Thank you! I love watching people build amazing things on RUclips but I often wonder about what problems they face during a build. Those are sometimes the most interesting/inspiring bits of the project!
Yes! Not only fascinating but important too. The vastness of DIY videos in RUclips easily leaves an impression that everything is easy by showing only the stages that end up in the final construct and usually even then in a condensed time lapse format. While I think this is mostly a great thing and in fact have learnt to hate videos where the author rambles making an hour long video about stuff that could easily be explained in minutes, it has its downsides that should be addressed in some way. By briefly pointing them out this video does just that without making it long-winded or tedious to watch, but actually more interesting, as stated by the previous commentators. I've been happily observing my 6 years old daughter's interest in DIY videos, but her being impatient by nature I'm a bit concerned how it affects her ability to concentrate and endure drawbacks and hardships that are an inherent part of learning and every creative project as they are of life itself. The best thing is of course to actually carry out projects with kids, but as they tend to get frustrated easily, I think it is in everyone's interest for creators to point out the time and effort it takes to achieve the stuff they make.
Yes yes yes! A million times yes! Important to love the process rather than worry about quick and successful outcomes. I'm getting better and better at that. :)
Fully agree with this comment. I was already enjoying the video a lot, and fascinated about hearing Leo's workflow and project breakdown.. but then, after watching the "failure" section, I subscribed straight away! Any makers/coder/creative person out there knows that sometimes it takes quite a number of attempts and improvements to get it right, but this is very rarely shown. Good on you Leo, very honest on your end... and beyond any of this, your project is very interesting, I particularly like the synth sounds going thru the plate..
This is a video I never, ever would have watched BUT FOR my curiosity of what in the world you were doing. I have no idea how this was recommended to me, I have no recording studio background or engineering background, I’ve never been interested in anything remotely related to this project, and the only reason I stuck it out was because it occurred to me that I had no idea how reverb was achieved in recordings before things went digital. I’m glad I did. I stuck through the entire thing, and while I still have no idea what would make someone interested in the intricate process of making something like this, I have much respect for the fact that there are people like this in the world, else we wouldn’t have things that most of us take for granted. I never gave it a second thought about who made my portable keyboard, how it was designed, what went into the design, etc, etc. But somebody right now is studying design and engineering just so they can work to make new things that most of us never even take the time to think about how it’s made. I still don’t know how all of this was made, even though I have watched you do it, the engineering, design factors, etc, etc.
I have no idea why RUclips recommended this video to you, either, but I'm thankful that you watched it and even more thankful for your nice words. I hope watching it was a good/inspiring/educational use of your (and other peoples') time.
LeoMakes - As an elementary educator, I think this is such a valuable educational tool. I’ve certainly learned something, if nothing at all, at least an appreciation for things we take for granted. Thanks for commenting back! I didn’t expect that. I love to foster curiosity in students, and thank goodness for RUclips where people like you can showcase what they do. So thank YOU. 👍🏼
Being a musician that came up and about in the digital age, it's very cool to see a hands-on homemade analogue representation of one of my favorite effects. I used plate reverb effects on everything I could when I was into recording and writing, so seeing that actually come from the titular plate is very cool.
Idea for dampening: get some soft sponges (automotive supply car wash section?) and glue them to wood blocks with a slide groove. Mount to the sides of that center brace the driver is mounted on. Adjust on groove and how much sponge gets squished. And you want those really soft natural or foam sponges, not the cellulose ones that harden up when dry. My way of thinking, that'd give you good adjustment which is also more consistent.
Fantastic problem solving involved in improving the initial prototype. I'm considering following your process to build one myself, I've always wanted to DIY a plate reverb.
I was reading about the abbey road reverbs and what they used to shorten the reverb was another plate (wood will do for this) the same size as the reverb plate and set parallel to it and quite close. it is arranged so that it can be moved towards and away from the main plate. this causes an air cushion which inhibits the vibration of the main plate, without actually touching it. the closer the dampening plate gets to the reverb plate the shorter the reverb time gets. also they usually EQ'd it quite a bit as well. often on the input as well as the output (or instead of)
It would not surprise me if George Martin came up w that idea as he was pretty brilliant. I like the idea of using that rag to play the reverb like an instrument when recording tho...fun!
Actually if you use high pass and low pass filters for the input(for example drums HP30hz, LP10khz, bass HP40hz LP5khz, etc)you have basically nothing to do with eq.
The first version sounded more "metallic" somehow. It had a metallic ring to it. But now it sounds more like a real room. A very small rectangular concrete room without any furniture, but still like a room. I wonder if you'll get a more pleasant sounding reverb if you experimented with different shapes to the plate. I'm thinking that the perfectly rectangular plate sounds like a rectangular room because it has two main directions of reflections just like the room (well it has 3 directions since it's 3d but anyway). A church or concert hall with a nice reverb doesn't usually have all flat wals at 90degree angles, it usually has two parralell wals and two somewhat mismatched or irregular walls and while the floor is mostly flat (but often dampened by benches and audience) the ceiling is usually angeled or domed. I would buy several plates and try out different shapes (keep the one you have now as it is because it does have a really good techno reverb). I'd try cutting the bottom side at a slight angle, and cut it steeper if you don't hear much difference. Maybe try cutting or even rounding the corners of some plates. Hmmm.. wait, maybe you could first try to add magnets of different sizes onto the plate you allready have (i assume it's magnetic), by changing it's mass in different areas I assume it would effectively be distorting it's shape since adding points of extra mass would slow down the vibration in those areas. Or maybe it would simply act as "furniture" in a room and dampen the reverb. Anyhow, I'm almost certain you can in some way tune the plate with magnets. Also moving the input and output locations will also probably change the sound a lot. Dead centre is probably best for maximum reverb, but it probably also causes more ringing than a slightly offset position.
Don't forget adding additional servos and piezo mics for stereo or more. Also studio pyramid foam vs a towel glued to a flat panel for damping, there could be some unique differences between the two. Linear damping vs offset damping.
