[sdiy] Telharmonium motors, perhaps?

[Gene Stopp]

You're not helping me here!!!!! I actually have a gutted keyboard case with
keyboard with lots of room inside waiting for something funky! Arrrg!

- Gene


-----Original Message-----
From: mab at linux.site [mailto:mab at linux.site]On Behalf Of Michael Baxter
Sent: Monday, November 22, 2004 5:10 PM
To: Gene Stopp
Cc: synth-diy at dropmix.xs4all.nl
Subject: RE: [sdiy] Telharmonium motors, perhaps?


I like the tone wheel idea, have been fascinated by it for years. IIRC, 
The Exploratorium in San Franciso actually has one a tone wheel. They 
built one of these to show how Fourier synthesis works basically. You can 
also buy the plans for it very cheaply in their museum store. 

Rather than painting on the sine waves, I got the idea later to use a 
laser printer to construct the (smaller) tone wheel with transparancy 
media.

This then leads to a motor speed controller and phase-locked loop, and 
then eventually 12 motorized speed controllers for an equal-tempered 
octave, with 12-16 VCAs per voice ... 

I agree with you Gene: "must ... not ... start ... new ... projects!"

Cheers,
Michael


On Mon, 22 Nov 2004, Gene Stopp wrote:

> Yup that's the idea, a tape recording of some waveform or another,
speeding
> up and slowing down. Mellotrons run at a constant 7.5 ips with the pitch
pot
> at center position. And they're not looped (usually).
> 
> This idea sounds a little goofy. Many of the ideas that pop up on this
list
> sound a little goofy. Like using a CV to select MIDI ports, or huge
matrices
> for modular patch signal routing, tape head wands, tube synthesizers, etc.
> But they are NOT goofy! Here's why:
> 
> a) This is a hobby, dammit
> b) This is art, dammit
> c) Our creations are manifestations of creativity, with a technological
> twist
> d) The sounds are cool too
> 
> Seems to me the tape VCO would only be good over a couple of octaves. The
> portamento rate might be different depending on whether it was spinning
fast
> or slow in the first place. And I bet it would go through tape pretty
fast,
> if it's running all the time like a "normal" VCO. Be a bummer to have it
> sitting there during a gig, and the last key you hit was the highest note,
> the tape inside eating itself alive...
> 
> Maybe the optical disk would be better. Or just the tonewheel. That would
> sure be a heck of a lot easier to build too. You could mix the tone with
the
> real VCO that it's phase-locked to. You could also have two or three
> motor-tones behind the real VCO. They would all probably have different
> mechanical characteristics for interesting tracking effects. Also with the
> spinning disk idea you don't actually need a separate tach output, just
use
> the tone itself for the PLL compare.
> 
> Allright this is getting out of hand. Cut it out... must... not...
start...
> new... projects...
> 
> 
> - Gene
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Glen [mailto:mclilith at charter.net]
> Sent: Monday, November 22, 2004 4:02 PM
> To: Gene Stopp; synth-diy at dropmix.xs4all.nl
> Subject: RE: [sdiy] Telharmonium motors, perhaps?
> 
> 
> At 05:49 PM 11/22/04 , Gene Stopp wrote:
> 
> >I think it was in an old Crowhurst book that I read about a VCO that was
> >actually a tape playback with the motor speed (and therefore the pitch)
> >under voltage control.
> 
> That sounds interesting! I bet a lot of analog lovers would be drooling at
> the thought of the built-in tape characteristics imparted onto the sound.
I
> wonder if the speed could be changed quickly enough to build a monosynth
> out of such an oscillator? I bet it would have its own special
> "portamento-like" effect on each and every note, unless the motors could
> change speeds *very* quickly. The possibility of unique pitch slurring
> might even add to the unit's analog charm.  :)
> 
> If such a monosynth were actually built, I would think any flanging,
> chorusing, and distortion effects should also make use of a tape transport
> system. I know that Mellotrons used tape, in a sampler style, but I don't
> think this would be the same concept at all. You're talking about using a
> tape transport in the core of an oscillator, and not as a "sample player",
> isn't that correct?
> 
> 
> take care,
> Glen
> 
>