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Crackle cube

For the final project, I decided to build a working prototyp of one possible block of the Bauspiel. I call it 'Crackle cube', which is a cube of foam 35cm big, which you can squeeze and make sounds like that. You should also be able to fling it around and stand on it.
This prototyp is made out of readymades because of the given time. Conceptualizing a dedicated circuit board for it is prosponed to 2009. To me its more important that there is a object that you can grab, touch and make music with it and fling it around. Even if it's working partly analog, it has to make sound, thats a priority. We can then make test with people and see how we develop it further

Live Sounds:
The sounds are made by touching different copper plates (max6). This is based on the original crackle box made bij Michael Waisvisz/ Steim Amsterdam. Your body acts as a kind of human resistor. It allways sounds different, therefore it's hard to make the smae sounds every day. To extend the possibility and timbre of sounds, I want to build a line output to be able to put a modulation delay in between. A raw schematic does exist:

Functions (and dreams):
1. create sounds by touching different koper plates and changing 3 oscillators like that
2. change the timbre of the sounds by squeezing the cube
3. record these sounds and your voice with the build in mic and the momentary switch
4. send your created loop to another object and play it there
5. improvise to your running loop, stop it and create another loop, or leave it going and record another one and put it on top of the first one. Maximum 3 loops simultaniously

6. Detect position of cube with accelerometers, optional change ambient loop by spinning the cube.

This is a sketch of the cube in scale, with most of the components on it. A explotion drawing will follow with named components. One important thing you cant see here is the sleeve, which holds the foam cube together, and is designed with wholes to be able to see the interaction surfaces

Process: - prepare and machine the hardware (foam cube, milled out for sensors and switches etc.) - creat athmosphare sounds (mi - build in the electronics (arduino xbee and more readymades here) - build and test wireless network



I succesfully cutted the whole cube into plates like in the 3d drawing above. Thanks to the Tefal electric breadsaw. The Powerswitch and the 10k rotary resistor is mounted.
The crackle box extension has been tested with good results. Milling the foam plates is fun and works quite well. Also I can now drive the whole cube on a 12V accu borrowed from my makkita. Using a 9V regulator (1A) i got enough power to drive all eletroics for hours, and its fairly easy to load the accu again, and no more 9v batterie waste.

I made a simple plug on the laser for the accu, wraped it with copper foil and voila it works as the power source.

Finally i got the whole circuit connected, need to clean up the cable messthough.

Here are some test with laser cutting and engraving the sleeve material. It works fine for me.

And here the final cube, working. Video I will post later to be continued...

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