Sam, Wonderful to see this all coming to life already ! As we at the organ museum are going to be returning both instruments to how they left the Compton Works, in 1938 and 1952 respectively, all of the extras that were added after the instruments moved to Leeds in 1965 aren't going to be returned, however due to their history in their own right, deserve to live on - and i'm so pleased we could agree for them to come to you. In the photograph, for your eagle eyed viewers - the console on the right of the two "Tub" consoles, is the Parkway Hotel Leeds, the very first british electronic organ, the Compton organ company had prior to this, been building "Melotone" units, that were added to their cinema pipe organs to add to the specification, but these were a handful of stops meant to add another tonal colour, not complete the whole instrument. The "Theatrone" was the next step in this technology, with the rotating electrostatic generators to produce the tone, this used the first generation of tone generators - of which there are very few remaining, of the three sets Lucien managed to collect, we will construct one "good" set in order to return the organ to how it left the Compton works. The second of the two, is the organ that was purchased by the Broadstairs corporation in 1952, to be used as a mobile organ for the council. However, most often used on the band stand from what I gather - this used the later 347 metal generator racks, as we've discussed before, another item you will be getting ! On one hand, it is a shame they were altered to such a degree in their last home, however on the other - they likely would not have survived otherwise, it is our intention to restore them to their original form. A note on the percussions you were talking about ! The Chrysoglott (Pronounced Criz-o-glott) is a series of soft hammers, that strike large metal bars - usually, a vibraphone but with the motor turned off ! So, i'm not actually sure why he had them as seperate devices in this case !? And the Glockenspiel is as it says on the tin. All of the "relays" you describe are Kimber Allen Pulldown Magnets, off the shelf from a company in Kent that are still to this day producing organ components just as they have done forever, a real old fashioned firm, and certainly worth a visit ! Also, the blue speakers (Why that shade of blue !?) that have Rotafon in what I know to be wheelybin letters ... Those are all, infact, Leslie speakers ! He just called them Rotafon to stick with the Compton names for things, despite them being very very different, i'm so glad you will be able to use these, too ! I really should get my act together and get our own youtube channel up and running, considering the amount of projects we have going on at the moment, Jamie keeps suggesting it but this has been somewhat of an encouragement ! Best Carl & Jamie - East Midlands Organ Museum
Nice one Carl and Jamie! Thanks for the info and help. Yeah! Vids are always good even if just one take phone vids. Always good to document for whoever is interested in watching! See you guys soon!!
I apologize Sam, I must admit, when you first mentioned your desire to open a museum, I wasn’t fully convinced of its chance of success. I am humbled, and must concede, you have proved me wrong. Joans organ wouldn’t have been saved if it wasn’t for you. Congratulations on your venture and I bow to your vision and applaud your good fortune.
the trolley under the vibraphone is typical of orchestral mallet instruments of that era, and even now to some extent. I remember pushing the xylophone from the band room to the gymnasium for an in-school concert and the legs of the trolley folded under itself. We had to make some modifications to repair it. I would recommend building a sturdy base for your vibraphone :)
now remember! my relationship with words is very tenuous (no idea dont ask, words and things dont match up, more sounds, materials and other tangible things make sense, ye olde grammar nonsense and writing is just nonsense :D). i tend to say a lot of words and mean other things. but atleast you get the gist haha. for reference here are some of my mess ups below :- xylophone i mean glockenspiel im a donut. thingamagoop - Still meant thingamagoop
Help me program 13 in the piano by number system... its a A note... i cant blast it high enough... i 5hink you can... just dont explode your soul trying to ram it higher!
@@JesseBadut14 Quite right ! Usually they are the same thing, just it becomes the Vibraphone when you switch on the motor for the rotating baffles. However for some reason in this case, Mr Stockdale had one of each !
I mean, obviously you need to show Martin and his Wintergatan off now by playing his Marble Machine music better than himself... Please, I really want to hear that!! 🤩
@@Juttutin I mean with his recent obsession with "tight" music the logical conclusion will be to have the thing be a Midi instrument sans marbles in the end... (I've more or less stopped watching the videos since he started worrying about 1ms delays in note times)
Yeah same, his machine was looking so good and better then the first but it was the first that brought all the attention for being.. what it is.@@SomeMorganSomewhere
When you said 'I'm going to cut these wires, i had visions of keyboard warriors typing 'YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU'RE DOING SAM!' 😁😁😁 Absolutely brilliant piece of work Sam. Hope you get the motor sorted soon!
You should have seen the nest of wiring that was tacked on to these instruments in their last home .. Oh my goodness, anything Sam does is an improvement, believe me !
