Archive of the former Yahoo!Groups mailing list: Mellotronists
Subject: Ebay MKIIs and Powerhouse Drum Machine
From: tronbros@...
Date: 2002-02-05
Two things:
Frank wrote:
I know nothing about the buyer. The seller was the same guy that posted a MkII back around September with an opening bid of $12,000.00 (there were no takers). I seem to remember a 400 posted on eBay a while back that had a Santana provinence, but don't know if the seller was the same. I do know that the most recent seller of the Santana tron acquired the MkII within the last year or so before deciding to divest himself of it, for reason(s) unknown. It might be logical to conclude that he was the buyer of the Santana tron during its initial posting and decided to divest himself of that as well. Anyone know any different?
Has anyone seen Buffalo 66? If you have you will notice the similiarity between the Ebay seller's statement and the anti hero in the film.
Vincent Gallo is the guy in both cases and he is an avid 'tron collector and enthusiast.
Jon Salley was asking about the Powerhouse Drum Machine. Although only marketed by Mellotronics, this was a unit that ran on 8 track cartridges and had real live drum tracks plus fills. JB has a mint unit(not for sale) and can tell you more. I've seen it but not heard it although it is supposed to sound pretty good.
On a seperate note, 8 track was never the best of mediums and we are currently restoring a ∗∗∗∗∗∗∗ Birotron which was built around this technology. Sonically it is an absolute nightmare as the cartridges are running continuously, wearing out rapidly and clattering like a Singer sewing machine on acid. When you look at the compexity of the Birotron and the simplicity of the Mellotron mechanism you wonder why Mr Wakeman and Mr Biro bothered. It is a well engineered machine but flawed from the very outset in our opinion. And relacing the cartridges...................I'd rather wear Mike Dicksplash's underpants on my head for a fortnight.
Best,
Martin
Streetly Electronics - all things MELLOTRONIC
US East Coast Agent: Jimmy Moore - JMoore6397@...