Hell yea, Leo. I love the fact that you talked about failures. I always leave the struggle in my tutorials - and it needs to be part of the conversation. RUclips, Instagram, social media as a whole are so focused on perfection (imo) - and it's nice to see that dose of reality in your videos. Keep on!
It was a pleasant surprise seeing you here! I haven't seen any of your videos in a while. I think I'm gonna give your Theory in the DAW series a watch.
Amazing stuff! Just a thought: I was watching a guy who made amplifiers in a similar way and he was saying that you should not input the audio from the transducer into the middle of the plate. Instead, you should off-set it (lower and to the right for example) so that the vibrations travel different distances to each of the edges. I guess this adds more harmonic character.
To be fair, before your last video, I didn't know what a plate reverb was. It was a really cool intro and demonstration, and the friend I sent it to really enjoyed it as well. Keep up the awesome stuff.
I know very little about plate reverb but as you're talking I'm using the same words as you and I understand exactly where you're going with this. Perfect DIY; thanks for the video!
I was always considering building a plate reverb, but I could never figure out where I should start. This answered almost all of my questions and I can't wait to start re-purposing Ikea parts for sound!
Plate reverbs are around since the late 50s. They were the first artificial way of creating reverb ever conceived, other than literally building specially shaped rooms, so called echo chambers. Nowadays digital reverbs are usually considered superior, and some will even emulate the typical plate sound.
Genio, la gente que hace este tipo de video nunca se toma el tiempo de aclarar que se requiere mucho trabajo para lograr el resultado final. Gracias por compartir tus conocimientos.
Subscribed after seeing how you talked about failure. When watching RUclipsrs, it's so easy to fall into the trap of thinking they did what they did first time every time. As you pointed out, that is not the case, but failure is an important part of the process.
I'm a woodworker, CNC guy and a musician. Your first video was interesting to me but the sound of V1 was kind of meh. I am blown away by the sound of this upgrade! It still has a slight "trash can" type of sound but that sound is FANTASTIC!!!!! Great job! p.s. The way you're "cross cutting" the MDF at 8:35 is a bit dangerous. Probably not with the saw you have but with a full size saw you're asking for kickback or some other catastrophe to happen. When cutting little blocks like that, you should use some sort of crosscut device. The little block can get pinched between the saw blade and the fence and bad things can happen. The riving knife your saw has should alleviate a lot of the risk but still a good idea to use best practices.
Good tips, Andy. Thank you! I’m not an expert when it comes to woodworking so I appreciate the feedback. Is it possible to crosscut MDF? There is no grain in MDF.
I don't really know if you can crosscut MDF, that's why I wrote "cross cutting" in quotes ;-) The key is that the length of the piece is shorter than the width. On my saw, I can slide the fence fore and aft so when cross cutting a bunch of pieces to length, I slide the fence back so that the end of the fence is in front of the start of the saw blade and use the miter gauge/crosscut thingy. That way when the workpiece is in the saw there's no pinch hazard but you get the consistency/measuring ability of using a fence. Again, blown away by the sound of this plate reverb!
omg I'm super hyped for those impulse responses. Whenever I need reverb on ANYTHING I always first reach for my trusty convolution reverb. I've been making impulse responses of external stuff myself (pedals, modules) and I'd love to have this amazing creation of yours in my collection. It does sound truly incredible
What the ?? Dear LEO ! You are a genius !! Superb thing.... in this world of mass produced ready mades, this is the spirit which should multiply a million fold. Being a Mechanical Engineer , Artist , Musician, Composer and a Sound Engineering nut myself....this is orgasmic stuff ( sorry but it is ). Million hats off ! NS
Man that was truly inspiring. It would be really cool if you were able to choke the reverb easily with the scarf like you did in the last video. I mean interacting with the plate it opens so many more possibilities, that's a huge power of your work, like maybe making it rattle with everyday objects like some coins, sand, water, leaves or producing some sort of pitch resonance with something else. Keep going :)
Jeeeeezzzzzz that sounds ridiculously goooood ! To replace the cloth i had an idea, a little hammer like a piano hammer with a soft cloth on front touching the plate and it’s attached to the frame in a way that you can manipulate how much reverb you want.
this was the best thing ive seen yet topping the homemade speaker built from a red solo cup a bolt and a CD. kinda wish they made these commercially so i could set one up in my room when im jamming out
Wow! That’s impressive. Your first attempt was fun to watch and turned out much better than I expected, but not something I would ever see anyone actually using. But this spruced up model is legit! I would actually use that verb. Cool Project!
Holy shit! Thanks in advance for including the impulse responses. I watched your original vid because I was curious how your plate reverb would sound, but I record from my apartment living room and don't have the space to keep one myself. Seeing how you worked your way through each problem was also cool.
Two BBDs and one of these. Its an album title, album concept, and "portable studio" all in one. Yup. I'm doing this... with a volume pedal for Plate send. Thanks man, this is gold.
I just found your channel and it's absolutely fantastic. I have never done any of these kinds of hands on things but you've inspired me to give it a try.
Man, I thought it was going to sound bad, but it sounds fantastic to my ears. Really, I find it a desirable sound. I'd use it if I had one. I'm seriously impressed at how yummy it sounds. It has an expensive quality to it if there's such a thing! God bless!
I like your experimental, but down-to-earth and well thought-out approach to this project (I like to learn and get entertainment from anything electronic/audio related.) Keep up the great work! Subscribed :0)
1 Megohm still isn't a high enough impedance to get a proper flat response from the piezo. You need around 10 Megohms for that. That's why piezo guitar preamps normally have a 10 meg input impedance. That's not to say that 1 Megohm won't give a decent response for the plate reverb. You probably don't want too much low-end in the reverb signal as it can make it rather muddy. So you could try feeding the piezo signals into an acoustic guitar preamp designed for direct connection to an undersaddle piezo. You could probably hang two plates from that rack, with a bright and darker sounding plate. Add a small mixing circuit and you could balance the bright and dark sounds. Also, whilst you can easily HPF and LPF the reverb return in your DAW, you might consider adding some simple adjustable HP and LP filters as part of the reverb unit itself, for those who like to do as much outside the box as they can. Great idea though. Sounds very good indeed. I'm impressed.
