Anyone help? proximity sensors and guitars

[deadstar22]

hey guys, i don't know if I am in the right part of the forum, but i have an idea and i need your help... i know nothing about physics

my idea is to build a sensor into a guitar which could alter the pitch or cut out the sound, like a kill-switch for example.

anything is possible... right?

 

[Langbein]

You can buy capasity switches as standard component. (Most of them are made for industrial purposes and not for guitars.)

Some of them has the ability to adjust the sensivity.

When you move your hand near the switch or on to the switch it will operate depending on sensivity.

They are not very expensive as they are commonly used for industrial automation purposes.

 

[Stevedye56]

They have distrotion pedals that would have the same basic effect. Or am I totally off?

 

[Langbein]

I have no idea about music instruments, but I know quite sure that proxy sensors are somethig quite common in industrial automation. There are basically two types capasic that reacts to any material comming near and inductive that reacts on magnetic metals. Then there is also some "a little bit simular design" that are using ultra sound that work on longer distances.

Make contact on a company related to industrial automation and take a look.

 

[Stevedye56]

If you wanted to cut out all sound you could have a recycling scuba tank and play in a vacuum. Just kidding! When you said killswitch did you mean to cut the sound from an acoustic guitar or an electric guitar?

 

[deadstar22]

wow, thanks for the interest guys, all seems interesting.

There are pedals that do this, the one I am interested in is the whammy pedal (it can bend the pitch up and down)

http://www.digitech.com/products/whammy.htm

and yes, an electric guitar, much easier than acoustic for effects.

i have a kill switch already on my guitar, which basically disconnects a link between the power supply and the pickups (which pick-up the sounds the strings make)

im guessing i need to add things to this circuit, such as some kind of circuitboard chip thing that has the effect on it and link it to a sensor or a 'capacity switch', is it that easy? surely not... (will it need resistors and its own power supply?)

also does midi mean anything to you and do you think it is relevant to this?

thanks guys

 

[jmckaskle]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Midi" . It'd be relevant if you intend to record your guitar work inputting directly into a computer.