fbpx

Cravat-o-matic Musical Necktie #C1

Categories: Hardware Prototypes/Non-Commercial products

Submitted by:zenon olenski

24 May 2023

Elevator Pitch

Cravat-o-matic Musical Necktie #C1

A stylish necktie with magical musical powers! It's a wearable musical instrument as well as a MIDI control surface and effect modulator!

Product Description

Cravat-o-matic Musical Necktie #C1

* Tired of boring meetings?
* Annoyed when you don't have an instrument always to hand?
* Frustrated that you have to wear frivolous and antiquated clothing accessories that serve no purpose?
* Fed up of paying ridiculous airport fees for your musical instruments?
* Irked that the synth you paid big bucks for didn't come with pitch bend or velocity sensitivity?
* Need a new dimension to add to your performance?
* Want to feel a bit more like Kraftwerk?
That was me too. But no longer. Now I am king of meetings and talk of the town! With it's unique cravatronic — anytime available — incognito interface you have a soft musical instrument that you can wear everywhere! Not just a musical instrument with pressure-sensitive keyboard, but also an effects modulator, a MIDI enhancer, HID controller and an actual tie! Whilst you are wearing it you have access to 30 keys (and a mute toggle) but taken off and laid down on a tabletop you can have upto 88 squishy keys — a whole piano's worth with both sustain and aftertouch! Use it to set your volume or to modulate a VST, or connect a MIDI instrument directly into it's micro MIDI port (or over wireless BLE MIDI or MIDI over USB) to get full polyphonic, pressure sensitive MIDI control. Finally, a tie meeting satisfaction!

How It's Innovative

* The worlds' first polyphonic tie!
* Wearable and *very* stylish.
* Always have a musical instrument to hand and carry your instrument everywhere.
* Integrate your clothes into your performance.
* Now you don't need two outfits — you can jam in your workwear!
* Pressure sensitive polyphony with aftertouch and squidgy keys.
* Avoid airline fees =)
* Wireless MIDI, MIDI over USB and MIDI 2.0 style socket - simultaneously!
* Can also act as a volume dial and mute for use during streaming
* Battery powered with low power consumption so will last many days of performing before needing to be recharged.
* The USB port has a magnetic connector so plugs in instantly with a satisfying snap and disconnects without objection — even if you forget to unplug.
* Makes you actually want to attend meetings.
* Gives the tie a purpose. Raison d'être.

See MIDI Innovation In Action

Most Inspiring Use Cases

It's the take anywhere musical instrument that's always just there... I want to give value and meaning to a piece of clothing unanimously considered pointless and make it so that no meeting (or wedding) has to ever be boring again! Now you can always have an expressive musical instrument and an extra control surface to hand. Use it to control external hardware and DAWs or as an expressive, polyphonic instrument of its own. Add a whole new dimension to your performance... Or just use it to set the volume level in Zoom meetings. Jam wirelessly and control everything MIDI. Look cool, stay practical and give meaning to your outfit.

Expansion Plans

* Integrate better MPE & MIDI 2.0 support.
* MIDI Recording - hours of recording time (years in fact)
* Reacting to gestures
* Untie the double-cleff knot and lay the tie flat for a full 88 key edition - the whole length of the tie!
* Adding a built in sequencer (looper) to turn it into an entire mobile performance and production suite.
* Chord and scale quantization along with a choice of none-classical scales and tunings.
* Fabric LED lighting on the front to make it even more spectacular!
* Adding an integrated lav microphone near to the knot.
* Mesh networking to share tempos and scales between ties in close proximity (aka Meeting mode).
* "TieTunes" software to configure and control the ties' options remotely via bluetooth, such as selecting an instrument, scale, effect mode or MIDI channel from your phone.
* Range of different visual aesthetics and fabrics from felt to silk.

Commercialization

We are hoping to get enough people interested to be able to get a sponsor who will work with us to create a limited range of handmade neckties for both live performance and use around the office. If you would like to register your interest, pop on over to designerzen.com/tie We would need to see a fair show of interest, unless artisanal is en-vouge, as each bespoke tie takes quite some time to put together which can become quite costly. Hopefully, some large electronics manufacturers, who specialise in tiny, low power electronics will see this support and work with us to create a lower cost version which we can then work with some fashion companies to get this technology stealthily implemented into ties around the world! At the end of the day, if you had the option to buy a tie, or buy a tie with MIDI, it's a no brainer right? It is also possible to take the technology and add it into all shapes, sorts and sizes of wearable garments, soft furnishings and accessories.