It's better to match impedance and make the high pass selectively rather than not ever having it if you needed it. Also, an amp with better fidelity would improve this a fair bit, as would hanging it from something non-resonant like cotton cording. I would bet a fair amount of the 'ring' we're hearing in this is simply the springs 'singing' a little. You could also wrap the springs in neoprene or heat shrink tubing to cut down on this problem, if he's really into the springs idea.
Oh man Oh man, THANK YOU. i was playing with this idea to build one but always thought it is too difficult/complicated. You not only made it look easy but also explained all the steps in detail and shown you are passionate about it! This is true a way of life :) I think i have my first project right in front of me, thanks to YOU my friend. Cheers
You get a like and comment because you talked about how many tries it took you to get the end product for the hardware. Most people just have one time laps and make it look easier then it really is.
The first time I heard of a plate reverb was ten years ago in a guitar tab program named Guitar Pro and by using it, it made the midi output sound more natural. I imagined the "plate" would be a sort of plate, and was pleasantly surprised that RUclips's algorithm somehow showed this to me reveal that they're actually made of plates.
The only thing I wished you'd included is a full song where you'd leveraged your plate reverb individually on each track, mixing it in at various levels. Bet that would have sounded amazing.
It sounds awesome Leo. Great great work. Your generosity in making free IR files is very kind, and I would love to use them. But indeed this second try at the PLATE reverb sounds waayyyyy better. Noticeable even on my little laptop speakers.
Subscribed after watching the first diy plate reverb video. Glad you made a second video showing how it can be improved. Lots of great info. Thank you.
I got inspired from your last video and also built a plate reverb for our studio. An awesome time with our studio team. Anyways we used moongel to dampen the sound. Its what drummers use to control their drumskin resonenses. If you are intrested we can send you soundsamples and pictures of our project :D we tuned it to sound like our emt140. We would also really like to see you build an spring reverb :D
Awesome! Several people have said they'll do it, but this is the first time I've heard of someone with a finished unit. I would *LOVE* to see photos and sound samples of your plate! If you use Facebook, maybe you can post it on the LeoMakes page? Here's a link: facebook.com/leomakesstuff/
A friend and I built some plate reverbs for my studio several years ago using the plans that Bill Cunningham from Echoplate had made public. We even brought one of our plates to his house and had him give us some tips. One of the amazing things we learned from him was how the dampening system worked. He told us to use a particular type of Corning ceiling tile insulation (which is longer available, we had to take some from my mom’s house). The tiles are fiber glass, maybe 1/2 or 3/4 inch thick, with a plastic surface on one side. Bill said the trick is to poke a lot of pin holes in the plastic. These tiles (cut to be roughly the same size as the plate) are mounted parallel to the plate on a frame that makes it so you can easily adjust the distance between damper and plate. Magically without ever touching the plate, the damper dramatically effects the decay time of the plate reverb!
Do you have any schematics of the amp circuit, it looks very small and compact and I've been trying to find such a circuit for quite a while now. Thanks in advance
This project is a great watch because 1. Plate reverbs are usually out of the price range of the average joe. 2. Plate reverbs sound really cool. It's a DIY that makes good sense....
This sounds fantastic for a DIY effort. 👍 I think your final result is greater than the sum of its parts; combining hardware and software and experimentation AND not afraid of pushing through your failures along the way. This is the mark of success. Peace. 🙏
Thanks a lot for the inspiration!! Do you think it's also possible to build the framework with wood and then have the steel plate hanging in there or do I need to build it with a steel frame? Any suggestions are welcome :)
This is really an AMAZING project, I will surely try to build it as soon as I have some time to spend on it. Just a pair of little thought: 1- Instead of taking a painted IKEA plate, cut it and sand it, it would be probably easier to go in a local metal carpentry and ask for a piece of sheet metal. They have different thikness, and chances are they have some spare part in a corner and give you for free. It is already flat (no corners or bending) and no painting on it. Sheet metal come in different standard measures up to 2.5 x 1 mt., and they cut it to build what they need. Anyway a sheet is not that expensive. you might also look for a local sheet metal reseller. Oh, chances are that they also have some spare "L profile", that you can cut and drill to build the frame. The total cost would probably be less than half. 2 - To dampen the plate maybe you could build another MDF thing like the one you did for the transducer, but with a kind of "claw"! at the end, that can hold something soft, so that you can place it and eventually change position and experiment with different shape and materials. 3- Another interesting thing would be to put some liquid on it, like mineral oil. It might sound interesting, kinda damping, and could prevent it from rusting also. Anyway, I talk too much but you build it. BRAVO!
@@LeoMakes Hey, would love to be able to listen to it on Soundcloud or even RUclips, really love the vibes of that tune. Sorry the project didn´t go anywhere but perhaps you can make us a little happier by just sharing it with us somehow :) Keep up the good work!
I once made a stereo expander out of a 5 Spring Chest Exerciser nailed to my wall. I would split the signal coming from my guitar amp into two and run one side wire through the series of springs while the other was hooked directly into the tape deck. It slowed the signal just enough to give a bit of stereo separation. Everyone thought I was nuts, but it worked :D
charlie scourbys I thought it sounded awesome! But you’re right, checking polarity is never a bad idea. I’ve been surprised a few times. Just when you think it can’t get better...boop!
Great job showing the failure portion. I think more makers need to realize that people fail all the time and the successful ones just push through and keep working. I fail all the time and so far have managed to keep most of that hidden away from my boss.
May I ask you one simple question? Why didn't buy a piece of blank sheet metal instead of cutting off the folded edges and scraping of the black coating, wouldn't that be easier at almost the same price compared to the rent for the angle grinder? By the way, I am one of the new subscribers and I'm really looking forward to seeing more of your excellent videos! Greetings from Germany!
To be honest, it was easier/cheaper/faster for me to just go IKEA. However, if you know a good metal shop, that is probably a better way to do it. The sanding takes forever. Thanks for watching and the nice words!
A piece of sheet metal is going to be cheaper than this, but then he wouldn't get the "ikea hacks" youtube views bump, which is important for a creator.
