Depends on the size marimba! Definitely a vibraphone is a little more complex and tuning aluminium takes longer than timber. A five octave concert marimba may still take a little longer than a three octave vibraphone though - especially if you finish the bars to a high polish!
this one is just a single speed - but of course because it is a DC motor you could easily rig up speed control via a simple voltage control circuit or even more simply with variable resistance.
The vibraphone had a motor that moved the resonators in circles, causing the effect. The vibrato was planned, and part of the instrument when he turned the motor on.
Well sure - of course. You would definitely need to make adjustments though. You would want to make the frame timber beefier and as you say... provide harness attachments etc. Playing vibes with no pedal is tought though.. you will get a lot of ring - it would be good to have SOME dampening mechanism - even if it was an adjustable static one.
Well the instructons are very detailed - there are several methods outlined for removal of the material and the process is explained cery clearly with photos and diagrams - there is also a demo video included which shows the process and explains each step along the way
here's several things for constructing marimbas Attend a school or self-study via an online course Ensure you are fully committed to it before you begin (I discovered these and why they work from Delfords Magic Plan website )
Hi there - Yes indeed! The vibraphone shown in this vid eventually went to Woodcroft College. As did the prototype P2 marimba actually - that one to the Junior school I believe. I certainly don't have room to house ALL the instruments I build... :)
There are several components to creating an amazing design. One plan I found which successfully combines these is the Delfords magic plan (google it if you're interested) without a doubt the best info that I've heard of. look at this unbelievable website.
well that of course is possible... only you would have to make a couple of adjustments to the frame dimensions to compensatefor the modified bardimensions.
Well the butterflies - or fans - are discs that rotate inside the open mouths of the resonators - they have to be there to work - they need to open and close the tubes as they rotate. Placement of the motor is wherever is structurally convenient as long as the drive pulley lines up with those on the ends of the fan shafts. Does this answer your question?
I've long thought about an electric vibes project. With pickups through a tremolo pedal. The keys need to be ferromagnetic. I don't know if nickel plating would work, or simply a steel disc attached to the underside of the key would do the job.
Hi Lester. My advice would be to research piezo transducers. These have been around and used as the "standard" on bar percussion for decades. They have their limitations, but on the good side, they can be used on any existing instrument - no matter the material they are made from.
Cheers ! I just bought a Galanti Vinraphonette that needs servicing / restoration ... hoping your website will demystify the motor for the tremolo effect :)
@@percussionclinic yeah I didn't realize you were selling the information ... I don't need to purchase plans to build from scratch , just service the one I bought... I'll figure it out.
If you mean "french" Bells - like a pedal glock- then yes, but you would end up doing a lot of modification working from different bar sizes etc. If you mean regular glockenspiel... then you are better off just doing your own normal glock design from a copied set of bar dimensions. You will still have to tune but that is always the time consuming bit anyway.
Hi, if one practices with a vibraphone with those bar sizes, is it difficult to transition to an instrument of wider bars? I consider building one with thin bars for ease of transportation but don't know if it's a good idea
Hi Julian. That is indeed a concern for some - and everyone is different when it comes to how much difficulty they have in adjusting. In my experience it is more of a concern on marimbas - which have a bigger overall range and in some cases bigger variation in bar dimensions also. For vibraphones I have found it to be an issue for those who transition from a "narrow bar" instrument, to a full wide bar instrument - but not so much for those who transition from this set of dimensions which is somewhat in the middle. The PV does have graduated bars and the lower end bars are 2" wide - so in most cases it is not a huge adaptation when moving to a full "wide bar" instrument that has just slightly wider bars in that bottom octave. But as always - everyone is different!
Hi Nathan - well you really can use whatever method is available to you - depends on your tools. These days I rough out the bars using trenching cuts on radial arm saw set to the appropriate depth - but using a blade especially designed for aluminium - then I have a 6x48 belt sander that smooths things out pretty quickly from there. Commercial makers will often use a CNC mill. I HAVE done these bars with nothing more than a hand drill - but obviously it takes longer and doesn't look as nice on the underside.... but it is absolutely possible and will sound just fine. A cheap and fast way to remove material is with an angle grinder.. BUT you have to use special aluminium wheels - using regular metal wheels with aluminium is dangerous.
The aluminum is T5, but how thick are the bars? I bought some bars years ago with the intention of building one, but they were incredibly hard to cut. I gave up. I will probably buy your book
+Dr B actually the T5 temper is an option mostly for 5000 series alloys where t6 temper is actually better. The pv prototype used a t5 5000 alloy to prove that even a worst case scenario still works pretty well! If you want the best option you can get with alloys available to the average consumer... Try to track down 2024 alloy which tends to come in t351 ort4 tempers. Either is good. Check out my newest vibraphone build here on youtube which uses t352 2024. ☺
Hi! I picked up a Jenco 3 octave without a motor. It used to have one and I'd like to eventually add one. Do you know if there's any DIY or cheapo replacement option. Ive thought maybe harvesting an old belt driven record player or sewing machine motor might work. Or an old 4 track with varispeed dial. Any thoughts? Thanks!
