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M-Audio Gforce MTRON 9910-40684-00 Mellotron emmulator | 
 enlarge | Brand: M-Audio
Category: Musical Instruments
List Price: $129.99
Buy New: $99.99
You Save: $30.00 (23%)
Avg. Customer Rating:  3 reviews
Sales Rank: 9302
Media: Electronics
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.5
Dimensions (in): 9.6 x 7.7 x 2.8
MPN: MTRON
Model: 9910-40684-00
UPC: 612391260309
EAN: 0612391260309
ASIN: B000B8FV96
Shipping: Eligible for Super Saver Shipping
Availability: Usually ships in 3 to 6 weeks
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| Features:
| • | M-Tron is an authentic software emulation of the classic Mellotron synthesizer. | | • | Extremely realistic model of classic Mellotron | | • | Now includes all additional tape banks--over 2.5GB of real Mellotron samples | | • | Strings, choir, flutes, brass, oboes and more | | • | Stand-alone and host support |
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| Editorial Reviews:
Product Description
The M-Tron is a software simulation of the classic tape playing instrument the Mellotron . The M-Tron is available for both Mac and PC platforms and contains 28 classic Tape Banks including Strings, Choirs, Flutes and Brass along with some of the most amazing rhythms you'll ever hear!
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| Customer Reviews:
 A mellotron for the ignorant and the wise December 24, 2007
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
I'm one of these people that records at home with various vocal and instrumental friends for the sheer joy of creativity ; under no populist or commercial constraints, I can say in all honesty that I pursue art for arts sake. I'm neither a geek nor a technophobe, equally at home with authentic musical instruments and virtual ones, retro and modern sounds.
I do confess to being ignorant in the sense that I don't know all the terms and what half of them mean !! I'm a trial and error man and I'm moved by sounds. I love the sound of the mellotron.
I bought the M-TRON in late 2004 and I had real problems loading it but that was down to the fact that I was very new to computers. A guy at G-Media spelled out for me how to load it and it was easy from there. I still have the instructions ! If there are any of you out there who, like me back then haven't a clue how to load it or any VST, e-mail the technical help and ask them to spell it out simply, the way they would to a computer illiterate 9 year old just starting out. You'd be surprized how few of those guys can be simple but the guy I got hold of (Dave) was brilliant in that regard. Thanks, Dave !!
Let me get to the point; I don't care for the graphics though they are rewarding - it's the sounds I bought it for. And they are a mixed bag. Some of them are, to my ears, just like the mellotron that I've known and loved for 30+ years. And some of them aren't although they are close. It's worth pointing out that these are not synth-y versions of the instrument but actual samples of the tape banks. I use alot of samples and sometimes I cannot tell the difference between that and a real instrument and other times I can - and I have good ears. I think the M-TRON is a bit like that, some great sounds, some a little disappointing. But that leads me to conclude that much of this game is about personal taste. The creators do take some liberties; one is able to shape the sound in ways one couldn't on the original mellotrons and interestingly, I've not found any of the banks to contain out of tune notes, even though the instructions say that will be the case "to retain the authentic flavour". Or maybe I just match the pitch so well that I can't tell !
One quick thing to point out - the mellotron is essentially a colouring instrument and although it can obviously be used however the artist chooses to, it's not versatile in the way a piano, a guitar, a bass or drums and even a synth (though I prefer the mellotron sound ) are so one need not be overly fussy about it's drawbacks unless they really are glaring - and I don't think that they are.
The fact that you can't combine three sets of sounds at once is something that never even occurred to me till I read one of the reviews above ! I guess it is labourious but in the multitracking age hardly a reason not to get one, eh ? Usually when I layer sounds, I do them separately anyway as I find the performance fluctuations add to overall sound, a bit like double tracking parts, although all methods are good and valid. For me, the only drawback is the 8 second rule, where the notes only last for 8 seconds. It's authentic, yes, it's easy to get around but it was initially irritating !
