A harp made from frickin' laser beams

Stephen Hobley just perfected his laser harp. The audio is adjusted by breaking the beam between the source and mirror array above. No, you can't buy it, but we expect it to appear with a Ukrainian dressed in animal skins at Eurovision 2008. Until then, you'll just have to watch the video after the break.

[Thanks, Kevin P.]

[Sheldon @ Feb 15th 2008 5:37AM]

All I can say is: JMJ FTW!!!111

[Treisme @ Feb 15th 2008 7:15AM]

I don't know how new this is. I saw DJ Kerri Chandler use this at Southport Weekender in England a few years back. Check out http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GoG6PgO_idU and see for yourself...

[GeneMack @ Feb 15th 2008 9:55AM]

I do see a difference. In the video you posted, the laser seem to be mapped to a single tone. So they are basically just an on/off switch - break the laser beam, hear the tone.

The laser above seem to be tuned to distance, so when you hits lower on the beam, he hears one tone, hits higher, hears another. You can see this at the end when he lowers high hand along the one beam and the tone changes.

This is more of a true instrument, not a simple beat box.

[midiwall @ Feb 15th 2008 11:30AM]

As Sheldon said "All I can say is: JMJ".

If you're not familiar with the reference, that'd Be Jean Michel Jarre. ref: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIbD7VRWx8Q

General info: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laser_harp

-----
@genemack: "The laser above seem to be tuned to distance, so when you hits lower on the beam, he hears one tone, hits higher, hears another. You can see this at the end when he lowers his hand along the one beam and the tone changes."

Gotta disagree... There's no pitch change as he drops his hand, what you're hearing is the envelope generator finishing the filter sweep. If the laser was tuned for pitch, then why break _different_ beams with his right hand?

The READ link at the end of the blurb above even contains a link the the Jarre video I pointed at from YouTube.

[OneLove @ Feb 16th 2008 2:54PM]

mY eyEs!!!

[diomedes @ Feb 15th 2008 1:34PM]

Absolutely! I remember seeing him using a laser harp in 1990 at a docklands concert in london. About 20 years behind the times I think.

[ooglek @ Feb 15th 2008 1:34PM]

@Treisme -- fake. His arm is getting into the laser, and nothing is playing. It's an impressive show, but too many mistakes where his hand blocks a laser and nothing happens, and too many times where his arm hits the laser and only one note plays.

Additionally, he's standing under the laser earlier, with nothing happening. Not the laser controlling.

[DJPaul @ Feb 15th 2008 5:46AM]

Won't someone please think of the sharks?!!

[Tom Oliveri @ Feb 15th 2008 10:50AM]

was that partly a 'won't someone think of the children!' simpsons reference?
( obviously cross-austin powers )?

[granny down east @ Feb 15th 2008 8:30PM]

No, it's a reference to the Navy using sharks with frickin' lasers mounted on their heads for...something...
Been around Engadget long??

[ByronGman @ Feb 15th 2008 5:47AM]

Duuuuuude....

It's soooo trippy...... or maybe it's just 3 AM here and I am out of it....

OR MAYBE....BOTH...now I'm scarred.

[Andy @ Feb 15th 2008 6:01AM]

Haven't they had these since the 70's or something?

[Andy Smith @ Feb 15th 2008 6:07AM]

See 20 year-old Jean-Michel Jarre videos for more footage!

[Logi @ Feb 15th 2008 6:16AM]

This is old stuff. Jean Michel Jarre did this 20 years ago
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIbD7VRWx8Q

[RokkaMan @ Feb 15th 2008 6:25AM]

I would try and play that with my penis. Without a doubt.

[Tom Oliveri @ Feb 15th 2008 10:53AM]

im impressed that you turned a laser harp into something sexual... that's quite an effort.

[Ray @ Feb 15th 2008 3:23PM]

The beam from a laser harp is around a class 4 laser.
You should not let finger 11 near that.

[bradders @ Feb 15th 2008 6:33AM]

Hmm, how about Engadget have a bio page for each contributor, it would help me decide whether or not to rag on the author of this article for reporting something thats 20 years old as news ("hey cut the guy some slack, he wasnt born when the laser-harp maestro was doing his stuff" etc etc)
If the bio page listed kit owned, interests etc, it might even help cut down the calls of 'fanboy' when they write a neutral article about the new Apple/Microsoft/Lebedev kit, if we know what they have a particular interest in.

