Consul
Well-known member
In a fit of overt fanboyism of the Radiophonic Workshop, I now have it in mind to try modifying a reel-to-reel tape deck into something that behaves like a musical instrument. The idea is that the tape playback speed would correspond to the note being played, thus creating an interesting natural portamento lead instrument using tape loops of whatever I might record.
I have two questions:
1) What kind of deck should I be on the lookout for? I figure 1/4" 7.5ips will be the most common finds. I want to get something cheap, as I don't want to potentially ruin a nice, sought-after piece of gear. I'm a bit rusty with my motor control knowledge, but my understanding is that they're usually regulated with a PWM signal. Are there any other methods I might run into?
(As a side note, I seem to be running into a lot of 60's era Wollensak tape decks for pretty cheap on the local Craigslist.)
2) Relating to #1, one issue I see with this type of instrument is that I want to somehow "latch" the last note played. In other words, if I simply let off the note, the sound will go away, but the tape will continue on at that speed until a new note is played. That way, I'm not limited to legato-only playing styles. I suppose the method I choose to do this will depend on how the motor is controlled, but I'm thinking a microcontroller might be the order of the day here. That way, I can MIDIfy my final instrument, too.
Thanks for the help, and for indulging this increasingly desperate DIYer.
I have two questions:
1) What kind of deck should I be on the lookout for? I figure 1/4" 7.5ips will be the most common finds. I want to get something cheap, as I don't want to potentially ruin a nice, sought-after piece of gear. I'm a bit rusty with my motor control knowledge, but my understanding is that they're usually regulated with a PWM signal. Are there any other methods I might run into?
(As a side note, I seem to be running into a lot of 60's era Wollensak tape decks for pretty cheap on the local Craigslist.)
2) Relating to #1, one issue I see with this type of instrument is that I want to somehow "latch" the last note played. In other words, if I simply let off the note, the sound will go away, but the tape will continue on at that speed until a new note is played. That way, I'm not limited to legato-only playing styles. I suppose the method I choose to do this will depend on how the motor is controlled, but I'm thinking a microcontroller might be the order of the day here. That way, I can MIDIfy my final instrument, too.
Thanks for the help, and for indulging this increasingly desperate DIYer.