Talkboxes
doo...@hooked.net
Can anybody tell me what exactly a TalkBox is, how it works, and how
it's different from a vocoder? I've heard that they're dangerous in some
way, but I'm willing to risk bodily harm in order to get my voice to
sound like Roger Troutman. If anyone has any information on their
dangers, how much they cost, or any other comments about them, I'd
appreciate it. Respond e-mail or e-mail & newsgroup please; I don't
frequent Usenet. Thank you.
John Lindh
doo...@hooked.net
Rich Grasso
Simple(but most likely not very smart) way to create a do-it-yourself
talkbox.
buy a pair of "walkman" style headphones, preferably ones that can go
pretty loud, don't spend too much money though, cheap ones will do the
trick.
take one of the speakers off(keep it connected to the wire though)of the
band that keeps the headphones on your skull.
if it has the little foam cover, take it off too.
when you are done you should have a small disk containing the speaker
connected to a wire with a 1/8 inch plug at the end.
plug in the "speaker" to your sound source of choice(using a 1/8" to
1/4" adapter if necessary) and put the speaker disc in your mouth(this
is where the"most likely not very smart" part comes in...).
then just use a microphone to capture the sounds coming out of your
mouth.
and be careful not to shock yourself...
I've done it a few times will no ill effects(no pun intended) but I
would recommend only doing it for very short periods of time.
aside from any inherent dangers I do think it is actually better to do
it this way, since a wire is much smaller than a plastic tube and thus
easier to handle once it is in your mouth.
As for Vocoders:
they were originally invented to carry phone conversations until it was
determined to be just as easy to carry the original sound source.
there are people who can explain it better than me but here goes:
a vocoder basically replaces the sound source(your voice in most
instances) with another sound source(usually a synth) while retaining
the envelope and filter characteristics of the original sound.
so while the processes of Vococers and talkboxes are very different, the
principle of both are essentially the same.
hope this helps.
Rich Grasso
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Rich Grasso
Dan Riley wrote:
>
> Rich Grasso <rm...@earthlink.net> wrote:
>
> >Simple(but most likely not very smart) way to create a do-it-yourself
> >talkbox.
>
> >buy a pair of "walkman" style headphones, preferably ones that can go
> >pretty loud, don't spend too much money though, cheap ones will do the
> >trick.
> This is the biggest load of tripe yet posted here.
>
> It seems obvious from the start that Mr. Grasso knows little about the
> way that talk boxes work. To get the best possible use out of a talk
> box, you need 15 to 40 watts of power. Furthermore, you should never
> put a transducer with any amount of electricity in your mouth.
>
> Just buy a new Heil talkbox, or pick up a used Golden Throat..
>
> Dan Riley
Did I, or did I not say that this was a "not very smart" thing to do?
I believe I did.
I should have specified that this should only be done(if one can say
that it "should" be done at all) in a studio enviornment since it
generally won't be loud enough for a live situation.
Any idiot knows that this is most certainly not the "best possible"
solution to making or using a Talkbox, I thought I made that clear.
Just what is there to not know about how a talkbox functions?
Just when did I mention how much wattage to put through the thing?
Get over yourself, Mr. Riley
Again, I cannot stress any stronger:
I do not advise anyone to actually try this because of the dangers
involved. If you are so inclined, the effect DOES work, but do not hold
me responsible for anything that happens.It does however, illustrate the
basic principles involved used in a talkbox.
A more conventional talkbox can be constructed as follows(please correct
me as necessary, Mr. Riley):
get horn driver, remove horn.
place driver in sealed container with plastic tube covering opening.
feed sound source through driver, put end of tube in mouth(the end not
connected to the driver that is).
the thing to remember is, wattage is crucial here, strictly 15-40.
Any further questions should be directed to Dan Riley, since he
apparently knows everything.
Rich
Chuck Hasek
the difference is quite significant. i don't know if i will explain all
of this right but i will try.
a talk box takes an audio signal, say from a guitar( ala Peter Frampton)
and routes one signal to the mixing board and the other to the talk box.
the talk box has a speaker in which is driven by the signal coming in.
the speaker forces air thru a tube to the mouth of the performer. the
sound waves ,via the forced air, is reverberated through the mouth. by
singing, changing the acoustic characteristics of your mouth, you can
cause the instrument to sound as if it were "talking". the possible
damage you have heard about is from the amount of air pressure being
applied to your mouth. i guess with enough air pressure and use you
could rattle your teeth loose or some other unwanted side effect.
a vocoder ,i believe, uses a electronics to seperate the fequencies on
an incoming signal and then shape(synth) them to whatever is set. i have
never used on, so the explanation seems a bit thin.
i hope this helps out.
later,
Chuck Hasek
email: cahs...@pitt.edu
Dan Riley
m. mattson
"doo...@hooked.net" <doo...@hooked.net> wrote:
>Can anybody tell me what exactly a TalkBox is, how it works, and how
>it's different from a vocoder? I've heard that they're dangerous in some
Basically just a PA horn driver with a tube on it. The commercial
ones are set up to be driven by your guitar amp. They must have
cross-over protection. Not difficult to build, just don't get cheap
on the driver. Can be built for around $100 US (no amp).
Mark
The truth as I perceive it to be.
Your perception will be different.
Steven Dubofsky
m. mattson (mat...@mailbag.com) wrote:
: "doo...@hooked.net" <doo...@hooked.net> wrote:
: >Can anybody tell me what exactly a TalkBox is, how it works, and how
: >it's different from a vocoder? I've heard that they're dangerous in some
: Basically just a PA horn driver with a tube on it. The commercial
: ones are set up to be driven by your guitar amp. They must have
: cross-over protection. Not difficult to build, just don't get cheap
: on the driver. Can be built for around $100 US (no amp).
: Mark
$100.00!! Hell, I built one for under $10. Ingredients
1) 1 midrange horn from any ole speaker.
2) Small DIY amp built around an LM380 or 386
3) Couple of feet of surgical tubing.
4) tuperware.
A vocoder can be had in kit form for around $100 from Paia.
steve d
--
it's not the cure for cancer...it's just music - skullsaw