[nickbatz]

Hey, does anyone know how to test a Yamaha breath controller?

This is what the great Jonathan Fast of MIDI Solutions told me:

"I haven't looked inside a BC2 but I think it's the same as the BC3 which contains an amplifier circuit, if a voltage is applied across the tip and the sleeve the ring produces a varying voltage that is dependent on the applied breath pressure."

The BC2 is the same as the BC3, but how would I set up the test with my VOM?

(By the way, it's not doing anything in the breath control inputs of two different synths, but before either trying to fix it or throwing it away, I want to ensure that it really is kaput.)

TIA

[geoff]

On 14/01/2018 10:43 AM, nickbatz wrote:
Hey, does anyone know how to test a Yamaha breath controller?

This is what the great Jonathan Fast of MIDI Solutions told me:

"I haven't looked inside a BC2 but I think it's the same as the BC3 which contains an amplifier circuit, if a voltage is applied across the tip and the sleeve the ring produces a varying voltage that is dependent on the applied breath pressure."

The BC2 is the same as the BC3, but how would I set up the test with my VOM?

(By the way, it's not doing anything in the breath control inputs of two different synths, but before either trying to fix it or throwing it away, I want to ensure that it really is kaput.)

TIA



Definitely VOMit . So to speak. But not *into* the BC ;-0=====

Need to know which jack(?) connection is V+, which is 0V, and which is
the output voltage. Sorry , don't actually know that - just wanted an
excuse to write VOMit.

geoff

[TimR]

On Saturday, January 13, 2018 at 6:22:20 PM UTC-5, geoff wrote:
On 14/01/2018 10:43 AM, nickbatz wrote:
Hey, does anyone know how to test a Yamaha breath controller?

This is what the great Jonathan Fast of MIDI Solutions told me:

"I haven't looked inside a BC2 but I think it's the same as the BC3 which contains an amplifier circuit, if a voltage is applied across the tip and the sleeve the ring produces a varying voltage that is dependent on the applied breath pressure."

The BC2 is the same as the BC3, but how would I set up the test with my VOM?

(By the way, it's not doing anything in the breath control inputs of two different synths, but before either trying to fix it or throwing it away, I want to ensure that it really is kaput.)

TIA



Definitely VOMit . So to speak. But not *into* the BC ;-0=====

Need to know which jack(?) connection is V+, which is 0V, and which is
the output voltage. Sorry , don't actually know that - just wanted an
excuse to write VOMit.

geoff

You know MIDI outputs a digital velocity signal, right? Not a varying voltage?

[John Williamson]

On 16/01/2018 13:53, TimR wrote:
On Saturday, January 13, 2018 at 6:22:20 PM UTC-5, geoff wrote:
Definitely VOMit . So to speak. But not *into* the BC ;-0=====

Need to know which jack(?) connection is V+, which is 0V, and which is
the output voltage. Sorry , don't actually know that - just wanted an
excuse to write VOMit.

Your sense of humour is as infantile as mine; :-)

geoff

You know MIDI outputs a digital velocity signal, right? Not a varying voltage?

The breath controllers put out an analogue voltage, which uses
(simplified) an ADC and some logic to output a MIDI control signal.

Before MIDI was invented, early synthesisers did something similar by
using a ladder of resistors to output a one volt per octave control
signal to the rest of the circuitry. Then they invented MIDI keyboards,
and synthesisers were controlled by a DAC outputting a one volt per
octave analogue signal. Then they went all digital, and the one volt per
octave thing dropped out of use except for specialist applications

--
Tciao for Now!

John.

[geoff]

On 17/01/2018 2:53 AM, TimR wrote:
On Saturday, January 13, 2018 at 6:22:20 PM UTC-5, geoff wrote:
On 14/01/2018 10:43 AM, nickbatz wrote:
Hey, does anyone know how to test a Yamaha breath controller?

