Brian the Robot (see my other
Projects); I considered what I
could do with it
"Circuit-bending" was one thing I
considered
I
recently watched a Youtube video
from "Fran's Lab" where Fran talks
about "Science Fairs" old and new.
The
latter reminded me of the Science
Fair I used to have back in the '90s
(which never seemed to work right
because I got it second-hand off a
friend):
I
decided to look on ebay for another
and found this one going for a good
price:
When
it arrived I began reading the
manual. The first few page explains
the various components, one of which
is a 'variable Resistor' or
'Control' knob.
I
remembered this from the few videos
on circuit-bending I had watched; I
looked for another specifically
about this, and found this one with
a good explanation:
Basically, the audio circuit needs
to have a resistor which can be
swapped out for a variable one, such
as is included in the Science
Fair... perhaps; since they, like
regular resistors, have different
ratings and the one used in the
example is a "1M pot".
The
video also uses the term
'Potentiometer' for the variable
Resistor, and I did a quick Google
search to confirm if these terms
were indeed interchangeable.
Strictly speaking, they are not:
A variable resistor is a resistor
of which the electric resistance
value can be adjusted. ... When a
variable resistor is used as a
potential divider by using 3
terminals it is called a
potentiometer. When only two
terminals are used, it functions
as a variable resistance and is
called a rheostat.
The
variable resistor included in the
Science Fair kit, according to the
illustration in the manual at least,
has three terminals, so it can be
used as either a rheostat or a
potentiometer (pot). In the
circuit-bending video he connects
the left most terminal and the
centre one as viewed from the rear.
In this configuration, with only two
terminals connected, it is
technically a rheostat. There are
also digital resistors which are
controlled electronically. You can
read more here
www.resistorguide.com/variable-resistor
In
the comments section of that video
he refers to a book by Reed Ghazala.
I looked this up and found a copy of
"Circuit-bending: build your own
alien instruments" published in
2005. It's pretty pricey, as are
others Amazon suggested to me, but I
found myself a free download to take
a look at. I see it includes
"Eighteen Projects for Creating Your
Own Alien Orchestra."
Anyway,
with my newly received Science Fair,
complete with potentiometer and my
understanding of how to use it, I
dug out my
Brian the Robot...
The
variable resistor included in the
Science Fair kit, according to the
illustration in the manual at least,
has three terminals, so it can be
used as either a rheostat or a
potentiometer (pot). In the
circuit-bending video he connects
the left most terminal and the
centre one as viewed from the rear.
In this configuration, with only two
terminals connected, it is
technically a rheostat. There are
also digital resistors which are
controlled electronically. You can
read more here
In
the comments section of that video
he refers to a book by Reed Ghazala.
I looked this up and found a copy of
"Circuit-bending: build your own
alien instruments" published in
2005. It's pretty pricey, as are
others Amazon suggested to me, but I
found myself a free download to take
a look at. I see it includes
"Eighteen Projects for Creating Your
Own Alien Orchestra."