Approaching: norns

[stevieraysean]

Just wow. This thing looks great. Well done to everyone involved.

[capogreco]

4 x USB ports for devices

could that potentially include usb mic?

this would be really neat as it would let you use a condenser mic without needing a preamp / 48V etc.

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edit: also, what sort of microphone is this?

[rknLA]

I believe that’s an Oktava MK 012, which iirc, around the early 2000s were inexplicably cheap (around $100) for how decent they sounded

[simonvanderveldt]

Also, wrt to the eurorack/norns interface, in an earlier post I suggested using a class-compliant USB audio device which would connect to norns via USB. This seems to jibe with this statemen by @tehn :
…
The trick is that the particular device I’m thinking about 6 would transmit audio to norns (not MIDI), and would receive the signal back through the same USB connection.

The reason I persist in my question is that I suspect crow will communicate with norns via a similar class-compliant USB audio device connection.

Would writing an alt-firmware mean changing a startup script so that it would choose a different audio device at startup? Or does it mean writing a whole new audio driver for the OS?

We’ve enabled all USB audio drivers that are available in the Linux kernel. So any USB audio device that’s supported by the Linux kernel should work on a technical/kernel level. Your best bet is a USB HID/class-compliant USB soundcard, luckily more and more USB soundcards are becoming class compliant

Since a very good soundcard is part of norns doing something with USB audio devices hasn’t been a focus point, so it’s not part of the default workflow to switch to a USB audio device.
But like has been mentioned before it’s still “regular” Linux, so anyone that wants to can login to norns and change the settings so audio would make use of a USB audio device.

4 x USB ports for devices

could that potentially include usb mic?

this would be really neat as it would let you use a condenser mic without needing a preamp / 48V etc.

The same as mentioned above for outputs should go for inputs

Hope this helps

[capogreco]

Hope this helps

technically possible is the best kind of possible

around the early 2000s were inexplicably cheap (around $100)

wow - nice. but yeah it is a condenser, so there must be a pre-amp in the signal chain, somewhere out of frame

[nitefish]

Sorry, off topic but I cannot find this m4l app…
Any link, please?

[Leverkusen]

i’ll do my best to fully address questions posted here— thank you again for your patience.

I am slowly getting more intrigued by norns. It is a beautiful device and there actually is something about taking SC out of the computer when something instrument like is created and just play it on a battery powered device with Arc and Grid and headphones on. Plus being independent from OS and Max updates on the computer would be a huge step forward as I never got the existing monome apps to work reliably within my setup.

Also I very much appreciate the provided notion not to immediately order just for the sake of it but wait until it becomes more clear if it can really do what one is wishing from it. Therefore I have some questions, hoping to get a better idea of norns:

1. Crow looks like a very useful addition to connect to a modular synth. Am I right that 2 in / 4 outs mean that one can clock / CV norns from the modular and also the other way round? And looking at portability is there any possibility for a standalone crow, USB-powered by norns to sync with another desktop device (or even a mod to incorporate crow functionality into norns)?

1b. You did mention small DIY circuits like a USB pedal. Would a USB clock output be possible as a minimal sync opportunity? EDIT: Hoppla, seems that this does already exist: EDIT2: I removed the link to the USB-MIDI2CV after it was brought to my attention that the manufacturer might not be trustworthy.

2. Will the scripts be editable on the go? I understand that the screen is a bit small to write whole scripts and the browser option looks great, but just in case one is off road and notices that there is a controller misaligned or some other minor improvement could be done - is it possible then to plug in a keyboard and fix something without connecting norns to a computer?

3. Reading that some variation of Kria is within the factory scipts I assume that scripts using multiple grid pages are possible - is it a realistic option to program something like monome sum? A collection of small instruments to use in parallel - adequately suited to processor power of course.

4. Is it possible to use paypal when ordering?

Thanks in advance!

[pwp]

probably a daft question, however, will norns be compatible with a 2012 monome sixty four and a 2013 monome arc 4?

[glia]

@tehn - that was a terrific performance in your intro video.

i agree completely

i’ve only just gotten to enjoy it creatively over the last few weeks

it’s really promising that you could so quickly craft something that beautiful with this system
i love the mlr demo!

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glad to hear pricing was in the range i expected

i’m most smitten by battery power
& built in output recorder
& fun 1st and 2nd party apps like mlr straight out of the box

my main question wrt storage…why only 4gb? is it upgradeable?

