I don't own the wireless bridge. As long as you're okay with either a USB MIDI cable or a standard headphone-style audio cable (depending on whether you're generating MIDI, audio from the Sylphyo's onboard synth, or both), wired works just as well.
I expected that I'd buy the wireless bridge, but I haven't missed it. If I was performing for live crowds, I'd probably want it.
@Sarge707 said in Sylphyo Reviews?:
Is it worth $800 US
No on can answer this question for you, even me ;-) It depends on the person -- how much do you care about $800?
The fact that you have 2 wind instruments and are considering a third tends to indicate that you value playing and enjoying instruments more than you value the cost of the instrument (at least for EWI and Aerophone). If that's an accurate summary, then this is probably a good use of $800.
(OTOH, if you were disappointed in the EWI and/or feel like it was a poor return on the cost, feel free to post more details. Maybe people will comment about whether your concern applies here.)
or should I wait for the New version with mouthpiece sensors I hear about.
… but I can answer this question for you: you shouldn't wait. Everything in the Sylphyo world is upgradeable. Even the oldest Sylphyo devices (which were purchased before a synth existed at all) could accept a synth chip, the upgrade was inexpensive, and the cost of the current mouthpiece is small (replacement mouthpieces are about $20). So, it's not like you're buying something that can't be upgraded or paying for an expensive mouthpiece you might later replace.
More than that, the current mouthpiece is extremely expressive. While there's always room for innovation, the current mouthpiece is great.
Also, the Aodyo team releases everything when they're happy with it, not due to arbitrary deadlines or release cadences. Aodyo support answered this question better than I could, but as an outsider, this isn't a MacBook where if you wait 6 months you'll always see new hardware come out. You could be waiting years :-)
Would you buy it again?
Yes.
Hope this helps,
Troy
I just wrap mine with some bubble wrap (seriously!) and then tape the bubble wrap edges so that the wrap doesn't move around. I'm usually not transporting a lot of stuff, so there's no physical pressure or weight on the Sylphyo. I just need a little protection in case it happens to bump something.
In case it helps anyone else, here's the wire brushes I've been using for cleaning:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07BBQZGVJ/
The 10mm brush is just wide enough to softly pass through the bottom air hole, so it can be used from both the mouthpiece direction and the air hole direction. When cleaning the part near the mouthpiece, I wrap the brush in a microfiber cloth.
Troy
(Veuillez pardonner à Google Traduction en français)
C'est brillant. Bon travail :-)
Je pourrais imaginer prendre un embout buccal Sylphyo standard, couper la bride ronde qui entre dans le corps, insérer une section de tuyau coudé entre l'embout buccal et la bride, et coller les 3 pièces ensemble (embout <-> coude <-> bride ).
Vous auriez besoin d'un tuyau en plastique coudé de 22,5 degrés d'environ 22 mm (environ 3/4 ") de diamètre, comme celui-ci: https://www.supplyhouse.com/Spears-416-007-3-4-PVC-Sch -40-22-5-Coude.Les coudes en PVC à 22,5 degrés sont difficiles à trouver mais ils existent.
Utiliser de l'époxy sur les bords minces serait moche mais il est facile à rendre étanche à l'air et pourrait être peint en noir.
J'adore ce que vous avez fait, cependant, et si j'avais le choix entre l'embout buccal droit actuel ou un embout incliné à 22,5 degrés, je pense que je choisirais celui coudé ou au moins en posséderais un de chaque. Merci d'avoir expérimenté et de l'avoir posté pour qu'Aodyo puisse voir :)
Troy
English version follows.
That's brilliant. Good work :-)
I could imagine taking a standard Sylphyo mouthpiece, cutting off the round flange that goes into the body, inserting an elbow pipe section between the mouthpiece and the flange, and gluing the 3 pieces all back together (mouthpiece <-> elbow <-> flange).
You would need a 22.5 degree angled plastic pipe that is about 22mm (about 3/4") in diameter, like this one: https://www.supplyhouse.com/Spears-416-007-3-4-PVC-Sch-40-22-5-Elbow. 22.5 degree PVC elbows are hard to find but they do exist.
Using epoxy on the thin edges would be ugly but is easy to make airtight and could be painted black.
