EXH MEL9 -- anyone got one yet?

[TwilightOdyssey]

Re: EXH MEL9 -- anyone got one yet?

Fingers crossed, am tracking the intro for a new songwriting demo this weekend.

 

[Securb]

Re: EXH MEL9 -- anyone got one yet?

I love the pedal but had to take a step back and ask myself how often would I use it. It would be fun to noodle with at home. However, it would not fit with anything I am doing with the band.

 

[TwilightOdyssey]

Re: EXH MEL9 -- anyone got one yet?

I love the pedal but had to take a step back and ask myself how often would I use it. It would be fun to noodle with at home. However, it would not fit with anything I am doing with the band.

This. I think the pedal will be a huge seller, with a lot of guitarists realizing that they have no use for a Mellotron because they aren't in a prog band lol.

 

[Lazarus1140]

Re: EXH MEL9 -- anyone got one yet?

That's the main reason I don't have the B9, C9, Key9 or Mel9 yet. I'm worried I won't be able to come close to the tones of the demo videos.

That is a legitimate concern.

The tones are easy to extract from the C9 but because of the way it tracks different registers of the organ sounds drop out at different times as the volume dies off. It's still something that could be used live. I think I will set up the C9 and the Mel9 on a separate board so I can either take it along or leave depending on the set list.

To be fair, I didn't have much time to try out the Mel9 last night and it was late so I wasn't able to turn it up. There is a little weirdness to it, though ... things that Rupert knows how to dial out and/or play around.

 

[Lazarus1140]

Re: EXH MEL9 -- anyone got one yet?

This. I think the pedal will be a huge seller, with a lot of guitarists realizing that they have no use for a Mellotron because they aren't in a prog band lol.

I have one song that has not been arranged and I am considering acoustic, strings, and cello ... so we shall see. The question is whether it will sound as good or be as easy to use as my Korg keyboard for recording purposes.

 

[TwilightOdyssey]

Re: EXH MEL9 -- anyone got one yet?

For studio-only use, the MTron is hard to beat. For hardware, the Memotron is the best modern hardware solution. The Mel 9, for me, will be for quickly getting ideas down or live use ... I do like the idea of being able to use my main instrument (guitar) as a controller for Melo tones without having to unpack my keyboard controller.

 

[HighDeaf1080p]

Re: EXH MEL9 -- anyone got one yet?

Just reporting in...the MEL9 in the Superego's effects loop is GLORIOUS!

Instead of it playing exactly what you play and trying to duplicate it, it now just plays gentle halos around your phrasing, in whatever MEL9 voice you've selected. You can dial back in some of the superego's synth as well, by using the dry and effect volumes on the MEL9, and then control the overall mix of that against your clean guitar with the superego's dry and effect volume knobs.

You can also put an effect on the guitar such as overdrive, or envelope filter, and it doesn't affect the MEL9 as much...because its the Superego's synth that is triggering the MEL9, and that's built from granular sampling.

You can pretty deftly control with the attack and sustain on the MEL9 and the Speed and Gliss controls on the Superego, just how sensitive the MEL 9 is, so you can control with playing dynamics when the MEL9 sounds and when it doesn't. This allows you to play a completely different phrase on the superego-MEL9 than what you're playing on the guitar. For chord-melody jazz playing this combo is going to be hard to beat for me, because I can be playing something very dense and complex on the guitar, while allowing the MEL9 to highlight things with a stripped down backing track...all done live, and in the moment. It's going to take a little practice to polish it, but its already impressive after fiddling for one evening.

 

[Securb]

Re: EXH MEL9 -- anyone got one yet?

This. I think the pedal will be a huge seller, with a lot of guitarists realizing that they have no use for a Mellotron because they aren't in a prog band lol.

The thing is the B9 or C9 would work on some of our heavier riffs if balanced right with the guitar. However, I would want to run it in a separate channel not a possibility with the JCM2000.

 

[TwilightOdyssey]

Re: EXH MEL9 -- anyone got one yet?

Just reporting in...the MEL9 in the Superego's effects loop is GLORIOUS!

Instead of it playing exactly what you play and trying to duplicate it, it now just plays gentle halos around your phrasing, in whatever MEL9 voice you've selected. You can dial back in some of the superego's synth as well, by using the dry and effect volumes on the MEL9, and then control the overall mix of that against your clean guitar with the superego's dry and effect volume knobs.

You can also put an effect on the guitar such as overdrive, or envelope filter, and it doesn't affect the MEL9 as much...because its the Superego's synth that is triggering the MEL9, and that's built from granular sampling.

You can pretty deftly control with the attack and sustain on the MEL9 and the Speed and Gliss controls on the Superego, just how sensitive the MEL 9 is, so you can control with playing dynamics when the MEL9 sounds and when it doesn't. This allows you to play a completely different phrase on the superego-MEL9 than what you're playing on the guitar. For chord-melody jazz playing this combo is going to be hard to beat for me, because I can be playing something very dense and complex on the guitar, while allowing the MEL9 to highlight things with a stripped down backing track...all done live, and in the moment. It's going to take a little practice to polish it, but its already impressive after fiddling for one evening.