Excellent job. I love watching process in action. Re, the dampener. Fab the same base as the piezo but with front and back plates to hold a longer screw with t-nuts to screw a pad with thick foam/wool/cloth against the plate.
@@LeoMakes if you do a spring one (you will wont you? please!) can you see how many 'springs' are able to have signal go through until signal to noise ratio becomes to heavy on the noise of the make up gain. ALSO!? How about several different jump off places along the collection of springs? say; if you're getting signal through 12 springs, how about an output jack at the end of every third spring group? I don't really know if that's a realistic. idea? How about thicker to thinner springs? or thinner to thicker? argh! Exciting! Thanks for the inspiring video! NO ONE TELL IKEA ABOUT THIS. THE PRICE FOR THIS PRODUCT WILL GO UP FASTER THAN YOU CAN SAY "SOLD OUT"!! Good luck!
Stereo plate reverb just uses two separate plates that are matched together. When you're talking recording gear, having matched stereo equipment means significantly more cost because they have to tune every unit in order to match.
Ummm... That's what this IS! Could you not hear it? It's also pretty visible in the end photos. There is a pickup transducer at the top of the plate and one at the bottom. Basically that's the same way they do that in the EMT140. ruclips.net/video/HEmJpxCvp9M/видео.html
Electronic reverbs came later... Recording studios would have reverb rooms where they would put speakers and microphones to create the effect before we had good enough electronics...
You deserve so many more subscribers. This reverb plate came out a lot better than I had originally expected. Your talk on failure was super inspiring too dude.
Interesting stuff. Don't make any kind of music however like the creativity and the effort, wow. It is good to notice "it isn't there in just half a hour or so" and show people the 'struggle' to achieve a solution, really appreciate that part of the video. There are so many things around us that seems to be very common and easy when the hard work is done already, people have to know about the journey to take to make it common, to respect it more, to see how awesome and smart people can be and the fun and joy to create something yourself. Subscribed to your channel, thumbs up.
The first thing I've thought when I first heard of plate reverbs was "I have some sheets of metal... some needed guitar pickups, and I can find a transducer pretty easy... I should make that someday" now hearing how your build sounds... I REALLY want to make it myself now
Can someone not manufacture cheap plate reverbs like this? It seems as though it would be really inexpensive to make a commercial product version of this. Why are all plate reverbs out there so expensive?
Not all of use are blessed with creative hands! I remember struggling to handsaw a plank in half back in school! Plus I don't own any tools 🤔 But I appreciate the sentiment 👌
I really liked the fact that you talked about failure and encouraged people to drive past through mistakes and hardships!
Thank you! I love watching people build amazing things on RUclips but I often wonder about what problems they face during a build. Those are sometimes the most interesting/inspiring bits of the project!
@@LeoMakes Agreed, the problems and mistakes are so fascinating and especially so if its a happy accident. :)
Yes! Not only fascinating but important too. The vastness of DIY videos in RUclips easily leaves an impression that everything is easy by showing only the stages that end up in the final construct and usually even then in a condensed time lapse format. While I think this is mostly a great thing and in fact have learnt to hate videos where the author rambles making an hour long video about stuff that could easily be explained in minutes, it has its downsides that should be addressed in some way. By briefly pointing them out this video does just that without making it long-winded or tedious to watch, but actually more interesting, as stated by the previous commentators.
I've been happily observing my 6 years old daughter's interest in DIY videos, but her being impatient by nature I'm a bit concerned how it affects her ability to concentrate and endure drawbacks and hardships that are an inherent part of learning and every creative project as they are of life itself. The best thing is of course to actually carry out projects with kids, but as they tend to get frustrated easily, I think it is in everyone's interest for creators to point out the time and effort it takes to achieve the stuff they make.
Yes yes yes! A million times yes! Important to love the process rather than worry about quick and successful outcomes. I'm getting better and better at that. :)
Fully agree with this comment.
I was already enjoying the video a lot, and fascinated about hearing Leo's workflow and project breakdown.. but then, after watching the "failure" section, I subscribed straight away! Any makers/coder/creative person out there knows that sometimes it takes quite a number of attempts and improvements to get it right, but this is very rarely shown.
Good on you Leo, very honest on your end... and beyond any of this, your project is very interesting, I particularly like the synth sounds going thru the plate..
This is a video I never, ever would have watched BUT FOR my curiosity of what in the world you were doing. I have no idea how this was recommended to me, I have no recording studio background or engineering background, I’ve never been interested in anything remotely related to this project, and the only reason I stuck it out was because it occurred to me that I had no idea how reverb was achieved in recordings before things went digital. I’m glad I did. I stuck through the entire thing, and while I still have no idea what would make someone interested in the intricate process of making something like this, I have much respect for the fact that there are people like this in the world, else we wouldn’t have things that most of us take for granted. I never gave it a second thought about who made my portable keyboard, how it was designed, what went into the design, etc, etc. But somebody right now is studying design and engineering just so they can work to make new things that most of us never even take the time to think about how it’s made. I still don’t know how all of this was made, even though I have watched you do it, the engineering, design factors, etc, etc.
I have no idea why RUclips recommended this video to you, either, but I'm thankful that you watched it and even more thankful for your nice words. I hope watching it was a good/inspiring/educational use of your (and other peoples') time.
LeoMakes - As an elementary educator, I think this is such a valuable educational tool. I’ve certainly learned something, if nothing at all, at least an appreciation for things we take for granted. Thanks for commenting back! I didn’t expect that. I love to foster curiosity in students, and thank goodness for RUclips where people like you can showcase what they do. So thank YOU. 👍🏼
I'm so impressed! One of the coolest DIY music projects I've seen.
Wow--coming from you, that really means a lot to me! Thank you! (I love your channel, BTW!)
Being a musician that came up and about in the digital age, it's very cool to see a hands-on homemade analogue representation of one of my favorite effects. I used plate reverb effects on everything I could when I was into recording and writing, so seeing that actually come from the titular plate is very cool.
that reverb sounded huge would love to hear that with a live guitar.
this
Idea for dampening: get some soft sponges (automotive supply car wash section?) and glue them to wood blocks with a slide groove. Mount to the sides of that center brace the driver is mounted on. Adjust on groove and how much sponge gets squished. And you want those really soft natural or foam sponges, not the cellulose ones that harden up when dry. My way of thinking, that'd give you good adjustment which is also more consistent.
