Excuse my stupidity...

[Dylan]

Hello all. I came upon the auduino synthesizer because I've been very
interested in synthesizers lately. To be more specific, I'm a college
student, and that means I don't want to spend a lot of money on one.
The auduino looks amazingly interesting and I'd like to make one.
However, I sadly have no idea what's going on when I read through the
google code page. First off, what's an arduino? As far as I can tell,
it's an electronic board type thing that you can plug into your
computer and put confusing code into and it does really amazing
things. I've considered myself fairly "tech-savvy" (I truly can't
think of a better term for that at the moment) up until this point.
So, I guess to get started, what type of arduino board would I want to
get for this project? Next -- potentiometers (I obviously know
extremely little about electrical parts and whatnot). From what I've
kind of figured, they're the things you put the knobs on. How are
those connected to the arduino board? Are there wires and soldering?
Then, what is the output? I've read the section of the google code
page that talks about output, but all I've understood is '1/4" jack
socket' and 'audio amplifier'. 1/8" is a regular speaker connection,
right? Is it possible to make it have that type of audio jack? Does it
have any other outputs? What is it powered by? I'm absolutely sorry if
all my questions are completely ridiculous, but everyone has to start
somewhere, right?

Thanks in advance.

[Peter Knight]

On Aug 20, 2:54 am, Dylan <dylaninja...@gmail.com> wrote:
> Hello all. I came upon the auduino synthesizer because I've been very
> interested in synthesizers lately. To be more specific, I'm a college
> student, and that means I don't want to spend a lot of money on one.
> The auduino looks amazingly interesting and I'd like to make one.
> However, I sadly have no idea what's going on when I read through the
> google code page. First off, what's an arduino?

Google "arduino". Top hit should be this: http://arduino.cc

> So, I guess to get started, what type of arduino board would I want to
> get for this project?

The most popular Arduino is the Duemilanove. The chunky USB socket
makes it easy to program, and the socket strips make it easy to
connect
to. That would be a good one to start with.

> Next -- potentiometers (I obviously know
> extremely little about electrical parts and whatnot). From what I've
> kind of figured, they're the things you put the knobs on. How are
> those connected to the arduino board? Are there wires and soldering?

Diagram here: http://code.google.com/p/tinkerit/wiki/Auduino

The potentiometers are at the top, Arduino in the middle, the jack
plug/socket
at the bottom. Every line in between is a wire and electrical
connection.

Some people solder, some people use solderless breadboards. Solderless
breadboards are great for experimenting, but they can act a bit
glitchy when
knobs are turned quickly. I'd suggest soldering everything together
before
performing in public.

> Then, what is the output? I've read the section of the google code
> page that talks about output, but all I've understood is '1/4" jack
> socket' and 'audio amplifier'.
> 1/8" is a regular speaker connection,
> right?

A 1/4" jack is a big jack - used for electric guitars, synthesisers,
home hifi
headphones and instrument amplifiers.

A 1/8" (or 3.5mm) jack is a small jack - used on MP3 players, portable
headphones,
portable devices, PCs, Macs - and also portable or computer amplified
speakers.

No such thing as a regular speaker connection. Your computer amplified
speakers
probably have a 1/8" connection though.

> Is it possible to make it have that type of audio jack?

Yes. You're holding the soldering iron here.

> Does it
> have any other outputs?

No - not as I provide it. You are welcome to alter the code to suit
your needs though.

> What is it powered by?

You can power an Arduino over USB, or from an external dc supply of
between 7 - 12V.
This is somewhat dependent on exactly which Arduino you get - see
arduino.cc for details.

For development, I power over USB.
For demos, I use a PP3 9V battery. It makes things more portable.

> I'm absolutely sorry if
> all my questions are completely ridiculous, but everyone has to start
> somewhere, right?

Using Google will answer a lot of your questions. It sounds like you
are inexperienced with
electronics and could use a helping hand. Look for a hackspace or
electronics club in your
area. They may be running electronic workshops that could give you a
head start.

There are several good books on electronics too. I started learning
electronics by buying
electronics magazines, then starting to build kits.

Thanks for taking the time to ask these questions. Questions like
these shape how the
documentation is written. One question asked here will answer many
people who silently
wanted to know the same thing. I've been doing electronics for so many
years that it is
difficult sometimes to remember what it's like to be a beginner.

[Hannes Fertala]

Hi Dylan,

I build my Auduino yesterday. It is a good Arduino-project for beginners.
It's really fun and makes strange noises & beeps =)
I will put some pictures of my Auduino the next days in my blog:
http://irq7.blogspot.com/

See my answers below:

2009/8/20 Dylan <dylani...@gmail.com>

Hello all. I came upon the auduino synthesizer because I've been very
interested in synthesizers lately. To be more specific, I'm a college
student, and that means I don't want to spend a lot of money on one.

A Arduino-Board is not very expensive.
You can get them from various distributors.
E.g.: http://www.sparkfun.com/commerce/product_info.php?products_id=666
 

The auduino looks amazingly interesting and I'd like to make one.
However, I sadly have no idea what's going on when I read through the
google code page. First off, what's an arduino? As far as I can tell,
it's an electronic board type thing that you can plug into your
computer and put confusing code into and it does really amazing
things. I've considered myself fairly "tech-savvy" (I truly can't
think of a better term for that at the moment) up until this point.

It's a kind of standardized hardware-platform.(see www.arduino.cc)
On the top you can add ProtoShields were you can place electronic components:
http://www.sparkfun.com/commerce/product_info.php?products_id=7914
 

So, I guess to get started, what type of arduino board would I want to
get for this project? Next -- potentiometers (I obviously know
extremely little about electrical parts and whatnot). From what I've
kind of figured, they're the things you put the knobs on. How are
those connected to the arduino board? Are there wires and soldering?

I have soldered my potentiometers yesterday.
Get a soldering-iron with a small tip and some thin tin-solder.
It should not be very expensive.
 

Then, what is the output? I've read the section of the google code
page that talks about output, but all I've understood is '1/4" jack
socket' and 'audio amplifier'. 1/8" is a regular speaker connection,
right? Is it possible to make it have that type of audio jack?

You can add the jack you like.
I have chosen a RCA-jack (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RCA_connector)
For a first test you can simply connect a small speaker instead of the jack.
Btw.: The output is mono.
 

Does it  have any other outputs? What is it powered by? I'm absolutely sorry if
all my questions are completely ridiculous, but everyone has to start
somewhere, right?

It's powered either via the USB or a power-jack on the board.
Check out the picture of the board on sparkfun.
I suggest to get a USB-cable, because you wil also need it for programming.

The programming-software is available in arduino.cc. It's easy to handle.
See for the tutorials.

Greetings,
Hannes

[Jesse Juup]

I built mine on tuesday. I have a video and a small blog about it too...

http://jessestudio.blogspot.com/2009/08/diy-synth-arduino-project.html

It's really easy. Just do it!

I'm a musician who got into electronics almost exactly one year ago. I was a 100% newbie

and didn't know anything about resistors, transistors etc...

Now, a year later, I'm making my own analog synths and sequencers and guitar pedals... and arduino projects

- Jesse -

[Dylan]

Thank you all so much for your help! Because of these replies and my
many searches on google, it all pretty much makes sense now.