#Synthesizer-Bubble: is is true that currently the cheapest #Yamaha #keyboard that offers #aftertouch is the six-year old #Genos with a street price of over €3500? That's insane.

Or maybe I have overlooked something.

Even the cheapest #Hydrasynth for under €600 offers polyphonic aftertouch, albeit with minikeys, and one with 49 fullsize keys can be obtained for €1200 or so.

Lookng forward to pick up my "new" #synthesizer next week: https://www.vintagesynth.com/yamaha/sy77
🎹
It will be able to do all that my trusty old #DX7 II-D could do, and so much more. I don't care too much for the #ROMpler and workstation parts (except that it may give me a usable piano sound), but using different waveforms or even samples in FM synthesis will be exciting and something even many modern synths that cost ten times as much can't do. And the #SY77 is so underrated that it's currently cheaper than its rack variant or even an original DX7, while retaining its predecessor's superior keybed with #aftertouch.

So I'll be replacing a 35 year-old instrument with a 32-year-old one.😉
#fm #music #afm #yamaha #fmsynthesis

MIT’s Knitted Keyboard is Quite a Flexible MIDI Controller

There are only so many ways to make noise on standard instruments such as acoustic pianos. Their rigidity and inputs just don't allow for a super-wide range of expression. On the other hand, if you knit your interface together, the possibilities are nearly endless. MIT's new and improved knitted keyboard is an instrument like none other -- it responds to touch, pressure, and continuous proximity, meaning that you can play it like a keyboard, a theremin, and something that is somewhere in between the two. Because it's a MIDI interface, it can ultimately sound like any instrument you've got available in software.

The silver keys of this five-octave interface are made of conductive yarn, and the blue background is regular polyester yarn. Underneath that is a conductive knit layer to complete the key circuits, and a piezo-resistive knit layer that responds to pressure and stretch. It runs on a Teensy 4.0 and uses five MPR121 proximity/touch controllers, one per octave.

The really exciting thing about this keyboard is its musical (and physical) versatility. As you might expect, the keyboard takes discrete inputs from keystrokes, but it also takes continuous input from hovering and waving via the proximity sensors, and goes even further by taking physical input from squeezing, pulling, stretching, and twisting the conductive yarns that make up the keys. This means it takes aftertouch (pressure applied after initial contact) into account -- something that isn't possible with most regular instruments. And since this keyboard is mostly yarn and fabric, you can roll it up and take it anywhere, or wrap it around your neck for a varied soundscape.

If you're looking for more detail, check out the paper for the previous version (PDF), which also used thermochromic yarn to show different colors for various modes of play using a heating element. With the new version, [Irmandy Wicaksono] and team sought to improve the sensing modalities, knitted aesthetics, and the overall tactility of the keyboard. We love both versions! Be sure to check it out after the break.

Want to play around with capacitive touch sensors without leaving the house for parts? Make your own from paper and aluminum foil.

#musicalhacks #aftertouch #capacitivetouch #midicontroller #mpr121 #teensy #teensy40