Hi there,
lately I've been thinking to build a 72-key Arduino Piano. I had searched a lot, until I bumped into this guy's site: http://midikits.net23.net/midi_8x9_keys/midi_8x9_keys.htm
I first thought he was selling the circuit, but then, as I was scrolling down the page, I found out some circuit diagrams: http://midikits.net23.net/midi_8x9_keys/keys_8x9_switches.gif
"OK, now I know exactly how to organise all those switches in a matrix", I thought. But the problem is that I have no idea how to program my Arduino UNO R3, so that it transforms the signals received to sound. I guess I' ll have to connect the MIDI 5-pin socket to some kind of device, but I thought of an alternative. What if I sent the information received by the Arduino over to my PC and then convert it to sound, which will be produced by my PC's speakers? In that way I think that I could program my PC to produce different sounds for each key pressed; just like an ordinary keyboard, which can play different instruments.
Yesterday I sent an e-mail to the creator of the site but he said that the source code isn't available, but he can sell an Arduino compatible, pre-programmed chip for 9 Euros (about 9 Dollars)! It was clear that he is trying to make a profit out of it! Those people totally piss me off!
Can anybody help me with this project? I would really apreciate it! Keep in mind that I want to be able to play chords (press two or more keys simultaneously) and I also want to hear the note produced for as long as I keep the key pressed, but fading a little bit as time passes.
Thank in advance for your answers!