Fantastic problem solving involved in improving the initial prototype.
I'm considering following your process to build one myself, I've always wanted to DIY a plate reverb.
Thanks! BTW I really like your channel and your scientific/analytical approach!
@@LeoMakes Thank you. Likewise, really enjoying the quality of your content.
Coliiiiin!! :D
PLEASE do so Colin, I am absolutely dying to hear this thing used for guitar.
@@ScienceofLoud Hey, I'd just like you to know that I read your comments in your accent (although, I admit you might not recognize it!) :-)
I was reading about the abbey road reverbs and what they used to shorten the reverb was another plate (wood will do for this) the same size as the reverb plate and set parallel to it and quite close. it is arranged so that it can be moved towards and away from the main plate. this causes an air cushion which inhibits the vibration of the main plate, without actually touching it. the closer the dampening plate gets to the reverb plate the shorter the reverb time gets. also they usually EQ'd it quite a bit as well. often on the input as well as the output (or instead of)
I like that. It doesn't touch that plate, just indirectly through air resistance. turns that small gap into a kind of "membrane trap".
It would not surprise me if George Martin came up w that idea as he was pretty brilliant. I like the idea of using that rag to play the reverb like an instrument when recording tho...fun!
could also add extra pickups to the baffle for some more tones to play with :)
Actually if you use high pass and low pass filters for the input(for example drums HP30hz, LP10khz, bass HP40hz LP5khz, etc)you have basically nothing to do with eq.
This concept might work better using a sheet of rigid fiberglass.
The first version sounded more "metallic" somehow. It had a metallic ring to it. But now it sounds more like a real room. A very small rectangular concrete room without any furniture, but still like a room.
I wonder if you'll get a more pleasant sounding reverb if you experimented with different shapes to the plate. I'm thinking that the perfectly rectangular plate sounds like a rectangular room because it has two main directions of reflections just like the room (well it has 3 directions since it's 3d but anyway). A church or concert hall with a nice reverb doesn't usually have all flat wals at 90degree angles, it usually has two parralell wals and two somewhat mismatched or irregular walls and while the floor is mostly flat (but often dampened by benches and audience) the ceiling is usually angeled or domed. I would buy several plates and try out different shapes (keep the one you have now as it is because it does have a really good techno reverb). I'd try cutting the bottom side at a slight angle, and cut it steeper if you don't hear much difference. Maybe try cutting or even rounding the corners of some plates.
Hmmm.. wait, maybe you could first try to add magnets of different sizes onto the plate you allready have (i assume it's magnetic), by changing it's mass in different areas I assume it would effectively be distorting it's shape since adding points of extra mass would slow down the vibration in those areas. Or maybe it would simply act as "furniture" in a room and dampen the reverb.
Anyhow, I'm almost certain you can in some way tune the plate with magnets.
Also moving the input and output locations will also probably change the sound a lot. Dead centre is probably best for maximum reverb, but it probably also causes more ringing than a slightly offset position.
Yeah the ringing is kinda hard on the ears
Don't forget adding additional servos and piezo mics for stereo or more. Also studio pyramid foam vs a towel glued to a flat panel for damping, there could be some unique differences between the two. Linear damping vs offset damping.
Also damping with another metal plate or a tambourine. Kind of like a sitar.
So the IKEA Plate Reverb sounds like a small room without furniture?
Might be easier to tune it by physical damping.....a bit of electrical tape in strategic places would likely do the job
Hell yea, Leo. I love the fact that you talked about failures. I always leave the struggle in my tutorials - and it needs to be part of the conversation. RUclips, Instagram, social media as a whole are so focused on perfection (imo) - and it's nice to see that dose of reality in your videos.
Keep on!
It was a pleasant surprise seeing you here! I haven't seen any of your videos in a while. I think I'm gonna give your Theory in the DAW series a watch.
Amazing stuff! Just a thought: I was watching a guy who made amplifiers in a similar way and he was saying that you should not input the audio from the transducer into the middle of the plate. Instead, you should off-set it (lower and to the right for example) so that the vibrations travel different distances to each of the edges. I guess this adds more harmonic character.
To be fair, before your last video, I didn't know what a plate reverb was. It was a really cool intro and demonstration, and the friend I sent it to really enjoyed it as well. Keep up the awesome stuff.
I know very little about plate reverb but as you're talking I'm using the same words as you and I understand exactly where you're going with this. Perfect DIY; thanks for the video!
Looking forward to those impulse responses! Thanks for sharing all of this!
I love how this reverb adds its own character to everything you play through it, and reacts differently to various sounds. Love it!
Made me think that plates made of different metals would probably have different sounds due to differences in density and conductiveness
@@wardeni4806they do
Incredible how something this low tech can sound sooooo good so organic.
WOW, love the sound of the new version. Personally I dont't like it on drums but i find it perfect on synths. Congratulations, really man!
I was always considering building a plate reverb, but I could never figure out where I should start. This answered almost all of my questions and I can't wait to start re-purposing Ikea parts for sound!
Not all heroes wear capes.
But they should all wear trousers !
Sounds better on synhts than the on drums - but then it REALLY has some balls and character. Love it!
I know nothing about electronics nor electrics, but never thought of a reverb fx as a physical plate doing the thing. Amazing mate!
Plate reverbs are around since the late 50s. They were the first artificial way of creating reverb ever conceived, other than literally building specially shaped rooms, so called echo chambers.
Nowadays digital reverbs are usually considered superior, and some will even emulate the typical plate sound.
the reverb in my guitar amp uses several springs.
Genio, la gente que hace este tipo de video nunca se toma el tiempo de aclarar que se requiere mucho trabajo para lograr el resultado final. Gracias por compartir tus conocimientos.
I can't get over how good this sounds, wow man.
me too. it sounds fantastic.
