Tag Archives: audio

Microcontroller-Based Markov Music Box

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Check out the spectrogram for two FM notes produced by FM modulation. Red indicates higher energy at a given time and frequency.

Cornell University senior lecturer Bruce Land had two reasons for developing an Atmel AVR micrcontroller-based music box. One, he wanted to present synthesis/sequencing algorithms to his students. And two, he wanted the challenge of creating an interactive music box. Interactive audio is becoming an increasingly popular topic among engineers and designers, as we recently reported.

Land writes:

Traditional music boxes play one or two tunes very well, but are not very interactive. Put differently, they have a high quality of synthesis, but a fixed-pattern note sequencer and fixed tonal quality. I wanted to build a device which would play an interesting music-like note sequence, which constantly changed and evolved, with settable timbre, tempo, and beat… To synthesize nice sounding musical notes you need to control spectral content of the note, the rise time (attack), fall time (decay), and the change in spectral content during attack and decay.  Also it is nice to have at least two independent musical voices. And all of this has to be done using the modest arithmetic capability of an 8-bit microcontroller.

Land’s students subsequently used the music box for other projects, such as an auto-composing piano, as shown in the following video.

In early 2013 Circuit Cellar will run Land’s in-depth article on the Markov music box project. Stay tuned for more information.

Q&A: Andrew Spitz (Co-Designer of the Arduino-Based Skube)

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Andrew Spitz is a Copenhagen, Denmark-based sound designer, interaction designer, programmer, and blogger studying toward a Master’s interaction design at the Copenhagen Institute of Interaction Design (CIID). Among his various innovative projects is the Arduino-based Skube music player, which is an innovative design that enables users to find and share music.

The Arduino-based Skube

Spitz worked on the design with Andrew Nip, Ruben van der Vleuten, and Malthe Borch. Check out the video to see the Skube in action.

On his blog SoundPlusDesign.com, Spitz writes:

It is a fully working prototype through the combination of using Arduino, Max/MSP and an XBee wireless network. We access the Last.fm API to populate the Skube with tracks and scrobble, and using their algorithms to find similar music when in Discover mode.

The following is an abridged  version of an interview that appears in the December 2012 issue of audioXpress magazine, a sister publication of Circuit Cellar magazine..

SHANNON BECKER: Tell us a little about your background and where you live.

Andrew Spitz: I’m half French, half South African. I grew up in France, but my parents are South African so when I was 17, I moved to South Africa. Last year, I decided to go back to school, and I’m now based in Copenhagen, Denmark where I’m earning a master’s degree at the Copenhagen Institute of Interaction Design (CID).

SHANNON: How did you become interested in sound design? Tell us about some of your initial projects.

Andrew: From the age of 16, I was a skydiving cameraman and I was obsessed with filming. So when it was time to do my undergraduate work, I decided to study film. I went to film school thinking that I would be doing cinematography, but I’m color blind and it turned out to be a bigger problem than I had hoped. At the same time, we had a lecturer in sound design named Jahn Beukes who was incredibly inspiring, and I discovered a passion for sound that has stayed with me.

Shannon: What do your interaction design studies at CIID entail? What do you plan to do with the additional education?

Andrew: CIID is focused on a user-centered approach to design, which involves finding intuitive solutions for products, software, and services using mostly technology as our medium. What this means in reality is that we spend a lot of time playing, hacking, prototyping, and basically building interactive things and experiences of some sort.

I’ve really committed to the shift from sound design to interaction design and it’s now my main focus. That said, I feel like I look at design from the lens of a sound designer as this is my background and what has formed me. Many designers around me are very visual, and I feel like my background gives me not only a different approach to the work but also enables me to see opportunities using sound as the catalyst for interactive experiences. Lots of my recent projects have been set in the intersection among technology, sound, and people.

SHANNON: You have worked as a sound effects recordist and editor, location recordist and sound designer for commercials, feature films, and documentaries. Tell us about some of these experiences?