Replacement motors are generally the tough part of vibes repair. For that exact reason - finding an appropriate one is tough. Your ideas are on the money though - I generally recommend trying to find an old turntable motor - but with this option and the others.... it is the speed control that is tough. Modern turntable motors for example can't just be fed a voltage and run - they have controller circuits that time the changes to the motor coils to control speed. So you either need to get the whole circuit in there also or find an older and simpler system. My new vibes project uses a digital motor with USB powered controller - fairly inexpensive and easy - though I'm still having some issues with motor noise at many speeds - which is the common issue with digital motors.
What about a battery powered motor from a remote control car and maybe Velcro the RC controller to the side of the vibes? Or maybe I could rip apart a small fan.
Something with a speed controller like the rc car could work - though you might find it noisy. Noise is the #2 problem with vibes motors. #1 is the speed - any fan you find will be too fast. You can use a battery powered motor - actually the PV prototype used one from an electronics store - but it was a "geared" motor. The gears make it slower and stronger - but also a bit noisier.
I have machined them from scratch recently on my new vibes project from 1/8th thick aluminium flat sheets. But if you want to find a ready alternative there are some about. You can try various "Mechano" or "connex" or "lego" wheels - or the PV originally used rollers from a sliding door which you can find "replacements" for in an average hardware store.
Yes - this motor is a bit louder than ideal - it's a $10 cheap 12VDC gear motor that I used so it could be battery operated and very simple - it's actually a bit softer than the video suggest because the mic id close to the motor - but it IS a bit louder than ideal. My latest build actually has an AWSOME motor system - it uses a 5V stepper controlled with an Arduino - heaps of cool programs for different types of modulation and absolutely silent. It's still a work in progress, but we have certainly solved the noise issues!
Depends on the size marimba! Definitely a vibraphone is a little more complex and tuning aluminium takes longer than timber. A five octave concert marimba may still take a little longer than a three octave vibraphone though - especially if you finish the bars to a high polish!
this one is just a single speed - but of course because it is a DC motor you could easily rig up speed control via a simple voltage control circuit or even more simply with variable resistance.
The vibraphone had a motor that moved the resonators in circles, causing the effect. The vibrato was planned, and part of the instrument when he turned the motor on.
Well sure - of course. You would definitely need to make adjustments though. You would want to make the frame timber beefier and as you say... provide harness attachments etc. Playing vibes with no pedal is tought though.. you will get a lot of ring - it would be good to have SOME dampening mechanism - even if it was an adjustable static one.
Well the instructons are very detailed - there are several methods outlined for removal of the material and the process is explained cery clearly with photos and diagrams - there is also a demo video included which shows the process and explains each step along the way
here's several things for constructing marimbas
Attend a school or self-study via an online course
Ensure you are fully committed to it before you begin
(I discovered these and why they work from Delfords Magic Plan website )
Hi there - Yes indeed! The vibraphone shown in this vid eventually went to Woodcroft College. As did the prototype P2 marimba actually - that one to the Junior school I believe. I certainly don't have room to house ALL the instruments I build... :)
There are several components to creating an amazing design. One plan I found which successfully combines these is the Delfords magic plan (google it if you're interested) without a doubt the best info that I've heard of. look at this unbelievable website.
well that of course is possible... only you would have to make a couple of adjustments to the frame dimensions to compensatefor the modified bardimensions.
Well the butterflies - or fans - are discs that rotate inside the open mouths of the resonators - they have to be there to work - they need to open and close the tubes as they rotate. Placement of the motor is wherever is structurally convenient as long as the drive pulley lines up with those on the ends of the fan shafts. Does this answer your question?
I've long thought about an electric vibes project. With pickups through a tremolo pedal. The keys need to be ferromagnetic. I don't know if nickel plating would work, or simply a steel disc attached to the underside of the key would do the job.
Hi Lester. My advice would be to research piezo transducers. These have been around and used as the "standard" on bar percussion for decades. They have their limitations, but on the good side, they can be used on any existing instrument - no matter the material they are made from.
Cheers ! I just bought a Galanti Vinraphonette that needs servicing / restoration ... hoping your website will demystify the motor for the tremolo effect :)
Feel free to post or email me questions should they come up!