[Denus @ Feb 15th 2008 8:27AM]

Meh, this is new to me. At least I've seen it now and can say "old" whenever another blog links it.

[SuperDre @ Feb 15th 2008 8:30AM]

Well, trying 'laser harp' in google gives me at least this wikipedia article: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laser_harp
You mean, people are too lazy these days to do any inquiry..
But it's still cool to see a person creating a laserharp..

[Jesse S @ Feb 15th 2008 3:23PM]

The thing is, no one has document how to build one before.

And the builder wanted to make one because of JMJ.

[silverblackvoid @ Feb 15th 2008 6:33AM]

yeah this is cool and everything but when can i have my light saber?

[roflercopterer @ Feb 15th 2008 6:49AM]

Yeah they've had one of these sitting outside of Ripley's in gatlinburg, tn forever

[Benhur @ Feb 15th 2008 6:50AM]

I just cant believe you guys know what Eurovision is. The world must know!!

[Withad @ Feb 15th 2008 7:41AM]

So they can avoid it?

[fourthletter @ Feb 15th 2008 7:04AM]

WOW, My friend built a laser harp from laser pointers for his sonic Art Degree at hampshire uni. Didn't you know that this is far from special and something alot of 1st/2nd year muisc tech students build ?
Oh no wait that would require engadget bloggers to actually pay attention to the outside world !

[Alex Moyler @ Feb 15th 2008 7:47AM]

Preeeettty sweet. Agree on the old though.

[NHAnimator @ Feb 15th 2008 8:21AM]

I've heard that the frickin' laser beams can be tuned a lot easier than the regular laser beams. They last longer and can read both Blu-Ray and HDDVD by turning down the yellow output. All of this comes at a cost - approximately 4x the normal price of lasers. But you also get the added benefit of describing them using the adjective "frickin'".

[looseinthedeuce @ Feb 15th 2008 9:21AM]

If I threw my enemies in it, would it slice them into pieces?

[Tom Oliveri @ Feb 15th 2008 10:56AM]

one day son, be patient. we're working on it.

[GeneMack @ Feb 15th 2008 9:55AM]

See my reply above - there is a big difference in this new setup.

[midiwall @ Feb 15th 2008 11:31AM]

See my reply to your reply... nope there ain't.

[APPLES @ Feb 15th 2008 10:07AM]

awsome!!!!!!!!!!!!!!111111111

[Michael @ Feb 15th 2008 10:29AM]

Or you can watch dvd`s from Jean Michel Jarre concerts, he already used a sself made laser harp back in 1987.

[GeneMack @ Feb 15th 2008 10:49AM]

I've watched the video posted above and posted on what the difference was between that setup and this, so I must be missing something.

From what I see in the two videos posted here, they are using the lasers for nothing more than switches. You could replicate the same thing using simple light switches on a box, using the circuit to trigger tones. It is a very, very simple setup.

But this new setup is actually tuned to distance, so the tone changes, depending on where the beam is broken. So this setup is using laser distance measuring. These lasers are two-way devices that can measure exactly the beam was broken and give an analog (usually 0-10VDC) signal output that represents that data. You then take that analog output and map it along a scale of tones you want to represent with that beam. You move your hand farther away from the emitter, the tone goes lower in pitch, move it closer and the tone goes higher in pitch.

Like I said above, the other setups had a single tone. They were just breaking the beams to play the tones and when sequenced right, you have music. But it really isn't an "instrument".

This is actually an instrument, not a laser beat box.


Or am I missing something?

[midiwall @ Feb 15th 2008 11:33AM]

@gene... What you're hearing isn't synced with distance. write me offline if you want to babble more. laserharp -at- midiwall -dot- com

[Jeff @ Feb 15th 2008 12:22PM]

@gene

It's certainly not distance tuned. It's just a synth that would sound like that if you were triggering it in any way whatsoever. (it's a simple on/off)

It WOULD be rad if the distance was mapped to even something simple like high frequency cutoff or something, but it most certainly is NOT in this setup.

[GeneMack @ Feb 15th 2008 12:36PM]

@midiwall:

You may be right. I'm not a musician, so when I watch him raise and lower his left hand and the tone changes, it appeared to me the distance is mapped to the tone.