ANDREW: I love all aspects of sound for different reasons. Because I do a lot of things and don’t focus on one, I end up having more of a general set of skills than going deep with one—this fits my personality very well. By doing different jobs within sound, I was able to have lots of different experiences, which I loved! nLocation recording enabled me to see really interesting things—from blowing up armored vehicles with rocket-propelled grenades (RPGs) to interviewing famous artists and presidents. And, documentaries enabled me to travel to amazing places such as Rwanda, Liberia, Mexico, and Nigeria. As a sound effects recordist on Jock of the Bushvelt, a 3-D animation, I recorded animals such as lions, baboons, and leopards in the South African bush. With Bakgat 2, I spent my time recording and editing rugby sounds to create a sound effects library. This time in my life has been a huge highlight, but I couldn’t see myself doing this forever. I love technology and design, which is why I made the move...

SHANNON: Where did the idea for Skube originate?

Andrew: Skube came out of the Tangible User Interface (TUI) class at CIID where we were tasked to rethink audio in the home context. So understanding how and where people share music was the jumping-off point for creating Skube.

We realized that as we move more toward a digital and online music listening experience, current portable music players are not adapted for this environment. Sharing mSkube Videousic in communal spaces is neither convenient nor easy, especially when we all have such different taste in music.

The result of our exploration was Skube. It is a music player that enables you to discover and share music and facilitates the decision process of picking tracks when in a communal setting.

audioXpress is an Elektor International Media publication.

Modify & Test a Phase Meter Calibrator

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Charles Hansen described a DIY phase meter calibrator using all-pass, phase-shift filters in a November 2006 article published in audioXpress magazine. Being able to measure phase angle is often helpful, so I’ll begin by quoting from the beginning of his article:

“A phase angle meter is useful in audio work to determine the phase angle between a reference signal and a phase shifted signal, both having identical time periods. Typical uses include: Finding the phase angle between voltage and current to determine the phase shift and impedance of a loudspeaker over its frequency range. Finding the phase shift between the input and output of a tube amplifier to establish the HF (high frequency) and LF (low frequency) cutoff points needed to avoid instability in feedback amplifiers.”

In addition to these, there are other uses—for example, measuring the phase shift through any active or passive filter which includes equalization networks.

In his design, he chose a set of five calibrations frequencies: 10 Hz, 100 Hz, 1000 Hz, 10 kHz, and 100 kHz. He relied on an external oscillator to drive the calibrator at these input frequencies. I first built the calibrator as described, and then I made some modifications that better suited my needs. But first I will describe how the calibrator works. I think it’s best to just provide a bit more  from Hansen’s article:

“The Phase Angle Calibrator makes use of an op amp filter circuit called the all-pass circuit, which takes a sine-wave input and produces a constant amplitude phase-shifted sine wave output. The lag output version was used in Fig. 1. The theory behind the all-pass filter is available in many reference books and texts, but I found one by Walt Jung [1] that I believe is the easiest for a novice to understand. The phase shift angle is varied by the parallel combination of R3 and R9 through R19 with C3 through C7 in accordance with the formula:

θ = -2 arctan (2ΠRC)

where θ is the phase angle, and f is the frequency. After selecting a suitable value for C, you can solve for R by rearranging the formula:

R = tan(-θ/2) / 2ΠfC

This is hardly a linear relationship. Large changes in resistor value produce very little change in phase angle as you approach 0 or 180 degrees. It’s much easier to apply the input signal to both inputs of the phase angle meter for zero degrees, and use an op-amp inverter to generate the 180 degree signal.”

MODIFY THE CALIBRATOR

I added an internal Wein-bridge oscillator to simplify using the calibrator and I changed the set of frequencies to cover just the audio range: 20 Hz, 100 Hz, 1000 Hz, 10 kHz, and 20 kHz. (This range is also easier to cover with a single-range oscillator, the capacitor values stay reasonable.) The actual frequencies, shown in Table 1, vary somewhat from the ideal frequencies because I used standard 1% resistors and 5% capacitors.

Table 1: These are phase calibrator phase-shift measurements. The column labeled “305” refers to the Dranetz model 305 phase meter with 305-PA-3007 plug-in. The column labeled “5245L” refers to the Hewlett-Packard model 5245L frequency counter with a model 5262A time interval unit plug-in. Phase shift measurements at 19.6 kHz are not useful from the HP-5245L counter because the 10-MHz timebase does not provide enough significant figures.

