Selecting Microcontrollers for Music

I was browsing some of the newer ATtiny chips the other day and started to make a note of some of their properties and it made me realise I actually have quite a few different microcontrollers at my disposal and many more I could be having a look at. But having committed to not attempting … Continue reading Selecting Microcontrollers for Music →

Arduino MIDI Foot Pedal for Peavey Vypyr Amp

I was asked to take a look at a Peavey Vypyr amp to think about how the foot pedal for it works. This is a set of links and notes by way of recording what I found out, and some initial experiments with an Arduino. Warning! I strongly recommend using old or second hand equipment … Continue reading Arduino MIDI Foot Pedal for Peavey Vypyr Amp →

Arduino PCF8574/8575 MIDI Controller

This project uses a PCF8574 or PCF8575 I2C digital IO expander with an Arduino as a MIDI controller. https://youtu.be/yrNB3riWBH4 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 main concepts used in this … Continue reading Arduino PCF8574/8575 MIDI Controller →

Arduino MIDI Multi Pot Controller

Once again, I've realised that whilst I've now completed a number of multi-potentiometer MIDI controller projects, I haven't actually written up a non-multiplexed, multi-potentiometer controller. This projects fills that gap! 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 … Continue reading Arduino MIDI Multi Pot Controller →

Arduino Touch Music – Revisited

This is a short demonstration of different ways to use my Touch Keyboard PCB, revisiting the following previous projects: Arduino MIDI Touch Piano Simple Arduino Music Keyboard Arduino MPR121 Touch Piano https://youtu.be/dc5dEkdLkxY Warning! I strongly recommend using old or second hand equipment for your experiments. I am not responsible for any damage to expensive instruments! This … Continue reading Arduino Touch Music – Revisited →

Lo-Fi Orchestra – 4’33”

It's been a while since my last Lo-Fi Orchestra performance, so today I thought I'd do something special. If you follow my blog, you might know I quite like contemporary ideas in music. I implemented Steve Reich's Music for Pieces of Wood on relays and have experimented with phasing in relays, sequences and more recently … Continue reading Lo-Fi Orchestra – 4’33” →

Vintage Rotary Phone MIDI Controller – Part 7

Having built my adaptor into a small box, I've gone back to add a mode button so I can include all the different applications into a single sketch. This builds on the previous parts in this series. Part 1 - Understanding the telephone hardware and interfacing to an Arduino. Part 2 - Decoding the rotary … Continue reading Vintage Rotary Phone MIDI Controller – Part 7 →

Vintage Rotary Phone MIDI Controller – Part 6

In this final (for now) post, I'm just tidying up the circuit and using a Pro Mini to embed all the electronics I need into a nice small box. This builds on the previous parts in this series. Part 1 - Understanding the telephone hardware and interfacing to an Arduino. Part 2 - Decoding the … Continue reading Vintage Rotary Phone MIDI Controller – Part 6 →

Pi Day MIDI Sequencer

If you write your dates month first, then 14th March is recognised as Pi day i.e. 3.14.(2022) in this case. I've long had the idea of doing something MIDI or sequencer related to number sequences. I'd like to do something with the Online Encyclopedia of Integer Sequences (OEIS) at some point, but as it is … Continue reading Pi Day MIDI Sequencer →

Vintage Rotary Phone MIDI Controller – Part 5

In this post, I describe how to use my rotary phone as a simple random-note MIDI "sequencer" of sorts. The triggering of the notes is driven from the pulses of the dial. This builds on the previous parts in this series. Part 1 - Understanding the telephone hardware and interfacing to an Arduino. Part 2 … Continue reading Vintage Rotary Phone MIDI Controller – Part 5 →