's electrical connection, giving a strumming sound like a banjo or mandolin. The Lark was a three-octave organ which shared an oscillator between every two notes. Other instruments included the "Band Organ" (a three-octave electrical imitation of a calliope), manufactured from 1968 to 1969.
The first electric piano model was the "Model 100 Rock-Si-Chord" in 1967. Retailing for $695, it contained two sounds (string and lute) but was later updated as the "Model 100A" which contained additional sounds (harpsichord, cembalo, lute, and two guitars). The "Model 200 Rock-Si-Chord" cost $995 and added an additional 4' voice, which required an additional set of tone generator boards for each key. Allen's Tom Emerick later said the Rock-Si-Chord was manufactured first because harpsichord voices were easier to design and manufacture than piano ones. The Rock-Si-Chord was discontinued in 1968.
RMI had no experience in the rock and pop market, as Allen had been used to selling instruments to churches and theatres. They produced advertisements featuring a mascot, "Gopher Baroque" and described the instrument in typical slang of the era, such as "I mean, you start swinging this axe and plastic things like crumble."
RMI began producing the 300 Series Electra-piano in 1967. As with earlier instruments, the Electra-piano featured an oscillator for each key. It uses an LC oscillator to generate the sound, as it produced a stable frequency that was not prone to drift. The signal is then run through a series of filters in order to produce an envelope resembling that of a piano. The Electra-piano also had an "organ mode" that allowed each note to sustain indefinitely instead of decay like a piano, and an "accenter" that added a percussion effect to the start of each note being played.
The original 300A (1967) and B (1969) models had 61 keys (G to C). The 368 was introduced in 1972 and added seven additional notes at the top end. It was the best-selling Electra-piano. The 368X (1974) was a 368 housed in a molded plastic case instead of the previously used tolex-covered plywood. The 68D was a touch sensitive version of the 368X; it was made to order and few were produced.
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Rocky Mount Instruments
Rocky Mount Instruments (RMI) was a subsidiary of the Allen Organ Company, based in Rocky Mount, North Carolina, active from 1966 to 1982. The company was formed to produce portable musical instruments, and manufactured several electronic pianos, harpsichords, and organs that used oscillators to create sound, instead of mechanical components like an electric piano.
The first significant instrument produced by RMI was the Rock-Si-Chord, which emulated a harpsichord. The best-selling and most widely used instrument was the RMI Electra-piano, that was played by numerous artists in the late 1960s and early 1970s, including Steve Winwood, Genesis' Tony Banks, and Yes' Rick Wakeman. Later, the company became a pioneer of digital synthesizers, including the Keyboard Computer and RMI Harmonic Synthesizer; both were used by Jean Michel Jarre. The company struggled to compete with digital synthesizers in the early 1980s, which led to its closure. A number of sample libraries featuring RMI instruments are available for modern digital keyboards.
The origins of RMI date to 1959, when Allen started using transistors in their organs instead of vacuum tubes. A separate division was set up to see if this technology could be used for portable musical instruments. A patent was filed in 1963 on the group's electronic keyboard design. Most models were designed at the company headquarters in Pennsylvania and manufactured in Rocky Mount, North Carolina, which led to the sub-division's name, Rocky Mount Instruments. Production started off in part of a former tobacco warehouse, before moving to a 60,000-square-foot (5,600 m2) factory employing 100 staff.
The first models produced were combo organs in early 1967. The Explorer cost $845 and was a four-octave instrument that had a dedicated oscillator for each key, and was fitted with a "flying hammer" mechanism that repeatedly made or broke the oscillator's electrical connection, giving a strumming sound like a banjo or mandolin. The Lark was a three-octave organ which shared an oscillator between every two notes. Other instruments included the "Band Organ" (a three-octave electrical imitation of a calliope), manufactured from 1968 to 1969.
The first electric piano model was the "Model 100 Rock-Si-Chord" in 1967. Retailing for $695, it contained two sounds (string and lute) but was later updated as the "Model 100A" which contained additional sounds (harpsichord, cembalo, lute, and two guitars). The "Model 200 Rock-Si-Chord" cost $995 and added an additional 4' voice, which required an additional set of tone generator boards for each key. Allen's Tom Emerick later said the Rock-Si-Chord was manufactured first because harpsichord voices were easier to design and manufacture than piano ones. The Rock-Si-Chord was discontinued in 1968.
RMI had no experience in the rock and pop market, as Allen had been used to selling instruments to churches and theatres. They produced advertisements featuring a mascot, "Gopher Baroque" and described the instrument in typical slang of the era, such as "I mean, you start swinging this axe and plastic things like crumble."
RMI began producing the 300 Series Electra-piano in 1967. As with earlier instruments, the Electra-piano featured an oscillator for each key. It uses an LC oscillator to generate the sound, as it produced a stable frequency that was not prone to drift. The signal is then run through a series of filters in order to produce an envelope resembling that of a piano. The Electra-piano also had an "organ mode" that allowed each note to sustain indefinitely instead of decay like a piano, and an "accenter" that added a percussion effect to the start of each note being played.
The original 300A (1967) and B (1969) models had 61 keys (G to C). The 368 was introduced in 1972 and added seven additional notes at the top end. It was the best-selling Electra-piano. The 368X (1974) was a 368 housed in a molded plastic case instead of the previously used tolex-covered plywood. The 68D was a touch sensitive version of the 368X; it was made to order and few were produced.