DIY Contact Mic - Collin's Lab
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- čas přidán 18. 12. 2011
- It's amazing what a little disk can do ... when it's layered with piezoelectric crystals. Piezo disks are impressively sensitive to vibration and can easily be adapted to work as a contact microphones. The trick is the preamp - a basic circuit used to match the piezo's signal to levels compatible with modern audio gear inputs. The resulting piezo/preamp combo can be used for electrifying an acoustic guitar or simply exploring the lesser-heard world of small sound around us.
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I love this show. I've learned lot from him. Lot of memories watching this after many years.
7:33 Has science gone too far?
yes. yes it has
So I made it and my guitar is picking up radio signals... I'm currently listening to the radio. I think I did something wrong
Frankie Romero lol
You were probably missing a connection between one of those three bottom resistors. I came across the same problem while making the circuit. It was interesting, to say the least.
Two years late, but...
This is because of the type of cable you used between the disk and the rest of the components. The cable he used (an old audio cable) is "shielded", meaning the audio signal won't be influenced by outside sources and won't pick up other signals. If you use standard wires or speaker wire, you have this problem because it doesn't have that shielding. (The shielding happens because the negative "signal" is on the outside.)
This is important when buying regular cables for an instrument as well, specifically when you need an instrument cable (which is essentially was made here) versus an amp cable (which is usually not shielded).
Source: I've been getting into this recently and needed to learn the difference when purchasing equipment.
Good to know. I'm fairly certain I bought a nearly identical cable for the project, and the interference did go away after I realized I had missed a connection and corrected the circuit. It may have been a combination of the two somehow, though I suppose going back through the project again with new parts and components would show it was the cable all along as you said. Anyways, thanks for the info.
Can i shield the audio cable with aluminum foil? Will it work?
The sounds from the wire mesh were pretty amazing!!
Why are there no more Collin videos these days? He was the only reason I watched!
They are now on Adafruit.
Great video! Thanks. It might be worth mentioning that whenever one needs to "clip off the connector" from the end of a cable (RCA in this case), it's smart to clip the wire much farther back on the cable (length permitting). By doing that, a second usable cable is created, saving future project cost. Clipping the RCA plug off so close to the end wastes a good opportunity to have a cable for another day.
Collin as always you made my day. I am so happy you're making your videos, please don't stop.
Honestly, this is the best Collin's Lab video yet, because he just gave me the key I needed to fulfill my one-man-band dream!
THANKS COLLIN! YOUDAMAN!
What a great demonstration! Fun and educational at the same time!
This guy is a legend
Also, this video made my day a lot better, it's always nice to hear about interesting projects you can do with electronics; I was looking for some cheap ways to make sounds.
This is the most inspired circuit I've ever been itching to try!!
It's always my master peace to learn electronic component. Please keep on!
why collin's series are the best:
1 - he makes everything easy to understand
2 - at the end his prefboards (or whatever he is using) always looks a lot better than mine
3 - he makes funny jokes about stuff while in most of times showing some cool use of something
for example, I'm not on guitars or analog electronics circuits but he still makes this video interesting and fun to watch =)
Collin, you are the best DIYer I've ever seen
That comb sounded terrific!
I've been trying to find a way to make my own pickup! This is awesome! Just what I was looking for!
One of the most interesting projects on here!!
Collin's Lab is the reason why I subscribed to makemagazine. You are awesome-o Collin-o!
Best part, your acoustic playing. Nice rhythm.
This is really great! Worked excellent for my needs! :) Thanks Collin!
Man, you're cool!!
Wondering, could you have used the piezo crystals you created to make this "sensor"?
oh, come one now. what are you doing with a comb??
Hey Collin, I just LOVE your videos. I can't wait to try this out and maybe get my daughters accoustic guitar amplified so she can play Rocksmith !!
i love this guy, all his videos are entertaining and very useful
Works great inside of my 12 string guitar! I don't know if I got lucky, but it sounds really full and there is zero noise.
Man .. You are awesome
... Very clear , easy and not least important , FUN tutorial.
I have home made stereo contact mics on my desk right now! Perfect for for making duel or stereo sounds. The only thing you did different to me was use epoxy resin which seems a lot better than the hot glue I used.
These are so cheap and easy to make and so much fun! :D
Piezoelectricity is really an interesting thing and is found in anorganic, organic and polymeric materials. High impedance output is critical. I experimented with another contact microphone type DIY, but piezoelectric materials are modern and have advantages against other technologies. Therefore I'll test that sort of material too!
