Mellotronists

Ken Leonard wrote:

> Someone (was it Frank?) said that Sound Sales didn't do much to the M400s
> when they got 'em.
>
> I'm just thankful that neither of my M400s was "improved" by those guys.  :-)
>
>  From what I recall of the Sound Sales mods...
>
> 1) They tied down the tape take-up box differently using parts from
> elsewhere in the machine.  They got rid of the wooden wedges, and didn't
> they then take the L-brackets from the bottom of the take up box and put
> them on the top sides of the box and tied it to the frame instead of the
> side boards?  (This alone would weaken the side boards, resulting in the
> need for (2).)
>
> 2) The side board where the motor is gets some kind of treatment---I don't
> remember what they did there, but I seem to recall it was an attempt to
> prevent the side board from flopping around during transport and only wound
> up making the thing more unreliable.
>
> 3) They put a sticker on the power supply.
>
> 4) They sold it for twice the price of an M400 ordered from the UK.  :-)
>
> I was unaware that they devised and put in the SMS-3, but that alone is a
> huge improvement over the CMC-10, so that's A Good Thing.
>
> What else did they do?  Anyone got one and can share a few pics with me for
> the web site for a page about "Sound Sales M400 Modifications"?
>
> ...kl...  M400 #805 - SMS-4, UK original  / M400 #1037 - SMS-2, ditto

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Hi Gang, To add to the "upgrades" by the Boyz from Cornwall Br,CT ,
Two pinch-rollers were sliced and added on each side of headblock
for "easier" lateral movement of the latter.  Hmmmm.

Personally saw this on Larry Fast's #725 in 1999. " What The..... ?!"
was my first reaction.  And of course, the newer ctrl. panel with "M" logo
and knobs.

The electr. additions were good ones. Besides the SMS3 (different edge
connector from SMS2),  Bill/Gary and company fitted the PML-1
to older Trons with WME289/WME290 preamp/lineamps.
And the "low-noise" mod (20V Zener diode) to the PS.

Jimmy Pishock's M400 which we saw in Philly-2001 was a "classic"
example of a Sound-Sales unit.   How's about it Jimmy  ? You have
some old pix you can share with us ??   Cheers, Jerry Korb

M300/037  (purch. from Gary Schwartz, former tech.of Sound Sales)