hi guys,
I went to a concert last night where one of the performers had what they call a looping machine. This machine can record up to six different things at the same time and play them back as you want them so that you can create harmony, play instruments, and sing the melody all at the same time. This machine can get pretty expensive (anywhere from $150-$550) but I thought it was really cool so I have decided to homebrew my own with the arduino (of course). I am rather new to the world of audio, so could someone help me figure out what to do to record and play back? I have a list of materials I will need but I am still wavering on what to do about recording and playing back. Is there a shield that would work well for this? Could I make my own shield? Could I hook up a hacked $5 recorder from Five Below?
Thanks
P.S fyi the deadline is two years from now, and its not a mandatory deadline, (just something my friend challenged me to; he doesn't know what the arduino is and doubts it could do this, so I'm out to prove him wrong) so no rush.
Just an Arduino Due and a SD card shield is enough.
For the moment you cannot record, but you can see how it's possible to have 6 wave files playback from an SD card.
About recording, Arduino Due has 12 bits ADC, so you can plug a line IN, or a microphone (with some op amps). Of course Arduino doesn't have enough memory, so you will have to write on the SD card while reading the playing files on it. I don't know if the SD will be fast enough, and if the alternatively read/write is ok. look at the SdFatLib subjects on this forum, maybe you will find answers. An other way would be to add another type of memory to store recorded sound (EEPROM, flash, RAM,...).
If you're new to audio with Arduino, I would say it's a very ambitious project, but if you got 2 years, it should be OK.
A remark : The price of a Due, all the components (potentiometers, SD hield, PCB...), connectors, and the box won't cost you very less than an RC-20 from Roland, and you will only have 12 bits recording and playing. So if it's just for saving money, it's a waste of time. But if it is for experimentation and proof of concept, it's a really great project.
It was not a Jamie Lidell, it was Angela Sheik, the national champion. Gaith, thanks, and that really helps because I have an uno, not a due, and I never would have known. That also deters me a bit because of the cost so I think i'll call it quits on this project. thanks anyway
I can confirm that (for my opinion), it seems impossible to realize that project with a Uno. In general, Arduino is not specialized in audio handling, DSP are better.
If you want to make a cheap looper and you already have a laptop, you can do it.
I already did this with a MIDI pedal (that, you can build with an arduino Uno) plugged on a computer, and make an intelligent configuration in Abbleton Live, or if you're motivated with MaxforLive. It's really better than a looper, because you have a good MIDI synchronisation, you can add effects on each part independently, etc...
Using an UNO.. and an Adafruit Waveshield, along with the library WaveRP
you can play back and record...
however this is NOT exactly what you are looking for:
1.) no multiple samples/playback
2.) I have NOT been able to work out a way to get nice, seamless/gapless looping for the Waveshield.. (but Im not particularly experienced in all this either)
I have not used the WaveRP lib.. (only the WaveHC lib).. but it does record..
Thanks so much! This forum is awesome because of knowledgeable people like you guys. This info is good to know and I will keep it in mind for any further audio projects.