I made one of these minus the preamp and I also added a second disc in parallel so that I could get a more even sound. I place them right behind the bridge, one on either side. I used an 1/8" jack so that I could plug directly into my computer. I think it sounds pretty darn good.
@Snuk1s It'll work the same, although the difference is that the microphone will require an excitation voltage to work (A power source). The amplification will also have to change depending on the voltage range you get back; this means you'd have to modify the choices for R and C.
Cool as always Collin. Great stuff.
You are the only reason I'be subscribed to MakeMagazine :D
The source and drain were reversed in your instructions. The drain goes towards +Vcc and source goes to ground. Works much better.
Então como fica no esquematico!!???
Will you please get your own channel I could watch you talk about electronics all day even on things I already know you are a good teacher.
Mr. Collin, You are awesome!
DIY Electroencephalograph! We need that
so simple yet it works so great
Source and drain are indicated wrong on the diagram. Source is a source of electrons, which are negative, so that one goes towards the ground via the 560 ohm resistor. Drain goes via the 1.5K to the + voltage.
qual a solução?
Nice to see the perf board in action vs. jumpers all over the place.
Great videos! Love your channel. Smart stuff. Can we hear more of your music please?!
A while ago I tore apart some old multimeters with piezos in them and converted them into drum triggers for my DM5. Fun stuff.
Good Rockin Out on that Wire Mesh!
Growing up, my dad used to play the Rubber Boot. If he'da been able to go electric with it, he coulda been famous! :)
Thanks for the info. I'm going make some noise!
I fed the signal from the piezo right into my guitar amplifierer. Works just fine. No pre-amp circuit needed
I've learned a lot more with Collins then when I was in college :D
The fact that colin can play guitar only adds to his awesomeness
I love your videos Collin!
I like that tone.
You are a genius! amazing idea with piezo plate
this is what I've been looking for , few know what to do with old tech. & how things work.
That's was a good episode. Good job.
Naturally I love the content, and always come back for more. But I would dearly love to know how you integrate the graphics into the video editing process. Very nice segue! I am using my new Movie Magix Edit Pro software and haven't figured that part out yet. So many things to learn and the time? No problem there....
considering the fact that you're running an acoustic guitar through what looks like an electric guitar amp, that sounds really good.
this is a great circuit.lotta fun..i can actually leave the battery out of mine and it works. thanks for posting this :-)
Works a treat.
@yhevrah The signal that comes from the Piezo or 'contact mic' is way to small for the amp, so it has to pre-amplified (the signal needs to be made stronger) so that it can be used with a guitar amp. Hope that answers your question.
I think the one thing that would help is a parts list. This video is better because he has them and shows them and the circuit is mostly understandable, but still, thought it was worth mentioning.
best weekend project ever!
You are a good guitar player
Who could have imagined !!
if there is one thing that always haunts me about electronics is the power wires always snap off my projects...watching this i picked up how to help that...THANK YOU COLLIN
Please bring back Collins Lab D:
I want moar episodes/videos D:
*Laughts* You are so awsom Collin. its looks like you hiting the big O when you playing and explore thos sounds... and you dont rush true everyting like other How to do shows do.
When the video I wondered for a moment why Agent Smith was doing a video about building a circuit. :) Are you sacrificing any responsiveness to sound by adding epoxy to one side of the piezo? If I was to try this I would prefer trying to stick the piezo to the pick guard to avoid damaging the finish of the guitar top, or put it inside. The bottom strap post on the guitar could be replaced by the jack and it would make it easier to keep everything inside the guitar.
Colin, this is awesome... i rolled laughing on the floor when you used the comb :).. keep it up
Great project idea! Looks like the MPF102 transistors are no longer available, and the nearest thing I could find was a BF245. Tried it and it seems to work. No luck locally (Dallas, TX) finding the 3.3 MOhm resistor. Fry's had a 3 MOhm (well...they had 100 of them that I had to buy, in order to get one of 'em). Put it all together and it worked. However...
Did the 3 MOhm sub for the 3.3 MOhm cut down on the volume? Seems I don't get much at all, unless I tap directly on the piezo pickup. I've found I have to have some foam or something else to push the piezo into the wood, in order to get it to detect my foot tapping on the other side of the wood (cigar box).
Also, where would I put a volume pot? A tone pot? I'd like to be able to control both from the unit. And if you have any suggestions/experience with pickup placement/box size/etc. as to how it relates to getting the box to sound more like a real base drum, I'd love to know what you know.
Thanks, and thanks again for posting this project!
