In a message dated 9/28/2007 8:22:02 P.M. Eastern Daylight Time, markpringnz@... writes:
Speaking admittedly from very
limited experience, I don't think trons are like some
acoustic instruments, they don't improve with age.
A properly restored and set up M400 is no different than a M4000... In fact (Martin, hang in there) it is probably more reliable in that there is less to go wrong. You can put the same motor in it, the same PML1 preamp/line amp, etc. The only thing you don't have is the cycling mechanism, which is one less thing to go wrong.
NOW... The M-4000. Streetly has put consummate time and effort into squaring away that little gremlin. But still, the fewer the issues, the fewer the problems. Does that make sense?
The Chamberlin that just sold. It can't cycle. They admit that. It was always the weakness of Harry's machines. This one you have to crank by hand... Like a Model T Ford.
Imagine buying a 1959 T-bird that would not start with the turn of a key. You have to hand crank the motor.
Bwahahahahahaha! Fuck that!
Mellotrons do improve with age if we improve them. No, they aren't like pianos or guitars that develop tiny warps or subtle changes in the neck or in the sound box that may influence the sounds they produce over time, sometimes for the better. But how much better do Hammond organs sound over time? None... That's how much. They just may sound a little different. But no one could tell because the subtle changes over time are indiscernible. It's just that some Hammonds sound different from others of the same models. This is more likely due to the subtle changes in wiring and components over the years.
What improves a Mellotron over the years is that someone takes one and makes it be all that it can be. We bring it into perfect alignment. We give it the upgrades that are available. We make our own improvements. We carefully adjust and perfect it. The end result is a Mellotron that sounds and performs far better that it did when it left the factory.
I know this to be true, Jerry Korb knows this to be true and Streetly does as well. We have all made this happen, many times over.
Frank