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 Forum index » DIY Hardware and Software » Musical Interfaces
How to build a jammer
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jjj



Joined: Feb 28, 2008
Posts: 135
Location: Australia
Audio files: 2

PostPosted: Thu Jun 05, 2008 7:13 am    Post subject: Reply with quote  Mark this post and the followings unread

Copy this link into YouTube:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qksKsEnsxpU

From here clicking this link, opens YouTube and the video... There you'll see a young, enjoys- to-play-blind man playing his Synth. It gets only interesting, when after about 60% into his video, where he plays the Sax sound. There you can hear what the BC3 breath controller can do. There's no other way to do that or is there?
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jjj



Joined: Feb 28, 2008
Posts: 135
Location: Australia
Audio files: 2

PostPosted: Thu Jun 05, 2008 8:27 am    Post subject: Reply with quote  Mark this post and the followings unread

My only experience of music theory, I gained from playing a zebra-piano accordion for about 10 years by ear.

Albeit I got pretty good at it and professional players told me that I have what it take to make it to success. But for obvious reasons I developed an aversion touching those black zebra keys...
Firstly, they are hard to find by ear, because they are half the width, secondly it seemed absurd to learn the accordion eleven times more! I also realized that the problem is caused by the awkwardly irregular zebra layout.

Aged twenty, after some 5 years of accordion playing practice, I decided to build an additional sliding, wooden keyboard on top of the original Kbd and planed to do it electronically, later on. Live went on and my whisting career took over, making me forget all about my other musical aspirations.

Only now, after the advent of Internet, I rediscovered the Janko keyboard and this rekindled my interest in playing musical instruments.
If only I had known of Janko earlier! Better late than never! Realizing that my innate musical gift is rather emotionally than dexterity-wise based, now my struggle for fulfillment of my musical aspirations makes sense.
Technically viewed:
With Janko my right hand enjoys the freedom of scale changes; i.e. only needs to learn the patterns of one major & major scale. Yet, the same is still not quite possible with the left hand.

In order to play bass and chords in style with the left hand an awful lot of practice is still required.
To accelerate the learning process I thought of applying my gained (never forgotten) practice in playing the accordion accompaniment.

The main advantage of it, is its pentatonic configuration. I.e. it allows to merely learn one lot of bass & chord pattern and then transfer the same pattern into all other scales, by just starting from another spot. I'm afraid, the same result is far more difficult to obtain on the Janko.
Furthermore, this allows me to combine manual rhythms and control automatic Live-Styler's (Yamaha-styles) accompaniment.

End result: I'll be able to play any melody without being bothered by scale theory... or even knowing which scale I play (!!)
I don't mind practice, yet prefer gaining practice in a more constructive, meaningful setup.

So remember, when it comes to accompaniments, the pentatonic configuration has its advantages. (Food for thought!)
It always has been my ambition to create the easiest to learn & play musical instrument and computer technology helps to realize it.

Last edited by jjj on Thu Jun 05, 2008 2:51 pm; edited 1 time in total
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jjj



Joined: Feb 28, 2008
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Location: Australia
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PostPosted: Thu Jun 05, 2008 1:47 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote  Mark this post and the followings unread

Regarding Breathalizer MIDI interface: On that box is written "Made in Canada". Is there a more economic MIDI interface box for the BC3 breath controller? Maybe that's the only one and that's why they asking that much for it... ?? Sad
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seraph
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Joined: Jun 21, 2003
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PostPosted: Thu Jun 05, 2008 3:02 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote  Mark this post and the followings unread

jjj wrote:
Regarding Breathalizer MIDI interface: On that box is written "Made in Canada". Is there a more economic MIDI interface box for the BC3 breath controller? Maybe that's the only one and that's why they asking that much for it... ?? Sad

there used to be the Anatek Wind Machine. maybe you can find a second hand one on eBay.

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MusicScienceGuy



Joined: Jun 22, 2007
Posts: 97
Location: Vancouver, Canada

PostPosted: Thu Jun 05, 2008 3:32 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote  Mark this post and the followings unread

The first quote for making keys has come in and its breathtaking.
$6000 to make enough for a single keyboard, thereafter 5,000 or so per batch of 48 keyboards - or a raw price of 230 / keyboard.