Consider adding a vintage Kurzweil 2500R to your modular synthesizer, this is a truly amazing machine, maybe the best synthesizer ever made! Like i said, i know someone that made many very very very good tracks, just using a K2000R + Yamaha 03D mixer, he also toured with this setup in clubs. You'll never look back and amaze the audience!
Basically any stepper motor with a silent driver should work well to spin that vibraphone thing. Those have very precise low-speed control, plenty of torque and are easy to get.
Have you ever considered putting magnets into the keys of the church organ, then putting coils under each one so that the keys will spookily play themselves ... maybe for Halloween?
yes. sadly its a big modification job. and would likely take the console too far away from its provinence. but who knows! maybe a sleaker less intrusive means will rear its funky head.
A very rare thing to see, especially on organs - however not something that doesn't already exist ! Moving keys on self playing instruments was as Sam has described in other videos, a very American thing. Not popular over here as it can harm repetition, however that being said, Kimball - the pipe organ builder in the states, and later electronic organ builder, produced a series of electronic organs that could play rolls, and these - had moving keys ! Very fun, but so rare in the UK, we've never been able to find one for our own museum. ruclips.net/video/s9S4wzEfwpk/видео.html
@@LOOKMUMNOCOMPUTERgiven the current rate of progress, in five years there might be some slightly used but obsolete fully dextrous robotic android arms floating around. Not sure that's the right kind of (not) obsolete you're going for tho...
@@LOOKMUMNOCOMPUTEROk, how bout this. No permanent modification, not even a temporary one, just one you can use when you want it to play on its own. Make a wooden frame that rests on top of the claviature. That frame consists of an MDF board and two uprights that are its legs, but also go up as well (so in profile from the front, it would like a wide H). At the tip of each of the keys, on the MDF board, one hole is to be drilled, and one tube is to be glued in place. This tube sticks (again) both up and down from the MDF, and i'd say it should be one of those plastic electric conduits, but... it ultimately is tied to the coils you'd potentially use (be they hand would or already existing items, which is up to you). Now, you'd need wooden dowels to go through each of the tubes, and they should fit loosely inside and rest on top of the keys, protruding out of the tubes' ends up top. By how much, to be determined. The tips of these "sticks" should have cue tips (from billiards). That's a soft (easily replaced) surface that won't mar or damage the keys in any way. Next would be to add a C channel piece of metal up top (this has two purposes, it weighs the whole contraption down so it doesn't vibrate off and it's also robust enough for its intended purpose). Nothing too heavy tho, and of course, something you can bend. If you can't bend something like that, then it can also be accomplished from a plate of metal with angle iron on its sides. I'd say that the plate could be 1 mm sheet and the angles 2 mm metal one. On this plate, you'd need to drill holes above the sticks and stick springs to the sticks that only just keep the sticks off the surface of the keys. Then... we come to the relatively complicated part and actually where the project would start on account of the fact that you either have these coils already or have to make them to wind them, to suit existing tube you can find. The coils would stick over the tubes (at different height intervals if the tubes are too close proximity) and they would energize using a piece of metal tube that's either slipped over the sticks (which affects the pull power of those springs mentioned above) or the sticks are cut in half and stuck into the metal tubes. Each time you activate a coil, it pulls down the metal, which is tied to the stick which then pushes the key through its cue tip. In theory, you can have this move with quite a bit of accuracy when playing. In practice, a prototype should be build to test out just how much acting force you need on that spring, which is the key component of the whole affair. Visually, it wouldn't be too heavy on the eye, it reminiscences of the organ tubes in a way and it's also silent. So it won't detract from the organ with noisy activation mechanisms. If you tune that spring force perfectly, it won't affect the keys in any way as (potentially) a motor would (rolling key presser as some retrofitted pianos have). Just a thought.
Aaaah the magic smoke, electrical aftershave for those that dabble. Came back to say how lovely that sounds, maybe look on one for the RC car websites for a servo. They ain't cheap mind.
Those diodes in parallel with the relay coils are likely flyback diodes to prevent negative voltage spikes as a result of suddenly disconnecting an energized inductor. I'd suggest reconnecting them in the opposite orientation so they aren't shorting your arduino GPIO but allow energy stored in the coils to be released.
@@LOOKMUMNOCOMPUTER heh I was going to comment on the good reason for keeping the diodes, but I was beaten to it and I see you have it covered anyway! The ULN2803 is a dream chip for driving anything solenoidal (if that's even a word :-) )
Go for a sensored brushless motor with a E speed controller (like rc stuff). The hall effect sensors allow complete control of the motor speed without notchiness.
Honestly, maybe the way to go is a NEMA 17 stepper motor with a TMC2208 driver. Perfect low to mid speed controll, enough torque, nearly silent operation (provided you use a silent stepper driver like the TMC2208 or similar) and easy to control via arduino with the AccelStepper library or something similar...