Olá @brad, como consegui, pois eu não consegui, trocar o transistor bf 245, sem acerto para algum resultado, me de uma mão, para construi-lo
please make more vids! I haven't seen one in ages!
awww great circuit... I was looking for it almost everywhere...
i have a question, will it work on guitar pickup? I have elecrtic guitar pickup and i want to make sample electric guitar circuit
collin is the best teacher ever!
:) Glad to pass on some knowledge to a fellow electronics hobbiest
Got it, thanks for the reply.
Hi! thanks a lot for the tutorial. I have a little question: a have seen other videos and they don´t put any circuit at all. What´s its function is it a preamp? Also, how much is the impedance of the piezo with or without it? Thank you so much!
+Pablo Martín Yes, the transistor works as an amplifier, without the circuit the output would definitely sound lower in volume.
Classic! They sound rad squashed between an electric guitars neck and body in parallel with another single coil too! The output is lower and acts as a high
These have been use for more years then I could say for CBG!
Yay, another video from Collin :D
As long as there is no mac, these videos are great.
collin you're the reason i subbed this channel. your videos are the best and this is one of my favorite videos that you've done. =)\mm btw you look a lot like my eighth grade photography teacher lol.
Hey Collin. It´s great. But you can do this much easyer just puting a cable to the piezo if you are going to use an amplifier! Thanks for the info!
THIS MIGHT BE THE BEST VIDEO EVER!!!
hahahaha!! the head drum....that's where I 'lost' it...
collin=geek^legend. :D
thaks for posting!
awesome as always .
Damn... I only just discovered these vids.. the mans a genius !
nice skills on the guitar
I tinkered a bit with piezo microphones to get some kind of pick up for my acoustic guitar. The frequency response is kind of gnarly in piezos... I opted to go for a mini condenser microphone instead. Sounds much better for acoustic guitar.
amazing piezo!
i wish collin whould make more vids. snif... I MISS HIM SO MUCH!
Thanks for the video! I'm going to make this with the kids today. What is the function of the each of the resistors in this circuit?
Will it work with cajon? I'm using loop effect, and it'd be easier to have such one than to have a microphone with a stand next to it. In such a case it'd be great to also have knobs for volume and tone - I need to find o video for that ;)
Looking forward to that mind reading video.
Sounds light in bass frequencies. Piezo's need a high input impedance, in the many meg ohms, to produce a good sound. I would add a larger input resistor.
+nicethugbert I'm going to test that out as I want to try and use this for my acoustic bass guitar. thanks for the info
+nicethugbert You wouldn't want that on an acoustic guitar though. Most piezo soundboard transducers already output a very high input impedance. Most manufacturers have found that keeping the input impedance of their preamps around 1Mohm is the sweet spot for allowing the best frequency response.
TOCS I did this on my acoustic and it sounds so great I did it on my brothers acoustic bass guitar
John Strauss
You tried various input impedances? Which input impedance did you find the most pleasant after experimenting?
No I did what Collin did and it work out great for me on both Acoustics I did it on.
Hello Collin, How to make a piezo crystal Wass the gateway video, Great Vid! and of corse I went looking for what I thought was going to be a vid" how to make your piezo" which I never found.
But I did come across this video, While I am sure its true making a preamp(very good instructions) But I am confused.The reason for the confusion is from watching a slew of other videos, in which, no pre-amp was made or added to the piezo. Instead, just a quarter inch female jack is attached to the leads of the piezo ( that is taped, glued to a cigar box usually) its then plugged into an amp, and lo and behold it works????????
Can you please clarify . Does both methods work? or one works better than the other.
Thank you
Collin: the NEW, more tech savvy, Kip Kay [and now with a serene voice!]
Neat. Thanks. Would have never thought of adding epoxy myself.
Whoa... That's awesome.
@dalbeersinghsohal It can definitely be done. A lot of power can be drawn from PC power supplies and get used in complex electronics applications. The PCI standard is a good example.
I'd recommend that first you build this on a breadboard before compromising the safety of your PC!
collins lab is the only reason im still subscribed, i can ignore the other girl and guy in order to occasionally get something good from collin. :)
dat waz a great video, mang!!
Very fun!
very nice job !!! so cool
This is brilliant--now I understand what I was doing wrong with my own piezo disks. But does the epoxy degrade the performance?
Collin is one of the cool musicians, he makes music with his head :D
I have a piezo laying around that I wanted to put in an electric guitar to make it sound like an acoustic (like Parker Fly or Ernie Ball MM guitars), but it was always so damn quiet. now I se that you are using a preamp circuit lol
it can also be used as a piezo tweeter :)