We haven't abandoned anything, but Sylphyo updates have definitely taken a backseat. That said, the synth engine in the Sylphyo is unable to run a physical model as good as SWAM woodwinds (which runs on powerful, battery-hungry computers), that's just a hardware limitation.
As you forgot the link, I'm posting it here: W. Duch - music recordings.
If I understand correctly, what you @wx-is-dead are asking is to have a setting on the Sylphyo so that breath impacts pitch-bend as well.
Would it be OK to have a single setting, or does it need to be customized for each sound?
If a single setting is OK, what settings would you need to make it work? I'm not really sure what would be needed: starting from a lower pitch up to the exact played note some breath intensity but stopping at that, or having the possibility to go higher if blowing past some point? Is it important to set the curve?
To design something that could work for you we would need the clearest and most precise description of the behavior you want you could possibly write. Don't hesitate to show videos, diagrams, and to write in Dutch and translate in English using ChatGPT or DeepL if it's easier for you, as long as it helps you be as clear and precise as possible.
@Peter-Ostry "Setting several parameters after each sound change is unacceptable. That's why I hardly ever play the internal sounds, but mostly software instruments." Do you mean that the internal sounds don't remember slider positions?
This sound is based on a physical model that, by nature, has a fixed note range, so it can't really be changed.
My personal opinion is that I'd rather have generic markings or fine creases on the wood than specialized overlays, because switching quickly from one mode to another is one of the strengths of the Loom, and having to change overlays while changing modes invalidates that a bit.
But I also get the value of overlays in making the learning experience less of a hassle.
@dainiak I'm not the best person to say, so take this with a grain of salt, but I don't think adding an overlay would be an issue for sensing. In any case, the sensors will be calibrated to support it.
@Peter-Ostry When you say "the musically relevant features should be refined precisely for this purpose", anything specific comes to mind?
I'm arriving late to the party, and @ErikOnSax you made great points.
The Sylphyo has very much outlived its initial purpose, that of a simple beginner's instrument, whose design, in retrospect, bears witness of our lack of understanding of the market and our own capabilities and sensibilities. Put simply, that was our first product :).
There is nothing we would like more than releasing a proper "Pro" version of the Sylphyo, or at least a huge firmware update, and there are many pieces of R&D already in place, but material reality being what it is, this is a project we cannot afford to tackle right now.
After the Loom and Omega are shipped, sure, but right now, the best we can hope for is to squeeze a few firmware updates here and there. But these updates don't have to be inconsequential, so we're glad we can hear about all the trouble people have with their Sylphyo and what more they want from it.
Concerning the keys, you certainly aren't alone in needing more keys to be able to play faster. While we wait for a new Sylphyo, there are some things that can be done.
Two years ago, a few people started to experiment with copper adhesive tape to extend the sensing area of some keys to be a bit more comfortable, and they quickly realized that if the firmware allowed it, they could be able to repurpose octave keys they didn't use on the back to materialize new playing keys on the front. A few mails later, I was informed of the idea and started working on a beta, trying things with my own dev Sylphyo:
The last v1.5.0 includes a Copper Mod beta option to try this if you're using 3 or 3(+2) octaves and you're on the Sax/Sax alt/EWI fingerings: the + key will work as a Bb bis key, and the - key as a low C key, you just need to "reroute" them using copper tape.
Yeah, it's a big ugly hack, it looks atrocious (it could certainly be done much better, I don't care, nobody sees my Sylphyo), but it works and it could be useful to you.
Another thing that people do is simply to try and learn Sylphyo-specific fingerings. For instance, in the Sax fingering family there are a few alternatives for Bb (XxoxOoooO) or high D (XooxOoooO), Eb (XoooOooxO) and E (XooxOooxO) that could help. Others transition to the EWI fingering and develop their own shortcuts.
Again, we understand these are stopgap solutions, but they exist today, and if you think of other things we could add today, I'd love to know. The more detail the better.
About the Duduk sound, it wasn't meant to be released because it has a few bugs (squeaks) and it still has them, but we could put it back as it is in an upcoming release.
We're currently figuring out what our strategy will be for visual guidance. Ideas welcome!
I took the liberty to move your topic to the new Loom category ;).
Sorry for the confusion. You can use the new patches with v1.2.0, as the update only features the new patches. You can download the factory bank here, or individual patches here. They are also included in the update package.
@Wlodzislaw This update is compatible with all Sylphyos.
We had a chance to try the R1 recently. It is very nice to hold and the lights are neat. It is targeted at beginners and occasional players with very low expectations regarding performance and quality, and the sound set is aimed at the asian market.
To me, the NodeBB developers are clearly better at making claims than fulfilling them. I don't believe their moderation tools are unparalleled. Discourse looks like a much better engine overall.
We already do IP and some email pattern blocking. User moderation is more difficult than it sounds because these bots arrive in huge numbers and have become quite sophisticated. Often they sign up with just a name and an inconspicuous email (typical actual users of this forum also have weird emails, which makes the distinction more difficult), and they stay like this doing nothing for a random period of time, only to "reactivate" one day by sometimes putting a photo, a website, and then posting spam.
Anyway, yes, there remains a human element where we haven't put enough effort yet. The best thing would be to approve new topics, but it means we should organize to guarantee a maximum response time in order to avoid stifling new discussions.