Unfortunately I've tried this type of arrangement, and it's great up to a certain speed before it starts vibrating due to the resonance of the motor and the drive frequency itself, since it has to commutate the coils at higher and higher speeds. It's too bad, but you're stuck at lower frequencies.
I learned my lesson properly with Joan's organ and I say cut those wires with great abandon! The vibes sound amazing. Can't wait to hear the rest of the instruments!
That test section in the 14:00 area sounded like a 1960s dream sequence. Very pretty. For some vibraphone inspiration look up Lionel Hampton. He played vibes with all the jazz greats of the mid 20th century.
The diodes on the relays are for flyback voltage suppression as the coil is de-energized, it does make the coils polorized so they need + and - right , but you need them somewhere in the circuit, maybe the new drivers have them. Fascinating work.
Brushless motors still make some noise. They aren't to noisy below maybe 10%, but they get louder after that. I just uploaded a video to my channel of the sounds they make if you'd like to reference.
Great episode ! Loved the intro and outro music. The vibraphone sounds great ! brushless motor will be doing less noise but you will still hear it a bit at high rates : maybe put a small sound isolation box around it. The idea to rotate the vibrant bars at audio rate to create a ring modulation is very good, but if you try and do so, other acoustic phenomenon may occur. I'm looking forward to see ho it turns out in the next videos !
Vibes have such a wonderful sound. So exited for the next phase of this project! These electromecanical instruments are so cool! Can't wait to see whats next!!!
Hi Sam. I think the best will be asynchronous motor with control circuit you use in leslie in gameboy machine. But instead of using potentiometer, use optocoupler with LDR ;)
Greetings from Australia, You maniac! As someone who has saved a few older toneweheelers' and early transitor beasts as well as church organ ranks from landfill let me just say you are fecking insanely groovy. :) Let me know if you ever venture over here. I need to see your magnificence live. It's all about preservation, my fabulous friend!
Marimbas also have wood bars, but are larger and a struck by large felt or yarn hammers. Thus a softer tone. Xylophones are struck by wooden mallets, and are thus louder. Glockenspiels have metal bars struck by steel hammers, chrysoglott/vibraphones are larger and struck with felt hammers.
You know, I only just learned that xylophones have wooden slats... a couple of days ago, when watching a Joe Porter video where he plays the same theme on several tuned percussion instruments in a row... and the xylophone was wooden! I'd assumed, based on the rainbow painted childrens' model, and the very cheap student model, that they were supposed to be metal. For decades, I just assumed the high end models were supposed to be metal, too. Come to think of it, I do remember seeing a vintage childrens' version (rainbow painted, too) where the slats were wooden, and I thought they'd cheaped out... when actually, I had it backwards all along🤣
I watched a series by a guy trying to set up a fancy vibraphone once, took him years and still never got it working. Something to do with troublesome metal balls 😄
That's really cool. Never saw a vibraphone up close. Not that it would make for easy automation, but while you sort out the servo, you might still be able to play the vibrato with a foot pedal and flywheel, like an old sewing machine. Could work for near-term recordings. Definitely has the low-speed control. 😅👍
SO BEAUTIFUL!!! You are doing so of the GREATEST work to bring the old instruments into the 21st century!! You could cover the motor, and pullies in a box made of MDF (do NOT use regular plywood... MDF ONLY), then use dynamat on the inside of the box (and maybe the outside too... actually make the box/cover with 2 layers with a 1/2 inch gap all around and then fill it with that expanding foam for even better results... and even put dynamat on the outside of THAT for even betterer resultses) if you can't find a servo/motor that is quiet enough... Dynamat can be expensive, and IDK if you can really buy small pieces of it, but there is a cheaper alternative i think its called killamat ... but you could make some yourself... you wanna all vibrations in the box to be deadened and all gaps sealed... plus the second layer of box with that insulation/expanding foam in a can will do wonders to stop transfer of vibration from one box to the other... oh and put dynamat on the vibraphone all around the pully/servo that the box will cover.. and the other side of that area too.... - this should COMPLETELY stop the servo/motor sounds from being heard, without affecting the sound of the vibraphone :)
Not sure how big they are but you could try finding a cordless drill on marketplace that someone no-longer needs and use the brushless motor from one of them.
I envy you - you have time, money, energy and connections for doing such marvelous projects. Please midify it and connect with your church organs. Beautiful piece!
It is midi there is an issue to play it with the organ coming up! Indeed I have time (it's always stretched working 8 morning till usually 10 at night but yes haha) money yes indeed! When times are good and videos are doing well I do have spare money to spend on things. Energy is always a challenge! I wish it was unlimited haha. Nice one.
