Nord User Forum

[anotherscott]

Mellotrons sound a little creepy period. But it was all the strings you had back in the seventies.

The Solina String Ensemble (used on Pink Floyd's "Wish You Were Here" album and Jarre's "Oxygene" and "Equinoxe", among others) came out in 1974.

But before that, you're right — it was basically either real strings or a Mellotron.

And of course a few artists like Stevie Wonder, Keith Emerson and ABBA had access to early polysynths like the Yamaha GX-1, which probably produced the most realistic analogue string sounds at the time.

GX1 came after the ARP/Solina string ensemble (as did a slew of other string machines and poly-synths). (And Mellotrons, of course, date back to the 60s, and their Chamberlin brethren went back even further, though were not as widely used).

[simonbeck]

I have an Electro 3 73, and I have been trying out various unlooped Mellotron string sounds. To my ears, they all sound shrill and trebly. How are you lot getting the kind of warm 'Tron sounds that you hear on classic recordings? Tube amp sim? EQ? Reverb? I have tried the MkII "Three Violins", the M400 "16 Violins" and the M400 "String Section 1" (which seems the most usable apart from the bass twang below low C).

They can be kind of trebly to my taste as well. I just use the onboard EQ. And since the Electro 5D now has an amp env, I use this as well to make the sounds swell more

[simonbeck]

I have an Electro 3 73, and I have been trying out various unlooped Mellotron string sounds. To my ears, they all sound shrill and trebly. How are you lot getting the kind of warm 'Tron sounds that you hear on classic recordings? Tube amp sim? EQ? Reverb? I have tried the MkII "Three Violins", the M400 "16 Violins" and the M400 "String Section 1" (which seems the most usable apart from the bass twang below low C).

I quite often use them with the Twin amp sim on. It planes the lows and highs a bit, the onboard eq doing the rest as said just above.

[Quai34]

Not completely the topics but I was never a big fan of the mellotron sound....Maybe because we don't play any songs that was using Mellotron back in the days....For old "strings machine" sound, I bought the Waldorf Streichfett and I use it a lot...Alone or layered, I'm really happy with it...

[stiiiiiiive]

I've read so many good things about this Streichfett.

[simonbeck]

I'm very picky about my Mellotron sounds, and I spent a lot of time listening to the different 'generations' of the Mellotron/Chamberlin sound. There are three:

1. The original Chamberlin files are clearly better quality, but not necessarily what the average listener is used to. This is the sound heard on Ambrosia albums, and can arguably stand up to many modern samplers for realism and 'fatness.' It's a shame that history worked out that way.
2. The early (Mk II) sounds were (IMHO) rather badly duplicated, and lead to the creepy/tinny quality that many remember. Since the Mk II didn't come with an audio out, many recordings mic'ed the speakers, increasing this effect. This is the sound used on early King Crimson, David Bowie, etc. It often needs sweetening with EQ.
3. Once the legal/logistic issues were settled, the Chamberlin files were re-copied in better fidelity. This is the sound found in the M300/M400 and heard on late-70s tracks by Yes.

The Nord library has good unlooped samples of #1 and #2. The best (again, IMHO) samples of #3 are the ones available on CD from Masterbits of Germany as "Mello Trax." They were taken from the sample author's well-maintained M400, and sound really authentic. In addition to strings and choir, they include brass, octave strings, and other sounds. The CD set me back $70 ($75?) US back around 2010, but is now available by download for under $25/17 quid. I'm sure the Mike Pinder (mellotron.com) set sounds great, too, but the $200 price is beyond what I'm willing to pay.

I use the Nord Chamberlin and Mk II strings, as well as choir and flute; and Mello Trax for the M400 strings, octave strings, and brass.

Regards,
-BW