Logan String Orchestra

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"A perfect working Logan String Orchestra, the lush string synthesizer released by the Italian company Logan in 1973. The machine has been recently checked and calibrated by a professional technician, it works like a charm.

Released in 1973, the String Orchestra expanded Logan's range of string synthesizers by offering warmer and more refined sounds. It positioned itself as an alternative to the edgier character of the String Melody I, also produced by Logan, as well as to later string synthesizers like the Solina String Ensemble. The String Orchestra is a fully polyphonic synthesizer featuring three parallel BBD (Bucket Brigade Device) chorus circuits and a unique architecture that makes this machine truly one of a kind.

The Panel
The Logan String Orchestra features five mixable string sounds, each with its own dedicated volume slider. Interestingly, these sliders are duplicated on the front panel, with one set assigned to the first two octaves and the other set assigned to the remaining two octaves on the right. When both sets of sliders are adjusted identically, the same sound is produced across the entire keyboard. However, by setting them differently, you can perform with two distinct sounds simultaneously on the left and right sides. The small panel near the keyboard features the following controls:

Bass: Volume slider for the bass sound, assigned to the left side of the keyboard
Perc: Adjust this slider to make the bass sound punchier
Tone: Functions like the "Brilliance" slider found on many vintage string machines, shaping the brightness of the sound
Slalom: Acts as a pitch bend control, also useful for fine-tuning the main patch
Volume: Master volume slider for the overall output
Hawaii: A piezo tactile switch that temporarily applies a pitch envelope to the notes being played
Orchestra : when this button is ON, the synth deactivates Violins and Bass
The Sound

The overall sound of the String Orchestra is silky, warm, and extremely pleasant—quite similar to the string sounds of the marvelous Godwin Symphony 849. It’s rich and velvety in the midrange, while remaining precise and never harsh in the higher octaves. This makes it quite different from the grittier, wilder sound of the popular String Melody, also produced by Logan.

The Cello, Viola, and Violin sounds represent three different octaves of the same oscillator: a beautiful, smooth, and highly musical sawtooth waveform. When used individually, these three sounds create a peaceful and smooth string tone, where you can truly appreciate the lush effect of the three parallel BBD choruses in action.

The two Orchestra sounds are based on a rectangular waveform. They share the same fundamental frequency but differ in pulse width and filtering. Orchestra I features a very narrow pulse width, a 12 dB/oct low-pass filter fixed at 10 kHz, and a low-frequency cutoff that doesn’t go below 180 Hz—perfect for adding extra harmonics to the patch. Orchestra II has a wider pulse width, a 6 dB/oct low-pass filter with mild resonance, adding warmth and body to the patches.

And finally, the Bass sound. This is a very fat, filtered sawtooth waveform ranging from C0 to A1. The Perc slider adds a gummy sine waveform with a fast attack and a gently quick decay. By lowering all the sliders on the right side, it’s possible to play the Bass sound on its own."