Turn the servo noise into a feature --- tune it! Make it a MIDI instrument and control the speed with note-on/note-offs, so you can use it as an accompaniment to the vibraphone.
For the vibraphone motor remember with a brushless motor you want one with sensors otherwite it will not be able to go to low speeds. Don't cheap out on the motor.
I was a bit concerned when you said you were cutting the diodes off the relays. Diodes across relays are generally there as protection against back-emf when the coil is de-energised.
It’s got a lovely sound!!! I was going to correct you slightly - a Xylophone uses wooden bars, not steel (Xylos, Greek for wood!). Actually the instrument with steel bars is a Glockenspiel and a Vibraphone is a Glockenspiel with rotating thingies, like what you got!
If you're planning to run the shafts up at audio speeds you're probably going to want to switch to using a timing belt so they don't go out of sync (or maybe not I suppose, could potentially be interesting...) you'll also need to probably install a better bearing solution for the shafts.
Maybe find a disused electric drill/driver and take the motor out of that, most have been brushless for the past few years, bound to be one or two in local 2nd hand shops or the bins. Sadly though, usually the first thing to go in them is the motor but you might get lucky.
Oh no no, Adam's not adverse to a hack-job at all, haha! Cobbling stuff together was totally what MythBusters was all about, you know? I'm sure they'd get along wonderfully.
Now, could you try playing Debussy's "Clair du lune" on your vibraphone and then listen to Tomita's synthesizer version from 50 years ago on the "Snowflakes are dancing" LP. You'll be amazed at the similar sounds you may achieve.
![Tee Grizzley - Blow for Blow (feat. J. Cole) [Official Video]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/wNLN5xsx5dc/mqdefault.jpg)
Sam,
Wonderful to see this all coming to life already ! As we at the organ museum are going to be returning both instruments to how they left the Compton Works, in 1938 and 1952 respectively, all of the extras that were added after the instruments moved to Leeds in 1965 aren't going to be returned, however due to their history in their own right, deserve to live on - and i'm so pleased we could agree for them to come to you.
In the photograph, for your eagle eyed viewers - the console on the right of the two "Tub" consoles, is the Parkway Hotel Leeds, the very first british electronic organ, the Compton organ company had prior to this, been building "Melotone" units, that were added to their cinema pipe organs to add to the specification, but these were a handful of stops meant to add another tonal colour, not complete the whole instrument. The "Theatrone" was the next step in this technology, with the rotating electrostatic generators to produce the tone, this used the first generation of tone generators - of which there are very few remaining, of the three sets Lucien managed to collect, we will construct one "good" set in order to return the organ to how it left the Compton works.
The second of the two, is the organ that was purchased by the Broadstairs corporation in 1952, to be used as a mobile organ for the council. However, most often used on the band stand from what I gather - this used the later 347 metal generator racks, as we've discussed before, another item you will be getting !
On one hand, it is a shame they were altered to such a degree in their last home, however on the other - they likely would not have survived otherwise, it is our intention to restore them to their original form.
A note on the percussions you were talking about ! The Chrysoglott (Pronounced Criz-o-glott) is a series of soft hammers, that strike large metal bars - usually, a vibraphone but with the motor turned off ! So, i'm not actually sure why he had them as seperate devices in this case !? And the Glockenspiel is as it says on the tin. All of the "relays" you describe are Kimber Allen Pulldown Magnets, off the shelf from a company in Kent that are still to this day producing organ components just as they have done forever, a real old fashioned firm, and certainly worth a visit !
Also, the blue speakers (Why that shade of blue !?) that have Rotafon in what I know to be wheelybin letters ... Those are all, infact, Leslie speakers ! He just called them Rotafon to stick with the Compton names for things, despite them being very very different, i'm so glad you will be able to use these, too !
I really should get my act together and get our own youtube channel up and running, considering the amount of projects we have going on at the moment, Jamie keeps suggesting it but this has been somewhat of an encouragement !
Best
Carl & Jamie - East Midlands Organ Museum
Nice one Carl and Jamie! Thanks for the info and help. Yeah! Vids are always good even if just one take phone vids. Always good to document for whoever is interested in watching! See you guys soon!!
A lot of words
I thought those looked suspiciously like Leslie cabinets, only with the delightful blue color. Thanks to all who preserve musical history like this.
Thanks for the detailed comment!
I would watch your channel.
I apologize Sam, I must admit, when you first mentioned your desire to open a museum, I wasn’t fully convinced of its chance of success. I am humbled, and must concede, you have proved me wrong. Joans organ wouldn’t have been saved if it wasn’t for you. Congratulations on your venture and I bow to your vision and applaud your good fortune.