Would love to hear this in action!

 

[Lazarus1140]

Re: EXH MEL9 -- anyone got one yet?

Well ... I don't have a Superego, but HD's post certainly inspires me to try the MEL9 in the loop of a delay pedal. It might get interesting. It could use a little ethereal softening anyway.

 

[Funkfingers]

Re: EXH MEL9 -- anyone got one yet?

because of the way it tracks, different registers of the organ sounds drop out at different times as the volume dies off.

The age-old guitar synthesist's dilemma.

guitarists realizing that they have no use for a Mellotron because they aren't in a prog band lol.

I'm glad that you included a LOL with this statement. I see no compulsion for Mellotron/Chamberlin sounds to be restricted to the Prog Rock genre. Equally, I see no reason why Prog Rock musicians should feel obliged to use Mellotron sounds.

The suggestion above about using any of the EHX -9 series pedals in conjunction with delay and reverb to create a "halo" is probably the best one. Beats cliched thinking any day.

 

[Lampy H]

Re: EXH MEL9 -- anyone got one yet?

I don't play anything that begs for Organ/Keyboard/Mellotron sounds, but I still want these pedals sooooo bad.

 

[TwilightOdyssey]

Re: EXH MEL9 -- anyone got one yet?

Had a fairly long play with the Mel9 last night. It works really well and is very responsive to pick attack. Some things will not trigger any sound at all, like natural harmonics. It is a challenge getting an even response from the unit, and it forces you to play as you would whenever you are using your guitar as a MIDI controller. I am going to try it today with a compressor in front of it and see if that evens out the response.

Sonically, the Mel9 is an interesting take on the 'tron ... the sound is quite dark.

A major disadvantage is only being able to use one sound at a time, as many original 'tron banks had mixed and hybrid sounds and are featured on many classic albums.

As a Mellotron 'greatest hits' package and considering how the Mel9 is likely to be used, I can see this becoming a major part of my arsenal.

 

[Securb]

Re: EXH MEL9 -- anyone got one yet?

I don't play anything that begs for Organ/Keyboard/Mellotron sounds, but I still want these pedals sooooo bad.

+1^ You could be speaking for a most of us right there. When I write my thesis on GAS can I quote you, my friend?

 

[Funkfingers]

Re: EXH MEL9 -- anyone got one yet?

A major disadvantage is only being able to use one sound at a time, as many original 'tron banks had mixed and hybrid sounds and are featured on many classic albums.

On the original tape-based instrument, it was possible to set up the equivalent of a Split sound patch on a modern ROMpler synthesizer. The notes being sounded could all be in the same register, even if the keys triggering them were octaves apart. For the advanced user, there was also the possibility of making your own tape loops. It is a shame that this aspect of the original instrument cannot be reproduced.

 

[Lazarus1140]

Re: EXH MEL9 -- anyone got one yet?

I can see the MEL9 forcing me to play better. The orchestra and string ensemble sounds are incredible, but to get the full effect every string you intend to play needs to be struck with a very specific force. The low E and B string need a little stronger pic action than the G and the wound strings.

 

[Funkfingers]

Re: EXH MEL9 -- anyone got one yet?

This is true of all guitar-controlled synthesis.

Damping technique is critical. If your guitar has a vibrato bridge, even creaks and squeaks have been known to trigger the sound generator.

 

[Securb]

Re: EXH MEL9 -- anyone got one yet?

I can see the MEL9 forcing me to play better. .

Anytime something forces you to play out of your comfort zone you get better. The thing I have found with my synth is you can't do guitar riffs with a keyboard or woodwind patch. It doesn't sound "right". You need to think like a keyboard or woodwind player and approach you riffs as they would. The MEL9 will get your mental and creative juices running. We also tend to play more when we have a new toy, never a bad thing.

 

[Lazarus1140]

Re: EXH MEL9 -- anyone got one yet?

The thing I have found with my synth is you can't do guitar riffs with a keyboard or woodwind patch. It doesn't sound "right". You need to think like a keyboard or woodwind player and approach you riffs as they would.

That, and you definitely have to play in the range of the target instrument to really capture its voice. On the MEL9 you can forget Cello sounds anywhere on the fretboard outside of the range you normally hear a cello play in.

 

[Mincer]

Re: EXH MEL9 -- anyone got one yet?

I was hoping to hear Watcher of the Skies in this thread.
At home, I use M-Tron to record with, and live, I've used some 'Tron-esque patches on my guitar synth (a Roland XV-5050). I was afraid to dive straight into the Mel9, as I don't know if I could do anything that I couldn't on my current rig. I still am holding out for a good '70s String Synth Pad' pedal. I get pretty close with programming sounds on a Fractal, though.