@@percussionclinic yeah I didn't realize you were selling the information ... I don't need to purchase plans to build from scratch , just service the one I bought... I'll figure it out.
vibraphones sound amazing
If you mean "french" Bells - like a pedal glock- then yes, but you would end up doing a lot of modification working from different bar sizes etc. If you mean regular glockenspiel... then you are better off just doing your own normal glock design from a copied set of bar dimensions. You will still have to tune but that is always the time consuming bit anyway.
woah, lovin the troll suit
Awsom......Tell ya great from the USA
Hi, if one practices with a vibraphone with those bar sizes, is it difficult to transition to an instrument of wider bars? I consider building one with thin bars for ease of transportation but don't know if it's a good idea
Hi Julian. That is indeed a concern for some - and everyone is different when it comes to how much difficulty they have in adjusting. In my experience it is more of a concern on marimbas - which have a bigger overall range and in some cases bigger variation in bar dimensions also. For vibraphones I have found it to be an issue for those who transition from a "narrow bar" instrument, to a full wide bar instrument - but not so much for those who transition from this set of dimensions which is somewhat in the middle. The PV does have graduated bars and the lower end bars are 2" wide - so in most cases it is not a huge adaptation when moving to a full "wide bar" instrument that has just slightly wider bars in that bottom octave. But as always - everyone is different!
@@percussionclinic Thank you for your response and for the insight, i'll keep these things in mind
So do you sand away the metal from the key arches? Or grind or drill? I guess what I’m asking is the mechanism to remove the material
Hi Nathan - well you really can use whatever method is available to you - depends on your tools. These days I rough out the bars using trenching cuts on radial arm saw set to the appropriate depth - but using a blade especially designed for aluminium - then I have a 6x48 belt sander that smooths things out pretty quickly from there. Commercial makers will often use a CNC mill. I HAVE done these bars with nothing more than a hand drill - but obviously it takes longer and doesn't look as nice on the underside.... but it is absolutely possible and will sound just fine. A cheap and fast way to remove material is with an angle grinder.. BUT you have to use special aluminium wheels - using regular metal wheels with aluminium is dangerous.
Does that vibe has speed control on it or is it just a one speed motor?
The aluminum is T5, but how thick are the bars? I bought some bars years ago with the intention of building one, but they were incredibly hard to cut. I gave up. I will probably buy your book
+Dr B actually the T5 temper is an option mostly for 5000 series alloys where t6 temper is actually better. The pv prototype used a t5 5000 alloy to prove that even a worst case scenario still works pretty well! If you want the best option you can get with alloys available to the average consumer... Try to track down 2024 alloy which tends to come in t351 ort4 tempers. Either is good. Check out my newest vibraphone build here on youtube which uses t352 2024. ☺
Hi! I picked up a Jenco 3 octave without a motor. It used to have one and I'd like to eventually add one. Do you know if there's any DIY or cheapo replacement option. Ive thought maybe harvesting an old belt driven record player or sewing machine motor might work. Or an old 4 track with varispeed dial. Any thoughts? Thanks!
Replacement motors are generally the tough part of vibes repair. For that exact reason - finding an appropriate one is tough. Your ideas are on the money though - I generally recommend trying to find an old turntable motor - but with this option and the others.... it is the speed control that is tough. Modern turntable motors for example can't just be fed a voltage and run - they have controller circuits that time the changes to the motor coils to control speed. So you either need to get the whole circuit in there also or find an older and simpler system. My new vibes project uses a digital motor with USB powered controller - fairly inexpensive and easy - though I'm still having some issues with motor noise at many speeds - which is the common issue with digital motors.
What about a battery powered motor from a remote control car and maybe Velcro the RC controller to the side of the vibes? Or maybe I could rip apart a small fan.
It is missing one pulley wheel. Do you know where to find a good replacement or what do you use on your projects?
Something with a speed controller like the rc car could work - though you might find it noisy. Noise is the #2 problem with vibes motors. #1 is the speed - any fan you find will be too fast. You can use a battery powered motor - actually the PV prototype used one from an electronics store - but it was a "geared" motor. The gears make it slower and stronger - but also a bit noisier.
I have machined them from scratch recently on my new vibes project from 1/8th thick aluminium flat sheets. But if you want to find a ready alternative there are some about. You can try various "Mechano" or "connex" or "lego" wheels - or the PV originally used rollers from a sliding door which you can find "replacements" for in an average hardware store.
with the keys how does the book say to make 'um
Would a small version of this work well as a set of bells?
Ben Dixon if you buy his guide, it comes with a free guide on how to build a glockenspiel
Nifty.
@renkupmiba It would be valuable knowledge if I had the time, skill, and competence to do so. But alas! I haven't.
man apparently nobody wabts to know how to make a vibraphone
loving your DIY until you turned on the motor, way too noisy of a motor m8, cant record with that
Yes - this motor is a bit louder than ideal - it's a $10 cheap 12VDC gear motor that I used so it could be battery operated and very simple - it's actually a bit softer than the video suggest because the mic id close to the motor - but it IS a bit louder than ideal. My latest build actually has an AWSOME motor system - it uses a 5V stepper controlled with an Arduino - heaps of cool programs for different types of modulation and absolutely silent. It's still a work in progress, but we have certainly solved the noise issues!