If you can get there, go there. It’sa good day out
Given his recent short, I imagine this means a lot to Sam. Kudos.
Brilliant idea LONG before Joan's Organ !!!!!!
@@andywatts8654 I live in Canada.
@@mastercylinder1939 that's a poor excuse. I live in NZ and I'm going in August. 😛
Lol the notification said "Another Massive Organ..." and I was like "ookay, that's what they all say"
Ayyy...
Thats all I came here for ☺
🤣🤣
Who can resist a massive organ when it’s offered 😂
and then I read about a vibranium phone
🤣😁
the trolley under the vibraphone is typical of orchestral mallet instruments of that era, and even now to some extent. I remember pushing the xylophone from the band room to the gymnasium for an in-school concert and the legs of the trolley folded under itself. We had to make some modifications to repair it. I would recommend building a sturdy base for your vibraphone :)
I love that name… my condolences.
now remember! my relationship with words is very tenuous (no idea dont ask, words and things dont match up, more sounds, materials and other tangible things make sense, ye olde grammar nonsense and writing is just nonsense :D). i tend to say a lot of words and mean other things. but atleast you get the gist haha. for reference here are some of my mess ups below :-
xylophone i mean glockenspiel im a donut.
thingamagoop - Still meant thingamagoop
Let me guess... its a 1 off piece lol 😂
Or in this case 1110 lol 😂🎉
Help me program 13 in the piano by number system... its a A note... i cant blast it high enough... i 5hink you can... just dont explode your soul trying to ram it higher!
Don't worry! We understand. (PS. An organ vibraphone is called a Chrysoglott)
@@JesseBadut14 Quite right ! Usually they are the same thing, just it becomes the Vibraphone when you switch on the motor for the rotating baffles. However for some reason in this case, Mr Stockdale had one of each !
I would have loved to hear the entire ensemble of instruments. The vibraphone sounds lovely on it's own.
Grab an old sewing machine motor, if you pick one up with all its wiring you'll also have a ready built speed control and they can be really quiet.
I mean, obviously you need to show Martin and his Wintergatan off now by playing his Marble Machine music better than himself... Please, I really want to hear that!! 🤩
The battle of Marbles vs Midi ...
@@Juttutin I mean with his recent obsession with "tight" music the logical conclusion will be to have the thing be a Midi instrument sans marbles in the end... (I've more or less stopped watching the videos since he started worrying about 1ms delays in note times)
Yeah same, his machine was looking so good and better then the first but it was the first that brought all the attention for being.. what it is.@@SomeMorganSomewhere
Yep, I agree with all of the above.
Love how the organ remains 'Joans organ', hopefully it'll be joined by Luciens Vibrophone
I am continuously amazed by the stuff you manage to acquire. ^____^
When you said 'I'm going to cut these wires, i had visions of keyboard warriors typing 'YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU'RE DOING SAM!' 😁😁😁 Absolutely brilliant piece of work Sam. Hope you get the motor sorted soon!
You should have seen the nest of wiring that was tacked on to these instruments in their last home .. Oh my goodness, anything Sam does is an improvement, believe me !
I love it that he briefly showed how he treated the previous organ 😁
Consider adding a vintage Kurzweil 2500R to your modular synthesizer, this is a truly amazing machine, maybe the best synthesizer ever made!
Like i said, i know someone that made many very very very good tracks, just using a K2000R + Yamaha 03D mixer, he also toured with this setup in clubs.
You'll never look back and amaze the audience!
My favorite electromechanical, electroacoustic mad scientist.
Oh my fracking word. The world is lucky to have you, man. Saving our history one organ at a time!
Edit. That sounds amazing. Well done mate.
Great to see the organ again!
With all of the stuff that was connected to the Compton consoles by Mr. Stockdale, it looks like something Bloody Stupid Johnson would come up with!🤣
Sam every video you release is so damn inspiring!
Basically any stepper motor with a silent driver should work well to spin that vibraphone thing. Those have very precise low-speed control, plenty of torque and are easy to get.
Have you ever considered putting magnets into the keys of the church organ, then putting coils under each one so that the keys will spookily play themselves ... maybe for Halloween?
yes. sadly its a big modification job. and would likely take the console too far away from its provinence. but who knows! maybe a sleaker less intrusive means will rear its funky head.
A very rare thing to see, especially on organs - however not something that doesn't already exist ! Moving keys on self playing instruments was as Sam has described in other videos, a very American thing. Not popular over here as it can harm repetition, however that being said, Kimball - the pipe organ builder in the states, and later electronic organ builder, produced a series of electronic organs that could play rolls, and these - had moving keys ! Very fun, but so rare in the UK, we've never been able to find one for our own museum. ruclips.net/video/s9S4wzEfwpk/видео.html
@@LOOKMUMNOCOMPUTERgiven the current rate of progress, in five years there might be some slightly used but obsolete fully dextrous robotic android arms floating around. Not sure that's the right kind of (not) obsolete you're going for tho...