I must admit, I was surprized that Rick Wakeman was an advocate of the M-TRON, but kind of glad too. I've used mine extensively and it does the job. If you have thousands of s, $s, euros etc to burn and a nearby mellotron technician and the muscles to move it and patience with it's foibles, then don't bother with the M-TRON. But as most of us have neither the money, the strength, the room or the patience, I'd say get it. Three years on I have no regrets and I can't see a day when mine will be up for sale !
Very good overall emulation of the Mellotron, but it could have been better December 17, 2007
Just to allay any confusion, I do not own a real Mellotron (which should be obvious considering I'm reviewing an emulation thereof). Moreover, I have never actually played the real thing nor even been in the room with an M400 or a MkII. However, I absolutely adore these instruments, and any musical selection that uses them picks up a few points with me simply on that virtue. I have long wished to own one (or at the very least play one), and my style of music just begs for Mellotron. It was because of the above that I purchased the M-Tron.
Overall, this is a very good, complete package. It contains over 100 tape banks spanning a wide variety of sounds, though the selection is particularly rich in string and chorus sets. Some of these are barely usable for any genre, some are limited to the lo-fi retro sort of work, but most are surprisingly useful in myriad genres of music. Anything that uses a small string section, for instance, would work beautifully with a good set of MkII violins (take your pick; there are four or five different strings tapes from the MkII alone). Epic tracks would benefit greatly from the addition of any of the choruses (well, perhaps not all the choruses are useful--see ahead), Beatles-esque ballads just cry out for MkII flutes, and even the clarinet--which is surprisingly beautiful and superior, in my opinion, to any digitally-sampled patch I have ever heard--might find use in the odd song here or there.
-INITIAL CONSIDERATIONS (INSTALLATION, ETC)-
Installation is very simple. Put the disc in the drive, follow the instructions, enter the information printed on the cover of your instruction booklet, and just keep placing the (other three) discs into the drive as the installer asks for them. Make sure that if you're using this as a VST or RTAS plug-in that you know exactly where your plug-ins folder is because you will be asked for this information during the installation.
I did notice something odd, though. The driver support of the standalone player seems somewhat lacking because my Creative X-Fi's own ASIO driver didn't work very well with the program. There was continuous clicking and noise in the background and the program did not handle polyphony very well. However, when used as a VST plug-in for Cubase, the M-Tron works flawlessly. Bear that in mind: you will likely want to use this as a plug-in and not as a standalone. But you were going to do that anyway, right? Of course you were; why else would you buy this program? Assuming that motivation, we can move on to the UI.
-USER INTERFACE-
The UI is very simple and intuitive: There are three different "modes", between which one may switch using the A-B-C knob. Position "A" seems fairly useless because it offers no control over the sound bank or manipulation of the samples, and yet it is the default position when the plug-in loads. Go figure. Position "C" displays the tape list--click on the active set to view all your choices. Position "B" reveals the attack and release sliders. Purists complain that since a real Mellotron lacks these it is somehow impure that they be included. I think these are the same people who complain about the bonus tracks included with the Rhino remastered Yes albums (I've reviewed several of these if you're interested). Why people complain about *extra* functionality or features I will never understand.
In any event, the remainder of the UI is very transparent. The Volume knob modulates the MIDI velocity of the VSTi, the Tone knob filters out high frequencies (presumably those above 10 kHz, as per a real Mellotron), and the Pitch knob raises and lowers the pitch of the entire range of notes. While the Volume is a set-it-and-forget-it sort of parameter, the Tone and especially the Pitch wheels are a little cumbersome to manipulate with a mouse. Therefore, this instrument will probably be more fulfilling if you have a MIDI controller to alter these settings in real time.