[objectgroup]

built this already (can add a few features). alvin where’ve you been???

In a cave.

Actually traveling a lot so looking forward to a battery powered control/processing gadget

In New York later next week but I’ll miss y’all at commend unfortunately.

[objectgroup]

Sorry, off topic but I cannot find this m4l app…
Any link, please?

I believe I got it here: I actually ported something to m4l

[tehn]

USB soundcards operate at USB speeds. the internal i2s soundcard provide excellent latency.

re: the mic and the video, there’s a mixer behind the metallophone to amp the signal. need a mobile preamp.

Crow looks like a very useful addition to connect to a modular synth. Am I right that 2 in / 4 outs mean that one can clock / CV norns from the modular and also the other way round? And looking at portability is there any possibility for a standalone crow, USB-powered by norns to sync with another desktop device (or even a mod to incorporate crow functionality into norns)?

first part, yes re: sync. second part, portable standalone, no. you can likely already sync with computers with various other methods-- the first that comes to mind is OSC. of course that’s wifi so latency is an issue. the other is midi.

re 1b, perfect.

Will the scripts be editable on the go? I understand that the screen is a bit small to write whole scripts and the browser option looks great, but just in case one is off road and notices that there is a controller misaligned or some other minor improvement could be done - is it possible then to plug in a keyboard and fix something without connecting norns to a computer?

that’s not planned for the immediate release. when on the go the main intention is to play.

controller mapping schemes will likely be tunable via the menu interface-- we have some ideas for this and they’ll certainly develop with more people’s opinions.

and last: we’re not set up for paypal, i’m sorry.

probably a daft question, however, will norns be compatible with a 2012 monome sixty four and a 2013 monome arc 4?

those will work.

why only 4gb? is it upgradeable?

the compute module (SoC we chose) has this as the max option. there will likely be a bigger/faster in the coming years that can swap in.

but there’s USB, so you can add a huge file system. i haven’t yet integrated this into the file nav but it’s pretty trivial.

[nitefish]

Thank you!
And of course, I spent a lot of time on this thread…

[kin.sventa]

Reading that some variation of Kria is within the factory scipts I assume that scripts using multiple grid pages are possible - is it a realistic option to program something like monome sum? A collection of small instruments to use in parallel - adequately suited to processor power of course.

@tehn

Wondering this myself, mostly the part about running a few instruments together. Mlr, kria and earthsea would be a dream come true. Thanks again for all your hard work and your responsiveness.

[pwp]

thank you for responding - i’m in for the second run.

[tehn]

is it a realistic option to program something like monome sum? A collection of small instruments to use in parallel - adequately suited to processor power of course.

multi-page grid instruments are no problem— i’ve done that already. but arbitrarily combining scripts at the same time is not something i’m exploring right now. there’s no reason it can’t be done— it’d just require a lot of infrastructure to make sure everything works together.

so in short, maybe, in the future.

[madeinspace]

I’m sure they can do something about that

[instantjuggler]

this thread came in the middle of a 10 day residency where i’m working 18 hour days creating a juggling show about aliens…

and yet, the highlight of each day is getting home and seeing the “norns news” with each new reveal. i have to say i’m kind of speechless- technically i guess i’m just excited about having a device that won’t break and require hours upon hours (days, weeks) of troubleshooting every time apple decides to push an upgrade. i already have to buy discreet machines for each project and put them on ice once they are setup for that particular show. just yesterday i was sad about having to buy yet again another dedicated laptop to run the aliens show, such a waste.

but also, i can’t believe how much fun this has been already, to see this whole discussion! tomorrow will be exciting, and i know this thread will continue to grow each day after. but its been so much fun to see all the passion here, about new things, and new possibilities. maybe i just need some other different hobbies, but damn, this has all been the most inspiring ride ever!!! what a time to be alive!

norns is alive

[karst]

the highlight of each day is getting home and seeing the “norns news” with each new reveal

I also want to take a minute to appreciate this release’s approach. Not only is a slow and gradual reveal entirely appropriate for a instrument that will grow and morph over its life, but it is very unique in today’s world of product launches (as you can see from all the superbooth announcements this week).

Thanks for doing things the uniquely monome way. It’s really nice.

[grey]

But a tiny module that is scriptable and bridges USB, i2c and CV is of immediate interest to me

I will probably get in on Norns eventually, but right now I am incredibly excited about Crows. I’ve been thinking about a headless teletype a lot recently. I am so pumped for more news about it!