Multiple main/accent note colors?

[John the Savage]

While the custom mode is great, I feel like most use cases would have been better served by adding a second accent color.

When I designed LinnStrument, there was general agreement among pro musician testers that more than 2 colors is too confusing and that lighting the scale lights in one color and the root note in another was the most useful.

As one of those professional musicians, I can attest to the fact that having only two colors is more than adequate. In fact, if you're serious about being a player, I think you'll find that the more proficiency you gain on the LinnStrument, the fewer lights you'll use.

To that end, I employ just one color, simply for the purpose of general orientation, not unlike fret markers. I use the custom lighting option for this, and have but a handful of cells lit. Anything more is distracting.

Cheers!

[hardshells52]

Yeah, I'm definitely a hobbyist and not a professional.
I usually have c,f,g as my accent notes and transpose the lights around to fit the key I'm playing in.
I find it useful to have the base notes associated with major chords lit differently and also I,IV, V 's are so common in a lot of chord progressions.

[John the Savage]

I totally understand.

It's important, however, to acknowledge that those lights simply represent three fixed intervals, relative to the root and each other, the orientation of which (as seen on the grid) is always the same, no matter the key, making them particularly easy to memorize.

So, all you really need is a single point of reference (the root for instance), and you can play anything. You just have to learn the position of every interval, relative to the root.

This can be done in reasonably short order, and will ultimately set you free.

Cheers!

[LarsDaniel]

Just to chime in with a completely different color setup:

IMG_8655.jpg

First a short backstory: I recently tried out covering the playing surface with a thin stretchy fabric, and that worked really well (I intend to post separately about that, when I have played it for longer), but since I now (using the default note lights) had no visual grid lines, the surface being uniformly black, I felt that the notes with no light became too vaguely defined (or rather, only defined by the surrounding lights).

So therefore I have tested this setup, where all lights are on. So, an octave has four blue, four red and four yellow notes. The lowest of the four blue is white, to mark the C notes.
(In the photo, not all the C notes are white, but that is due to a shutter speed that is a bit too fast to capture a full cycle of the colors. Sorry for that confusion )

For me this really works well. I feel that every note is defined in a good way, and on some level if feels satisfying for me that the notes are now "liberated" from the white key/black key paradigm.
I kind of doubt that anybody else will go for this layout, but I guess my point is that there are many ways to fry a chicken. Also, I think if you play a lot (and in various keys without using any kind of transpose crutches), the less the lights will ultimatively matter. They become the overall orientation guide, not a "play these notes" guide.

[John the Savage]

Also, I think if you play a lot (and in various keys without using any kind of transpose crutches), the less the lights will ultimatively matter. They become the overall orientation guide, not a "play these notes" guide.

I agree. This is the point that I'm always trying to get across.

With respect to having ALL the lights on at once though, if (like me) you perform live, I have found that having too many cells lit can be rather blinding on a darkened stage.

Of course, I have a stock white playing surface. Perhaps that wouldn't be the case, with that black fabric overlay.

Anyway, just something to consider.

Cheers!

[LarsDaniel]

With respect to having ALL the lights on at once though, if (like me) you perform live, I have found that having too many cells lit can be rather blinding on a darkened stage.

Of course, I have a stock white playing surface. Perhaps that wouldn't be the case, with that black fabric overlay.

Anyway, just something to consider.

Cheers!

Yes, the black fabric takes quite a bit of light, so in a dark room it is very well balanced. But in very bright light (outside) it may not be so good. Have not tried that yet.

[John the Savage]

Hard to say. Even with the white translucent surface, I find the lights almost invisible in the daylight, particularly when the stage isn't covered. In that regard, however, I just need the faintest hint of an accent, for the sake of orienting myself at a glance.

Now I'm curious. It seems a toss up. Either you'll find the lights too dim, due to the diminished amplitude; or it might be that the black fabric actually cuts down the reflection of ambient light, allowing you to see the lit cells more clearly.

Cheers!

[FranklyFlawless]

First a short backstory: I recently tried out covering the playing surface with a thin stretchy fabric, and that worked really well (I intend to post separately about that, when I have played it for longer), but since I now (using the default note lights) had no visual grid lines, the surface being uniformly black, I felt that the notes with no light became too vaguely defined (or rather, only defined by the surrounding lights).

