Hello! I recently finished a “field ready” prototype of the video glitch circuit I’ve been working on and it is… ok!
CrazyViz1.4.pdf (54.2 KB)
This is an audio reactive Enhancer, the same circuit by Phil Baljeu, except that I’ve removed several important components.
To be honest I accidentally put two to ground on accident in my prototype breadboard. I loved the effects I got though, the system was much more sensitive and reacted much more… musically than the original. There’s a nice amount of shaking, blurring and chroma shift. It kind of hits like a VHS style distortion. This was discovered pretty recently so I can’t really delve too deeply into why the removal of the resistor and capacitor to the 12V rail changed the output of the circuit so much.
The audio is split into two bands, a low shelf “Bass” band, and a high shelf “Snare” band. They each feed an envelope follower. The bass has an adjustable release so you can get some cool CV style ripples on lower frequency stuff like 808s. Each CV is sent to the base of a NPN BJT that opens up/amplifies the “short”.
Then there are two pots and switches that control two other “shorts”, that add like a feedback effect (like those white bands that are really sick) and a chroma shift respectively. They play off each other and you can kind of use one to balance/super impose the other.
To the disappointment of some, these effects are not stable and will almost definitely lead to a drop on digital hardware like projectors. BUT. IT. IS. COOL. STILL.
Personally it’s all about the CRT analog to analog for me.
I tried several versions of a PCB, but the resistance, capacitance and inductance of the breadboard and jumpers I prototyped with definitely contributed to the effects. I experimented a bit with adding pF magnitued capacitors and 1-10Ohm resistors, but was basically playing guess and check. Which, if you have any experience in electronics, is uh… not… not an ideal way to proceed. So after a lot of epoxy, electrical tape and way too hot 400C soldering I stuck that bad boy into an enclosure.
I’ll probably make another PCB, but I’m still kind of traumatized from the learning curve. Which again is more a result of the breadboard than anything.
I know my buddy that made the enclosure wants me to figure out the issues with transferring it to the PCB so he can make a cooler enclosure (our collective pride is now timed to this it seems), and I can’t tell you how cheap these switches feel :(, so I’ll definitely iterate on this at least one more time. This project was really just to apply what I learned in engineering school to something more tangible/creative and it went on like… way too long.
Anyway! Please let me hear your thoughts, from an artist/electronic/moral?/normal standpoint I really live for feedback. Positive or negative, I just like attention.
If you might want one let me know and I’ll put you down on a list somewhere while I work towards making sure this doesn’t start fires or something.