Cassette multitrack reborn as Mellotron style instrument.

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Tubetec

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Nov 18, 2015
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Looks like I've been dragged into collaborating in a project to try and turn a tape multitracker into a mini mellotron  ,
First off I'll stripe the tape channels with 4 different tones at a set musical interval , then by modifying the pitch control pot into a switching arangement ,the four basic tones can be pitched  up or down , so four notes capable of being played at a number of different tape speeds , it will of course take a small amount of time for the motor/flywheel  speed to change and pitch stabilise after you change note ,but at least all the swirley whirley is glorius analog , 
Looks like the pause mechanism could be linked in easily too ,so after you stop playing for a few seconds the tape stops until  another note is pressed  , the balistics of the tape mechanism in the machine are  good ,it can drop in or out of play/record seamlessly in a fraction of a second

Im trying to figure out whats the most musical  way of arranging the buttons and the pitch shift , four different tape tracks at four different  speeds ,16 notes and four fingers on each hand , so two rows of  four buttons to cover everything . Of course different tapes could be prepared in advance  for each piece of music you need to accompany with it  . Maybe a musically gifted individual could suggest some possible strategies , the vari speed dial on the X-15 gives varispeed of +/-15% , although I think there is more range available via a preset on the board , so it gives each note probably  +/-20%  range it can transpose to . Hopefully a simple switched resistive ladder network will be adequate .

Imagine though, having to change  the cassette tape when you want a different tone on the instrument , what a blast from the past that would be
you  also get to cook up the backing tapes to your own special recipe from sample libraries or synths  , your not stuck with the presets from the original  Mello, but it will give some  of that special tape/time dynamic to the  sound .

 
+/- 20% gives you +/- 3 semitones (and a bit). That means you can cover a range of 28 semitones with 4 tracks. Somebody check my math on that..

Would it make sense for the tunings to be configurable if you go for something other than a standard chromatic keyboard?
 
Heres someone else who had a similar idea ,
you can see he  makes use of the pitch control  as well .

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W7mXuh4oDqI

 
CJ said:
what did they load onto the original tapes as far as a source?

You mean the tapes of back then? Various recordings of instruments, without (as I understood it) the intention to 'treat' those sounds... as it happened it just came out that way and the rest is history.

But you knew all that  ;) , so you might have meant something different?

BTW, the recent addition of a Mellotron-emulation to the Arturia software plugin-suite has the possibility to 'treat' own samples.
but that's the easy route... this mechanical project here is of course great fun  :)
 
Theres a few youtube clips that play some of the less well known sounds from the Mello, weird atmospheric stuff not all of it musical .
Naturally enough the original sounds went through several generations too/from tape before they actually made it into the machines  and the minute technical imperfections,wows and flutters of the recording process actually add atmosphere and timbre to the sounds.
cassette's tapes pinched frequency response and limited dynamic range do a similar job with just a single generation printed to tape ,

For now Im thinking the interface could be as simple as four momentary on off push buttons , one for each track/voice , a rotary switch as pitch/motor speed  control  and a possibly a master fader so swells can be manually dialed in .
 
I admire your diy spirit!  Hope you have lots of interesting adventures on this project.

"...  a tremendous amount of verve!  ... " 
 

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