Abstract: An electronic vibrato system for a stringed instrument comprises an actuator and microcontroller which are disposed within a chassis. The control arm moves the actuator from a resting position to non-resting, rotated positions. The system is below a face of a stringed instrument such that the system has a disposed fulcrum within the instrument. The rotated positions impart resistive forces on said actuator and imparting control signals. The microcontroller processes said control signal and modulates pitch.

Abstract: A tremolo device for electric guitars including: a) a tremolo mount resiliently mountable on a guitar body adjacent at least one string and the tremolo mount selectively moveable relative to the guitar body; b) a string mount mounted on the tremolo mount in order to receive an end of at least one string of a guitar and the string mount having separate limited movement to the selective movement of the tremolo mount and allow the at least one string to be tunably tensioned; wherein the resilient mounting of the tremolo mount is at least partially decoupled from the tensioned string held by the string mount.

Abstract: Sonic improvement for all stringed instruments that employ a fulcrum tremolo bridge system with back of instrument counter tensioning springs. The improvement is provided by securing the spring retaining claw assembly of said system to a flat plate of material which in turn is secured to the instrument body. The presence of the plate will enhance the sound quality of said instrument in a perceivable way to the human ear.

Abstract: A rod-shaped electronic percussion instrument is provided. A rod-shaped percussion instrument, which has a striking surface made of an elastic material in a substantially rectangular shape when viewed from above, is characterized in including: a plate-shaped member, which is made of a hard material in a substantially rectangular shape and is elastically supported by a position facing a bottom surface side of the striking surface; and two sensors, which are disposed on a surface side of the plate-shaped member and detect a vibration due to striking on the striking surface, wherein the two sensors are connected to electrically combine detection signals detected by the sensors and output the same.

Abstract: An ergonomic, portable, electronic, string-like instrument that utilizes a pseudo-string interface. The pseudo-string interface is tactile for sightless playability and capable of advanced input such as force and pressure sensitivity. The pseudo-strings function to select a note, trigger a selected note, select and play a note on the instrument or an external peripheral. The instrument is played using the techniques of multiple other stringed instruments and the ergonomics allow the user to hold and handle the device consistent with traditional and non-traditional playing techniques familiar to musicians of various instruments. It is internally or externally powered and connects directly to industry-standard musical hardware such as MIDI devices, amplifiers and multi-track recorders.

Abstract: A removable inline signal interrupter having a male/female combination plug, the male portion of the plug insertable into an electric guitar output receptacle, the female portion of the male/female plug having an internal negative-negative connection and an internal positive-positive connection, the positive-positive connection extending externally from the female portion of the male/female plug, and having a spring loaded on/off switch incorporated into the circuitry, the female portion of the male/female plug serving as a receptacle for the insertion of a male plug from the amplifier, the spring-loaded on/off lever switch allowing the guitarist to selectively interrupt the signal from the guitar to the amplifier.

Abstract: A removable inline signal interrupter having a male/female combination plug, the male portion of the plug insertable into an electric guitar output receptacle, the female portion of the male/female plug having an internal negative-negative connection and an internal positive-positive connection, the positive-positive connection extending externally from the female portion of the male/female plug, and having an inline minimum volume dial and spring loaded on/off switch incorporated into the circuitry, the female portion of the male/female plug serving as a receptacle for the insertion of a male plug from the amplifier, the spring-loaded on/off lever switch allowing the guitarist to selectively interrupt the signal from the guitar to the amplifier.

Abstract: A sound determination unit previously divides sound into a low sound range for first sound, a middle sound range for second sound, and a high sound range for third sound by its frequency band. When sound information detected by the microphone is inputted to the sound determination unit, the sound determination unit determines whether the frequency band of that sound information is in the predetermined low sound range or not. When it is in the low sound range, a signal to operate a first vibrator is generated from a first controller. When it is in the middle sound range, a signal to operate a second vibrator is generated from a second controller. When it is in the high sound range, a signal to operate a third vibrator is generated from a third controller.

Abstract: A musical instrument, having a monitor therein, contains a musical instrument body having a body cavity therein, and the monitor having a front face and a back, where the monitor fits within the body cavity of the musical instrument body. A screen cover is situated above the front face of the monitor and a cover plate positions the screen cover above the front face of the monitor, where the cover plate covers at least a portion of the screen cover. A bridge is located on a front face of the screen cover, where the bridge contains a pickup that does not use electromagnetic induction, and that senses vibrations of strings, suspended on said bridge, above the monitor, and translates the vibrations into audio signals.

