The Mellotron Group

I finally got to hear the 4-Track. I finished the major work about an hour  
ago. Now all I have to do is minor adjustments on 4 playback heads and to 
adjust  the SMS-3 and fine-tune the motor. It really should have a new motor, 
but that  is not my decision. I also have to clean the line out and swell 
pedal sockets;  they're a little dicey. I also think I am going to have to 
glue some, if not all  of the pinch rollers to the hubs.
 
It sounds fantastic... and a bit different than a M-400. The keyboard now  
feels great. The action is pretty fast and very light.
 
Here are some photos with comments. I will eventually upload them to the  
Yahoo site. If you right-click and save these photos you can see a lot more  
detail.
 

          
This was a mistake. I  should have done them one pad, one key at a time as 
I do on 400s. I  could have saved some time in  fine-tuning.
   
Finished keyboard. The  keys look uneven along the front, but they're not. 
It's just my  shitty camera.
   
As you can see, the  4-Track keyboard is deeper than the M-400  keyboard.
   
Crappy old tapes.  Poorly installed and completely  shot.
   
The old tapes. For  some reason there was an extra tape guide on the frame. 
All of them  were binding and with the tapes being too long, they wouldn't 
return  when the key was released.
   
I  took one out and inserted a spacer, then realigned them all to spin  
properly. With 1/4 inch tape you need to keep friction to a  minimum.
   
I  saved the old tapes and put them on a spool. The owner may want them  as 
a reminder of what fucked up tapes look  like.
   
Nice new  tapes.
   
This rig makes  installing them a snap. It took less than an  hour.
   
Here is one of the  preamps.
   
I  finally found the serial number. Sure enough, it is #  1
   
Here everything is all  tucked in. I fixed up the cabinet a  bit.
   
Ready to  play.
   
Taking the 4-Track for  a test drive. It's the one in the center for those 
not paying  attention.
   
Still quite a bit of  work to be done, but I'm close. It should be ready 
for pick up in a  couple of days.

Sunday is for  football.

Can you upload the photos now please?

Done.
 
 
In a message dated 11/15/2009 9:10:12 A.M. Eastern Standard Time,  
ecclesreinson@rogers.com writes:

 
 
 
Can you upload the photos now please?

I couldn't help notice in the last two pics, when did you get hold of
the Taurus I pedals?
 
John
#911

________________________________

From: newmellotrongroup@yahoogroups.com
[mailto:newmellotrongroup@yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of lsf5275@aol.com
Sent: Sunday, November 15, 2009 1:30 AM
To: newmellotrongroup@yahoogroups.com; Mellotronists@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [newmellotrongroup] Re: Another 4-Track update (she's nearly
done)


I finally got to hear the 4-Track. I finished the major work about an
hour ago. Now all I have to do is minor adjustments on 4 playback heads
and to adjust the SMS-3 and fine-tune the motor. It really should have a
new motor, but that is not my decision. I also have to clean the line
out and swell pedal sockets; they're a little dicey. I also think I am
going to have to glue some, if not all of the pinch rollers to the hubs.
 
It sounds fantastic... and a bit different than a M-400. The keyboard
now feels great. The action is pretty fast and very light.
 
Here are some photos with comments. I will eventually upload them to the
Yahoo site. If you right-click and save these photos you can see a lot
more detail.
 
  	This was a mistake. I should have done them one pad, one key at
a time as I do on 400s. I could have saved some time in fine-tuning.
  	Finished keyboard. The keys look uneven along the front, but
they're not. It's just my shitty camera.
  	As you can see, the 4-Track keyboard is deeper than the M-400
keyboard.
  	Crappy old tapes. Poorly installed and completely shot.
  	The old tapes. For some reason there was an extra tape guide on
the frame. All of them were binding and with the tapes being too long,
they wouldn't return when the key was released.
  	I took one out and inserted a spacer, then realigned them all to
spin properly. With 1/4 inch tape you need to keep friction to a
minimum.
  	I saved the old tapes and put them on a spool. The owner may
want them as a reminder of what fucked up tapes look like.
  	Nice new tapes.
  	This rig makes installing them a snap. It took less than an
hour.
  	Here is one of the preamps.
  	I finally found the serial number. Sure enough, it is # 1
  	Here everything is all tucked in. I fixed up the cabinet a bit.
  	Ready to play.
  	Taking the 4-Track for a test drive. It's the one in the center
for those not paying attention.
  	Still quite a bit of work to be done, but I'm close. It should
be ready for pick up in a couple of days.
Sunday is for football.

