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Subject: Re: [newmellotrongroup] Welcome Otis

From: Jason Wielispach <capnreverb@yahoo.com>
Date: 2014-07-01

People spend a fortune buying a beat up a vintage car and spend buckets to fix it and it's not seen as crazy. I paid 2 grand for my mellotron with 2 sets of tapes. I bought an additional set of tapes as well for $800. I've never regretted the purchase or the hours I've put in maintaining it. It's something I had dreamed about owning for years. It has a mojo that most gear can't match. I spent close to the same on a u87 and scratch my head now on the price and the hype. It's a great mic but it's no fuckin' mellotron. Apple and oranges, but gear is gear. My original Groove Tubes tube mics models 1 and 2 have the mojo the Tron has in terms of "sound" and they were a fraction of the Neumann in terms of cost. Mojo is what makes the ears dick hard. Playing a real mellotron is playing a piece of living history. 

Sent from my iPhone

On Jun 30, 2014, at 8:17 PM, "Tom Doncourt tomdcour@amnh.org [newmellotrongroup]" <newmellotrongroup@yahoogroups.com> wrote:

 

Hi Otis ,welcome to the group. This is a great time to be playing the mellotron, there are parts available, people who know how to fix them, new tapes and a new cycling machine available! In the 80's I was always worried that something would go wrong and I wouldn't be able to fix it. The M4000d is a fine machine and I would certainly gig with one but I doubt I would ever get the real enjoyment in the studio that I get with a real tape replay machine.  Tom

From: newmellotrongroup@yahoogroups.com [newmellotrongroup@yahoogroups.com]
Sent: Monday, June 30, 2014 3:04 PM
To: newmellotrongroup@yahoogroups.com
Subject: Re: [newmellotrongroup] Mellotron, shmellotron

 

Hello everyone, My name is Otis and I'm new to this forum. Since last week I own a Mellotron m4000d and I'm completely over the moon with it. It will be nice to learn more about Mellotrons. I hope that I can get a real one in the future. 
Right away I see there's some heated discussion, but I never understood why people think a real Mellotron is too expensive for what is, or why it would be ridiculous to own one, or buy one for a lot of money. People easily pay more for a new kitchen or a car and somehow, in situations like that, I never hear people freak out about it (i would).
In the end it is just about what you like to do and what makes you happy. I like instruments and dislike computers somewhat. As a guitar player I don't feel like sitting behind my pc and play music that way. Old-fashioned point of view for a 31-one-year-old I guess haha. 





On 30 jun. 2014, at 20:51, markprin gnz <no_reply@yahoogroups.com> wrote:

 

I'm surprised that the samples, digital vs electromechanical issue can still generate such interest and emotion. I think they all have their uses and depend on pretty much on how much time and money one has and what sort of sound one is after.

There is something different in playing a mellotron as opposed to playing samples if nothing else the feel of the keyboard is unique! I do understand now why people want the real thing.

On a piece I was recording recently I couldn't be bothered setting up my mellotron, I just wanted a few bars of the 8 choir for a little musical idea, I went to M-Tron pro and the Streetly expansion pack but the sound was out of tune in a way which didn't work for me. I started up Redtron and that was the sound I wanted that time.

Please don't think that I don't like the Streetly expansion pack, I am very happy with it but I don't think the samples are tuned which makes it sound authentic but that isn't always what I want. One of my favourite mellotron sounds at the moment is the string tape sound of my MicroKorg xl+ and I'm not sure how close those samples are to any mellotron.

I'm not sure why anyone would want to leave the group over this, the original post does sound a bit like trolling although he had been a member for a while. Possibly his mellotron had been playing up, like mine it probably needs a rebuild,  I can understand that kind of frustration!

Mark