Turtlerock Forum

I have recently acquired an old yamaha M1532 console which was in need of attention to eliminate a hum, i have since dropped it off for servicing to a very reputable tech and have recently been informed that the hum may end up being an expensive mystery ?? When i initially purchased the console i had decided that i would spend some money on it having mods done to the master and EQ section. I spoke with Joe Malone and he mentioned that these are great sounding consoles, and when moded are certainly worth the investment, if i planned to keep the console. Now don't get me wrong i waited for several years for a 32 channel to become available and in this time, had some great dreams and aspirations of this being the console that i would chuck money at until i could afford a serious board. My dilemma is am i wasting money chasing this dream? should i focus on a more studio orientated board? I do love the aesthetics of the board and the tone it imparts on the music that passes through it. I suppose that i am a little concerned that if it reaches into big dollar territory, that i may be better off looking at other options?
I was basically looking at mixing/summing out to 24 channels and using 8 of the channels for tracking drums. I look forward to the feedback from the wise and experienced.

Argh, I was all ready to type until I read that last sentence ................

I would class all that grace the pages of Turtlerock wise and experienced

The Yamaha M1532 is kind of like the baby brother to the PM2000 series and shares many similarities. One of the main differences between the 2 is that the DOA in the M1532 is soldered directly into the board and isn't as easily interchangeable as the PM2000. From threads that i have been reading guys have been changing out the DOA for API 2520, Fred Forsell 993 (Fletcher), JLM 990 or James Hardy 990 etc. I suppose one of my main concerns is how great the noise floor is going to be and obviously eliminating the hum. The other is spending lots of cash to find that all the noisy quirks still exist and that i have just thrown good money after bad. This is the first major repair venture i have embarked on involving consoles so i am not really sure what the outcome is going to be, all i have been told is that the console is old and that the hum and noise may be inherent to the design? I haven't heard a restored console to determine if this is the case?

Hi Sean

I suppose it really depends on whether you want to make a long term commitment to that console ?

Some people keep their console for ages and recap each channel and master etc.

I'm no tech, but it sounds like either a psu or earthing problem...have you re capped the psu ?
I would do that first and see if there's any improvement.

If you will have to sell eventually for monetary reasons ( like it seems I have to all the time!) , you will never get the tech investment back..so its lost investment ...if you are going to keep it long term, then that investment has a chance of return on investment.

Unfortunately old consoles are a money pit ...if you can't do the work yourself!

Hope that helps

Cheers

Thanks Nymo for the feedback! Its funny i suppose it was your 'NEVE' post in the for sale section that had me second guessing my commitment to revamping the console. I suppose there is always going to be a deal to be had regardless. Your right, it is all about long term commitment and prior to the purchase i was full of commitment, maybe i need to embark on a spiritual retreat and regain my Studio vision.

Well i woke up this morning and had my tea spoon of cement, its amazing the tricks your mind plays on you when you've got the flu! I will wait for further word from trusted tech and hope in the mean time that the problem presents sooner rather then later.

look i have spent a virtual kings ransom repairing rebuilding and restoring things only to find over time
It wasn't what I wanted or needed anymore .. And I sold the item at basically a loss, lots of guys on this forum have had the good fortune to buy my stuff and use it daily in a place and time that suits them .

but really i do not regret restoring anything , the lack of common sense money in and out equation is more then compensated by the joy and ease of use you get when something is working properly and you are doing your job properly because it .. and the bank of knowledge owning and restoring things gives you on so many levels

So academically .. hippy shit spiritually .. yes Fix your stuff .. its worth more then the cash its worth ...

NOW yamaha consoles .. you know i have been walking pass them for cents in the dollar for years , i cant bring my self to buy into the story .. end of the day its always going to say yamaha on it , its always going to be worth not too much so investment status .. is none
do they actually sound great , work well ..?

I have no idea . sorry
but joe is into them , i trust his judgement .. talk to him about your woes .. he will be your expert on this subject

Cheers Rick, i have spoken with Joe and at this stage I will just continue on with the project, i did have a guy send me some songs mixed using the console and I have to say that I was pretty impressed! At the end of the day the initial investment of purchasing this thing may not equate to the same amount of return if i was to sell it and in its present state would fetch less so yeah, i shall have it fixed, use it and if i like it keep it, if not sell it to someone else who's chasing what it has to offer. Thanks for the replies guys!
On another note what do you guys prefer when it comes to a console? A board with mojo, or a transparent board which imparts no sonic flavour?

I need a console to be quiet .. More then anything
You can get mojo anynumber of ways
But console hisses and buzzes just stop me
Having any fun .. I start chasing the crud
Forget what I was actually doing
( music ) and I hate it the whole process

Quiet consoles lots of headroom sounds like
A record not a jigsaw puzzle .
Well the list of those is short and has always been
Expensive

People bring me stuff mixed on fundamental junk
Consoles and it still sounds great so it's horses
For courses I am either not so good at engineering
Or spoilt or just know what I like

Colourful noisy desks .. Are off my list
They weren't always but I must be getting
Older and grumpier