They're in for repairs. They're not mine.
 
 
In a message dated 11/16/2009 9:16:51 A.M. Eastern Standard Time,  
john.wright@consona.com writes:

I couldn't help notice in the last two pics, when  did you get hold of the 
Taurus I pedals?

Very nice, Frank.  It's a clean machine.
   Here's a few nosey questions-
-Is that bar that the tapes pass over made of nylon?  Is the friction it induces due to static build-up?
-What circuit is in the box in back of the control panel? 
-Was the flywheel pulley belt standard sized?
 
  Thanks
  -Bruce Daily
 


--- On Mon, 11/16/09, lsf5275@aol.com <lsf5275@aol.com> wrote:

From: lsf5275@aol.com <lsf5275@aol.com>
Subject: Re: [newmellotrongroup] Re: Another 4-Track update (she's nearly done)
To: newmellotrongroup@yahoogroups.com
Date: Monday, November 16, 2009, 7:18 AM


  




They're in for repairs. They're not mine.
 

In a message dated 11/16/2009 9:16:51 A.M. Eastern Standard Time, john.wright@ consona.com writes:

I couldn't help notice in the last two pics, when did you get hold of the Taurus I pedals?

In a message dated 11/16/2009 6:30:53 P.M. Eastern Standard Time,  
pocotron@yahoo.com writes:

Very nice, Frank.  It's a clean machine.
   Here's a few nosey questions-
-Is that bar that the tapes pass over made of nylon?  Is the  friction it 
induces due to static build-up?
-What circuit is in the box in back of the control  panel? 
-Was the flywheel pulley belt standard sized?
 
  Thanks
  -Bruce Daily

 
Bruce, 
 
The roller guides on the tape frame were all difficult to spin. I fixed  
that. The roller guides that the tape return springs pass over were the same  
way. I fixed them. The nylon bars across the front and rear of the guides 
that  the tapes pass through at the head block are very smooth and cause 
little if any  friction. Whether or not they impart static electricity to the 
tapes remains to  be seen. I have not experienced any signs of that yet.
 
The flywheel appears to have the same diameter as any other at the point  
where the belt passes over it, but the diameter of the capstan is smaller 
than  that of a M-400. The M-400 capstan has a 20mm diameter and used 6004  
bearings while the 4-Track capstan has a 3/4" diameter and takes R-12  
bearings. The belt is stock and the drive pulley and timing sprocket are  stock.
 
If you look at the photos in the album I posted on the Yahoo site, you can  
see one of the 4 pre-amp boards. The pots are connected to the boards  
themselves. Here is a photo of what's inside. The preamp boards for each track  
plug into these edge connector sockets.

 
That's all that is up top except for the on/off switch and the pitch  
control pot. In the box below where the power supply is there is a SMS-3, a  
transformer, two capacitors and a few other components. Not a Bulgin anything to 
 be seen. It looks like all connectors are Molex connectors. Even in a 
standard  power supply, if you have an SMS 2, 3 or 5, you really only need the 
large 4000  microfarad capacitor and the 1600 microfarad capacitor next to 
it. The rest of  them can be used to make neat devices to shock the shit out 
of your friends or  even total strangers. Handle with care. The swell pedal 
connector is a DIN  connector.  All four tracks run to it and then to the 
lines out, much like  a M-400.
 
Notice the scientifically designed, human engineered, user friendly piece  
of Velcro to the right. This is the hook side; the loop side is attached to 
the  lid. This is to keep the lid closed if you happen to be playing 
outdoors in  heavy wind.
 
The 4-Track appears to have been designed and built by the Gilbert Company. 
 It is constructed very much like something one might build with an Erector 
 Set.
 
One last thing. There are seven 1/4" output sockets on the back of the  
cabinet. Three above four. As near as I can tell, they are configured as  
follows.
 
                    Left channel out.        Line out (normal  mono)        
 Right channel out
 
 
          Track A  (clean)         Track B  (clean)          Tack C  
(clean)          Track D  (clean)
 
By clean, I mean that the signal from the head stack does not run through  
the preamp and therefore the player has no control over volume or panning. I 
 suppose you could run the lines out through 4 separate volume pedals 
though. I  think the intent is to run the dry signal directly to a recording desk.
 
The left and right channels can be used for live performances and go  
through the swell pedal and allow panning of the separate tracks by the player  
during recording or live performance. The mono line out is for the guy who 
just  wants to plug it into his amp and make some noise.
 
