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THIS IS THE TEST SITE OF EUROBRICKS!

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Posted

I have a few fake engines prototypes on the shelf that could be great for this contest but I think this theme is a excellent occasion to try something different, if possible never seen before. I will therefore try this crazy idea first. It could be described as a Gearbox Barrel Organ. It borrows ideas from the Hammond organ, the barrel organ and the gramophone.

Working principle:

A flexible tab (reed) touching a rotating gear vibrates and create a note noise. If the gear speed increase, so do the noise pitch. So in theory a well-designed gearbox should be able to turn this noise into some kind of melody, right?... let's try!

Gearbox : I first tried to play harmonics like major third, fifth and octave (gearbox ration: 1.25 , 1.5 , 2) The notes were discernable but it is limiting the possible melody. And the gearbox only works one note at the time so no chord is possible. It basically sounded like a bad alphorn. I faced another problem: the reed needs different setting for low or high notes so I had to narrow the notes range. Currently gear ratios are: (1 , 1.125 , 1.2 , 1.25 , 1.33 , 1.5) and it should sound like : A , B , C , C# , D and E

Keyboard : It is a quite simple keyboard that activates the dog rings. It features a flywheel to minimize speed variation when notes are played. As i have no keyboard player talent I'm planning to make a music box mechanism instead

Horn : In order to amplify the sound I build a flared horn with brassy colors, It has a 42107 Ducati windscreen as diaphragm or reed that makes contact with the 40 th gear at the keyboard output. 

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Of course I can't demonstrate it without a video.  Don't expect too much.... it sound weird and bad... at least for now!

 

 

Posted

Okay, contest is over, we already have the winner :grin:

What an amazing and unique idea! I wonder how far this concept can be pushed; Do you plan to test some other diaphragm materials apart from Ducati windscreen? Also, some sort of resonance chamber (like in string instruments) may work as well.

Posted

@Davidz90Thanks for the encouragement! 

I tested with stiff pieces instead of the windscreen like flags or minifig shield. tested the windscreen curved also. current solution is the loudest and most forgiving, not the best sounding. 

I still have plenty of time to try other thing like dome windcreen as resonator and so on... may also include some kind of clock escapement mechanism to help keeping a steady speed at the gearbox input.

3 minutes ago, Thirdwigg said:

So cool! So creative too. I'm struggling with ideas, so it's great to see another idea.

Thanks!

 

Posted

 

 @LegoTT @2GodBDGlory Thanks! 

 

On 1/4/2025 at 9:18 AM, Frequenzberater said:

As a Techno Musician, I love that concept! 

Are you aware of the videos of Graham Dunning? :

I did never see that. but good for insiration, thanks. Actually I was inspired by Wintergatan's marble machine

https://youtu.be/IvUU8joBb1Q?si=n_Wkwl-CxUkNGvXd

 

Update :

Motor : Upgrade to 2x Control+ XL with double planetary primary gearing

Gearbox : I upgraded to 8 x 2 speed. 8 chromatic speeds and a secondary 2 speed gearbox between the keyboard and the "speaker"

Horn / speaker : I mounted the diaphragm and the pitch wheel to the base of the horn. I now have a "speaker" with easy assembly. Also sound is louder.

Drum / Automation : I dug a never-finished prototype out of the graveyard. It was a red octopus playing drums, I quit it because it needed deep rethought but for this project it is "free" R&D . I want to change the track system to one track only ( 5 drums are enough) and I will need two tracks to automate the keyboard.

 

New gearbox :

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New keyboard :

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Full organ :

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Automated drums module :

IQRfQom6DMlYQY2EEJSmndIMAezo0hLkX-ICVVCk

 

 

 

Posted

Very nice idea!

Wintergatan is epic, hence his 260 million views on that video alone. Unfortunately he never finished his Marble Machine X and nowadays is using a 3D printer instead of wood and the machines are downscaled (which is understandable).

I wish you luck and very curious about the end result.

 

Posted (edited)

This reminds me a little bit of Thaddeus Cahill's Telharmonium at the end of the 19th century. Maybe you could get some inputs from this early synthesizer.

Edited by Timewhatistime
Posted
4 hours ago, RussianGuy said:

This is hilarious. I love your dedication to only use Lego parts, even for the sound-producing bits.

Yeah, 100% LEGO pieces is part of the contest rules. Custom string is hovever allowed so I might experiment with that too

3 hours ago, Berthil said:

Very nice idea!

Thanks!

1 hour ago, Timewhatistime said:

This reminds me a little bit of Thaddeus Cahill's Telharmonium at the end of the 19th century. Maybe you could get some inputs from this early synthesizer.

I never heard about it before but I just discovered it is basically the ancestor of the Hammond Organ. Which is what inspired me so I was actually inspired by the Telharmonium

Posted
2 hours ago, lcvisser said:

This is amazing! I’ll be following with interest where it goes, but it’s already a success in my book. 

Thank you!

 

Since the gearbox-gear-diaphragm is very hard to tune and can play only one note at the time I am studying piano mechanism. Since custom string are allowed it seems the obvious way to go if I want some audible music

 

I copied the mechanism from this video and simplified a little bit

https://youtu.be/uBEL3YVzMwk?si=CAfAnVwGbB7SCwlO

 

Posted

New update:

OK, the piano mechanism was not a good idea. It is so noisy and still doesn't make a string that loud. 

Pinching a string on the other hand has potential. I made a basic "guitar" and worked on a mechanism that can pinch a string and mute it. It works quite well. Sounds as good as a 5$ ukulele that gets out of tune in 3 minutes but I can tune it and now I am more confident that my machine will be able to play music, not just rhythm and noise

 

 

 

Posted

So the guitar/harpsichord evolved . It is now a double neck (double decker) with 8 strings and 8 key to play it. It works with small "claws" and a rubber piece to mute the strings that are not played. I would need to build the frame more rigid, it bends if the strings are to tight and it induces too much friction in the keys mechanism. I'm however confident that it can be automated. It will be the main feature of the machine.

I don't quit the gear-diaphragm-gearbox system but I will have to simplify it back to 3-4 notes and not rely on this to play actual music.

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Posted

Whoa, it sounds amazingly well! Those are nylon strings? How thick? In my guitar, I really struggled with making the structure stiff enough to not bend under the string tension, but that was with steel strings.

Posted
5 minutes ago, NV Lego technic said:

Wow! So creative! 

Thanks, It's great for me to mix Lego Technic with music because I love both.

6 minutes ago, Davidz90 said:

Whoa, it sounds amazingly well! Those are nylon strings? How thick? In my guitar, I really struggled with making the structure stiff enough to not bend under the string tension, but that was with steel strings.

Those are fishing lines... I tried nylon guitar strings mostly to have lower notes for playing a bass line. I faced the same issue as you, the frame is not stiff enough, bends and the keys get too much friction. That's the main improvement I want to make. I should build the frame like a piano, not like a guitar. 

Posted

I rebuilt the drums module. It uses now only one track so it can be twice as long. It has 5 "arms " playing 4 different drums. The rhythm precision seems ok, it sounds fine but the bass drum (digger bucket 15x23) doesn't sound low enough to my taste. With a little bit of sound editing I can make it good enough so I'll keep it like this and focus on the next step: automating the harpsichord which requires 8 actuators and is more sensitive to mechanism noise.

 

There is an example of the drums sound natural and edited.

 

 

 

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