Sampletron or M-tron?

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What to pick if you want the ultimate tron experience?

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I own both. The answer is M-Tron Pro.

Sampletron is merely okay, in comparison (and perhaps a little better than the original M-Tron, because the original M-Tron was more concerned with total authenticity rather than a comprehensive 'tron' experience). Sampletron is itself only half-a-loaf, because to fill out the collection you really need the Squids Tron Vol.1 package, which ain't cheap.

//fnx
YMMV
Every Potemkin village needs its idiot savant

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funkychickendance wrote:I own both. The answer is M-Tron Pro.

Sampletron is merely okay, in comparison (and perhaps a little better than the original M-Tron, because the original M-Tron was more concerned with total authenticity rather than a comprehensive 'tron' experience). Sampletron is itself only half-a-loaf, because to fill out the collection you really need the Squids Tron Vol.1 package, which ain't cheap.

//fnx
YMMV
Out of curiosity, what's the difference between total authenticity and a comprehensive tron experience? While the quality of the M-Tron sounds run the gamut of mediocre to pretty good, it has been, until recently, the only electronic simulation of a real Tron (authenticity) that provides a fairly comprehensive Tron experience that encompasses the availability of traditional Tron sounds outside of the "official" source of Tron sounds, the Pinder CD from Mellotron Archives, which has better sound quality but fewer sounds.

Now is that a rambling statement or what?

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Ultimate?

To me, ultimate would be to have all existing simulations:
M-Tron, M-Tron pro, Squids Vol 1, Sampletron, the Pinder-CD and to add some fun factor and a really nice additional touch (as are doing almost all simulations) add the Optigan Organ Toolkit to this collection.
That is what I would call an "almost ultimate" Tron experience ;-)

I guess to own only one of those will always let you with some regret.

Possibly a help to decide, if you can only afford one, would be to compare the Sound list of each indtrument, as it really makes a difference to get 100 or 200 different sounds (tapes). The sounds in itself are surely different in each simulation, but in my view, they are all very usuable when you love this kind of sounds.
About the additional effects: it is indeed nice to have good effects on board but in there is nothing you could not achieve in your host.
So a almost "pure" solution like M-Tron is still very valuable.

You can find a complete list of the tapebanks here:

M-Tron
http://www.gforcesoftware.com/ins_mtron.php

M-Tron Pro
http://www.gforcesoftware.com/ins_mtronpro.php

Sampletron
http://www.kvraudio.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=216663

Squids Tron Collection Vol. I
http://www.esoundz.com/details.php?ProductID=220
(on the right side you can click on "Browse the complete soundlist" button)

The difference between Squids VOl 1 and Sampletron:
http://www.kvraudio.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=225880

Mike Pinder CD
http://www.mellotron.com/cdlist.htm

Optigan Organ Toolkit
http://shoptigan.ecrater.com/product.php?pid=2780143

Best regards
Last edited by teacue on Sat Nov 08, 2008 9:14 am, edited 4 times in total.
teacuemusic (Musicals)
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taijiguy wrote:
Out of curiosity, what's the difference between total authenticity and a comprehensive tron experience?
That seems quite obvious to me

'total authenticity' meaning M-tron because it was just a bare emulation.

'comprehensive tron experience' meaning M-tron pro because it has alot of tweeks.

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CANE CREEK wrote:
taijiguy wrote:
Out of curiosity, what's the difference between total authenticity and a comprehensive tron experience?
That seems quite obvious to me

'total authenticity' meaning M-tron because it was just a bare emulation.

'comprehensive tron experience' meaning M-tron pro because it has alot of tweeks.
Thanks for correctly deconstructing what I said. You go to the head of the class. :wink:

//fnx
Every Potemkin village needs its idiot savant

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teacue wrote:Ultimate?

To me, ultimate would be to have all existing simulations:
M-Tron, M-Tron pro, Squids Vol 1, Sampletron, the Pinder-CD and to add some fun factor and a really nice additional touch (as are doing almost all simulations) add the Optigan Organ Toolkit to this collection.
That is what I would call an "almost ultimate" Tron experience ;-)

I guess to own only one of those will always let you with some regret.

Possibly a help to decide, if you can only afford one, would be to compare the Sound list of each indtrument, as it really makes a difference to get 100 or 200 different sounds (tapes). The sounds in itself are surely different in each simulation, but in my view, they are all very usuable when you love this kind of sounds.
About the additional effects: it is indeed nice to have good effects on board but in there is nothing you could not achieve in your host.
So a almost "pure" solution like M-Tron is still very valuable.

You can find a complete list of the tapebanks here:

M-Tron
http://www.gforcesoftware.com/ins_mtron.php

M-Tron Pro
http://www.gforcesoftware.com/ins_mtronpro.php

Sampletron
http://www.kvraudio.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=216663

Squids Tron Collection Vol. I
http://www.esoundz.com/details.php?ProductID=220
(on the right side you can click on "Browse the complete soundlist" button)

The difference between Squids VOl 1 and Sampletron:
http://www.kvraudio.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=225880

Mike Pinder CD
http://www.mellotron.com/cdlist.htm

Optigan Organ Toolkit
http://shoptigan.ecrater.com/product.php?pid=2780143

Best regards
As a Mellotron sample collector, I couldn't settle for just one. I have most of the above (except the Optigan disk and Sampletron) and then some. But if I was forced at gunpoint to choose only one, it would probably be M-Tron Pro, which has yet to arrive. :x

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CANE CREEK wrote:
taijiguy wrote:
Out of curiosity, what's the difference between total authenticity and a comprehensive tron experience?
That seems quite obvious to me

'total authenticity' meaning M-tron because it was just a bare emulation.

'comprehensive tron experience' meaning M-tron pro because it has alot of tweeks.
The reason I asked is because Mellotrons don't have tweaks, so anything beyond tone and pitch controls strays from authenticity. Personally, I want a Tron simulation that acts like a real Tron, even though that's not quite possible, so I don't really care about the extras.

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they should have made one that eats tapes after a while. that way youd get the true experience. :P

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xparis001 wrote:they should have made one that eats tapes after a while. that way youd get the true experience. :P
My Trons have never eaten tapes and of the several dozen Tron owners I know, none of their Trons have either. Of course there are always people who don't know how to take care of their instruments properly. Some big names come to mind. :wink:

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