Roadside Mysteries

NoCo Mini Makers Faire is coming to Loveland on October 5th!

Time to bend some circuits!

Check this link for more information about the Faire

So, what is Circuit Bending? A “Bent Circuit” is an electronic circuit that has been modified (i.e., warranty voided!) in a way that creates a new circuit that behaves in a manner unlike the original circuit. Circuit Bending is the technique used to creatively customize a device by adding jumper wires, discreet components and switches within the electronic device. Typically used for audio effects, the method could also be applied to visual displays and robots. The term “Hardware Hacking” has also been used to describe such activity.

Essentially anyone can bend a circuit but some knowledge of basic electronics is helpful. Some things to keep in mind if you try this on your own:

1) Safety First: Always use battery operated circuits. Don’t mess with line voltages that WILL kill you!

2) Have some basic tools available: Soldering iron, test clip wires, small screw drivers (an electric drill/driver is nice to have)

3) Get your devices cheaply from yard sales and expect to destroy some of them while in the bending mode.

4) Have fun and make some noise!

First, the classic keyboard bend:

The Concertmate 500

This was the Radio Shack version of the Casio SK-1 sampling keyboard. I bought this one new at RS in 1980 primarily because it had a sound sampler that was quite radical for 1980. It’s considered a classic because it was the first “circuit bend” experiment documented and written by Reed Ghazala, published in Keyboard Magazine (1987).

Inside the Concertmate 500

With the bottom cover removed, the back side of the circuit board is exposed. A simple bent circuit is shown using four jumper wires (white, green, black and red). The bend is basically 2 digital output signals that are fed back into an input further down the circuit.  The resulting electronic noise can be switched on and off without damaging the instrument.

And then there’s the weird bend:

The Bent Circuit Theremin Vox

This instrument seldom gets played  because:

1) I don’t know how to play it.

2) All the dogs in the neighborhood start to howl whenever I turn it on.

3) Nobody around here appreciates Avant-garde music

…but it does get out of the box at times, like just last year:

Other possible instruments:

Harmonix “Fender Stratocaster” Input Device

It’s one of those wireless models. It seems that there are a lot of switches to interface with modular bent instruments and it might actually be cool to “play” a bent circuit on a guitar! The tremolo arm is linked to a potentiometer and there are several momentary leaf switches and some sort of “wiggle switch” that might be interesting to interface.

PowerTouch Learning System

Made by Fisher-Price, this is a lap-top learning device designed for children ages 3 to 8.

PowerTouch book Opened

TYCO Sesame Street Car Sounds toy

I originally acquired this toy for parts. It seems there are a lot of momentary electrical switches in this toy that could be used to control other bent circuits. The toy includes digital sound samples of car ignition, horns and voices of Cookie Monster, Ernie, and Big Bird.

Inside the Sesame Street Toy

There is a PC board with a number of discreet components just asking to be bent. The goal here is to try to make the Cookie Monster sound like a member of the Russian Mafia.

The Leapfrog Little Touch LeapPad

As their marketing suggests: This toy is  a “delightful, high concept toy which teaches memory skills, language acquisition skills, and creative thinking. There are three separate learning settings, and the LeapPad employs a full range of rhythms, sights, sounds, and songs to engage youngsters; they won’t even know they’re learning! The Music and Soundscapes mode stimulates with sounds and rhythms. The Wordplay mode develops word object association skills.” Lots of stuff here, indeed.

On that “Me Drive Car!” business:

Sesame Street Characters learn to drive a car

Shown here in the completed bent state, a few wires have been added to critical points on the circuit board. Of course, in keeping with Good Circuit Bending Practices (GCBP) , the original toy can operate in “Normal Operation Mode” which means that the original circuit is not trashed to the point that it will not operate as it did when it came off the shelf. While it is true that following GCBP is not absolutely essential, it could be useful if, for instance, you borrowed the toy from a younger brother or sister who might want it back. Please note at the upper right of this picture there is something sticking out of the toy that was added. It is a female DB-25 connector that connects the bent circuit to the outside world. If you have ever used a computer modem, you probably know what a DB-25 is. Not used much anymore and I have some in my junk drawer, so here it is.

…And the control system that looks like a guitar:

Guitar opened up to show what’s inside

This is NOT a bent circuit, but a method for controlling bent circuits. There are a number of switches and pots (potentiometers) that can be used to connect to a bent circuit that you can “play”. Simply adding a ribbon cable attached to a male DB-25 connector makes it all possible. As shown, 24 pins on the BD-25 are active on this input device. Hey, that’s 24 pins out of 25. So that means that 96% of my useless collection of DB-25 connectors are being  repurposed into SOMETHING!