Subscribed after seeing how you talked about failure. When watching RUclipsrs, it's so easy to fall into the trap of thinking they did what they did first time every time. As you pointed out, that is not the case, but failure is an important part of the process.
I'm a woodworker, CNC guy and a musician. Your first video was interesting to me but the sound of V1 was kind of meh. I am blown away by the sound of this upgrade! It still has a slight "trash can" type of sound but that sound is FANTASTIC!!!!! Great job! p.s. The way you're "cross cutting" the MDF at 8:35 is a bit dangerous. Probably not with the saw you have but with a full size saw you're asking for kickback or some other catastrophe to happen. When cutting little blocks like that, you should use some sort of crosscut device. The little block can get pinched between the saw blade and the fence and bad things can happen. The riving knife your saw has should alleviate a lot of the risk but still a good idea to use best practices.
Good tips, Andy. Thank you! I’m not an expert when it comes to woodworking so I appreciate the feedback.
Is it possible to crosscut MDF? There is no grain in MDF.
I don't really know if you can crosscut MDF, that's why I wrote "cross cutting" in quotes ;-) The key is that the length of the piece is shorter than the width. On my saw, I can slide the fence fore and aft so when cross cutting a bunch of pieces to length, I slide the fence back so that the end of the fence is in front of the start of the saw blade and use the miter gauge/crosscut thingy. That way when the workpiece is in the saw there's no pinch hazard but you get the consistency/measuring ability of using a fence.
Again, blown away by the sound of this plate reverb!
p.s. I would love to hear how an 0-coast sounds through there - should be wicked.
A long while ago, there was an old online forum that lost their shit at some guys' DIY spring reverb. People love DIY hardware reverb!
omg I'm super hyped for those impulse responses. Whenever I need reverb on ANYTHING I always first reach for my trusty convolution reverb. I've been making impulse responses of external stuff myself (pedals, modules) and I'd love to have this amazing creation of yours in my collection. It does sound truly incredible
Damn. This actually looks doable.
Will have to revisit this in a few months when i've finished my currently undone projects.
Absolutely loved your comments on failure and the building process in general. I'm going to show it to our 6 year old. Bravo!
😘
What the ?? Dear LEO ! You are a genius !! Superb thing.... in this world of mass produced ready mades, this is the spirit which should multiply a million fold. Being a Mechanical Engineer , Artist , Musician, Composer and a Sound Engineering nut myself....this is orgasmic stuff ( sorry but it is ).
Million hats off !
NS
Man that was truly inspiring.
It would be really cool if you were able to choke the reverb easily with the scarf like you did in the last video. I mean interacting with the plate it opens so many more possibilities, that's a huge power of your work, like maybe making it rattle with everyday objects like some coins, sand, water, leaves or producing some sort of pitch resonance with something else.
Keep going :)
Fantastic sounding reverb, like how the character can be changed with a scarf (other clothing options are available) rather than menu diving
Love how snappy the reverb sounds on the synths
Jeeeeezzzzzz that sounds ridiculously goooood ! To replace the cloth i had an idea, a little hammer like a piano hammer with a soft cloth on front touching the plate and it’s attached to the frame in a way that you can manipulate how much reverb you want.
Your bit on problem-solving and learning from failures got me to sub! Awesome stuff!
this was the best thing ive seen yet topping the homemade speaker built from a red solo cup a bolt and a CD. kinda wish they made these commercially so i could set one up in my room when im jamming out
I feel very inspired already. Glad that I've found your channel. Subscribed for life.
Wow! That’s impressive. Your first attempt was fun to watch and turned out much better than I expected, but not something I would ever see anyone actually using. But this spruced up model is legit! I would actually use that verb. Cool Project!
... also, try mixing a little of the return with the send - should give you longer decay times than that small plate can produce by itself.
Holy shit! Thanks in advance for including the impulse responses. I watched your original vid because I was curious how your plate reverb would sound, but I record from my apartment living room and don't have the space to keep one myself.
Seeing how you worked your way through each problem was also cool.
"Hardware is not easy - it's hard" - LeoMakes 2018
btw, the same is true for software.
It ain't easyware
Two BBDs and one of these. Its an album title, album concept, and "portable studio" all in one. Yup. I'm doing this... with a volume pedal for Plate send. Thanks man, this is gold.
I just found your channel and it's absolutely fantastic. I have never done any of these kinds of hands on things but you've inspired me to give it a try.
"Hardware is not easy. It's hard." I really love that little talk you gave in the middle, it made my day. I'm inspired and subscribed.
Man, I thought it was going to sound bad, but it sounds fantastic to my ears. Really, I find it a desirable sound. I'd use it if I had one. I'm seriously impressed at how yummy it sounds. It has an expensive quality to it if there's such a thing! God bless!
Good thing that you talk about failures !
I like the way you explain things and the project. Keep going and cheers from France
I was highly skeptical of the entire project, but I've got to say you've won me over!
Ha! Me too!
I like your experimental, but down-to-earth and well thought-out approach to this project (I like to learn and get entertainment from anything electronic/audio related.) Keep up the great work! Subscribed :0)
9:35 On Failure - The part I enjoyed most
I love the random motivational part at around 11 minutes. great videos leo
1 Megohm still isn't a high enough impedance to get a proper flat response from the piezo. You need around 10 Megohms for that. That's why piezo guitar preamps normally have a 10 meg input impedance. That's not to say that 1 Megohm won't give a decent response for the plate reverb. You probably don't want too much low-end in the reverb signal as it can make it rather muddy. So you could try feeding the piezo signals into an acoustic guitar preamp designed for direct connection to an undersaddle piezo.
You could probably hang two plates from that rack, with a bright and darker sounding plate. Add a small mixing circuit and you could balance the bright and dark sounds.
Also, whilst you can easily HPF and LPF the reverb return in your DAW, you might consider adding some simple adjustable HP and LP filters as part of the reverb unit itself, for those who like to do as much outside the box as they can.
Great idea though. Sounds very good indeed. I'm impressed.
It's better to match impedance and make the high pass selectively rather than not ever having it if you needed it.
