MATRIXSYNTH: THE KIT Vintage 1982 Analog Synthesizer/Drum Machine by M.P.C./MXR w/ orig box SN 002388


Tuesday, January 19, 2016

THE KIT Vintage 1982 Analog Synthesizer/Drum Machine by M.P.C./MXR w/ orig box SN 002388

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via this auction

Pic of the inside & original trimpot adjustment tool below.

"Made in England by M.P.C., distributed in America by guitar effects company MXR Innovations. GOOD+++ Condition, as you can see it's been well used and very well cared-for, check all the detail pictures closely to see the odd places of wear here-and-there. It even comes in its RARELY SEEN original box – I seriously doubt you'll find another!

Its right-hand Cymbal piezo is pretty sketchy, the first time I tried it I got a rapid-fire stutter as it was hit or depressed; then as I monkeyed around with it a little, it managed to sound off properly for about a dozen crashes, and now it seems to be nearly dead; sometimes it does nothing, sometimes you can hear it very faintly, and once in awhile it burps-out its proper tone. I dunno if there is any available replacement, I'm thinking the piezo element is bad, but then again as I inspect the innards, perhaps it could be a cold solder joint, or who-knows-what? Check my detail collage of this cymbal trigger unit, apologies for my amateurish blurry photog attempts. I reckon it would be prudent to consider this one cymbal part dead, although the rest of the unit appears to function 100% normally, and I suppose the remaining Hi-Hat Cymbal would still serve as an acceptible substitute, I did not discern any difference between its sound compared to the other. As a valuable consolation, this machine DOES HAVE all its heavy cast gold metal cymbal “knobs”, which were missing-in-action from all the ones I saw in past auctions; these knobs' surface are somewhat scratched and pitted - again, please refer to the detail pics. Its drum pads have a rather dirty appearance, and a couple of them are loose and “flop out” of their cavities if the unit is inverted; they're attached with small bits of double-sided sticky stuff which apparently has lost its grip over the years. Inside its styrofoam protector, you'll see its original factory tool for adjusting its trim-pots through the tiny access holes in the back, I left these adjustments alone, I cannot say whether they do what they're supposed to. I did give all the main control pots a quick shot of cleaner while I was in there; a couple may be a little scratchy still, there was no apparent audible effect of the cleaner, but they do turn a little more smoothly/freely now. I did not plug anything to any of its jacks, therefor I cannot report on their functionality (its main output jack was working fine).

I ran it through as many of its paces as I could, I tested all the control knobs and everything appears to be working well at this time. The piezo striking elements are designed to respond to varying degrees of force, and although its tones are fairly nondescript it does get a little louder or softer according to how hard you hit the pads and buttons. I have no manual, but I did manage to find a good PDF copy online, so there does exist a fully available factory description of its operation “on the cloud”.

A somewhat obscure analog synthesizer, this vintage drum machine has those junky-funky lo-fi tones that are all the rage in these times of debase electronic “musical” creation and appreciation. This would be a nice addition to any studio's secret weapon stash, you oughtta get some oddball/jaw-drop appeal here, I'll bet no one you know will have ever seen or heard one of these."

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