PROJECTS: 2019 Feb
MIDI CONTROL BOX
I’m working on a custom MIDI control surface with knobs, sliders and switches. What makes this device unique– compared to commercially available ones– is that it will allow me to connect external controls and switches, and it will have eight high-resolution controls. A really nice man named Jerry Patrasso who runs a wonderful laser cutting business converted my pencil drawings into an actual laser-cut box for the project.
The ability to produce 14-bit (high-resolution) control values was a major sticking point. Virtually none of the microprocessors for this type of project box provide high-resolution analog inputs. So I shelved the project for a couple of years. But with the recent help of one of my students, Laurel, we have worked out a promising solution involving a 2nd microprocessor and some other components.
BREATH CONTROLLER
My interest in Breath Controllers actually started with my first experiences playing melodica. As a brass player, the ability to express dynamics with breath is perfectly natural to me. I eventually got a USB breath controller from TEControl. It’s nice. I’ve used it on a few projects.
My Kurzweil K2661 has a BC input, but compatible products are expensive. I attempted to build one a couple years ago, but never got it working. I subsequently found a different circuit design that employed the same pressure sensor I had already purchased. I just need the time to make a test build and trouble-shoot it.