I love what you did, though, and if I had the choice of the current straight mouthpiece or a 22.5 degree angled one, I think I'd choose the angled one or at least own one of each. Thank you for experimenting and for posting it so Aodyo can see :)
(disclaimer: I'm just a user so I could be wrong about this)
The headphone jack on the Sylphyo is stereo in that both channels do carry audio, but as far as I know, the channels are identical. That is, you'll hear audio in both ears of stereo headphones but it'll be identical. I don't think any of the modulation effects change the spatial relationship (such as by panning the audio), and if that's true, the channels will always provide the same audio and for your mono synth, you could ignore one of them. You may want to experiment with https://www.aodyo.com/user-manual-page-en-21.html#section-playing-the-sylphyo.inertial-angles using your preferred sounds to verify that.
The Link headphone jack is definitely stereo: https://www.aodyo.com/user-manual-page-en-21.html#section-rear-panel. The Link supports mixing other stereo audio (like music you're playing along with) into your output, and if that audio had different audio on each channel, it seems like the Link headphone output could also contain different audio on the left and right channels. That part is entirely speculation, though - I don't own a Link.
Hope this helps,
Troy
I bought mine from Gear4music in the UK in December of 2019. It shipped via DHL Express the day after I ordered and it arrived at my place in Seattle 3 calendar days later. There were no other charges/fees, only what Gear4music charged to my credit card. DHL's online tracking displayed shipment status the whole way. Basically, it was indistinguishable from ordering from a US vendor.
Anyone have a preferred approach to changing both a note/fingering and an octave at the same time, and getting a clean sound?
I can do it cleanly when playing somewhat staccato, but when playing legato and playing a very quick passage, I hear a short unintentional transition sound. It's much less if I slide my thumb between the octave buttons instead of lifting the thumb up and moving it. If you've found other things that help (or have a video of your fingering), please share them :)
Thanks!
Troy
Hi all,
Has anyone tried to modify, unscrew/remove, or make a replacement for the thumb rest? I find that the thumb rest is about 1-1.5 cm (1/2 inch) lower than I would prefer it to be. I think that's because when I put my right hand pinky finger (5th/smallest finger) on the pinky hole, my right wrist rotates in towards the Sylphyo a little bit.
I'm wondering if it's possible to 3D print a thumb rest that's offset about 1/2" farther above the thumb rest screw than the current one (or purchase a product from Aodyo, if it's something that y'all might be willing to try).
The left hand feels completely natural to me, especially with the thumb in any of the top 3 octave positions. My left wrist rarely moves when playing. Moving the right hand thumb rest a little bit higher (or removing it entirely) would make the right hand thumb position more like the left hand thumb position.
Happy playing,
Troy
Measured by time playing, Logic's synths are what I play the most - particularly ES2, Sculpture, and EXS24.
However, if I was picking one favorite for a brand new user starting from scratch, I'd probably pick Zeeon for iOS. I chose it because:
Happy playing,
Troy
@rothen_s said in Sylphyo with different hardware configurations:
But if I cannot play the internal sound with the Sylphyo Bench, is there another possibility to play the internal instruments apart from headphones, the amplifier and the "Sylphyo with PC via Audio Out" solution?
Another option is to plug the Sylphyo audio out into powered speakers. Powered speakers are similar to an amplifier in that they contain both an amp and loudspeakers, but they're designed to be used with a computer or other source. Most computer speakers (like Audioengine, Klipsch ProMedia) are powered speakers, so most people already have them.
Look for an "aux in" (3.5mm AKA 1/8") plug on your computer speakers. As an example, on the Presonus Eris E4.5, the aux in plug is 1 of the 2 small plugs on the front: E4.5 photo. You only need the speakers and the Sylphyo, no computer, audio interface, or Link.
Troy
Hi friends,
I wanted to pass along a tip for other users. I installed 1.4.5 and started playing the Alto Sax Phi sound, and initially I felt like the dynamic control was lacking. Basically, either I got full volume or almost no sound.
Before I posted here to ask for advice, I considered other causes -- and one that came to mind was my Sylphyo's output volume. I looked for the default volume and apparently it's 80% (here). I found that my volume was set to 60%. It's entirely possible that I changed the volume and then forgot about it, though I'm not sure why I would have done that.