@@LOOKMUMNOCOMPUTEROk, how bout this. No permanent modification, not even a temporary one, just one you can use when you want it to play on its own.
Make a wooden frame that rests on top of the claviature. That frame consists of an MDF board and two uprights that are its legs, but also go up as well (so in profile from the front, it would like a wide H).
At the tip of each of the keys, on the MDF board, one hole is to be drilled, and one tube is to be glued in place. This tube sticks (again) both up and down from the MDF, and i'd say it should be one of those plastic electric conduits, but... it ultimately is tied to the coils you'd potentially use (be they hand would or already existing items, which is up to you).
Now, you'd need wooden dowels to go through each of the tubes, and they should fit loosely inside and rest on top of the keys, protruding out of the tubes' ends up top. By how much, to be determined. The tips of these "sticks" should have cue tips (from billiards). That's a soft (easily replaced) surface that won't mar or damage the keys in any way.
Next would be to add a C channel piece of metal up top (this has two purposes, it weighs the whole contraption down so it doesn't vibrate off and it's also robust enough for its intended purpose). Nothing too heavy tho, and of course, something you can bend. If you can't bend something like that, then it can also be accomplished from a plate of metal with angle iron on its sides. I'd say that the plate could be 1 mm sheet and the angles 2 mm metal one. On this plate, you'd need to drill holes above the sticks and stick springs to the sticks that only just keep the sticks off the surface of the keys.
Then... we come to the relatively complicated part and actually where the project would start on account of the fact that you either have these coils already or have to make them to wind them, to suit existing tube you can find. The coils would stick over the tubes (at different height intervals if the tubes are too close proximity) and they would energize using a piece of metal tube that's either slipped over the sticks (which affects the pull power of those springs mentioned above) or the sticks are cut in half and stuck into the metal tubes.
Each time you activate a coil, it pulls down the metal, which is tied to the stick which then pushes the key through its cue tip. In theory, you can have this move with quite a bit of accuracy when playing. In practice, a prototype should be build to test out just how much acting force you need on that spring, which is the key component of the whole affair.
Visually, it wouldn't be too heavy on the eye, it reminiscences of the organ tubes in a way and it's also silent. So it won't detract from the organ with noisy activation mechanisms. If you tune that spring force perfectly, it won't affect the keys in any way as (potentially) a motor would (rolling key presser as some retrofitted pianos have).
Just a thought.
Such a lovely sparkly sound.
Aaaah the magic smoke, electrical aftershave for those that dabble. Came back to say how lovely that sounds, maybe look on one for the RC car websites for a servo. They ain't cheap mind.
Those diodes in parallel with the relay coils are likely flyback diodes to prevent negative voltage spikes as a result of suddenly disconnecting an energized inductor. I'd suggest reconnecting them in the opposite orientation so they aren't shorting your arduino GPIO but allow energy stored in the coils to be released.
No need uln2803's have built in protection diodes
@@LOOKMUMNOCOMPUTER heh I was going to comment on the good reason for keeping the diodes, but I was beaten to it and I see you have it covered anyway! The ULN2803 is a dream chip for driving anything solenoidal (if that's even a word :-) )
@@davechisholm9670 "Solenoidal"? Are you sure that's not something to see a doctor about? 🤣
Go for a sensored brushless motor with a E speed controller (like rc stuff). The hall effect sensors allow complete control of the motor speed without notchiness.
Honestly, maybe the way to go is a NEMA 17 stepper motor with a TMC2208 driver. Perfect low to mid speed controll, enough torque, nearly silent operation (provided you use a silent stepper driver like the TMC2208 or similar) and easy to control via arduino with the AccelStepper library or something similar...
Unfortunately I've tried this type of arrangement, and it's great up to a certain speed before it starts vibrating due to the resonance of the motor and the drive frequency itself, since it has to commutate the coils at higher and higher speeds. It's too bad, but you're stuck at lower frequencies.
the sound of this thing is absolutely magical and pretty. i expected it to sound more harsh but somehow its so damn perfect.
Has a magical sound to it.
I learned my lesson properly with Joan's organ and I say cut those wires with great abandon! The vibes sound amazing. Can't wait to hear the rest of the instruments!
when replacing motor you could also add a position-encoder-magnet-thingy, to allow absolute control over the modulation...
But you do have absolute control. Position isn't critical
Sagenhaft!👏🤩
It sounds like an effect that would be used for entering a "dream sequence". Very nice.
