Gizmodo: circuit bending

Circuit Bending a Camcorder Looks Just Like a 90s Music Video

Mark Wilson — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 11:00:00 EDT

We've all seen circuit-bent Speak 'n Spells and other audio equipment, but what happens when you do this stuff to a video feed? A physical hand actually reaches out from the screen! (Or it looks any cheesy video filter.)

This camcorder is responding to the manipulations of a simple volume meter along with some other transistors and such. But the cool part is that while the bending process technically crashes the camera, the video output continues. And if there's a battery gauge or timestamp on the feed, that gets all crazy, too.

But until we see fully circuit-bent iPod nano cyborg vision, I'd hate to see us this or any of us rest on Man's current accomplishments. [Vu Cam via MAKE]

Circuit Bent Goggles Let You Make Terrible Music with Your Face

Adam Frucci — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 19:30:00 EDT

The image associated with this post is best viewed using a browser.These insane goggles aren't just weird looking; they also make weird music. Housing the tweaked guts of a Pikachu doll, these bad boys are able to make your grandparents wonder just what the hell is wrong with your generation in record time.

As you can see from the video, the instrument itself is controlled by an external box that lets you adjust the speed and pitch of the sample. The flashing light is, I guess, just for style. Awesome?

The image associated with this post is best viewed using a browser.[Get Lofi via Hack-a-Day]

Speak 'n Spell Mates With Rock Band Guitar

Mark Wilson — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 10:52:40 EDT

It may be the ultimate circuit bending mod. One man, nay, god has combined a Speak 'n Spell with a Rock Band guitar.

The resulting Speak n' Spellbinder instrument captures all of the analog randomness of a Speak 'n Spell, mapped to the frets, strum button and whammy bar of a Rock Band guitar. I wish that modder Aj Gannon really started thrashing in the below video, but we'll have to settle for a pretty complete and organized tour of the device instead. [Getlofi via MAKE]

Listening Test: It's music tech week at Gizmodo.

Original Circuit Bender Explains His Craft, Possibly While High as a Kite

Mark Wilson — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 10:00:00 EDT

Reed Ghazala is considered the father of circuit bending. And if you've followed our coverage of the sporadic musical art of circuit bending here on Giz, you probably realize that only a huge hippie like Ghazala could be behind the trend. This interview is 8 minutes long, but whether it was Ghazala's interesting background or just that crazy shirt, we watched the whole thing. And by the way—that "Incantor" Ghazala talks about is the bending-famous Speak & Spell. Yes, the child's toy is referred to with religious prominence. [via MAKE]

Furby Gurdy Circuit Bent Instrument Brings Our Nightmares to Life

John Mahoney — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 15:00:00 EDT

The hurdy gurdy is one of, if not the coolest old-timey instruments. Great sound, beautiful craftsmanship, not a lot of talent required to get a basic sound out of it, and so on. But David Cranmer's Furby Gurdy turns all of that on its head, replacing the dulcet hurdy tones with the synchronized moans of four brutally scalped Furbies wailing in unison. The rig can also be used as a sequencer using an appropriately anachronistic screw and rotating cam mechanism. The whole spectacle gets shown off on video, if you dare.

Cranmer's quite a prolific circuit bender. His other creations including version one of the Furby Gurdy, each with complete photo documentation and thankfully, not all as nighmarish, can be found on his site. [Nervous Squirrel via Neatorama]

"Circuit Bent" Toy Guitars, My New Geek Fetish

Mark Wilson — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 10:55:00 EDT

Circuit bending is by no means a new idea. Through the clever short-circuiting of normal electronics, modders have been inventing some pretty incredible sound effects for years (the Speak & Spell is a notable example). But with the rise of Guitar Hero, or more appropriately, Guitar Hero knock-off toys, circuit bending may be experiencing a Renaissance. Preloaded with both music to manipulate and speakers to celebrate the distortion, cheap toy guitars are the canvas. Rocking out with miniature, pink plastic guitars is the art.

Here are some of our favorite examples of circuit-bent toy guitars.