I appreciate you trying out the fabric idea. I had significant performance inconsistencies with no lights since there was no tactile feedback anymore for me to rely on; I had to drop the idea and experimented with all sorts of light layouts thereafter. Currently I just keep it on the default "C" major scale with the tritone layout.

I notice the fabric you are using diffuses the lights in a similar manner to the silicone, in contrast with the bamboo fabic I use, which just passes straight through as a narrow beam.

So therefore I have tested this setup, where all lights are on. So, an octave has four blue, four red and four yellow notes. The lowest of the four blue is white, to mark the C notes.
(In the photo, not all the C notes are white, but that is due to a shutter speed that is a bit too fast to capture a full cycle of the colors. Sorry for that confusion )

For me this really works well. I feel that every note is defined in a good way, and on some level if feels satisfying for me that the notes are now "liberated" from the white key/black key paradigm.
I kind of doubt that anybody else will go for this layout, but I guess my point is that there are many ways to fry a chicken. Also, I think if you play a lot (and in various keys without using any kind of transpose crutches), the less the lights will ultimatively matter. They become the overall orientation guide, not a "play these notes" guide.

The light layout I was recently using before had a similar theme to yours: the first column is light blue (accent); the second column is blue (right); the third column is green (left); then repeats in that order for the remainder of the playing surface. Unlike your layout, mine is intentionally designed for playing certain notes based on my own interpretation of music theory, and helps me stay in functional harmony.

Unfortunately my proficiency of the LinnStrument is not as adept as I would like it to be using this light layout, so I have gone back to using the default "C" major scale layout for now until it is clear I have sufficiently mastered this one first and internally muscle memorized it.

[Roger_Linn]

Hi Lars & Frank,

I take it as a high compliment that you both consider LinnStrument close enough to your ideal instrument that you've chosen it to make the customizations you have. It's very cool to see.

[LarsDaniel]

I notice the fabric you are using diffuses the lights in a similar manner to the silicone, in contrast with the bamboo fabic I use, which just passes straight through as a narrow beam.

And there is a good reason for that: It is the silicone plus fabric on top.

The performance is really good - like I don't feel any negatives like less sensitivity.

The story is, that I had simply worn through the top coating of the silicon on some of the most central notes. This is not likely to happen to most users, but I have played *a lot*, and just like any guitar eventually will need new frets if it is used a lot, so might the coating eventually be worn through.
Anyway, you have no doubt if this happens, because the friction of the worn down spots will be super high (like the backside of the silicone surface). I wonder if I might be the first one to have gone through the coating? If so, that should be indicative, that it is indeed a very good coating.
Anyway, as I already have my plastic strip mod that removes the vertical gaps (which I am super happy with), I thought I might as well see if it would work to just stretch a thin jersey type of fabric over the surface.
The cool thing about using stretch fabric is that installation is super easy as there is no measuring needed. You just put it under the top plate, tighten one side, stretch it, tighten the other side, then stretch and tighten vertictly. (Screws go right through it, after a poke with a thin screwdriver.) And then use a sharp knife to cut away the excess fabric. A 20 minute job.

As to feel/performance I would not say I gain anything in relation to the normal surface plus my stripped gaps mod, but what I gain is a surface that I can simply renew whenever needed, and that at an extremely low cost.

(Oh, one note about the silicone surface and wear: Be sure to only play with as short nails as possible. I have probably not always been 100% strict about that, and it is quite obvious to me now, that any nail contact gives a lot more wear that only skin.)

[John the Savage]

Hey Lars,

Are you aware that the formulation of the newer surfaces is slipperier and more durable?

Anyway, like you, I wore through the coating on the original surface in fairly short order, but have yet see any measurable wear on the one I'm rocking now.

Cheers!

[LarsDaniel]

Hey Lars,

Are you aware that the formulation of the newer surfaces is slipperier and more durable?

Anyway, like you, I wore through the coating on the original surface in fairly short order, but have yet see any measurable wear on the one I'm rocking now.

Cheers!

Yup, it is the newest generation of coating that I have.