Also, an amp with better fidelity would improve this a fair bit, as would hanging it from something non-resonant like cotton cording. I would bet a fair amount of the 'ring' we're hearing in this is simply the springs 'singing' a little. You could also wrap the springs in neoprene or heat shrink tubing to cut down on this problem, if he's really into the springs idea.
Oh man Oh man, THANK YOU. i was playing with this idea to build one but always thought it is too difficult/complicated. You not only made it look easy but also explained all the steps in detail and shown you are passionate about it! This is true a way of life :) I think i have my first project right in front of me, thanks to YOU my friend. Cheers
Can't wait to see a half'd ass version of this at the next noise show.
Ha! I can assure you that nobody wants to see that more than me!
nothing sounds better then a real reverb.
Great video!
You get a like and comment because you talked about how many tries it took you to get the end product for the hardware. Most people just have one time laps and make it look easier then it really is.
The first time I heard of a plate reverb was ten years ago in a guitar tab program named Guitar Pro and by using it, it made the midi output sound more natural. I imagined the "plate" would be a sort of plate, and was pleasantly surprised that RUclips's algorithm somehow showed this to me reveal that they're actually made of plates.
The only thing I wished you'd included is a full song where you'd leveraged your plate reverb individually on each track, mixing it in at various levels. Bet that would have sounded amazing.
It sounds awesome Leo. Great great work. Your generosity in making free IR files is very kind, and I would love to use them. But indeed this second try at the PLATE reverb sounds waayyyyy better. Noticeable even on my little laptop speakers.
I think the reverb sounds the best with those clicky sounds.
Subscribed after watching the first diy plate reverb video. Glad you made a second video showing how it can be improved. Lots of great info. Thank you.
I got inspired from your last video and also built a plate reverb for our studio. An awesome time with our studio team. Anyways we used moongel to dampen the sound. Its what drummers use to control their drumskin resonenses. If you are intrested we can send you soundsamples and pictures of our project :D we tuned it to sound like our emt140. We would also really like to see you build an spring reverb :D
Awesome! Several people have said they'll do it, but this is the first time I've heard of someone with a finished unit. I would *LOVE* to see photos and sound samples of your plate! If you use Facebook, maybe you can post it on the LeoMakes page? Here's a link:
facebook.com/leomakesstuff/
Yeah you should share your results - really interested how you got it to sound like the EMT-140.
Can we have a short demo video too? :)
Already working on the video. I'll post it on yous facebook page once its finished. :D
@@matukene1531link? :)
analogue reverb used in music production is a nutso and very cool concept
'Damping' :)
What if you use TWO transducers, one for left and one for right inputs?
A friend and I built some plate reverbs for my studio several years ago using the plans that Bill Cunningham from Echoplate had made public. We even brought one of our plates to his house and had him give us some tips. One of the amazing things we learned from him was how the dampening system worked.
He told us to use a particular type of Corning ceiling tile insulation (which is longer available, we had to take some from my mom’s house). The tiles are fiber glass, maybe 1/2 or 3/4 inch thick, with a plastic surface on one side. Bill said the trick is to poke a lot of pin holes in the plastic. These tiles (cut to be roughly the same size as the plate) are mounted parallel to the plate on a frame that makes it so you can easily adjust the distance between damper and plate.
Magically without ever touching the plate, the damper dramatically effects the decay time of the plate reverb!
ThisOldLeoMakes
This Old Tony is one of my favorite people on RUclips!
Exactly my thought :)
I'm really happy to hear it sounds really usable for a studio situation here! I sensed major Hotline Miami OST vibes in those sound examples. Sweet!
Do you have any schematics of the amp circuit, it looks very small and compact and I've been trying to find such a circuit for quite a while now. Thanks in advance
This project is a great watch because
1. Plate reverbs are usually out of the price range of the average joe.
2. Plate reverbs sound really cool.
It's a DIY that makes good sense....
If it rusts, go to a steel merchant and by polished stainless steel cut to size, a LOT cheaper than Ikea shelf.
This sounds fantastic for a DIY effort. 👍 I think your final result is greater than the sum of its parts; combining hardware and software and experimentation AND not afraid of pushing through your failures along the way. This is the mark of success. Peace. 🙏
Thanks a lot for the inspiration!!
Do you think it's also possible to build the framework with wood and then have the steel plate hanging in there or do I need to build it with a steel frame? Any suggestions are welcome :)
I think a wood frame would be fine as long as it’s rigid and doesn’t flex too much. Try it and make a video of it if you can!
This is really an AMAZING project, I will surely try to build it as soon as I have some time to spend on it.
Just a pair of little thought:
1- Instead of taking a painted IKEA plate, cut it and sand it, it would be probably easier to go in a local metal carpentry and ask for a piece of sheet metal. They have different thikness, and chances are they have some spare part in a corner and give you for free. It is already flat (no corners or bending) and no painting on it. Sheet metal come in different standard measures up to 2.5 x 1 mt., and they cut it to build what they need. Anyway a sheet is not that expensive. you might also look for a local sheet metal reseller.
Oh, chances are that they also have some spare "L profile", that you can cut and drill to build the frame.
The total cost would probably be less than half.
2 - To dampen the plate maybe you could build another MDF thing like the one you did for the transducer, but with a kind of "claw"! at the end, that can hold something soft, so that you can place it and eventually change position and experiment with different shape and materials.
3- Another interesting thing would be to put some liquid on it, like mineral oil. It might sound interesting, kinda damping, and could prevent it from rusting also.
Anyway, I talk too much but you build it. BRAVO!
Could use some drumhear dampeners. The little stick on ones
Great channel. Glad the first plate reverb video kicked off.
Sounds awesome! Is that an original song at 1:25? Pretty sick, reminds me of NIN Ghosts/Trent Reznor's soundtrack work.
Thanks. That's original (unreleased) music I wrote years ago for a project that didn't go anywhere. I was happy to find a home for it.
@@LeoMakes Hey, would love to be able to listen to it on Soundcloud or even RUclips, really love the vibes of that tune. Sorry the project didn´t go anywhere but perhaps you can make us a little happier by just sharing it with us somehow :) Keep up the good work!
