Recenty, Taylor Holliday – creator of Audulus for iPad and Mac – said that he was considering porting the Audulus audio engine to the OWL, a £165 open-source, open-hardware programmable effects pedal.
The basic idea behind the OWL is that it’s a powerful audio computer built into a stompbox pedal. It’s being funded as a Kickstarter project and is already fully funded. And, since it’s based on open source software and open hardware designs, any developer can create software to run on it.
That’s where Audulus comes in.
Holliday is considering porting the audio engine behind Audulus to the OWL.
“So, you’d patch on the Mac (or maybe iPad), assign the pedal’s knobs, and download the patch to the pedal,” he explains.
Instead of needing to know how to program in C++, you could create patches visually in the Audulus modular audio environment on your Mac or iPad. And you could use these patches in your DAW or on your iPad.
But for performing live, you could download your patch to an OWL pedal and turn your custom effect into a custom stompbox. And, because OWL is an open-hardware platform, it’s easy to imagine Euro or 5U synth modules based on the platform.
What do you think of the idea of creating modular synth patches and running them in your DAW, on an iPad or as a hardware module? Is this something you’d like to see Holliday research further?
Leave a comment and let us know what you think!
Sounds great. As long as its not a convoluted process and expensive. I’m currently influx about the future and don’t have resources to fund new gear outside a tiny “no” budget. Looking forward to this none the less. Make it cool.
I heard you like modular synthesizers so we put a modular in your module so you can modulate while you modulate.
I’d modulate that.
Where’s the moderator to moderate these modulated modular comments?
Fortunately , the number of modular comments is moderate enough to not require moderation.
If the hardware isn’t you expensive and downloading the patch to the pedal is dead easy then it sounds great. You could really easily create a very custom set of sounds/effects.
I wish all synth ‘librarian/editors” looked so easy to use, I’d be making custom presets on all my gear at the drop of a hat!
This is a big part of why knobs on synths are so important. I could REALLY get into my little phatty if it were adulus compatible!
For me it should be stereo in and out.
PJ
If they meet their ‘stretch’ goal for funding, the OWL will be stereo in/out.
Hell yeah.
But not if it is Mac only….
why not just get a midi foot pedal and control that shit via midi/whatever?
Why use a MIDI controller and cables and an expensive computer to do something you can do with a pedal you can throw on the floor?
YES. OH my god yes … being able to use my audulus patches without needing to have a computer on stage. Yes a thousand times yes.
As I’d also want stereo in/out , it would probably price the unit so near to an ipad mini that I’d get the ipad mini ! …. to run Audulus as an effect , as well as be able to run other music apps and use it generally for lots of other ipadish tasks .
Also , am I right in thinking OWL = 385 Mhz , Ipad mini = dual x 1Ghz ?
Edit^^^^ Owl = 168 Mhz
I have to unplug it and plug it into a computer to put in a different effect? If so, that’s dumb.
Fantastic idea. I’m waiting for an OWL, and already use Audulus. Link the two? Yes please, yes please.
Why not port PureData and be done with it for the first cut? As I understand it the OWL at this point is more a proof of concept than a full-fledged product, so people might expect more than it will be able to offer eventually. Anyway, great to hear that the funding campaign was successful. Now I’m looking forward to someone starting a project to replace the Nord Modular G1/G2. A digital modular synth in a box with enough memory and processing power to implement nice effects including quaility reverbs and long delays, an open firmware, an open host communication protocol, an open editor that’s truely cross platform. Sorry for hijacking this discussion, but a man can dream, can he not?
That would be amazing! I’ve been wanting a good way to create effects pedals. Over time I might have to get more than one owl.
It would also be nice to see them add an expression pedal connection.
Only if the controls were real-time. Downloading patches would be much less useful/fun playing live.
TT, that’s a good point. My ideal workflow would be to have Audulus always updating the patch running on the Owl. It might be hard to accomplish when I get into the details, but that’s what I’m aiming for 🙂
cheers
– Taylor (Audulus Developer)
I am thinking that this http://www.digitech.com/en-US/products/istomp
is kinda a same story.
Bu I do not use apple!
Is there a way to make the pedal programmable from windows pc?
then it would be a great chioce.
This software is obviously not for you.
I’d buy one.