5 ms·

He is currently working on the 3rd evolution of the marble machine and posts build updates on this YouTube channel. Interesting intersection of music and machin

He is currently working on the 3rd evolution of the marble machine and posts build updates on this YouTube channel. Interesting intersection of music and machining content.

kzrdude 3y ago
What happened to his 2nd evolution of it, that one was being built for a long time too?
- fl7305 3y ago
  It is up and running in a music museum in Germany.
- proteal 3y ago
  I haven’t followed it too closely, but he posted a video saying that previous iterations of the machine didn’t make good music. They were really loud (mechanical noise drowned out musical noise) and didn’t play music in time. In fact, the video from the submission has had its audio significantly edited to sound pleasing. I believe he posted the raw audio a few months ago in a video. His current design looks much more promising.
  - vintermann 3y ago
    I think it was also throughput and reliability issues. He gave up on it in connection with a marble tube bursting.
    - DrSiemer 3y ago
      The guys that actually finished it also agreed that it would not have been possible to tour with this iteration of the machine.
- deleted 3y ago
  [deleted]
- kibwen 3y ago
  It's a bit of a touchy subject. It's clear that he's a brilliant musician and self-motivated to the brink of mania, but he struggles with perfectionism and his insistence on reinventing the entire field of mechanical engineering from scratch precludes him ever actually finishing the project to his own impossible standards. If he didn't have a huge community of experienced, fascinated, and often frustrated engineers and manufacturers pointing out his most egregious missteps, he'd be sunk. The past near-decade has involved being sucked into fractal rabbit holes due to unknown-unknowns while obsessing over imperceptible details. The second machine was thrown out entirely and he started from scratch in an attempt to fix what he saw as fundamental flaws with it, and while his process with the third machine seemed promising at first, at this point it doesn't seem like he's really any closer to success. His videos are often entertaining (he's very charismatic and enthusiastic), and you'll learn a decent amount about engineering. But the most important thing that you'll learn are the unstated lessons: the necessity of compromise and the importance of setting measurable and realistic goals if you ever hope to actually achieve a given result. Though if nothing else, I applaud him for being so open with his efforts, especially when things don't pan out like he was expecting.
  - windowshopping 3y ago
    You know, I always remembered the Wintergatan Marble Machine and occasionally idly wondered why I never again saw anything new from someone who must surely be incredibly talented. This explains that.
    - kibwen 3y ago
      Here's something of his that's entirely unrelated to marbles, it's a handheld modular synthesizer of his own design with an analogue fretboard that he calls a "modulin": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QaW5K85UDR0 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QaW5K85UDR0
      - mock-possum 3y ago
        Reminds me of an Otamatone!
- DrSiemer 3y ago
  The second machine turned out to be unfit for one of the main goals: live performances. Following Martin's journey has been a privilege. His honest insights on the struggle of trying to balance hard design requirements with keeping that which made the original project fun and playful have been insightful and fascinating.
- spamatica 3y ago
  The second one is being completed (as far as I understand) by a team in germany at a music machine museum (Musikkabinett). Their channel: https://www.youtube.com/@Musikkabinett https://www.youtube.com/@Musikkabinett
  - deleted 3y ago
    [deleted]
- Waterluvian 3y ago
  His MMX video blog is the textbook go-to example for letting perfect be the enemy of good.
gexaha 3y ago
was there any other music done except for this track?
- boxed 3y ago
  Don't know about the original, but there are some music on the channel with unfinished versions of the v2 machine.

He is currently working on the 3rd evolution of the marble machine and posts build updates on this YouTube channel. Interesting intersection of music and machining content.

kzrdude 3y ago

What happened to his 2nd evolution of it, that one was being built for a long time too?

fl7305 3y ago
It is up and running in a music museum in Germany.
proteal 3y ago
I haven’t followed it too closely, but he posted a video saying that previous iterations of the machine didn’t make good music. They were really loud (mechanical noise drowned out musical noise) and didn’t play music in time. In fact, the video from the submission has had its audio significantly edited to sound pleasing. I believe he posted the raw audio a few months ago in a video. His current design looks much more promising.
- vintermann 3y ago
  I think it was also throughput and reliability issues. He gave up on it in connection with a marble tube bursting.
  - DrSiemer 3y ago
    The guys that actually finished it also agreed that it would not have been possible to tour with this iteration of the machine.
deleted 3y ago
[deleted]
kibwen 3y ago
It's a bit of a touchy subject. It's clear that he's a brilliant musician and self-motivated to the brink of mania, but he struggles with perfectionism and his insistence on reinventing the entire field of mechanical engineering from scratch precludes him ever actually finishing the project to his own impossible standards. If he didn't have a huge community of experienced, fascinated, and often frustrated engineers and manufacturers pointing out his most egregious missteps, he'd be sunk. The past near-decade has involved being sucked into fractal rabbit holes due to unknown-unknowns while obsessing over imperceptible details. The second machine was thrown out entirely and he started from scratch in an attempt to fix what he saw as fundamental flaws with it, and while his process with the third machine seemed promising at first, at this point it doesn't seem like he's really any closer to success. His videos are often entertaining (he's very charismatic and enthusiastic), and you'll learn a decent amount about engineering. But the most important thing that you'll learn are the unstated lessons: the necessity of compromise and the importance of setting measurable and realistic goals if you ever hope to actually achieve a given result. Though if nothing else, I applaud him for being so open with his efforts, especially when things don't pan out like he was expecting.
- windowshopping 3y ago
  You know, I always remembered the Wintergatan Marble Machine and occasionally idly wondered why I never again saw anything new from someone who must surely be incredibly talented. This explains that.
  - kibwen 3y ago
    Here's something of his that's entirely unrelated to marbles, it's a handheld modular synthesizer of his own design with an analogue fretboard that he calls a "modulin": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QaW5K85UDR0 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QaW5K85UDR0
    - mock-possum 3y ago
      Reminds me of an Otamatone!
DrSiemer 3y ago
The second machine turned out to be unfit for one of the main goals: live performances. Following Martin's journey has been a privilege. His honest insights on the struggle of trying to balance hard design requirements with keeping that which made the original project fun and playful have been insightful and fascinating.
spamatica 3y ago
The second one is being completed (as far as I understand) by a team in germany at a music machine museum (Musikkabinett). Their channel: https://www.youtube.com/@Musikkabinett https://www.youtube.com/@Musikkabinett
- deleted 3y ago
  [deleted]
Waterluvian 3y ago
His MMX video blog is the textbook go-to example for letting perfect be the enemy of good.

gexaha 3y ago

was there any other music done except for this track?

boxed 3y ago
Don't know about the original, but there are some music on the channel with unfinished versions of the v2 machine.