The digital resurection of the Mellotron

The Memotron is a digital remake of one of the most unusual and fascinating electronic music instruments : The Mellotron.

The Mellotron was the original multi-sampler, each key on the Mellotron had recordings of real instruments on a piece of magnetic tape under each note of the 3-octave keyboard and each key had its own pinch roller and playhead. Inside the Mellotron was a frame of tapes with a length of tape for each of the the 35 keys. Each tape could play for no more than eight seconds inspiring a unique 'crawling spider' playing technique as you played inversions to keep sustained chords going.
Each strip of tape had three sounds on it (one of the most popular combinations being strings, choir and flute) selectable from a rotary switch on the panel to the left of the small three octave keyboard but other frames could be purchased and swapped over if you wanted. This was a 'simple' matter of lifting the lid off the unit, removing the keyboard assembly, undoing a few screws, lifting out the tape frame and replacing it with the other frame, tightening the screws and replacing the keyboard assembly and top lid!!!
The instrument was also very temperamental and required regular servicing.

On the digital Memotron no more boring servicing!!! But the classical design and the configuration of the display and knobs are based on the original instrument.
A comprehensive sound library with high qualitative samples of original instruments of the Sixties and Seventies gives you the chance to experience the legendary sound of Pink Floyd, the Beatles, Procul Harum, Genesis, Klaus Schulze and Tangerine Dream.
Sounds can be load up from a CD, individually combined and stored up on compact flash cards.

The Memotron will be available in the end of 2005."

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