I previously posted about the electronic whammy (E-Whammy), developed in collaboration with Oliveira Pires. If you’re interested, you can view that post here: [The E-Whammy]. Basically, instead of a mechanical device that alters pitch by changing string tension, the E-Whammy uses digital signal processing to modify the pitch electronically. The E-Whammy is a controller that generates control voltage, which is then converted into a stream of MIDI pitch bend messages for controlling external gear or a DAW plugin.
Since the E-Whammy is no longer physically attached to the strings, the obvious solution was to use push and pull springs, adjusted to have the right tension to mimic the feel of a real whammy bar. A hall-effect sensor detects the deflection and converts it into a control voltage.
Can we do more? I am an advocate of keeping things as simple as possible. It has to be low-profile, with as few moving parts as possible. Can we get rid of the springs? Recently, I was pondering an E-Whammy device without using springs.
Here’s the proof of concept. Can you figure out how I did it? Leave a comment!
Strong magnets in opposition? Do you get the same behaviour as springs when you release the bar suddenly ?
It’s a lot simpler than that. It’s just a flexible Polycarbonate plate. Polycarbonate is known for its high strength, impact resistance, and flexibility, making it a suitable choice for applications like this requiring durability and resilience.
Yes, there’s some flutter when you release it suddenly.
Does it currently rotate? Otherwise, I suggest putting the entire mechanism on a spinny-spin. Might be awkward, but necessary if an arm with springs is the form factor.Thank you for your efforts!
You mean the bar? If so, yes it rotates. But tell me more about the spinny-spin! I have no idea what that is 🙂
Not sure what spinny-spin is but I’ve always wanted a whammy bar to track the rotation position of the bar as well as the ‘up or down’ bend, ie produce a second control voltage based on bar angle position that performers can assign to whatever they wish. Any chance you would incorporate that too?
Wouldn’t that be unintuitive? Some people have the bar almost fixed, Some people have it dangling and always moving.
If ‘unintuitive’ means anything differing from existing guitar playing techniques, then yes it is. But guitarists have always wanted ways to control further color to their sound whilst still playing with both hands, eg wah wah pedals or the ‘pinky finger on the volume knob’ technique etc. The rotation position of a whammy bar thats already in your hand would be an easy way to deliberately add a further dimension for those that want it (those that don’t can easily ignore it ie let it hang etc). If all its doing is providing a control voltage it can easily be configured at the processing end to have no effect whilst its around ‘dangling’ position, and only start changing parameter(s) when its deliberately raised. I’m thinking the rotation could control reverb amount (which can benefit from dynamic changes along with whammy bar vibrato action), or a ‘hand controlled’ wah wah, or adding extra gain for a little more edge when need, or infinite other ideas …