Help on what parts ill need

Thread Starter

CoreySelby

Joined Mar 21, 2015
2
Okay so I want to basically build a tiny drum set with buttons. A classic drum set with 7 buttons that each play a different decent short sound.

Would i be able to make it without a micro controller? if I can, what SMALL parts would i need and how?

Basically I just need a list of the smallest possible parts to make this happen.

thanks
 

MrChips

Joined Oct 2, 2009
30,712

blocco a spirale

Joined Jun 18, 2008
1,546
The November 1983 issue of Electronics Today International (ETI) magazine published a "Mini Drum Synth" based around the 555/556 timer . The beat was triggered by tapping a small loudspeaker and would decay in amplitude (just like a normal drum) but also had the option to fall in frequency to give that "classic" 80s syn-drum sound. I can't find the schematic anywhere on-line but someone may still have a copy; it shouldn't be too difficult to reproduce something similar.
 
Last edited:

absf

Joined Dec 29, 2010
1,968
The November 1983 issue of Electronics Today International (ETI) magazine published a "Mini Drum Synth" based around the 555/556 timer . The beat was triggered by tapping a small loudspeaker and would decay in amplitude (just like a normal drum) but also had the option to fall in frequency to give that "classic" 80s syn-drum sound. I can't find the schematic anywhere on-line but someone may still have a copy; it shouldn't be too difficult to reproduce something similar.
Was it similar to this one?

small-electronic-drum-by-mc14046.jpg
This one uses a speaker as the input device. And I think mc14046 is a PLL chip.

The description is in this link here

http://www.eleccircuit.com/the-small-electronic-drum-by-mc14046/

There is another one that I found was quite interesting too...
It's call drum simulator for music synthesizer...

http://www.cgs.synth.net/modules/cgs18_drum.html

Allen
 

blocco a spirale

Joined Jun 18, 2008
1,546
Was it similar to this one?

View attachment 82623
This one uses a speaker as the input device. And I think mc14046 is a PLL chip.
The description is in this link here

http://www.eleccircuit.com/the-small-electronic-drum-by-mc14046/

There is another one that I found was quite interesting too...
It's call drum simulator for music synthesizer...

http://www.cgs.synth.net/modules/cgs18_drum.html

Allen
It was actually much simpler.

I am fairly certain that the only active components were a 556 dual timer and a transistor or two, but no more.

I believe that timer 1 was configured as a monostable and provided two outputs; an enable pulse and a rising (sawtooth) voltage taken from the capacitor and buffered by an emitter-follower. Timer 2 was configured as an astable and was tuned to whatever frequency the drum required.

A pulse at the input triggered timer 1 which then enabled timer 2 (which would produce a tone) and the sawtooth output was then used to modulate the amplitude of timer 2 and, if selected, the frequency.

This would be a very nice beginner's project because it was very simple and with just a few drum modules and a simple sequencer built from a couple of 4017 decade counters, it's possible to build a complete programmable drum machine.

I will check in the loft, I may still have the magazine.....
 
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