Halfmoon switch for Nord HP4

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The Nord HP has a nice switch for controlling the leslie. It is also possible to connect a half-moon switch to the pedal (control) input to have a simple slow-fast toggle switch action. Now, in order to have a more traditional slow – stop – fast three-way half-moon Leslie(r) switch, I made this tiny midi-controller.Read more

Arduino Music

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Three examples of musical Arduino’s. The first one is using a MIDI-shield as MIDI-mapper for connecting an XBox360 drum kit to an AKAI MPX8 sampler. The middle one is a stand-alone Auduino granular synth, using 5 potentiometers on a proto-shield. The last one is an Arduino Leonardo which works as USB-MIDI device, taking signals fromRead more

Xbox 360 drum controller as MIDI device

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A recently acquired Xbox 360 drum controller proved to be one of the easiest retro interface designs ever. The setup comes standard with a MIDI out! In order to connect it to an Akai MPX8 sampler, a slight re-mapping of MIDI note numbers (can also be done in the sampler) and adjustment of velocity levelsRead more

Guitar hero as -standalone- MIDI device! Works on iPhone!

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The world has seen some versions of the guitar hero controller used for live music. Most versions included a MAX/MSP patch or other software running on a computer. In this retro-interface I’m looking at a different option, connecting the guitar as standalone USB MIDI device, so it can be connected to iphone directly! Check outRead more

Video Projection System

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For the 100th Gonnagle performance I designed a ‘live video drawing tool’ using webcam, LED spots and processing app.. Software has been written in Processing.. pretty straightforward.. Especially the filters are simple to use but very powerfull.. In the application they are controlled using a midi controller (Korg NanoKey)

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Standalone dial-a-song

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Using a telephone retro-interface and Arduino wav-shield-derivative a box has been build which allows you to use an old rotary phone as standalone dial-a-song system. This makes an excellent CD-pre-listening device for our CD-sales stand at concerts. The system is fully documented (including schematics, software, PCB layout) on the wiki. Although numerous designs have beenRead more

Keltic harp tuning when no key is available

This is probably a very very rare issue that needed a special solution. Anyway. If somebody out there find him or herself in the same situation, read on, remember, and know what to do. If you’re out on a stage, with a folk-band, you have your basic tools, the harp is seriously in need ofRead more

Listening to EM fields

Listening to electromagnetic fields is easy and fun (you can actually listen if a wire is ‘live’ or not, provided AC current is running through). Especially laptop computers emit a lot of EM noise in audible range. Use the electronics of an old walkman. Perhaps you have the guts of a walkman lying around, perhapsRead more

Listening to candlelight

I remembered reading once that manufacturers of electric candles had been using melody-card chips as LED drivers, causing these candles unseeingly to emit music. In order to ‘audify’ this optical sounds, I connected a BPW34 diode (with large Silicon cell, so it actually generates a voltage) to a jack chassis and hooked it up toRead more

Portable room acoustics

I’m currently living in an apartment without the possibilities of building a permanent recording studio. (In one of the previous houses I lived in I had a room specially modified for recording and practicing) I still want to be able now and then to record instruments without the sound of my concrete square room, withoutRead more