Selecting and matching the capacitors would give closer results, but it’s more important to know what the frequencies are. Because I had already built a circuit board for the calibrator circuit, I used a second circuit board for the oscillator. Figure 1 and Figure 2 are the two circuit diagrams.

Figure 1: Phase angle calibrator using all-pass phase-shift filters. This is a Charles Hansen design, 2005, with circuit board design by the author (PHASECAL.PCB).

Figure 2: Wein-bridge oscillator with lamp amplitude stabilization. Adjust R6 for minimum harmonic distortion. (MAIN115.PCB)

Tables 2 and Table 3 are the parts lists. Please note that the calibrator circuit is unchanged from Hansen’s design, except for the values of the capacitors C3 and C7. In the original, C3 was 470 nF (for 10 Hz) and C7 was 47 pF (for 100 kHz). I put both circuit boards and a ±15-VDC power supply (any regulated supply will suffice) in a Wolgram MC-9 enclosure.

Table 2: Calibrator parts list

Table 3: Wein-bridge oscillator parts list

The completed calibrator is shown in Photo 1 with a Dranetz Phase meter. (More about this later.) The unlabeled knob, lower left in the photo, is an oscillator output level control (R8 in Figure 2), which I added after making the front panel label.

Photo 1: A Dranetz automatic phase meter, model 305, is at the top. The phase meter calibrator is below. The calibrator, a Charles Hansen design, is not a TDL product, but construction details are included in this article.

Wein-bridge oscillator theory is discussed in many textbooks and is rather mathematical. I will describe it as simply as possible. In Figure 2 the oscillation frequency is set by the value of R and C connected between the op-amp non-inverting input (pin 3), the op-amp output (pin 6), and common. For a frequency of 1,000 Hz, C = 22 nF (C3 and C10) and R = 7235 Ω (the series combination of R1 + R2 and R3 + R4). The equation is:

f = 1/(2ΠRC) = 1/(2Π(22 x 10-9) (7235)) = 1000 Hz

For amplitude-stable oscillation to occur, the gain of the op-amp circuit must be 1/3. This is set by the impedance of the RC network and resistors R5, R6 and R7 and the incandescent lamp. The lamp is important because it stabilizes the gain at 1/3. If the output voltage (pin 6) tries to increase, the lamp’s resistance decreases and the output voltage decreases. This works very well, but it takes the output amplitude a small of amount of time to stabilize, especially at low frequencies. The CM6833 lamp is very small, so its thermal time constant is very low and stability happens very quickly. The trimmer pot, R6, is adjusted for minimum distortion in the output signal. You can get rather close by looking at the waveform with a scope, but it’s better to use a distortion analyzer or spectrum analyzer. Spectrum analysis software on a PC is fine, just adjust R6 to minimize the height of the sidebands or use a program that directly displays harmonic distortion.

At 1000 Hz, TrueRTA shows the second harmonic (2000 Hz) down 80 dB (0.01% distortion) with the higher harmonics even lower. AudioTester shows a total harmonic distortion of 0.0105% using the first ten harmonics.

TrueRTA is a spectrum analysis program available from True Audio. Demo versions and a free version (level 1) are available on its website. AudioTester is another spectrum analysis program.

TEST THE CALIBRATOR

The calibrator should be reasonably accurate when built using the 1% resistors and 5% capacitors in the parts list. But as with any other piece of test equipment, it would be satisfying to make some measurements to be sure. I will describe two methods that I used: all the measured values are presented in Table 1. As you can see, the calibrator is very satisfactory.

One method is to use a calibrated phase meter with an accuracy better than the calibrator. I used a Dranetz model 305 (five-digit phase angle display) with a model 305-PA-3007 plug-in.(The Dranetz phase meter is no longer manufactured but used units may be found on eBay or from used electronic instrument dealers.) This plug-in provides automatic operation for input amplitudes of 50 mV RMS to 50 V RMS and frequencies from 2 Hz to 70 kHz. Automatic operation means there are no operating controls. The plug-in scales the input voltage to the mainframe and provides the correct frequency compensation.