-SOUND QUALITY AND SELECTION-
Yeah, yeah, but how does it SOUND? Well, that's actually a mixed bag. The strings, for the most part, are very faithful to the original Mellotron strings heard on countless recordings. That said, the M-Tron is long on MkII strings and short on anything else. Perhaps I am professing my ignorance on the matter, but unless the M400 simply recycled the MkII or M300 strings, this collection utterly lacks an M400 string sample. In actual practice, this is not particularly limiting but it is a little curious. Indeed, much worse is the condition of several of the M400 choruses. The boys choirs are unplayable--both of them. The basic tone is heavenly (which makes it all the more frustrating), but there are several notes which are ridiculously out of tune. GForce Software (the original purveyors of the M-Tron before they became a subsidiary of M-Audio) likes to remind us that these "minor" imperfections add to the character of the Mellotron, and that when played in context this contributes to the magic of the instrument. I'm sorry; there is a point beyond which that argument fails to apply. A wobbly note here or there adds character; a note that is halfway between the proper tone and the note a semitone below it is quite a different matter. GForce should have fixed any and all tuning errors, whether intrinsic to the master recording or the particular specimen with which they were working. I simply cannot imagine *anyone* complaining because some of the previously unplayable tape sets are now in tune.
Worst of all is the condition of one of the staple tape banks of the Mellotron: the Mixed Choir, also known as the 8 Choir. It seems to me that for something as important as this GForce could have found a better surviving sample. Don't get me wrong; it's not terrible, but it doesn't sound anything like it does in the many, many recordings in which it is featured. Perhaps in context it might fare better, but raw and/or played through some quality reverb, it just doesn't live up to the ethereal sound of the legendary 8 Choir. The worst part is that annoying soprano who scoops up to every single note. Why the Mellotron chorus tapes were recorded with this octave-higher windbag I don't know, but it seems as though GForce must have liked that part of the sound because they amplified it to point where it drowns out everything else. Note that, if anything, the MF Choir (Male-Female Choir) is even worse in this regard.
If you're interested, there actually is a "workaround" for this deficiency. You have to "make" the 8 Choir from its original components. You see, when these tape sets were originally cut, the male and female singers were recorded separately so as to allow for male- and female-only chorus tapes in addition to the mixed version. Both these sounds are included with the M-Tron, as the Choir 1 (male) and Choir 2 (female) presets. The workaround is to record your MIDI track as usual in the software program of your choice, and then duplicate it. Run two separate instances of the M-Tron (on separate channels, of course) and assign one MIDI track the Choir 1 preset and the other track the Choir 2 preset. This technique achieves exactly the same result as the original Mixed Choir, and it sounds much more authentic than the included Mixed Choir tape set. Bathe this combination in reverb (and I mean bathe--turn the Dry Out way down), crank up the volume, and you've got the perfect sound for Genesis' "Dancing With The Moonlit Knight" (among a few billion choices). Tony Banks would not know the difference.
UPDATE: After playing around extensively with EQ, I've discovered that the Mixed Choir bank IS usable. One must notch down the lower midrange frequencies by a ridiculous amount (some 12 dB across a wide frequency range) in order to arrive at the eerie, arresting tone of the classic 8 Choir. A bump around 784 Hz and a roll-off above 12 kHz complete the task. Unfortunately, unless you resample the bank (a time-consuming process, and not something everybody could do), you're still stuck with the poor attacks on each sample. I hacked these off when I resampled and it did wonders.
Also, I've discovered that tape or plate reverb is the way to go when processing Mellotron sounds. It adds a whole new dimension of depth that the otherwise dry mono samples lack. This is the way the Mellotron was processed in the many classic tracks on which it was used.
Finally, the string sounds can all benefit from high end roll-off. There's a piercing, irritating apparition that almost sounds like a bad sample rate conversion in all these banks, but a roll-off above 12 kHz or so takes care of this.
-NOTABLE SOUNDS-
Despite the above qualms, there are some very beautiful and rare sounds that more than make this package worth the expense. Some of these include:
Classical Choir: A somewhat different sonic approach than the classic 8 Choir, this sound--when processed with adequate reverb--is one of my favorite choruses on the M-Tron. It's rare, and I don't believe I've heard it in any recordings.
Clarinet: I mentioned this before, but it bears repeating. If I can find a viable use for this sound, I will. It's that good. You just have to try it for yourself.
MkII Vintage Violins: Take every song you've heard with the classic MkII 3 Violins sound and throw that out of your head. These are far better. However, beware the high notes, which have an annoying tone which sounds almost like aliasing noise (this only appears while using headphones).
Chamberlin Harp 1: Simply breathtakingly beautiful. Again, a very particular sound for which I vow to find a use.
