Solid State
Solid State Organ Systems (founded 1968, 1602 Group) manufactures proprietary control electronics — switching, capture, MIDI, and touchscreen systems — for pipe organs worldwide, selling directly to organ builders, cathedrals, concert halls, and universities with lifetime service support.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1968
- HeadquartersAlexandria, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingHardware or Manufacturing
What Solid State does
Solid State Organ Systems (legal entity 1602 Group; DBA: SSOS) is a specialist manufacturer of control electronics for pipe organs, founded in 1968 and headquartered in Brandon, Suffolk, United Kingdom, with a North American office in Alexandria, Virginia. The company designs, builds, and supports switching and capture systems (MultiSystem II, CFM II, CapLite, MUCAP), add-on modules for MIDI (MFM), recording (RFM), tuning (TFM), and voicing (VFM), touchscreen interfaces (Ensemble Touch, Organist Palette), portable and distributed consoles (Portal, TauNet), and supporting hardware such as the Espressivo keyboard, Flip Page Turner, PowerLight supplies, and Krone termination blocks. Its installed base of approximately 10,000 systems worldwide anchors a lifetime-support model that maintains drawings, spares, upgrades, and manuals for every product ever shipped, with technical service performed directly by in-house engineering staff.
The business sells directly to organ builders (including Casavant Frères, Harrison & Harrison, Dobson, and Case Organ Company) and to end-user institutions such as cathedrals, concert halls, universities, and churches. Notable installations include St Paul's Cathedral (seven interconnected MultiSystem II locations with 50,000 memory levels), Longwood Gardens (353 stop-tablets and 72 luminous stops), St George's Chapel Windsor Castle, and the Manchester Cathedral portable voicing console. Pricing is custom and project-based, scoped to organ size, console configuration, stop count, and memory levels, with no standard price list; billing cadence spans multi-year contracts tied to build and restoration cycles.
Solid State is private and employee-owned following a 2025 transfer from founders Duncan Crundwell and Philip Lelliott (who acquired it from Solid State Limited in 2002) into an employee-owned trust. Headcount sits in the 11–50 range across the UK manufacturing facility and US operations. Go-to-market is sales-led and relationship-driven: organ shows and conventions, direct consultation with organists and builders, and lifetime service contracts — rather than digital marketing or channel resellers. The company reported no external institutional investors or venture capital backing.
Solid State firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Solid State
- Legal name
- 1602 Group
- Website
- https://ssosystems.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1968
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Solid State Organ Systems (founded 1968, 1602 Group) manufactures proprietary control electronics — switching, capture, MIDI, and touchscreen systems — for pipe organs worldwide, selling directly to organ builders, cathedrals, concert halls, and universities with lifetime service support.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Solid State industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Musical Instrument Electronics
- NAICS
- Audio and Video Equipment Manufacturing (334310)
- SIC
- Electronic & Other Electrical Equipment (No Computer Equip) (3600)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Instrument Parts, Repair & Maintenance (Luthier, Tech Services, Spares) (MPAIAJAG)
Keywords
Where Solid State is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Alexandria
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices2 records
Markets served
Solid State business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Hardware or Manufacturing
- Cost components
- Personnel, Supply Chain, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Hardware Systems: Sale of proprietary pipe organ control systems including MultiSystem II, capture systems, and accessories. Systems are priced for both high-end cathedral installations and smaller church organs.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Other | Multi-year contract | Custom project-based pricing |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels3 records
Solid State product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Solid State Organ Systems (SSOS) designs, manufactures, and supplies proprietary electronic control systems for pipe organs, including combination actions, switching systems, capture/function memory units, and automation hardware. The company serves organ builders, churches, cathedrals, and concert venues globally through its UK headquarters and US office.
Product overview
Solid State Organ Systems offers a comprehensive ecosystem of pipe organ control products built around the MultiSystem II as the core switching and control platform. The MultiSystem II integrates with various capture modules including CFM II (Capture for MultiSystem II) with up to 300 levels of memory, CapLite for smaller installations, and the legacy MUCAP system. MIDI functionality comes via the MFM module, while recording, tuning, and voicing are handled by dedicated RFM, TFM, and VFM modules respectively. The Portal represents their touchscreen console offering for portable or voicing applications, and the Ensemble Touch provides modern console control interface. Supporting accessories include the Espressivo keyboard, Flip Page Turner for hands-free operation, Direct Connect Slider Control, and PowerLight power supplies. The company maintains comprehensive support for legacy products including MultiSystem I, Diode Coupler, TauNet distributed systems, and the Organist Palette interface, reflecting a platform-plus-modules architecture with strong backward compatibility.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- MultiSystem II: Modular switching system for pipe organs
- CFMII
- CapLite
- Portal
- MUCAP
- MFM
- RFM
- TFM
Companies that use Solid State
Customer profileNamed customers6 records
Segments1 record
Ideal customer profiles1 record
Solid State technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature7 records
Solid State partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- Casavant FrerescoreCollaborated with Casavant Freres on Elon University project, where Casavant built additional consoles (two-manual and one-manual) that integrate with the main Casavant pipe organ and Solid State Portal Systems.