If these both are really just mapping a tone to a beam break, none of the setups are very impressive (like I said, you can do that with home light switches.) I take that back, it was somewhat impressive 20 years ago, I will give you that.

But what I proposed it easily possible and somebody should do that setup. Then you would have a true instrument. The tough part would be using a single laser, like it seems is being used in this setup. Getting feedback through a splitter seems like a tough project and I don't know if it has been done. Then again, in my line of work I've never had to do it, so I wouldn't count it out.

As to why break different beams with his right hand, again, I am not a musician, by why have more than one string on a guitar? Isn't the range from a guitar not only based on where you place the pressure point on a single string, but the fact you have 6 strings, each having their own sound and range? My technical wording is probably wrong on this description, but I think you know what I mean.

[midiwall @ Feb 15th 2008 1:02PM]

Hmm... From: http://stephenhobley.com/build/

"Optionally the amount of reflected light is also read by one of the ADC pins and this is scaled and transmitted as MIDI continuous controller data. It can be mapped to any controller number. So sliding your hand down the beam can 'bend' notes, or sweep the filter etc... This is not 100% reliable (or musical ) so I tend to turn that off."

Okay Gene, it looks like he CAN setup to bend or sweep based on distance. My bad.


One thing to point out though, he hasn't rigged it for pitch, he's rigged distance to be a "continuous controller", which is an additive signal for a MIDI controller. So you can BEND a pitch, but you can't SET a pitch. (as well, CC's can generally be assigned to a number of things outside of pitch)


Well done StephenH!

[GeneMack @ Feb 15th 2008 1:30PM]

Midiwall:

Not sure why my reply ended up as a seperate post down below, but I had said I was wrong. But now seems I was sort of right! I'm even confused myself. :)

I liked to know how he is getting the feedback (reflected light) though the splitter. And since he is using reflective lasers, why bother with the mirrors at all? I think the he's double-ended setup is what might be causing his unreliability. You can get reflected lasers that measure down to the micron level, so reliability should not be an issue.

My guess is that to use the splitter, he is using the mirrors and actually getting his "on/off" from those. Then, he is using the reflected light to measure the distance, but that reflected light coming back through the splitter WOULD be unreliable.

If he wanted to have true control of each beam, he would need 10 lasers, which is a much more expensive setup than splitting the beam.

[Tom Oliveri @ Feb 15th 2008 10:47AM]

wow, an old dr. evil is developing lasers to feed his new generation of i-robots?
because every creature deserves a warm meal...

[Keith @ Feb 15th 2008 10:49AM]

With only nine notes, this instrument is going to be usable for a very limited number of pieces (it doesn't even have the range for "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star"). By adding five more notes, you would span an entire octave and have much better range.

[Scorpeus @ Feb 15th 2008 11:21AM]

I don't know. I watched the video, and I think that he is playing through a sequencer, the interrupted light only triggers the next note. He hits the same light twice and gets a different note. It's a nice show piece, but it's not really a harp.

[umm....hello??? @ Feb 15th 2008 11:26AM]

FREAKIN' AWESOME (if this is true)....Robotechnology FTW!!! (2nd? part of the Robotech series)...

[macbastard @ Feb 15th 2008 1:15PM]

Ha! And here I thought I was going to have to be the first person to trot out the Robotech reference.

Yeah, second generation (Robotech Master). Musika, mistress of the cosmic harp! :)

[umm....hello??? @ Feb 18th 2008 4:15PM]

yep....ahh nostalgia. gotta re-watch the series this week....

[Vega @ Feb 15th 2008 11:29AM]

20 Years ago ? Jarre was playing his Lazer Harp in China in 1981 ! Maybe now we'll get to see 'Rendezvous Houston' released on DVD.

[mmh @ Feb 15th 2008 11:36AM]

German disco light show!

[Jeff @ Feb 15th 2008 12:23PM]

hahaa

i love conan.

[GMack @ Feb 15th 2008 12:54PM]

Yep, I was absolutely wrong. Finally RTFA (yep, guilty). But I actually didn't need to read it to find out I was wrong. If my setup was correct, there would be no need for the mirrors up top.

I should have seen that the first time I watched.

So, I'm an idiot! :) Thank you midiwall for making me look further into this. I think I'm unlike most people and would rather know the truth, then fight about being right or wrong.

I would still like to see my setup made. Now that would be impressive!