I have an early 70's Baldwin theatrette in need of repair. I am the original owner and have taken good care of it, but perhaps not good enough.

The sound has static in it and this becomes only more apparent with the use of what I think are small leslie type speakers. All the keys work and all stops work. It has only an octave of pedals.

Is this repairable. I live near Chicago in northern Indiana. Are experienced technicians still around to work on these instruments. I can't imagine parting with it.

Any and all advice is greatly appreciated. Thanks.

'Static' has many causes. Does the noise occur all the time, or only when a note is playing? Or when moving the swell pedal? Only when some keys are played? Also, is this a transistor or tube organ? You can probably find a tech to repair your organ but be warned that the cost of repair may be much more than the value of the instrument. See Ebay listings for a fairly depressing idea of the low prices on older organs.

Taking care of the organ would not make any difference. Electronic components age whether the organ is played or not. Baldwin Orgasonics are noted for failing styrene capacitors in the tone generators and octave divider boards. Key contacts also get noisy due to their construction. Some Leslie-type speakers have a Mercotac rotary conection which can go bad. Replacing capacitors is possible, but laborious. Get an estimate before committing to repairs.

Tom