I like it!
 
Frank

From: lsf5275@aol.com
Subject: Re: [newmellotrongroup] Re: Another 4-Track update (she's nearly done)
To: newmellotrongroup@yahoogroups.com
Date: Monday, November 16, 2009, 5:39 PM

In a message dated 11/16/2009 6:30:53 P.M. Eastern Standard Time, pocotron@yahoo.com writes:

Very nice, Frank. It's a clean machine.

Here's a few nosey questions-

-Is that bar that the tapes pass over made of nylon? Is the friction it induces due to static build-up?

-What circuit is in the box in back of the control panel?

-Was the flywheel pulley belt standard sized?

Thanks

-Bruce Daily

Facinating stuff!
Andy K

-----Original Message-----
From: Bruce Daily <pocotron@yahoo.com>
To: newmellotrongroup@yahoogroups.com
Sent: Tue, 17 Nov 2009 5:53
Subject: Re: [newmellotrongroup] Re: Another 4-Track update (she's nearly done)







Thanks very much, Frank!
 
   -Bruce D.


--- On Mon, 11/16/09, lsf5275@aol.com <lsf5275@aol.com> wrote:


From: lsf5275@aol.com <lsf5275@aol.com>
Subject: Re: [newmellotrongroup] Re: Another 4-Track update (she's nearly done)
To: newmellotrongroup@yahoogroups.com
Date: Monday, November 16, 2009, 5:39 PM



In a message dated 11/16/2009 6:30:53 P.M. Eastern Standard Time, pocotron@yahoo.com writes:

Very nice, Frank.  It's a clean machine.
   Here's a few nosey questions-
-Is that bar that the tapes pass over made of nylon?  Is the friction it induces due to static build-up?
-What circuit is in the box in back of the control panel? 
-Was the flywheel pulley belt standard sized?
 
  Thanks
  -Bruce Daily

 
Bruce, 
 
The roller guides on the tape frame were all difficult to spin. I fixed that. The roller guides that the tape return springs pass over were the same way. I fixed them. The nylon bars across the front and rear of the guides that the tapes pass through at the head block are very smooth and cause little if any friction. Whether or not they impart static electricity to the tapes remains to be seen. I have not experienced any signs of that yet.
 
The flywheel appears to have the same diameter as any other at the point where the belt passes over it, but the diameter of the capstan is smaller than that of a M-400. The M-400 capstan has a 20mm diameter and used 6004 bearings while the 4-Track capstan has a 3/4" diameter and takes R-12 bearings. The belt is stock and the drive pulley and timing sprocket are stock.
 
If you look at the photos in the album I posted on the Yahoo site, you can see one of the 4 pre-amp boards. The pots are connected to the boards themselves. Here is a photo of what's inside. The preamp boards for each track plug into these edge connector sockets.

 
That's all that is up top except for the on/off switch and the pitch control pot. In the box below where the power supply is there is a SMS-3, a transformer, two capacitors and a few other components. Not a Bulgin anything to be seen. It looks like all connectors are Molex connectors. Even in a standard power supply, if you have an SMS 2, 3 or 5, you really only need the large 4000 microfarad capacitor and the 1600 microfarad capacitor next to it. The rest of them can be used to make neat devices to shock the shit out of your friends or even total strangers. Handle with care. The swell pedal connector is a DIN connector.  All four tracks run to it and then to the lines out, much like a M-400.
 
Notice the scientifically designed, human engineered, user friendly piece of Velcro to the right. This is the hook side; the loop side is attached to the lid. This is to keep the lid closed if you happen to be playing outdoors in heavy wind.
 
The 4-Track appears to have been designed and built by the Gilbert Company. It is constructed very much like something one might build with an Erector Set.
 
One last thing. There are seven 1/4" output sockets on the back of the cabinet. Three above four. As near as I can tell, they are configured as follows.
 
                   Left channel out.        Line out (normal mono)         Right channel out
 
 
          Track A (clean)         Track B (clean)          Tack C (clean)          Track D (clean)
 
By clean, I mean that the signal from the head stack does not run through the preamp and therefore the player has no control over volume or panning. I suppose you could run the lines out through 4 separate volume pedals though. I think the intent is to run the dry signal directly to a recording desk.
 
The left and right channels can be used for live performances and go through the swell pedal and allow panning of the separate tracks by the player during recording or live performance. The mono line out is for the guy who just wants to plug it into his amp and make some noise.
 
I like it!
 
Frank