Updates DIY Electric Cello - new chest support and changed sound system.

After a lot of practice in the upper positions on the cello, the thin bar previously there as reference for upper notes became insufficient for hand support.
The previous chest piece became obsolete.

In the little time available for such a hobby (developing a electric cello) I decided to just add another bar for more stiffness, and not change the design entirely.

Because of more solid support is needed for the 2 metallic rods, the wood base was also replaced with a bigger one in which I made 2 holes the exact diameter of the rods.

   The outer ends are joined together with a thick nut, and a bit of super glue to keep the thing from loosening and causing parasite vibrations.

The new chest piece is a lot more comfortable.
The outer wood is mounted with only one screw on the base that holds the rods. This gives the advantage of rotating angle to position as needed. Feels really solid too.

For amplification I found these great guitar gadgets to practice with headphones (VOX amplifiers). Plugged this in the cello, and now I can connect to any house hold item that has a audio input. Currently using it with a small basic amp that has base and treble adjustments.

The new audio setup sounds fantastic. I never dreamed of taking the cello project this far but it is a pleasure to practice on it.

Updates DIY Electric Cello - adjustments for upper positions.

After starting to play on high notes on the A string I found hitting the notes with accuracy is difficult without some sort of marker for the left arm.

On the acoustic cello, players use the body of the cello to support the left hand on the upper positions.

For the electric cello I added a thick rod to act as a hand support and landmark to find the upper notes with more accuracy.

Loudness comparison between speech electric cello and acoustic cello

This is a sound test comparing:

• voice loudness in normal speaking

• the electric cello without amplification.
• acoustic cello

Acoustic recording is made with a A4Tech headphones mic. The sound recorded by this setup is very bad and its because of my laptop internal sound card.

Below is a Soundcloud track showing levels recorded with Audacity.
The electric cello sound is first, followed by a acoustic cello which is much louder.

Updates DIY Electric Cello

The cello project is coming up really nice. Here are some fine adjustments made:
•New tail piece gut made of nylon.
•Mounted the passive filter and preamp on the body for easy access.


A 9v battery can easily power up the small preamp (to be installed in the future).

Currently using power AC adapter with adjustable voltage, but the quality of the adapter is low and the voltage dances around a bit. This can lead to distortions but at the moment I am satisfied with the sound coming through.

SMALL ISSUES:
•Everything needs to be tight or else it adds parasite vibratios to the instrument.
•The keys normally used for electric guitars have a part that loosens up over a few months, and needs tightening.
•I made the nut grooves too wide for some strings, so if  I don't place a small wood splice in the grooves the string tends to buzz.


This is how the cello looks like right now:


Electric Cello DIY from Liviu on Vimeo.
RECORDING:
•I tried recording with the laptop, but there is a horrible buzzing sound from the AC power supply, and the signal dies after a couple of seconds. And comes back only after I pause playing
•When  recording with a microphone the sound is really different, more metallic.

If you made or seen similar projects, please send me a link.

DIY Easy to Build Raised Laptop Desk Stand

This is a foldable laptop stand. Can also be used as a small table while sitting in bed.

If you work a lot of hours on your computer, your back hurts or have other issues with sitting down more than 10 hours a day, this is of interest to you.

There are many studies that say standing desks are of benefit, but standing on your legs the whole day is not practical, at least for me it gets really tiring after an hour.

So the solution is to be able to alternate working standing up and sitting down. Below is a possible solution that might work for you too.

See below the parts used for this simple build.

Demonstrating the DIY Electric Cello

This is a demonstration of how my home made electric cello sounds like.
Sound setup is basic: Cello > piezo sensor > preamp > amplifier

My cello skill level is still low, sorry for missing all those notes.
This was all shot in one take, no editing.

After 5 months of practice , learned to read music and play simple songs, finally got the courage to film a demo.
Cant describe how hard it is to play this instrument, especially for a non-musician like me.

Building a electric electric cello

New upgrade for my electric cello project.

Changed the piezzo sensor position from the body (near the bridge) to be directly on the bridge. I searched the best position until it sounde just right.


The electric cello sounds much better now, however the laptop sound board dos not record the sound very well (actually it sucks). I hope to find a affordable recording alternative.

Fortunately for practice, I can use the headphones through a small stereo speaker system.

Audio sample here :  https://soundcloud.com/liviu-work/electric-cello-diy-solfegio

This model of piezzo does not catch the vibrations if pressure is not applied.
I know it looks ugly with screws, but just gluing it does not work :(
 

Update: October2015 - not gluing the piezzo was a good idea. This allowed for experimenting with placement on the bridge. As close to the C string as possible seems to be the best option.

Building a electric cello - Adding the tail piece

The new tail piece is in place. For now it is attached with textile string, but this is not strong enough and I will have to replace it asap.

Today I had an attempt to learn some notes but found this is almost impossible to play without a chest piece and a end pin strap.

This is how it looks right now.
Currently searching for ideas for the chest support.

   

For the end pin I used a simple aluminium tripod leg. However when streched, it is not rigid enough and when attempting vibrato the whole instrument swings like a boat. This is also because the chest support is not present yet.

 Eventually a proffesional end pin will be added.

 

Here are some sample sounds:
"audio sample link"
See you later!

Building a electric cello: Fitting the bridge

Over the weekend I had some fun with the bridge adjustment and I also mounted a leg support.

The bridge is now in place.
After a little testing I found it's hard to avoid touching A or G when the bow is placed on the D string. This needs further adjusting.

After trimming the bridge a lot of testing was made to get the height above the fingerboard to the recommended height without cutting too much from the bridge.

Still waiting for a tail piece order to arrive. After that is in place, I need to adjust the string height about 0.5 mm on A and D on the bridge.

Here is a short video of this stage:

At this time I am looking for solutions to a chest piece support.

More progress to follow soon.

Easy, Portable Sketch book

Needed a new sketch-book, small enough so I can easily carry it around.  So why buy something, when you can build it yourself ?

The cardboard is solid enough to allow sketching when no hard surface is available.


Thick, leather lacing is used for binding the pages and the cardboard cover. 

Using this sewing style the sketchbook thickness can be whatever you need.
The down side of this build is that once you open it, closing is a little tricky. But this can be turned into a motivation factor for you to draw more.

Building a electric cello

I have this incredible passion for cello music. One day I decided I have to play the cello.

Since I can't play a normal acoustic instrument in my apartment, I decided to build a electric, silent one.

Ordered some essential parts from e-bay and currently I am waiting for a cost estimate from a local craftsman in Timisoara, that will build the main wood body of the cello.

I still search for a solution for the end pin, how to build a holder for the legs and a chest piece. But I will only build them, if the instrument sounds good.

I can't wait for all the parts to arrive :) I will need to recheck all important dimensions, like diameter for the holes of the bass fine tuners.

This is how the main body will look like:

 

Update 1.28.14: New parts are arriving.
The bridge will surely need some adjusting of the feet, and carving of round notches on top for the strings.
Looking good so far :)

. . . 

Edit: 

View latest updated form of the built cello design.

5 Open Source/Free 3D Design and Animation Software

Make your monitor rotate

This project started as a 3d test to see if the build would fit on my desk.

Here are more photos with materials and different angles.

Sketchbook made from xerox paper and old netes book

Laptop overheating protection - home made solution

Originally this was powered by the USB from the laptop, but during the hot summer days the fan needed more power, so now it is powered by AC adapter.

Desk lamp with LED light

Clothes hanger

Crossbow home made