In 2017, I bought a Magnus chord organ off Craigslist for $10. It was a great purchase - electric chord organs let you play full chords with a button press, perfect for aspiring singer-songwriters or anyone who wants to feel like a musical genius without the effort. But chord organs faded in the '80s when digital keyboards like Casio's took over. Now, Telepathic Instruments' Orchid wants to bring that magic back, this time for $649.

The Orchid, designed with Tame Impala's Kevin Parker, looks like a '60s brown-and-tan organ from Magnus or Bontempi, complete with a speaker grill that mimics fan vents. But where Magnus organs were limited by physical reeds, the Orchid is digital, capable of any chord, any voicing, any scale. It can sound like more than a droney accordion cousin - though that's still an option.

For songwriters, the Orchid takes the mental load off singing and playing simultaneously. If you have even a passing knowledge of music theory (and it would be generous to call mine even passing), you'll manage. There's a one-octave keyboard and chord-type buttons: major, minor, diminished, major 7th, etc. Press C and major, get C major. Press F# and 9, get F#9. Simple.

You can lock the Orchid to a key, ensuring everything sounds decent. It has strum, harp, and arpeggiator modes, plus 13 patterns. My favorite is "slop," which introduces random timing imperfections to make it sound human. The more you turn it up, the more uneven the notes - like a real musician who's had a few drinks.

Under the hood are three synth engines: virtual analog, FM for '80s e-pianos, and a reed piano for Wurlitzer or gentle Rhodes tones. There are 70 presets (excluding bass patches), but tweaking is limited to filter cutoff and effects intensity. To design custom patches, you'll need the $99 Pistil virtual synth ($50 bundled), which I've found buggy - the UI often freezes after transferring patches.

The bass section has 12 sounds, from low e-piano octaves to Moog-style synth bass, tuned 808s, and aggressive EDM drones. The accompaniment options get complicated: without locking to a key, you can have bass follow chords, but the polyphony limits you to one key at a time, so long-decay patches cut off abruptly. Better use the built-in audio looper.

The drum machine is extremely limited - no custom beats, no sound tweaks - yet I think it's perfect. Inspired by '70s rhythm machines like the Korg Mini Pops, its lo-fi sound is delightful.

The Orchid is fun, sounds good, and is simple. But it's also limited: no custom sounds without paying extra, a small keyboard that plays only one key at a time (so no Dm13 here), and a $649 price tag that buys far more capable synths like the Korg Minilogue or Arturia MiniFreak. The Orchid isn't for tinkering - it's a songwriting tool for those who want an approachable, if pricey, electronic option beyond acoustic guitars or upright pianos.