Another method is to use a time interval counter to measure the time between an amplitude zero crossing of the reference signal to the amplitude zero crossing of the phase shifted signal. Phase shift can be calculated from the time interval as:

θ = 360τf/1000

where θ is the phase shift in degrees, time delay τ is in milliseconds, and f is the frequency in hertz.

I used a Hewlett-Packard (HP) model 5245L frequency counter with a model 5262A time interval unit plug-in (see Photo 2).

Photo 2: Hewlett-Packard model 5245L frequency counter with a time interval plug-in unit below and my dual zero-crossing detector above.

The 10-MHz counter timebase gives a time resolution of 0.1 ms. The time interval plug-in has trigger-level controls for each channel but they are not calibrated and can’t accurately set the zero crossing with a sine wave input. The smaller “box” above the counter in the photo is a two-channel zero crossing detector. I designed and built this detector to output a pulse whose leading edge coincides in time with the input zero crossing. The counter measures the time between the leading edges of the two pulses: the reference and the phase shifted signal. The detector circuit diagram (see Figure 3) and parts list (see Table 4) are included. I packaged the Detector circuit board with a simple ±5-V regulated power supply in a Wolgram MC-7A enclosure.

Figure 3: The ual zero-crossing detector circuit board

Table 4: The two-channel zero crossing detector's parts list

Looking at one of the detector’s channels in Figure 3, U1 is an input buffer. Resistors R5, R6, and D1 clip the negative-going half of the input sine wave. The comparator circuit (U2) outputs a very short pulse at the input zero crossing. This pulse is “stretched” by the monostable multivibrator in U3 to about 12 ms as set by the time-constant of C1 and R19. Two front panel toggle switches select either the positive-going or negative-going output pulses. The reference and shifted pulses—45° at 10 kHz—are shown in Photo 3.

Photo 3: The digital storage scope display of reference pulse (above) and phase shifted pulse (below) for 45 degrees of shift at 10 kHz. The pulse width is 12 us. The pulse amplitude is 5 V. Pulse baselines are shifted for clarity.

FINDING A PHASE METER

New phase meters are expensive but used models can sometimes be found on eBay or from used electronic test equipment dealers, just try a Google search. In addition to the Dranetz 305 (which I found on eBay), other useful models include:

  • Aerometrics model PM720 phase meter, 5 Hz to 500 kHz, analog meter display. Aerometrics  denies any association with this unit but it is often listed under this name.
  • Hewlett-Packard model 3575A gain-phase meter, 1 Hz to 13 MHz, four-digit display
  • Wavetek model 750 phase meter, 10 Hz to 2 MHz, four-digit display

In addition, you can find application notes and magazine articles that describe how to build your own phase meter. These are usually fairly simple designs. The following appear to be useful: Intersil Application Note AN9637 (This is identical to Design Idea #1890 that was published in the July 4, 1996 issue of EDN); Elliott Sound Products Project 135; and Salvati, M. J., “Phase Meter Profits From Improvements,” Design Idea, Electronic Design magazine, April 11, 1991.

TAILOR THE DESIGN

I sent a copy of this article to Hansen for comments. He agreed that having the oscillator built-in is a good feature. He also commented as follows:

“A problem with my phase meter calibrator design is that the distortion increases with phase shift, and the amplitude drops as well. It might be possible that the zero-crossing detector might be fooled by the higher order distortion harmonics. I’d be interested in what you find out in this regard.”

So, I measured the amplitude drop and distortion at 150°, which should be worst case. I set the 20-Hz variable output to an arbitrary 2.00 V. Keeping the output level control unchanged, I measured what you see in Table 5. This amount of drop seems acceptable.

Table 5: I set the 20-Hz variable output to 2 V, and I kept the output level control unchanges as I measured these.

I used a Hewlett-Packard model 3581A wave analyzer to measure the harmonics. Refer to Table 6. These numbers look acceptable and the zero-crossing detector output at 20 kHz and 150 degrees measures 22 ms on an oscilloscope with a calculated 21.5 ms at the actual frequency of 19.61 kHz.