- Case Organ CompanycoreCase Organ Company completed restoration of Aeolian-Skinner Opus 1204 at Holy Name Catholic Center, Madison WI, using SSOS MultiSystem II, Capture, and TFM systems.
- Richard Houghten, Inc.minorProject manager for Longwood Gardens CFM-II installation in conjunction with Principal Organist Peter Richard Conte.
- Spencer Organ CompanyminorPartnered on Holy Name Catholic Center project with Jonathan Ambrosino.
- Harrison and HarrisoncoreHarrison and Harrison installed Solid State MultiSystem and MultiLevel Capture System in St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle for the historic instrument used at the Royal Wedding.
- DobsoncoreCollaborated with Dobson on new organ for St Thomas, New York, designing distributed TauNet system for prewiring and shop testing with iPhone app configuration.
- Kenneth Tickell & CompanyminorUsed Portal portable console for voicing at Manchester Cathedral, enabling wireless movement throughout the space.
Scale indicators4 records
Recent moves8 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Solid State competitors and assessment
Company assessmentEmerging players
- Marshall & Ogletree: Builder of hybrid pipe/digital organs that combine real pipes with digital voices, often involving sophisticated electronic control systems. Comparable because their hybrid instruments require exactly the kind of switching, capture, and MIDI integration Solid State specializes in.
- Ahlborn-Galanti: Italian/US maker of classical electronic organs with a strong focus on organist-facing combination action and memory systems. Comparable in competing for combination-action and console electronic specifications in the institutional organ market.
Broad incumbents
- Allen Organ Company: Long-established US maker of electronic/digital organs and organ control systems. Adjacent rather than directly competitive, since Allen primarily builds complete electronic organs whereas Solid State supplies pipe organ control electronics, but they share the same North American customer base of churches and institutions.
- Rodgers Instruments: US-based builder of electronic organs serving churches and institutions. Comparable to Solid State in targeting the same church/institutional organ market, though Rodgers delivers complete instruments rather than pipe organ control systems.
- Johannus Orgelbouw: Dutch manufacturer of high-end digital organs for churches, concert halls, and homes. Adjacent competitor serving the same European institutional organ market as Solid State, though focused on complete digital instruments rather than pipe organ controls.
- Viscount Organs: Italian/UK maker of digital and hybrid organs. Comparable customer base (churches, concert venues) and adjacent technology overlap in combination action and console electronics for organists.
Others
- Casavant Frères: Major North American pipe organ builder and Solid State partner on the Elon University project. Comparable as a leading channel partner that integrates Solid State controls into its instruments, and as a peer for institutional pipe organ projects.
- Harrison & Harrison: Premier UK pipe organ builder and a documented Solid State partner (St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle installation). Included as a channel partner/peer that depends on Solid State control systems and competes for the same institutional pipe organ projects.
- Walker Technical: US-based pipe organ builder with strong electronic control capability. Comparable as a regional peer in the US pipe organ market that may either use Solid State controls or build proprietary alternatives.
Regional players
- Makin Organs: UK-based pipe organ builder. Comparable as both a potential customer (using Solid State control systems) and a regional peer competing for the same UK cathedral and church market.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Solid State financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Solid State leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Solid State funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Solid State M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Solid State
What does Solid State do?
Solid State Organ Systems (SSOS) designs, manufactures, and supplies proprietary electronic control systems for pipe organs, including combination actions, switching systems, capture/function memory units, and automation hardware. The company serves organ builders, churches, cathedrals, and concert venues globally through its UK headquarters and US office.
Is Solid State a public or private company?
Solid State is a private company. It is classified as management employee owned and is currently operating.
When was Solid State founded?
Solid State was founded in 1968. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Solid State based?
Solid State is headquartered in Alexandria, United States, in the North America region.
How does Solid State make money?
One revenue line is on record: hardware Systems.
Who are Solid State's main competitors?
Emerging players on record are Marshall & Ogletree and Ahlborn-Galanti. Broad incumbents are Allen Organ Company, Rodgers Instruments, Johannus Orgelbouw and Viscount Organs. Others are Casavant Frères, Harrison & Harrison and Walker Technical. Makin Organs is listed as a regional player.
Does Solid State have an API?
No public API is recorded for Solid State.
What industry is Solid State in?
Solid State's product category is Musical Instrument Electronics. Its primary akta.pro industry code is MPAIAJAG, Instrument Parts, Repair & Maintenance (Luthier, Tech Services, Spares). Its NAICS code is 334310 and its SIC code is 3600.