This week I am constructing the elephant microphone stand. It consists of pvc pipe on a wood base, and there is a potentiometer beneath where the pipe is attached which rotates when you twist the pipe. On top of the pipe is the base for the elephant stand, and again there is a potentiometer beneath this base so that when you twist the elephant stand the pot is twisted as well. Thus, the main pipe and the elephant stand can twist independently of each other, and when twisted a pot sends out values into arduino and into max/msp.

Since this is a mic stand, in max/msp I’m using those values to pan incoming vocals (by twisting elephant stand) and augment vocal pitch (by twisting main pipe stand).

I also got a temporary housing unit for the wiTilt. The circuit is constructed and fairly robust, but when I put it on the machete I’ll have to find a more subtle container.

Unfortunately, the congas have yet to arrive. The work the drums require though (placing piezo film beneath their heads, running them through pre-amp) isn’t too high so it won’t take too long to get that working.

Next steps: Once I get everything working and talking to max, I need to work hard on the max patch itself. Since my devices aren’t amazingly technical, the sound and visuals for the performance need to be well planned and of a high quality. Then we need to rehease the performance itself so that all the kinks get worked out.

Adam Parrish and I have been meeting this summer to create handmade electronic sound devices. So far, we’ve made and played with contact mikes (both as receivers and drivers) and a variety of oscillator chips. The pics below show the breadboard setup of a four oscillator chip controlled by 10k pots and photoresistors, along with two types of capacitors. We then drive the output into a LM 386-based amp circuit, and the results are pretty fun and noisy:

 

 synth excerpt [0:53m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

We’ve drawn out plans for a full-on synth, comprised of 8 oscillators and controlled by 1ok and 100k pots, plus 1mfarad and 10kfarad capacitors. We plan to use 1/8″ jacks to feedback the signals into each oscillator and then send the signal out of the circuit. Now we have to come up with something to house the circuit. I vote for an old school “Masters of the Universe” lunch box.

Our PComp final project is now finished. We presented tonight and I feel very positive about our final outcome. FIrst off, we aren’t going to make the show since no projects from introduction classes are being accepted. We also had to make a few adjustments to the project, and the final outcome differs slightly from the initial description. We have two containers now , and within each 16 FSRs are loading two sets of samples, 4 nature sounds and 4 synthetic sounds, as well as controlling volume and panning. Also, there is no visual deprivation componant, which is fine since we aren’t going to be in the show.

We did, however, create a very functional and interesting way to sculpt sound. The final units used in the pans, lentils and peas, provided a wondeful tactile componant and the user feedback was very positive in this regard. I’m extremely satisified with what we accomplished and learned, and I definately feel like I made progress in terms of getting closer to one day creating interactive sound art, whether in the form of an installation or performance.

Here’s a link to the final presentation slides, just click ‘em: =>

A video of the presentation is available here (it’s big and takes a min to load): =>

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Ever since I first saw the movie Altered States, in which research scientist William Hurt manages to revert back to a primitive human/simian state via psychadelics and a sensory deprivation chamber, I’ve been enamored with the idea of sensory deprivation chambers. Thinking of this movie while considering my p-comp final, I decided I wanted to do something that would accentuate auditory and tactile stimulations through removing the sense of vision and better bridge the connection between hearing and the body. Ideally, I would one day create sound installations that envision the body through sound, that is, an individual would gain a new orientation of the corpus and better understanding of their personal proprioeceptive senses through participating in an installation that traced/mapped bodily movement and location sonically within a space.

Allistar, Chul and I have decided to work together for the final, and I talked about some of the above ideas and we’ve wittled them down to creating something slightly more manageable, though ambitions nonetheless. We want to creat accessible enclosure, darkened within, that contains a chair in which to sit and an contoured handspace filled with sand, water, or some other small, dense and malleable objects . As the participant moves their hands among the sand etc a sound wave will be generated/augmented in accordance with the hand/sand movement. Beneath the sand will be FSR sensors that will detect the shifting weight of the sand etc. The point is to create a relaxing environment in which anyone will be able to create a unique sonic experience through simple movements.

Or so i hope.

I would love to be able to present this for the fall show, but we’ll have to see how things turn out.

Here’s a video of Allistar and I doing the motor lab.

Group6

Group Members
Marc
Nick Hasty
Kyveli Vezani
Bryan Wall

Proposal
For our midterm project, we have come up with a unique way to remind someone that they may be leaving their apartment without their keys. The idea is that there will be a motion detector of some sort located near the exit of the apartment. This could also just be a sensor attached to the door or the doorknob. If the user crosses this field (or opens the door) and does not have their keys on them, a small signal (either light, sound, or a combination of both) will go off to let them know. The plan is for the signal to be small enough that it will not be a nuisance, but distinctive enough that the user will notice it when it goes off.

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