Table 6: I used a Hewlett-Packard 3581A wave analyzer to measure the harmonics. These numbers are acceptable and the zero-crossing detector output at 20 kHz and 150 degrees measures 22 ms on an oscilloscope with a calculated 21.5 ms at the actual frequency of 19.61 kHz.

I am very satisfied that the calibrator is suitable to troubleshoot and calibrate any phase meter you are likely to find, either new or used. Without overdoing the math, there is enough design information here to allow you to tailor the design to a specific frequency range, keeping in mind the 1000:1 practical frequency range of the Wein-bridge oscillator, without using range switching.

The circuit board designs listed in the parts lists are available in CIRCAD format and are posted on the TDL website. (CIRCAD is a circuit board design program available from Holophase. The boards in the pmcalpcb.zip file were designed with Version 4, a free download of which is available on the Holophase website.) The physical boards are not available.

Ron Tipton lives in Las Cruces, NM. Visit the TDL Technology website for more information about his audio designs and services.

REFERENCE

[1] Jung, W. and Sams, H., Audio IC Op-Amp Applications, 2nd Edition, Sams Publishing, 1978.

Editor’s note: audioXpress, like CircuitCellar.com, is an Elektor International Media publication.

Simple Circuits: Turn a Tube Radio Into an MP3 Amp

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Want to give your MP3 player vintage tube sound? You can with the proper circuits, an antique radio, and a little know-how. In addition to generating amazing sound, the design will be an eye catcher in your home or office.

Here I present excerpts from Bill Reeve’s article, “Repurposing Antique Radios as Tube Amplifiers,” in which he provides vintage radio resources, simple circuit diagrams, and essential part info. He also covers the topics of external audio mixing and audio switching. The article appeared in the May 2012 edition of audioXpress magazine.

Manufactured from the 1930s through the 1960s, vacuum tube radios often contain high-quality audio amplifiers at the end of their RF signal chain. You can repurpose these radios into vintage, low-power tube amplifiers—without marring them in any way or detracting from their original charm and functionality as working analog radios.

Wood-cased radios have especially good sound quality, and the battery compartments in antique “portable” radios (like the Philco 48-360 or the Zenith Transoceanics) provide perfect locations for additional circuitry. When restored properly, large furniture-style radios that were built for “high fidelity” (like the late 1930s and early 1940s Philco console radios) can fill a room with rich beautiful sound.

Simple Circuits

The simple circuits described in this article perform two functions. They mix an external line-level stereo signal (typically from an MP3 player or computer) and reference it to the radio’s circuit. They also use the radio’s on/off knob to switch this external signal to the radio’s audio amplifier.

There is not one circuit that will work for every antique radio. (Original schematics for antique tube radios are available on the web www.justradios.com). But the circuits described here can be adapted to any radio topology. All the parts can be ordered from an electronics supplier like Digi-Key, and the circuit can be soldered on a prototyping printed circuit board (such as RadioShack P/N 276-168B).

External audio mixing

Figure 1 and Figure 2 show some examples of circuit schematics that mix the line-level stereo audio signals together (almost all tube radios are monophonic), while providing galvanic isolation from high voltages within the radio. Figure 1 shows an inexpensive solution suitable for most table-top radios.

Figure 1: An inexpensive circuit for mixing an MP3 player’s stereo audio signals safely into an antique radio. None of the component values are critical. (Source: B. Reeve, AX 5/12)

These radios have relatively small speakers that are unable to reproduce deep bass, so an inexpensive audio transformer (available from on-line distributors) does the job. I picked up a bucket of Tamura TY-300PR transformers for $0.50 each at an electronics surplus store, and similar transformers are commercially available. Alternatively, the Hammond 560G shown in Figure 2 is an expensive, highquality audio transformer suitable to high-fidelity radios (like the furniture-sized Philco consoles). A less expensive (and fine-sounding) alternative is the Hammond 148A.