Abstract: In a power amplifier, a control device employing a dual ganged potentiometer is connected in the feedback circuits of successive amplifier stages to increase the gain of the front end stage while simultaneously reducing the gain in a subsequent stage when the control is turned down. A distortion circuit, such as a tube compression circuit, is coupled between the stages. When the control is turned down, the compression circuit is activated at a lower level that effectively reduces the output power of the second stage. Presence and resonance controls may be provided to tailor high and low frequency damping factor of the second stage and function until the compression circuitry is activated. A ripple reduction filter is provided in a filtered supply for the drivers in the second or power amplifier stage.

Abstract: A stringed instrument comprising a body and a neck, the neck having a fingerboard and a headstock and being mounted on the body and also including relatively high frets on the fingerboard. Tuning machines are mounted on the headstock and a vibrato bridge unit is mounted on the body. Strings urge the vibrato bridge unit into a quiescent, non-vibrato position. Strings are mounted between the tuning machines and the vibrato bridge unit. Strings are mounted between the tuning machines in the vibrato bridge unit, the neck having approximately a fourteen inch scale length and the strings being tuned like a violin to the notes G, D, A and E. A pick-up arrangement is mounted on the body, preferably having pole pieces which confront the strings.

Abstract: A vibrato tailpiece used with an electric guitar is operable to vary the tension of the strings about fundamental tension values and, for occasions when the string tension is so far relaxed as to permit the strings to move loosely relative to their supporting surfaces, the tailpiece includes guide means associated with each string to assure return of each string to its original position on its string supporting surface when it is returned to its fundamental tension. In this way possible de-tuning of the strings due to lateral displacement of them on their string supporting surfaces is avoided.

Abstract: A tone signal controlling apparatus for an electronic musical instrument comprising a body having a string corresponding portion, a movable performance member, and a sensor for detecting the action of the movable performance member with respect to the string corresponding portion, and generating a musical tone signal simulating a rubbed string instrument. The apparatus can control an electric signal simulating vibration of a string without any actual vibration of the string according the action of the movable performance member based on the output of the sensor, especially, by using signals representing a bow speed and a bow pressure which are applied to the string corresponding portion. Such special effects as vibrato can also be easily generated electrically. Owing to such electronic operability, the apparatus can also easily control the generation of the signal in accordance with a skill of a player.

Abstract: An electronic musical instrument having a function of selecting a musical tone parameter just before, or after during a musical performance is provided. The instrument has a first manually operable element such as a tremolo arm deflectably mounted on the main body of the instrument and positioned adjacent to stretched strings, and a second manually operable element (e.g., push button) attached to the first operational element. In one embodiment, the first element serves as a controller for varying a first musical parameter (e.g., pitch modulation) while the second element functions as another controller for varying a second, different musical parameter (e.g., tone color). In another embodiment, the second element serves as a variable function assignor for the first element. Depending on the function assigning of the first element, the second element provides a variable parameter controller (e.g., tremolo, vibrato).

Abstract: An input waveform signal representing, for example, a string oscillation is input to a pitch extraction circuit. The pitch extraction circuit extracts a pitch frequency from the input waveform signal, and this pitch frequency is input to a RAM connected to a CPU. On the other hand, LFO data from an LFO is input to a RAM. The CPU detects the amount of variation of the pitch frequency based on the pitch frequency and coverts the amount of variation of the pitch frequency in accordance with a predetermined conversion function. Thereafter the converted value is added to the LFO data to form musical sound control data for imparting a tremolo effect or a vibrato effect. The musical sound production circuit thereby imparts the above effect to the musical sound to be produced.

Abstract: A sustainer for providing sustained sounds from a musical instrument has a feedback circuit for converting a pickup signal representing a vibration of a string or other vibratory element to a drive signal and applying drive forces to the vibratory element responsive to the drive signal. The sustainer is arranged to compensate for the phase lag of the pickup signal relative to motion of the vibratory element and to compensate for the phase lag of the drive forces provided by the driver relative to the drive signal. The feedback circuit may be arranged to provide a phase difference between the drive signal and the pickup signal such that the phase difference varies with frequency towards a drive signal leading phase difference with increasing frequency. This phase compensation provides enhanced response of the strings in the fundamental mode of vibration. The driver preferably is arranged so that the drive forces applied to the strings do not vary with lateral movement of the strings.