RIBBON CV
: 1volt/per octave scaled control voltage generated by the main ribbonGATE
: 5 volt gate signal which is high when pressing the main ribbon and low otherwiseMOD CV
: mod-wheel like control voltage generated by the MOD ribbon, in[0v, +5v]
- Note on/off based on finger position on the ribbon
- Pitch-bend message bends the pitch when the ribbon is in between notes
- Mod: mod-wheel message generated by the MOD ribbon
QUANTIZE
: notes are forced to be musical half steps, sliding around will zipper to new notesASSIST
: when you first press a new note it is forced to be a musical half step, but continued sliding is smoothSMOOTH
: no quantization is performed, offers the greatest degree of pitch freedom but is difficult to play in tune
- Adds portamento to the
RIBBON CV
signal - This allows you to smooth out the steps when in
QUANTIZE
mode
- This software assumes that the pitch bend range on the receiving instrument is set to +/- 2 semitones (this is typically the default)
- If the Assist or Smooth modes seem crazy, make sure that the pitch bend range on your instrument is set to +/- 2 semitones
- The MIDI output signal sends note-on, note-off, and pitch bend messages to generate the smooth ribbon action
- This works best with a mono instrument, and may act differently depending on the MIDI implementation of the receiving device
- If the receiving instrument has non-retriggering envelopes, it will smoothly slide as expected
- If the instrument has retriggering envelopes, each time you slide into a new note the envelopes will be triggered
- The MIDI output starts on a fairly low note
- It works best if the instrument being controlled can be transposed to different octaves
- Output jacks for analog signals
RIBBON CV
,MOD CV
, andGATE
- Standard
MIDI OUT
5 pin DIN output jack MIDI CH
channel select rotary switch- MIDI output is sent on the channel set here
9VDC IN
power supply input jack
- A trim potentiometer is exposed through a small hole so the device may be calibrated without disassembly
- Measure the
RIBBON CV
signal with a multimeter - Set the
MODE
switch toQUANTIZE
- Adjust the trim potentiometer while playing alternating octaves so that the octaves are as close to 1.000v apart as you can get
- The
MOD CV
and MIDI output do not require calibration
- A common guitar-pedal style center-negative 9 volt DC wall wart powers the device
- The circuit consumes approximately 20mA from the 9 volt DC power supply
- A prototype has been built and tested
- A handmade wooden body houses the components and provides a comfortable wrist rest while playing
- Mostly just for fun and to explore embedded Rust
- Serve as a test bed for the Josh Ox Ribbon Synth
- Build a cute little CV and MIDI source