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I used to travel with a C3 & two Leslie 122’s (probably 600lbs of wood and steel)……now I have an XK-3c (50 lbs.) and don’t go anywhere…
go figure….where was it in 1969 ?….I could of saved a lot of back pain J…..I love the sound of the XK-3c but there is something special about playing the original
tonewheel monster….the smell of the wood and burning Hammond oil….and still very dependable after all these years…oh well I’ll stick to the memories and
keep the XK……When I first wanted a Mellotron they could be had new for about $2500 (a fortune to me in those days) and around $1200 used in good condition.
I wish I had bought one back then and held on to it….I would have probably worn it out after carting it around and been on Frank’s customer list by now J.
From: newmellotrongroup@yahoogroups.com [mailto:newmellotrongroup@yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of djacques@csulb.edu
Sent: Tuesday, June 15, 2010 8:22 PM
To: newmellotrongroup@yahoogroups.com
Subject: Re: [newmellotrongroup] Price of Mellotron in 1972
You would have to be very brave to depend on a classic mellotron during a live performance. I own my mellotron as a collectors piece. I still play it in my studio, but perform with a Motif and my tron samples. Not only will it be in tune and mechanically dependable, its also a lot lighter.
Sent via BlackBerry from T-Mobile
From: Gary Brumm <gabru@comsec.net>
Date: Tue, 15 Jun 2010 23:06:25 -0400
To: newmellotrongroup@yahoogroups.com<newmellotrongroup@yahoogroups.com>
Subject: RE: [newmellotrongroup] Price of Mellotron in 1972
Come on Chris, you don’t really believe that do you. Seriously….many the people who made the instrument famous could afford
a boatload of these things IF THEY WANTED THEM…..THEY DON’T! Tony Banks, Robert Fripp, Rick Wakeman, ect. can afford
any instruments they want….they chose to replace the Mellotrons and never looked back. Most are on record of “hating those damn things”.
There is still a very limited market of collectors and musicians but you are more likely to see one on stage with a lower budget act “showing it off”
than headlining talent with the budget for several as spares. They are a fascinating piece of musical history and I loved the sound the first time I heard it so don’t get me wrong….I appreciate it for what it is and was. Musicians are much more likely to carry around the much heavier Hammond/Leslie combo than a tron and many still do….and the cost of the equipment is about the same or more in some cases. A B3/Leslie is also standard equipment in many more studios than a tron. I’m not trying to start a flame war but I’ve been around this stuff since the early 70’s (ok late 60’s J) as I am sure many of you on this list have been so I am speaking only from my experiences and YMMV J…
Cheers!
Studio ownership of Mellotrons also explains why many bands that used the Mellotron back then don't use them now - they never owned them to begin with.
On Wed, Jun 16, 2010 at 12:47 AM, John Wright <john.wright@consona.com> wrote:
Wonder how one could afford a Tron then. Did studios buy them and lease them?
John
#911
From: newmellotrongroup@yahoogroups.com [mailto:newmellotrongroup@yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of partune
Sent: Tuesday, June 15, 2010 10:34 AM
To: newmellotrongroup@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [newmellotrongroup] Price of Mellotron in 1972
Seeing all the posts about the price of the Tron on eBay, I've a copy of a letter I received in 1972 from DMI quoting a price on a new M400 as $3,500.00.
Regards,
partune