Dan Layne created this wacky video syth Flash file. It just keeps on giving and giving.

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Early stages of a commisioned "contrptionist" work. A wind -up "spirograph" machine. Just finished the drive gear mechanism.

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Patrick held another E3 salon - this time the theme was up for grabs. Here you can hear Alex Dyba's custom precision timer circuit going to town on a chanting box. The wheel is unaffected by the bending... but then so is the wheel of Dharma....

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On an October Sunday, Roth Mobot's Patrick McCarthy hosted one of his E3 Salons at his home (Experimental Electronics Engineering Salon).

The subject of this particular salon was Portable CD Player Hacking. The guest list was a cross section of the Midwest's Hackers Who's Who. Fueled by chocolate covered bacon, tater tots, mimosas, and MGDs, we spent seven hours experimenting with GetLoFi.com's excellent "precision timer" circuits to tweak the digital clocks of the CD players and fussing with the CD players' Anti-Skip RAM buffering systems.

This particular video is of Patrick's "Ugly Spider," a classically hacked, "bleed the leads" style, CD player with a primitive patch bay that is played with clip leads.

Special thanks for the notes from XDUGEF, an officianado on CD player hacking.

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Roth Mobot, the circuit bent duo of Tommy stephenson and Patrick McCarthy, takes the stage at the Mockbee Arts Center in Cincinnati after a lecture by the Father of Circuit Bending, Reed Ghazala, as part of the 2008 Circuitastrophe Symposium

We were fortunate enough to have Nebula Girl operate our circuit bent video device, the "Araot."

This is merely an excerpt from the performance. For more info go to RothMobot.com.

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review

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A 120 second sampler circuit bent to over ten minutes in length!

There is a 555 timer subcircuit that injects the main circuit clock with voltage pulses (compliments of GetLoFi.com).

The four knobs are On-Off/Volume, Pitch, Length, and Frequency.

The yellow alligator clip lead on the left serves as the 555 timer's On/Off switch but will eventually be replaced by a three pole rotary switch to select Mode (Regular, Bent, Modulated). This will result in a fifth knob. We could eliminate the Length knob and replace it with an internal fixed resistor.

See www.RothMobot.com for more information on Circuit Bending, Roth Mobot, and contact information.

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Will Swyter and Patrick McCarthy were playing around with a vintage reel to reel tape deck and captured a tape loop of random speech from the radio.

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This is a short video of some of the toys and experimental electronic devices we have constructed out of other peoples' garbage. The demonstration was at the BENT Festival in Minneapolis.

To reduce our Carbon footprint, we recycle discarded technology into art and unique musical instruments.

Our ensemble, Roth Mobot, further reduces Carbon emissions by conducting Virtual Performances around the world via the Internet. Thus avoiding airlines and rental car traffic - a far more convenient, economical, and environmentally responsible approach to performance art.

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Roth Mobot's music juxtaposes improvised slow dark ambient drones, accompanied by languid melodies punctuated by randomly generated rhythms and percussive accidents, with the poignant, and often humorous, language of toys and common discarded electronic devices.

Check out their web site and workshop schedule at www.RothMobot.com and mySpace.com/RothMobot.

Thanks to Creme DeMentia for the video.

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First section of Tommy Stephenson and Patrick McCarthy performing live on home made experimental electronic devices. Thanks to Creme DeMentia for the video. See Roth Mobot's web site and learn about their experimental electronics workshops at RothMobot.com and mySpace.com/RothMobot.

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