That test section in the 14:00 area sounded like a 1960s dream sequence. Very pretty. For some vibraphone inspiration look up Lionel Hampton. He played vibes with all the jazz greats of the mid 20th century.
What a beautiful sound that makes
Should build a speaker box with a bunch of small speakers and flaps/valves over the speaker for the ultimate vibrato.
That's very cool! Thanks for showing us! I love theater organs and their electromechanical whatnots / accessories!
The diodes on the relays are for flyback voltage suppression as the coil is de-energized, it does make the coils polorized so they need + and - right , but you need them somewhere in the circuit, maybe the new drivers have them. Fascinating work.
The drivers I use have them
Love the number choices…. 69, 420, 42 (HHGTTG), Boob, and Leet…. All minus 1 😂
Brushless motors still make some noise. They aren't to noisy below maybe 10%, but they get louder after that. I just uploaded a video to my channel of the sounds they make if you'd like to reference.
You could use a so called "flexible shaft" to isolate the noisy bugger.
You should've been the next Dr. Who, you got the enthusiasm.
Can you imagine it? What a fantastic idea!
That would have been way better than the absolute tripe they have come up with.
What a beautiful instrument.
The vibraphone itself sounds divine and when that motor gets changed it will be even better.
Great episode ! Loved the intro and outro music. The vibraphone sounds great !
brushless motor will be doing less noise but you will still hear it a bit at high rates : maybe put a small sound isolation box around it.
The idea to rotate the vibrant bars at audio rate to create a ring modulation is very good, but if you try and do so, other acoustic phenomenon may occur.
I'm looking forward to see ho it turns out in the next videos !
Straight outta Compton
That sounds really nice, love the museum because otherwise I would have no idea any of this even existed.
Sony 1982 - The CFS-C7 CHORDMACHINE
You should give it a look see. I feel like it could make for some wonderful Look Mum No Computer future content!
Vibes have such a wonderful sound. So exited for the next phase of this project! These electromecanical instruments are so cool! Can't wait to see whats next!!!
Hi Sam. I think the best will be asynchronous motor with control circuit you use in leslie in gameboy machine. But instead of using potentiometer, use optocoupler with LDR ;)
You should be able to easily find a good silent operating stepper motor. and they also can go fairly quick!
So amazing and magical seeing this come together
Greetings from Australia, You maniac! As someone who has saved a few older toneweheelers' and early transitor beasts as well as church organ ranks from landfill let me just say you are fecking insanely groovy. :) Let me know if you ever venture over here. I need to see your magnificence live. It's all about preservation, my fabulous friend!
Omg..what you take on, and you're music is fantastic 🫨🤯
Mint this!! Reit good watch! Cheers
Oustanding as always. That sound is phenomenal, & to say the least, jaw dropping how you got there
Sam, im so proud of your existance as human. Greets from México.
Common mistake, a Xylophone is actually the wooden version of this type of instrument. Xylo is the Greek word for wood. Beautiful project.
Well aren't you clever...
Marimbas also have wood bars, but are larger and a struck by large felt or yarn hammers. Thus a softer tone. Xylophones are struck by wooden mallets, and are thus louder. Glockenspiels have metal bars struck by steel hammers, chrysoglott/vibraphones are larger and struck with felt hammers.
You know, I only just learned that xylophones have wooden slats... a couple of days ago, when watching a Joe Porter video where he plays the same theme on several tuned percussion instruments in a row... and the xylophone was wooden! I'd assumed, based on the rainbow painted childrens' model, and the very cheap student model, that they were supposed to be metal. For decades, I just assumed the high end models were supposed to be metal, too. Come to think of it, I do remember seeing a vintage childrens' version (rainbow painted, too) where the slats were wooden, and I thought they'd cheaped out... when actually, I had it backwards all along🤣
Stepper motor with a Trinamic TMC2208 or TMC2209 driver can be made virtually whisper quiet.
The Centipede Vibraphone! Love it...
would be cool to see the vibraphone mechanism hooked up to a treadle like an old sewing machine .
I watched a series by a guy trying to set up a fancy vibraphone once, took him years and still never got it working. Something to do with troublesome metal balls 😄
That's really cool. Never saw a vibraphone up close. Not that it would make for easy automation, but while you sort out the servo, you might still be able to play the vibrato with a foot pedal and flywheel, like an old sewing machine. Could work for near-term recordings. Definitely has the low-speed control. 😅👍
Drone Motor maybe? Motorsynth comes to mind
SO BEAUTIFUL!!! You are doing so of the GREATEST work to bring the old instruments into the 21st century!!