@@Indrecius soundcloud.com/corl-franco/leomakes-diy-hack-unreleased
soundcloud.com/corl-franco/leomakes-diy-hack-unreleased
I once made a stereo expander out of a 5 Spring Chest Exerciser nailed to my wall. I would split the signal coming from my guitar amp into two and run one side wire through the series of springs while the other was hooked directly into the tape deck. It slowed the signal just enough to give a bit of stereo separation. Everyone thought I was nuts, but it worked :D
I think you need to invert the polarity of the reverb return.
charlie scourbys I thought it sounded awesome! But you’re right, checking polarity is never a bad idea. I’ve been surprised a few times. Just when you think it can’t get better...boop!
Great job showing the failure portion. I think more makers need to realize that people fail all the time and the successful ones just push through and keep working. I fail all the time and so far have managed to keep most of that hidden away from my boss.
id also love to see what a guitar pickup sounded like instead of the pezios
Sound brilliant on those synthy and pingy sounds. Well done!
May I ask you one simple question?
Why didn't buy a piece of blank sheet metal instead of cutting off the folded edges and scraping of the black coating, wouldn't that be easier at almost the same price compared to the rent for the angle grinder?
By the way, I am one of the new subscribers and I'm really looking forward to seeing more of your excellent videos!
Greetings from Germany!
To be honest, it was easier/cheaper/faster for me to just go IKEA. However, if you know a good metal shop, that is probably a better way to do it. The sanding takes forever.
Thanks for watching and the nice words!
@@LeoMakes I'm pretty sure you can find similar unpainted sheets at your local hardware store. Most will have a sheet metal section.
Generally they do, but many times they can be much more expensive. Plus the table had a cage premade so he didn't have to spend the time making that.
A piece of sheet metal is going to be cheaper than this, but then he wouldn't get the "ikea hacks" youtube views bump, which is important for a creator.
it's cheaper the way he did it, cut piece of sheet metal at Lowe's 4×2 foot is $35
Excellent job. I love watching process in action.
Re, the dampener. Fab the same base as the piezo but with front and back plates to hold a longer screw with t-nuts to screw a pad with thick foam/wool/cloth against the plate.
I think it would be great to make a spring reverb with this small transducer..
You know, I've been thinking the same thing. And I have big box of springs that I don't know what to do with. :)
@@LeoMakes Ooohh yes please!
cool, looking forward to it!
That's super cool!
@@LeoMakes if you do a spring one (you will wont you? please!) can you see how many 'springs' are able to have signal go through until signal to noise ratio becomes to heavy on the noise of the make up gain. ALSO!? How about several different jump off places along the collection of springs? say; if you're getting signal through 12 springs, how about an output jack at the end of every third spring group? I don't really know if that's a realistic. idea? How about thicker to thinner springs? or thinner to thicker? argh! Exciting! Thanks for the inspiring video! NO ONE TELL IKEA ABOUT THIS. THE PRICE FOR THIS PRODUCT WILL GO UP FASTER THAN YOU CAN SAY "SOLD OUT"!! Good luck!
Great video - really enjoyed the fact you explained it didnt take 5 minutes and that it was tricky - Much respect man - ALSO epic reverb!!!!!
Im happy i came here
That´s a nice sounding reverb
What about a STEREO plate reverb with 2 piezzo mic placed in different spots of the board ?
You get a sort of flanger effect from that.
Stereo plate reverb just uses two separate plates that are matched together. When you're talking recording gear, having matched stereo equipment means significantly more cost because they have to tune every unit in order to match.
Ummm... That's what this IS! Could you not hear it? It's also pretty visible in the end photos. There is a pickup transducer at the top of the plate and one at the bottom. Basically that's the same way they do that in the EMT140. ruclips.net/video/HEmJpxCvp9M/видео.html
I’m loving the progress on the reverb
Thanks for watching!
I will personally track down and scold every disliker
right??? why dislike this?
@@strstudio8625 Read again :)
What about people with multi-facetted opinions?
....that typical idiotic, attention-grabbing statement...there's always someone, isn't it...
I can commit to the Europe dislikers if you can get the Americas 👍
These people deserve to know they're wrong..!
Man synths sound awesome through that plate!! Also, great message about probllem solving, growth and the rewards of hard work. Keep it up!
The “instant stereo”, from mono sources, is SO nice!
I didn't even know it was possible to MAKE reverbs irl... this just blew my mind
Electronic reverbs came later... Recording studios would have reverb rooms where they would put speakers and microphones to create the effect before we had good enough electronics...
You deserve so many more subscribers. This reverb plate came out a lot better than I had originally expected. Your talk on failure was super inspiring too dude.
would grinding the surface in some sort of mathematical pattern affect the sounds?
negligible. only differences in thickness(strength) of the material, or density would really change sound
Interesting stuff. Don't make any kind of music however like the creativity and the effort, wow. It is good to notice "it isn't there in just half a hour or so" and show people the 'struggle' to achieve a solution, really appreciate that part of the video. There are so many things around us that seems to be very common and easy when the hard work is done already, people have to know about the journey to take to make it common, to respect it more, to see how awesome and smart people can be and the fun and joy to create something yourself. Subscribed to your channel, thumbs up.
What’s the cpu usage like (:
I modeled a plate reverb plugin using hardware. The plate is doing a lot of processing.
The first thing I've thought when I first heard of plate reverbs was "I have some sheets of metal... some needed guitar pickups, and I can find a transducer pretty easy... I should make that someday"
now hearing how your build sounds... I REALLY want to make it myself now
lol i didnt know 100k people knew what plate reverb was. made me laugh
This is great man!
I've got more than enough stuff around to build variations of this but it never occurred to me.
Can someone not manufacture cheap plate reverbs like this? It seems as though it would be really inexpensive to make a commercial product version of this. Why are all plate reverbs out there so expensive?
Ha! YOU can, Zach! With your own hands and ingenuity! :)
Not all of use are blessed with creative hands! I remember struggling to handsaw a plank in half back in school! Plus I don't own any tools 🤔 But I appreciate the sentiment 👌