An Even Tempered Pico

I was having a bit of a discussion about tuning and temperament in music with Midi_in_out on Twitter, after they posted the latest update to their MIDISID project and we got on to talking about polyphony. I know the general theory behind natural harmonics vs the compromise that is the even tempered scale we use … Continue reading An Even Tempered Pico →

Arduino Uno Dual Merge MIDI “Shield”

Having spent some time now playing with a range of MIDI merge options, one final thing I wanted to do was have a "merge shield" that could quickly turn an Arduino Uno into a simple two-in, one out MIDI unit. Warning! I strongly recommend using old or second hand equipment for your experiments. I am … Continue reading Arduino Uno Dual Merge MIDI “Shield” →

Arduino Multi MIDI Merge – Part 2

I've built a number of MIDI merge projects so far (for Arduino and Pico), but they've always taken a relatively simple approach to the merge. They had all ensured that MIDI messages won't be corrupted as they are merged - i.e. only complete messages will be passed on - but they've done nothing to interpret the … Continue reading Arduino Multi MIDI Merge – Part 2 →

Raspberry Pi Pico SysEx “Librarian”

I've seen a few dedicated units for sending and managing patches for older synths and whilst they look really neat, I thought it would be worth me having a go and seeing what I could do myself. This is my first attempt at pretty much the simplest hardware "patch librarian" I could imagine - it … Continue reading Raspberry Pi Pico SysEx “Librarian” →

Pi Pico MIDI Button Voice Select

This is an alternative take on my Arduino MIDI Button Voice Select this time combining it with both my Pi Pico MIDI Button Controller with a hint of the CircuitPython USB to Serial MIDI Router too. The end result is a voice and bank selector that will also act as a USB MIDI to serial MIDI converter. In … Continue reading Pi Pico MIDI Button Voice Select →

Arduino MIDI Button Voice Select

Having got as far as an Arduino MIDI Button Bank Selector I went off an ordered some cheap 8-way button pcbs so I can start to experiment with a voice selector too. As I think I mentioned before, I'd really like a set of buttons like you'd find on a real synth 🙂 This is the … Continue reading Arduino MIDI Button Voice Select →

Arduino MIDI Multi MUX Step Sequencer

This applies the same extension from the Arduino MIDI Multi MUX Controller to the Arduino MIDI Mux Step Sequencer showing how it could be expanded to support 32 potentiometers or more in a MIDI step sequencer. Warning! I strongly recommend using old or second hand equipment for your experiments. I am not responsible for any damage … Continue reading Arduino MIDI Multi MUX Step Sequencer →

Arduino MIDI Button Bank Select

Having tried this with a Raspberry Pi Pico (and had some odd issues with a RPi V4) I wanted to give it a go with an Arduino too. The basics have already been covered before, so this is relatively quick to set up. Warning! I strongly recommend using old or second hand equipment for your … Continue reading Arduino MIDI Button Bank Select →

Arduino MIDI Multi MUX Controller

This project revisits my Arduino MIDI Mux Step Sequencer showing how it could be expanded to support 32 potentiometers or more in a MIDI controller. Warning! I strongly recommend using old or second hand equipment for your experiments. I am not responsible for any damage to expensive instruments! These are the key Arduino tutorials for the … Continue reading Arduino MIDI Multi MUX Controller →

Pi Pico MIDI Button Controller

Having played with MiniDexed a little now, I really wanted something that could select the different banks of voices for me. This is how I've used a Raspberry Pi Pico as a set of "bank select" switches, but the switches could be used to send any MIDI change control messages. https://youtu.be/if0iKuHCkE4 Warning! I strongly recommend … Continue reading Pi Pico MIDI Button Controller →