You could cover the motor, and pullies in a box made of MDF (do NOT use regular plywood... MDF ONLY), then use dynamat on the inside of the box (and maybe the outside too... actually make the box/cover with 2 layers with a 1/2 inch gap all around and then fill it with that expanding foam for even better results... and even put dynamat on the outside of THAT for even betterer resultses) if you can't find a servo/motor that is quiet enough... Dynamat can be expensive, and IDK if you can really buy small pieces of it, but there is a cheaper alternative i think its called killamat ... but you could make some yourself... you wanna all vibrations in the box to be deadened and all gaps sealed... plus the second layer of box with that insulation/expanding foam in a can will do wonders to stop transfer of vibration from one box to the other... oh and put dynamat on the vibraphone all around the pully/servo that the box will cover.. and the other side of that area too....
- this should COMPLETELY stop the servo/motor sounds from being heard, without affecting the sound of the vibraphone :)
amazing , this is a bit of a dream instrument ... My midi controlled music box will be arriving in the mail soon ... love it !
Not sure how big they are but you could try finding a cordless drill on marketplace that someone no-longer needs and use the brushless motor from one of them.
nice job sam.
What a beautiful sound
What a wonderful thing!
Tip top Sam, love it, wonderful as ever…..
The vibraphone is my favorite percussion instrument!
that thing sounds amazing!
More GOLD !!!
Just love it !!
4:50 Dang, still in tune after all those years
I envy you - you have time, money, energy and connections for doing such marvelous projects. Please midify it and connect with your church organs. Beautiful piece!
It is midi there is an issue to play it with the organ coming up! Indeed I have time (it's always stretched working 8 morning till usually 10 at night but yes haha) money yes indeed! When times are good and videos are doing well I do have spare money to spend on things. Energy is always a challenge! I wish it was unlimited haha. Nice one.
You could try a bigger weel so the current motor can rotate at lower speeds.
When I heard the Vibraphone playing, my brain immediately thought of Mr Rogers trolley.
Turn the servo noise into a feature --- tune it! Make it a MIDI instrument and control the speed with note-on/note-offs, so you can use it as an accompaniment to the vibraphone.
For the vibraphone motor remember with a brushless motor you want one with sensors otherwite it will not be able to go to low speeds. Don't cheap out on the motor.
I was a bit concerned when you said you were cutting the diodes off the relays. Diodes across relays are generally there as protection against back-emf when the coil is de-energised.
some whiz needs to rock that whole place with fine tuned black midi
wish i had one tenth of your skill.
I think you might need to weigh oversize the servo motor for the xylophone portion for not to be overworked to get it to be quieter
Look, mum, just a couple of computers 😂😂 always grate content 👍 I'm not sure if that fly whele is balanced 🤔
Another Massive organ... happy days
It’s got a lovely sound!!! I was going to correct you slightly - a Xylophone uses wooden bars, not steel (Xylos, Greek for wood!). Actually the instrument with steel bars is a Glockenspiel and a Vibraphone is a Glockenspiel with rotating thingies, like what you got!
If you're planning to run the shafts up at audio speeds you're probably going to want to switch to using a timing belt so they don't go out of sync (or maybe not I suppose, could potentially be interesting...) you'll also need to probably install a better bearing solution for the shafts.
It'll be fine as is but cheers 👍
The vibraphone looks like it has a double overhead cam design
What an excellent video. Thanks!
Maybe a cassette recorder motor with a pwm controller? Record deck motor?
I need to hear “Oh Stupid Me” on this thing.
I wonder how long it'll be until the Museum can do a recreation of Animusic on all physical instruments.
We love a massive organ.
Is that Joan playing? 👻
Great video 2x👍
So intriguing how everything was painted those horrible shades of washed out blue and lipstick red.
beautiful!
Electromechanical Instruments... you should join forces with WINTERGATAN. The Man with the marble machine.
Maybe find a disused electric drill/driver and take the motor out of that, most have been brushless for the past few years, bound to be one or two in local 2nd hand shops or the bins. Sadly though, usually the first thing to go in them is the motor but you might get lucky.
We really need to get Adam Savage and the Tested team to the museum, I'm sure Adam would absolutely love it!
Isn’t he the authority on “don’t try s#!t”? It completely goes against what Sam believes in.
Oh no no, Adam's not adverse to a hack-job at all, haha! Cobbling stuff together was totally what MythBusters was all about, you know? I'm sure they'd get along wonderfully.
Now, could you try playing Debussy's "Clair du lune" on your vibraphone and then listen to Tomita's synthesizer version from 50 years ago on the "Snowflakes are dancing" LP. You'll be amazed at the similar sounds you may achieve.
I hope once this is all done, you compose something with the organ, the mechanical glock, vibraphone etc, all with that epic monodrone underneath.
Funny thought crossed my mind... Now you're into Organ Harvesting.... Sick! hahahha.