Other development:
Besides developing the hardware of the FLAPIBox, a bass flute foot speaker has been made. A piece, "søvnen - for bass flute and electronics" make use of this speaker.
This exposition shows the early development stages of the FLAPIBox. The intetention is meant to be a visual documentation presentation in addition to the presented paper at NIME2023.
Erik Stifjell
UiT The Arctic University of Norway Academy of Music/ University of Bergen Faculty of Fine Art, Music and Design Tromso/Bergen, Norway
Module Based Thranophone:
Based on the Thranophone, it is a preliminary study of the FLAPIBox. The purpose was to understand signal path and to be able to easily alter components. In this prosess a 3D-printed euphonium mouthpiece with a piezo element was made.
Sine waves are generated in Pure Data and played through the bass flute foot speaker. This piece do not use the microphone input, but are triggered via computer keyboard or MIDI. The code was made on a desktop computer and will be adapted for Bela to suit the FLAPIBox.
One of eight euphonium mouthpiece speakers developed by Geir Davidsen for Tuba/Me/Room. This has been modified to fit the foot of a bass flute
Breadboard Prototype:
The breadboard prototype is based on a Raspberry Pi 4 and two different ways of controlling it: Potentiometers with adc and digital rotary encoders. These systems works independent of eachother. The prototype uses two 5v DC power supplies, one for the amplifiers and one for the Raspberry. A step up converter take care of the higher voltage fore the power amplifier.
Foot joint mounted in speaker bottom and glued. Loudspeaker fitted, membrane pointing downwards. All parts 3D-printed
Prototype #1:
The prototype #1 is a soldered version of the breadboard prototype. Controllers are digital rotary encoders and there is added a LCD screen for visual feedback. It houses a Raspberry Pi 4B and runs the same software as the breadboard prototype (Max RNBO and Python for encoders/LCD).
Further development:
HARDWARE:
- Potentiometers and buttons for controlling the Bela mini will be embedded.
- A screen for visual feedback will be embedded.
- There is no need for two microphone inputs. The power for the electret microphone can be solved with a switch.
- Either add inputs for foot switches, or make a FLAPIBox with embedded foot switches.
SOFTWARE (COMPOSITION):
- The patch of "Søvnen" will be adapted to work with Bela.
- The development of patches for new pieces should start on Bela.
PERIFERALS:
- Build a flute version of the bass flute foot speaker, but with a 1" speaker of the same brand and type.
- Develop speakers for saxophone, clarinet, trumpet, trombone and euphonium.
- For microphones and other speakers: There are many good alternatives already mentioned in the paper.
Prototype #2:
Because of Bela mini's setup, technically the prototype #2 is less complicated. Since Bela mini provides 59dB gain, a pre amplifier is not needed. There is still two power sources, one for the Bela mini and one for the power amplifier. The prototype #2 has two microphone inputs, but both are not connected at the same time. The 10K potentiometer controlls the output volume
