Make your own midi controller

[Nora]

I need help with the right way to think about this.

I want to build a sensor based keyboard. Like an air piano.

I was thinking that the sounds would be activated with motion and velocity sensors. I was thinking 1 motion sensor per pitch and I am not sure how I would get volume from the velocity sensors...if I had say volumes 1-10, would I then need 10 seperate midi codes per note? I don't understand how the sound processing would work.

I plan to use already stored sounds from an already existing midi keyboard (I didn't buy one yet, but thought something cheap would be fine).

So do I need to actually get into the midi code if I want to change volumes? I would prefer to process the sounds with software as much as possible.

Any thoughts/questions/limks to set me on the right track would be appreciated. Yes I already read through Wikipedia's page on midi!

Thanks muchly,
Nora

[neutron7]

normally with MIDI you have different data which tell the instrument what to do. say you play a middle C then a "note on" is sent with the correct data for which note it is. as well as the velocity at which it was played. when you let go of the key then a "note off" is sent as well as the note off velocity (which is not often used)

In a normal synth keyboard , when you hit a key it disconnects one contact and when the key hits the bottom then it connects another. the time it takes between is the velocity.

I think there are some usb kits where you can connect pots and other controllers to your PC and they are counted as "hid device" (like a game controller) then you can use "joy2mid" which turns joystick or other HID data into MIDI. then you can send it to your synth or any of the hundreds of free VST instruments

anyways it might be a starting point.

look at some stuff Jean Michell Jarre made.
http://www.hyperionwebs.com/electron..._of_jarre2.htm