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Path: utzoo!linus!wivax!decvax!harpo!seismo!rlgvax!cvl!umcp-cs!chris
From: chris@umcp-cs.UUCP
Newsgroups: net.music
Subject: Re: Summary of musical instrument technology developments
Message-ID: <163@umcp-cs.UUCP>
Date: Tue, 14-Jun-83 18:48:57 EDT
Article-I.D.: umcp-cs.163
Posted: Tue Jun 14 18:48:57 1983
Date-Received: Thu, 16-Jun-83 06:28:46 EDT
References: <501@pyuxjj.UUCP>
Organization: Univ. of Maryland, Computer Science Dept.
Lines: 28

Say, here's an idea:  get a bunch of microprocessors, tie them
together with a high-speed network, put a bunch of DACs and a mixer
on them, and use each one to produce one voice in a set.  They can
have (say) a page of memory allocated for an envelope, one page for
a set of pitch values making up the basic waveform for a particular
voice (perhaps several, if the waveshape changes with octaves, or
amplitude), a fast integer multiplier, and use them to produce easily-
tunable music!

That's a description of what we'd like to have.  What we have instead
is a network of

	lim      Z80s (currently 8)
	   n->256

on a ring network that looks like an N by N crossbar.  We've wired
up some 8255's as eight bit DACs.  Quality is lacking, but the sound
is slowly improving.  It's fun, though, to program these suckers to
zip in a tight loop dumping waves to an amplifier.  We've gotten some
not-un-respectable 4-voice pieces working.

Has anyone ever heard of something similar?  I hear there's something
called Music-11 for the PDP-11, which could probably outdo those pokey
Z80s, even with one for each voice.  It would also be nice to have more
than 8 bits of DAC.  I'd be interested in hearing more about Music-11,
or anything like it.

		- Chris ({seismo,allegra}!umcp-cs!chris)