Figure 2: A high-fidelity circuit for mixing external stereo audio signals safely into an antique radio. (Source: B. Reeve, AX 5/12)

I use Belden 9154 twisted, shielded audio cable for wiring internal to the radio, but twisted, 24-gauge wire will work well. An 8′ long audio cable with a 3.5-mm stereo jack on each end can be cut in half to make input cables for two radios, or you can use the cord from trashed ear-buds. You can route the audio cable out the back of the chassis. Photo 1 is a photograph of a 1948 Philco portable tube radio restored and used as an MP3 player amplifier.

Photo 1: A 1948 Philco portable tube radio restored and repurposed as an MP3 amplifier. (Source: B. Reeve, AX 5/12)

Audio switching using the radio’s on/off knob

After creating the mixed, radio-referenced signal, the next step is to build a circuit that switches the voltage driving the radio’s audio amplifier between its own internal broadcast and the external audio signal.

Figure 3 illustrates this audio routing control using the radio’s existing front panel power knob. Turn the radio on, and it behaves like the old analog radio it was designed to be (after the tubes warm up). However, if you turn the radio off, then on again within a few of seconds, the external audio signal is routed to the radio’s tube amplifier and speaker.

The circuit shown in Figure 3 uses a transformer to create the low voltage used by the switching circuit. There are many alternative power transformers available, and many methods of creating a transformerless power supply. Use your favorite….

The next photos (see Photo 2a and Photo 2b) show our additional circuit mounted in the lower (battery) compartment of a Zenith Transoceanic AM/shortwave receiver. Note the new high-voltage (B+) capacitors (part of the radio’s restoration) attached to a transformer housing with blue tie wraps.

Photo 2a: The inside view of a Zenith Transoceanic AM/shortwave radio restored and augmented as an MP3 audio amplifier. b: This is an outside view of the repurposed Zenith Transoceanic AM/shortwave radio. (Source: B. Reeve, AX 5/12)

The added circuit board that performs the audio re-routing is mounting to a 0.125″ maple plywood base, using screws countersunk from underneath. The plywood is securely screwed to the inside base of the radio housing. Rubber grommets are added wherever cables pass through the radio’s steel frame.—Bill Reeve

Click here to view the entire article. The article is password protected. To access it, “ax” and the author’s last name (no spaces).

CircuitCellar.com and audioXpress are Elektor International Media publications.   

Project Spotlight: Electronics + Wood Fab Speakers

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MIT graduate student David Mellis is interested in how designers are combining high-tech parts like microcontrollers with low-tech materials in clever ways. Yesterday, I pointed everyone to Mellis’s inspiring 3-D Printed Mouse project. Now let’s look at another creative design—Fab Speakers.

Whether you’re a microcontroller fanatic, professional engineer, audiophile, musician, or all of the aforementioned, this open-source Fab Speakers project will surely inspire you to customize your own. I’d love to see how others tackle a similar DIY project!

Fab Speakers (Source: D. Mellis)

Mellis writes:

These portable speakers are made from laser-cut wood, fabric, veneer, and electronics. They are powered by three AAA batteries and compatible with any standard audio jack (e.g. on an iPhone, iPod, or laptop).

The speakers are an experiment in open-source hardware applied to consumer electronics. By making their original design files freely available online, in a way that’s easy for others to modify, I hope to encourage people to make and modify them. In particular, I’d love to see changes or additions that I didn’t think about and to have those changes shared publicly for others to use or continue to modify. The speakers have been designed to be relatively simple and cheap in the hopes of facilitating their production by others …

Use 6mm (1/4″) plywood. For the veneer, 1 9/16″ edging backed with an iron-on adhesive is ideal (like this one from Rockler), but anything should work if you cut it to that width. Pick whatever fabric you like. For the electronic components, see the bill-of-materials above. You’ll also need two-conductor speaker wire, available at Radio Shack… There’s also a wall-mounted, oval-shaped variation on the design. It uses the same circuit board, but combines both speakers into a single unit that can hang on a nail or screw in the wall. You’ll want to replace the batteries with a 5V power supply (included in the bill of materials); just cut off the connector and solder the wires directly into the + and – holes for the battery holder. You’ll also want to omit the power switch and just solder together the holes where it would have gone.

The design's battery holder (Source: D. Mellis)

Mellis gave me permission to write about the projects and post some of the photos from his website.

Click here to check out all the files for this project.