I'll have to find a way to reduce costs. Lets hope for better quotes.
Ken.
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jjj



Joined: Feb 28, 2008
Posts: 135
Location: Australia
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PostPosted: Thu Jun 05, 2008 3:55 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote  Mark this post and the followings unread

Yea... they all are discontinued and that confirms the sordid price of MIDI Solutions' monopoly. Sad

Actually any MIDI controller should be able to translate the BC3A breath controller's data.
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jjj



Joined: Feb 28, 2008
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PostPosted: Thu Jun 05, 2008 4:03 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote  Mark this post and the followings unread

Quote:
The first quote for making keys has come in and its breathtaking.

An over the zebra piano Kbd adapter is sooo much cheaper. Forget selling manufacturer's keyboards >>> produce and sell your own product, instead!

Nothing wrong with using wood for the keys. All you need is setting up a production line for cutting and shaping the wooden bits and then mount them into an Alu frame: ready to be attached over any Kbd.
In general the standard keys are 22 mm wide or two with one space in between 45 mm.
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jjj



Joined: Feb 28, 2008
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PostPosted: Thu Jun 05, 2008 5:27 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote  Mark this post and the followings unread

I just found a cheaper BC3A to MIDI translator for $US 62:

http://www.doepfer.de/we.htm
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MusicScienceGuy



Joined: Jun 22, 2007
Posts: 97
Location: Vancouver, Canada

PostPosted: Thu Jun 05, 2008 5:45 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote  Mark this post and the followings unread

I believe my business analysis is right and the M-Audio keyboard conversion is the way to go. If the cost is too high, then it can be done other ways.
It's disappointing however, as I would have been able to have product out from ProtoMold in 3-4 weeks.

Ken.
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jjj



Joined: Feb 28, 2008
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Location: Australia
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PostPosted: Thu Jun 05, 2008 6:23 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote  Mark this post and the followings unread

What I find somewhat worrying is that you want to start big. Why not gradually grow with the demand?
Just start selling a couple and then prepare a couple more, then double the amount etc. This way you can alter your course without great losses.

Or is it, that you want to benefit from bulk buying power? What if things won't work out as expected? Too risky for my thinking. I prefer having at least 20 orders in the hand, then... 40 on the roof, if you know what I mean!
I suggest you give it a go, just to see how much demand there really is out there, before you commit yourself. That way you can still change your course and start building Janko and/or Wicki adapters, instead.
I hate to see you giving it all up, in case it doesn't work out. You don't deserve that after so much hard work and financial losses.
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ultra



Joined: Dec 04, 2006
Posts: 55
Location: oshkosh, wi

PostPosted: Tue Jun 17, 2008 5:27 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote  Mark this post and the followings unread

i have to say i'm not quite understanding how this is put together from an 88 key keyboard. you have multiple rows of keys from front to back, so i don't get how that fits together. and i didn't count them, but it seems there are more than 88 keys on the jammer. or not?

i'm also curious about how you are remapping the keys. are you using software for this? i figure you are since i saw you say somewhere you don't need to do anything with electronics.

perhaps i didn't read enough blogs on your site to see all this.

i'm interested in building this project, it's pretty neat. although (i'm sorry) i'm not really interested in buying a kit except for a discounted 88es. i think i can make the caps at school on the injection molding machine, and my girlfriend is a welding major and she's pretty good with a laser cutter and a bender, so i would design/build the casing myself.

also, if software remapping is required, i would use midibox instead.

is there somewhere i can see more build photos and information? i apologize for not wanting to get in on the kit, but i am certainly interested in building this over the next school year. i haven't yet learned piano very well and i'd be more interested in taking this route instead.

nice work you've done!
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MusicScienceGuy



Joined: Jun 22, 2007
Posts: 97
Location: Vancouver, Canada

PostPosted: Tue Jun 17, 2008 6:04 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote  Mark this post and the followings unread

ultra wrote:
i have to say i'm not quite understanding how this is put together from an 88 key keyboard. you have multiple rows of keys from front to back,

I can see that I have to reorganize my website to make it all clearer. Here is how I do it through creative folding. Note that some piano keys have two hex keys. I find I don't use the extra row much.
Quote:

i'm also curious about how you are remapping the keys. Are you using software for this? ... also, if software remapping is required, i would use midibox instead.


I used MAX/Msp to remap the keys. From Max/Msp I can build a program that one can just install and run, without MAX/Msp. I'd be happy if midibox was used instead.
Quote:
nice work you've done!
Thanks! Smile
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