When I changed the volume from 60% back to the 80% default, I had much better dynamic control of the Alto Sax Phi sound. This might be true of other sounds as well - I haven't tried them yet. I usually play external synths and the alto sax sound is the first one where I sort of had a point of comparison (namely, an alto sax) against which to evaluate.
I changed between 60% and 80% a few times to test and I don't think I'm imagining the difference in dynamic control, though obviously I have no way to say for sure. I yield to the Aodyo team if they say I'm crazy :-)
Hope this helps someone else!
PS: Congrats to the Aodyo team on this progress :-)
Troy
Hi Reidid and team,
Nice to meet you. I've listened to the respiro demos and have been very impressed. I think SWAM Saxophones will be my next purchase but so far I haven't exhausted Logic or free options :)
Maxence answered this well, but yes, I think there are a few good ways around it:
If there are synths which you can't get to work, or can only get to respond to velocity, feel free to post about them in a new thread and I bet someone will have an idea :)
Hope this helps,
Troy
Hi @Laurent_AODYO,
Thank you for your thoughtful reply. That makes sense. I didn't have specific situation in mind, so I'm happy to wait. Right now, I mostly use Logic (Sculpture, ES2, or Studio Instruments) or VCV Rack, and if I could experiment with a different tool and publish the sounds, I'd consider doing so.
While I'm here, something else I've been working on may help other people. When I was getting started, I found that the documentation for using wind controllers with different software synthesizers either didn't exist or was very distributed. For example, someone might have posted a limited example how to use 1 synth in a niche discussion forum.
I wanted to show prospective wind controller players that they can get good or great results from lots of synthesizers (so they can confidently buy a wind controller), and let them get going - and start experimenting with different apps - in 10 minutes or less.
To do that, I started documenting "quick start" wind controller setups with many software synths here: https://github.com/troy/wind-controller-synth-quick-start. It assumes some familiarity with synths and MIDI, but not with wind controllers or any given synth.
So far, it has enough coverage of EXS24, Sculpture, Studio Horns/Studio Strings, Zebralette, and Sonic Pi. I need to write down ES2 and VCV Rack, but it's already enough for someone with a new wind instrument to get great results (probably even with apps they already have or with free apps). I'd welcome suggestions and additions, either as pull requests, issues, or email.
Warm regards,
Troy
Hi Aodyo team,
Reading https://community.aodyo.com/topic/398/new-sound made me wonder whether Aodyo would consider releasing enough tools to let users create their own sounds (so users could create sounds and eventually, share them), or at least explain the toolchain that Aodyo uses.
For example, what parameters do you encode into a sound? Do you use a custom app for designing sounds, or are the sound parameters tested and tuned with other synths and then exported for use in the firmware?
Thanks,
Troy
Anyone know of a bottle brush or other cleaning product that works well for the Sylphyo?
The 00 size (https://www.widgetco.com/00-cork-stoppers-cork-plugs) does fit well. About 10% of the plug goes in the Sylphyo and the other 90% extends out of it. At least from an hour of use, it's secure. It was easy to cut a small triangular slice from the cork.
The perfect size would be just slightly smaller, but this size works fine. I tried the smaller size (000) as well and it's too small - it goes almost all of the way in the Sylphyo.
Although this is an old thread, thank you for posting these photos. Anyone else have a photo or description of what they're using as an air hole stopper? I think I'll try the cork approach.
The hole diameter appears to be about 6.5 mm (1/4") at the outside. I wonder whether a standard-size cork plug like https://www.widgetco.com/00-cork-stoppers-cork-plugs or https://www.mcmaster.com/9566k13 would work. They would be tough to drill consistently without a drill press, but one might be able to cut a triangular section out like @fcred did.
These are industry-standard sizes: size 00 is 7/32" - 5/16", size 000 is 5/32" - 1/4". It seems like the 00 size may work, so I just ordered a few to try. After they arrive, I'll post an update with whether they fit snugly and how hard they are to cut.
Hi all,
In the user guide recorder fingering diagram, I think there's a small error in the second fingering for G#/Ab. The diagram shows the 4th finger of the left hand open. Since this is G plus the pinky to add a semitone, it seems (and sounds ;-) like all 5 fingers of the left hand should be pressed.