This is what the great Jonathan Fast of MIDI Solutions told me:

"I haven't looked inside a BC2 but I think it's the same as the BC3 which contains an amplifier circuit, if a voltage is applied across the tip and the sleeve the ring produces a varying voltage that is dependent on the applied breath pressure."

The BC2 is the same as the BC3, but how would I set up the test with my VOM?

(By the way, it's not doing anything in the breath control inputs of two different synths, but before either trying to fix it or throwing it away, I want to ensure that it really is kaput.)

TIA



Definitely VOMit . So to speak. But not *into* the BC ;-0=====

Need to know which jack(?) connection is V+, which is 0V, and which is
the output voltage. Sorry , don't actually know that - just wanted an
excuse to write VOMit.

geoff

You know MIDI outputs a digital velocity signal, right? Not a varying voltage?



You know that the Yamaha Breath Controllers are not MIDI devices, right ?

geoff

[TimR]

On Tuesday, January 16, 2018 at 2:06:13 PM UTC-5, geoff wrote:
On 17/01/2018 2:53 AM, TimR wrote:
On Saturday, January 13, 2018 at 6:22:20 PM UTC-5, geoff wrote:
On 14/01/2018 10:43 AM, nickbatz wrote:
Hey, does anyone know how to test a Yamaha breath controller?

This is what the great Jonathan Fast of MIDI Solutions told me:

"I haven't looked inside a BC2 but I think it's the same as the BC3 which contains an amplifier circuit, if a voltage is applied across the tip and the sleeve the ring produces a varying voltage that is dependent on the applied breath pressure."

The BC2 is the same as the BC3, but how would I set up the test with my VOM?

(By the way, it's not doing anything in the breath control inputs of two different synths, but before either trying to fix it or throwing it away, I want to ensure that it really is kaput.)

TIA



Definitely VOMit . So to speak. But not *into* the BC ;-0=====

Need to know which jack(?) connection is V+, which is 0V, and which is
the output voltage. Sorry , don't actually know that - just wanted an
excuse to write VOMit.

geoff

You know MIDI outputs a digital velocity signal, right? Not a varying voltage?



You know that the Yamaha Breath Controllers are not MIDI devices, right ?

Geoff

It's not the thing that looks like a soprano sax, and outputs MIDI to simulate any instrument you want?

We had a flute player show up to a concert with one, to cover the missing oboe player.

Unfortunately he wasn't that familiar with MIDI and didn't know about start and stop signals. Sure enough, it stuck on during the concert (dropped the off signal) and he didn't know where the MIDI "panic" button was.

I learned from that, find the "panic" button first on any MIDI equipment.

So what is the "breath controller?" Sort of an ADC-MIDI interface?

[geoff]

On 17/01/2018 9:06 AM, TimR wrote:



You know that the Yamaha Breath Controllers are not MIDI devices, right ?

Geoff

It's not the thing that looks like a soprano sax, and outputs MIDI to simulate any instrument you want?

We had a flute player show up to a concert with one, to cover the missing oboe player.

Unfortunately he wasn't that familiar with MIDI and didn't know about start and stop signals. Sure enough, it stuck on during the concert (dropped the off signal) and he didn't know where the MIDI "panic" button was.

I learned from that, find the "panic" button first on any MIDI equipment.

So what is the "breath controller?" Sort of an ADC-MIDI interface?



No - it's an accessory that plugs into a Yamaha MIDI keyboard and dates
right back to the DX7 and KX88.

The BC1 looks a bit like an asthma inhaler (I have one, somewhere...),
and the BC2 and BC3 like headset mics.

They put out a DC control-voltage related to the strength of 'blow'.
The attached MIDI device can use this however it wants - usually to
affect volume or pitch-bend, but depending on the MIDI device it is
attached to could be mapped to any SysEx control.

A company call MIDI Solutions make an inline MIDI-Thru type device that
can apply the BC control to any incoming MIDI stream.

Google is (sometimes) your friend:

http://www.midisolutions.com/applica...eathController

http://www.tecontrol.se/products/usb...ntroller-facts

geoff