In a world where consumer products have become commodities, many are manufactured with similar qualities. The church organ field is unique with two very different levels of quality available: professional-grade and consumer-grade.
Church organs with professional-grade quality are manufactured for product longevity and long-term serviceability. Organs manufactured to consumer-grade quality are less expensive, but have shorter lifespans, more similar to that found in most consumer products.
The heritage of professional-grade church organs comes from pipe organs with many serving for decades. Most digital church organs manufacturers no longer adhere to this standard. Objective side-by-side comparisons are telling.
The photograph comparisons below show the difference between professional-grade and consumer-grade organ quality.
How can we ensure that digital church organs today meet the same longevity standards as traditional pipe organs?
While itraditional pipe organs canlast for many decades, for this to happen requires significant maintenance work on these instruments. This can include, for example, re-leathering chests and updating electronic controls, both of which are expensive. When all items and issues are considered, a quality digital organ with proper builder support can be a lot less expensive in the long term than traditional pipe organs.