Tripled 8 Choir: This almost makes up for how I feel about the real 8 Choir sample. This seems to have been formed from better original tapes, and whether this is a sound created by GForce or else the masterpiece of some previous creative Mellotron owner I am not sure. It is a very nice chorus, nonetheless.
15 Choir: This almost doesn't sound like a Mellotron tape. I'm not sure if this was a modern or original chorus set; it sounds so different from the other permutations on the Mellotron chorus. Note, though, that it sounds best with the Tone wheel set fully clockwise.
Halfspeed Tron: Useless for melody in the traditional sense, this is the perfect, monstrous bass. Use it in a mix to anchor a particularly epic section (by now you've chosen your favorite flavor of Mellotron chorus, I hope), or else create a mysterious, powerful bass melody.
Pipe Organ: Monstrous. Just monstrous. This actually sounds better than the hybrid version offered via the Megatron Organ preset. Notch up the reverb, turn up the volume, and pound out some block chords. Warm, rich, analog, awesome--all words to describe this sound.
MkII Violins: A perfect rendition of a mic'ed MkII, this sound EXACTLY replicates the one used for the Mellotron solo at the closing of Genesis' "Seven Stones" (from 'Nursery Cryme'). Speaking of which, try the MkII Church preset on the "Seven Stones" entrance--it's the same sound Tony Banks used here, also.
-THE BOTTOM LINE-
All in all, as I've said, the M-Tron is a very good emulation of the Mellotron. Certainly GForce could have done better, particularly with tuning issues and with selecting a better specimen of the 8 Choir tape set, but honestly there is little else to fault about this collection. Though these wonderful instruments are indeed in production once more, purchasing a new or used Mellotron is still not a very practical endeavor. Mellotrons are cumbersome (particularly the older MkII models), prone to breakdown (the new ones allegedly improve on this), and require routine maintenance just to keep them working. And they're expensive--the basic MkVI will set you back $5,200, and a top-of-the-line MkVII can make it into the quintuple digits. Be that as it may, good emulations are very scarce, with the M-Tron basically sporting the title as the one and only such product. Therefore, if you absolutely adore the Mellotron but are not prepared or equipped to own the real thing, then the M-Tron is really your only choice. Thank your lucky stars that it's a good one!
 Limited Simulation of the Quirky Instrument that Defined the Sound of The Moody Blues & Yes, and used by Genesis, Beatles, etc. October 28, 2007
6 out of 6 found this review helpful
Like the Mellotron itself, the M-Tron software is quirky. It also is limited in its simulation... for example, the simulator does not actually emulate the A-B-C three-position switch of the M-400 - the M-Tron's switch functions as a way to A) Play the instrument, B) Select attack and release sliders, or C) select different individual tape banks (and you must wait while the tape bank is loaded!). The real Mellotron's 3-position switch allowed you to switch between the three possible loaded tape banks... but, not only are you limited to one sound at a time, there certainly doesn't seem to be a way to "blend" sounds - a feature that was available on the original instrument.
At least the product now comes with all 100 tape bank samples. You used to have to pay extra to get more than the standard 25! I would gather that nobody bothered paying to get the extra samples, and with the other limitations of the simulation, the manufacturer wisely decided to include the extra samples as a "freebie".
I've ordered M-Audio's KeyRig 49 USB Keyboard, which I'm going to attempt to use with M-Tron... I'll update this review, as I proceed with "mastering" the M-Tron. UPDATE: I was able to get the KeyRig 49 working with the M-TRON software, but I had to also get an ASIO capable sound card to get the whole kit and kaboodle working... final investment ended up running about $350 (I'm using my Bass Guitar amp/speaker combo with it, 'cause I can't spare any more dough on this setup at this time). Oddly enough, the tape bank switch feature now works a lot faster once I got the KeyRig keyboard working (rather than using the "GUI keyboard", which has other drawbacks too, like not letting you hit multiple keys at once to play multiple notes).
With the advances in computer technology, one would think that there could be an update to this simulation (apparently first put on the market in 2002), which would include the important missing features I described above, as well as a "polishing" of the installation and runtime GUI features.
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