The LCD/firmware is correct, only the diagram is wrong.
Hope this helps,
Troy
@pedro1690 said in Bb bis key please?:
It just wouldn’t have been that difficult to add the Bb bis key and I’m confused as to why it was omitted. I could make other suggestions but that the bis key is a huge omission.
I think one part of the answer to why it was omitted, if not the entire answer, might be this: although it's a big deal (okay, huge deal!) to you, Sylphyo is trying to serve two fairly varied markets: people who currently play wind instruments, and people who play or compose with electronic instruments. The first category includes sax, clarinet, flute, and all the rest, and the second includes software instruments, hardware synths, and DAWs. While there are some shared needs (fingering! breath!), almost everything else varies. Someone using the Sylphyo exclusively to play SWAM saxophones will have different wishes than someone using it to play a dozen Eurorack modules.
So, it's a huge deal to a fraction (people who love the Bis key) of a fraction (sax players) of a fraction (wind players) of Sylphyo's target market :-) Everyone is going to have a "pet feature" they'd change. For me, it's the slider. It's physically impossible for me to reach the bottom 1/3 of the slider without lifting at least one other finger on my right hand and almost impossible without lifting two. If it implemented everyone's pet features, instead of being a good or great fit for almost all playing needs and players, it would be a poor fit for some. In this case, any additional button would complicate fingering for other styles and make a fairly crowded/dense device even more crowded.
With the Sylphyo, I think its giant advantage is that it has so many ways to finger, and to express/control, that one can come up with great ways to accomplish anything. They may not be exactly what one would do with a different device, though.
As a product designer myself, I think the most compelling suggestions/changes to the Sylphyo would probably (a) apply to almost all situations and players (including people who have never touched a sax and have no idea what a Bis key is, and people who have never touched a synth and have no idea how MIDI works), and (b) not make it materially worse (steeper learning curve, less expressive, harder to manufacture, etc.) for any of the use cases I listed above. That's a high bar.
I'm probably at most 50% correct here, so please consider this food for thought :-)
Happy playing,
Troy
@frank Great, thank you! That helps a lot, and I'm glad to meet you as well :-) Even as a brand new player, I agree about the versatility and I'm having a blast exploring.
Happy new year,
Troy
Hi Aodyo team,
Could you clarify which MIDI message(s) is generated by a key bend (by default in 1.4.3)? In case there are multiple, I'm referring to moving one's finger slightly off a key hole.
When I move my finger slightly off a hole, I only see Pitch Bend messages in MIDI Monitor on macOS. Pitch Bend messages seem like logical behavior. However, the manual says CC 78 is generated.
Also, in the firmware config, key-bend seems to appear in both MIDI Mapping (as "Key-bend ctrl.," default value CC 78) and in Keys (as "Key-bend (BETA)", default value "PB+"). I'm wondering whether they do different things or maybe the CC 78 mentions are leftover from an older firmware version.
I'm new to Sylphyo, so it's entirely possible that I'm missing or don't understand something. Please forgive me if that's the case.
Thanks!
Troy
Hi @Support_AODYO,
My pleasure for the comments, and thank you for a wonderful product. I'm enjoying it :)
Regarding your reply "For the charging indicator, you are able to see the Sylphyo charging if you turn it on while it is charging," that makes sense but the instructions say not to turn it on until it's charged. From "First Steps" (https://www.aodyo.com/user-manual-page-en-21.html#section-sylphyo-at-a-glance.first-steps):
When you unbox your Sylphyo, its battery might not be fully charged. Before turning it on for the first time, make sure you charge it for up to 8 hours. This ensures that the battery is not in deep discharge mode, which could prevent the instrument from functioning correctly.
Warm regards,
Troy
Hi Maxence and Aodyo team,
I just received my Sylphyo and have had a great first 2 days. The product is superbly designed and a pleasure to play.
In case it helps Aodyo, I took a few notes as I was unboxing it. Overall it was easy to setup and the user manual is fantastic, so these are just tiny notes/ideas. Obviously I'm new, so they may not make sense :)
First few minutes:
Docs:
Thank you again for such an innovative instrument. I'm even more excited than I was before I ordered it :-)
Troy
