Raymond Scott's Electronium

As it was in non working order in the Basement of Mark Motherbaugh's Mutato Music Offices in Hollywood, CA courtesy of http://absurdity.biz 's circuit bending documentary.

UPDATE FROM THE RAYMOND SCOTT ARCHIVES: Raymond Scott's Motown Electronium was removed from Mutato last year & an attempt to restore it is currently underway.

I can't wait!
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Category:

Entertainment

Tags:

• devo
• raymond
• scott
• mark
• mothersbaugh
• electronium
• gearporn
• synth
• machine
• music

[MayaMeows]

This is a national treasure, it shouldn't be in a basement rotting like some old classic car you'll never fix but never get rid of! Ahhh!!!!!! You gotta be able to get a federal grant for this kind of thing!!!

[DrRek]

@MayaMeows indeed mark saved this thing from being thrown away, and would like to see it be restored and stuff, but it seems to quite the task

[zxcv1234vcxz]

@DrRek At least being owned by Mothersbaugh, it's in the hands of someone who appreciates and respects it for what it is.

[DrRek]

exactly ;)

[bugsduggan]

Is it wrong that that makes me horny?

[InfiniteRhombus]

it has to be able to be restored, lets remember that this isn't completely impossible, especially not now in 2011.

but it'd be a massive undertaking, especially with all the cleaning, replacing of parts, probably having to get parts made that obviously aren't available anymore. But it isn't impossible, it would just take ages.

I propose mark put together an army of engineers, cleaners, tinkerers, machinists and others and just let them go to town.

[MrUnidyne]

@bugsduggan It's an invaluable piece of history and it was built,. by hand, by Raymond Scott. You can react that way over it.

[AnalogAudio1]

It might contain a sequencer - long before sequencers were available. It is 100% worth restoring it, no matter what is costs.

[AnalogDecay420]

yeah, looks like they got a serious project on their hands...if it's met with water damage, it's probly gonna need SERIOUS SERIOUS restoration work.

THIS ISN'T JUST A MACHINE, IT'S A WORK OF ART!~

[CassetteMaster]

Probably to fix it it would have be be at least re-capped and all the switches sprayed and pots sprayed.

[paulj0557]

My freak idea came to me after making so many tape loops on a Wollensak RR about 12 years ago. I mentioned a while back somewhere on Utube. Anyway, my idea is to get an aux. ( CD adapter) to cassette adapter and place a tape in it's path. In other words you have your decks cassette head/ 8-track tape head, whichever, and your adapters tape head. The deck is the input and the adapter is the output. The deck's PB/Rec head is also an output ;) Now vibrate heads w/ fast tape loop? An oscillator!

[transitaautomatic]

just to much for the brain to take in how a man could jump so far forwards all at once. scott is right up there with all the great minds of the past. just amazing.

[getthis162001]

they should never turn this machine on, who knows what can happen to the world?

[Elspode]

Heh...someone has put little ARP Odyssey type slider/switch caps on some of the switches. Sweet!

[DrRek]

yea I thought so!