hackme electronics vectr (black) price : $399.00

vectr (silver) price : $399.00

what is vectr?
vectr is a 3d sensing controller and sequencer.

vectr turns your modular synth into a interactive instrument.

vectr senses your hand movements in 3d space and turns them into control signals for your modular.

tired of knob twiddling? make playing your synth more fun with vectr.

vectr is a sequencer. vectr can record up to 50 seconds of position sequences for playback. sequence recording and playback can be synchronized with other modules and vectr can be used as the master clock sourcefor your entire system. sequences can be saved and recalled later even after power down and multiple recorded sequences can be quickly recalled.

vectr has layers of depth. at the surface, vectr is a very simple to use controller and sequencer. but, vectr has deep options for programmability through a built in and easy to use menu system. manycharacteristics of the outputs and various playback and recording parameters can be changed to customize vectr to your system and how you'd like to use it.

vectr also has a number of performance modes for live interaction. sequences can be overdubbed, on all three axis outputs or for only one output at a time or any combination. outputs can be quickly muted, thesequences paused and restarted, and you can move freely between sequenced mode and live mode at any time. you can also playback a sequence using hand movements, scratching in the air as if you were moving arecord.

vectr also has modulation parameters, taking a cv input to manipulate sequence playback, or the output values themselves.

by itself, vectr is incredibly fun. with all these features, vectr is also incredibly powerful.

how does it work?
vectr works by generating an electrical field and sensing changes in it causes by the proximity of your hand. think of it as a smartphone screen with an added dimension of depth four to five inches from thesurface. the system uses six electrodes to form the active sensing area. the sensing electrodes are part of the circuit board which lays just behind the piece of acrylic.

vectr contains a 32 bit microcontroller which decodes the position information and relays the decoded information to digital-to-analog converters which send the signals through analog circuitry on their way tothe outputs. these outputs are scaled proportionally corresponding to the sensed hand position with one output for each cartesian coordinate: x, y and z.

vectr firmware is user upgradeable over usb, so you'll have easy access to new features and upgrades.

open source
vectr is open source hardware and software released under the bsd license. there is a usb connector on the back of the device. anyone can program and reprogram vectr to suit their purposes. want to use it to flydrones? make a lighting controller? make your robot dance? go for it.

vectr features
output voltages - x,y,z outputs are -5v to +5v with configurable ranges. all other inputs and outputs are 0-5v
power requirements - +/-12v, +5v is generated on the board from +12v
current consumption - maximum +12v 250ma, -12v 50ma

outputs:
x - left to right
y - top to bottom
z - near to far
sync - configurable output for hand, quantization, or sequencing indication - multiple configurable behaviors
clk - sequence timing output - 1,2,4,8, or 16 pulses per loop

inputs:
record - for triggering recording
playback - for triggering playback
hold - for holding the output value - multiple configurable behaviors
mod - cv input - for manipulating sequence playback
sync - for retriggering playback

menu options:
xyz menus - these options are individually configurable for each axis output
range - +/-5v, +/-2.5v, 0-+5v, 0-+1v, ramp (a signal which linearly corresponds to sequence position)
quantization - off, chromatic, major, pentatonic, octave
linearity - continuously variable from logarthmic to linear to antilogarithmic
slew rate - very short to very long - this controls how quickly the output values change, like a configurable low pass filter.
track - hold, track, track/live, zero, envelope zero - these are different behaviors for when the output is held

record menu
source - internal trigger or external trigger
control mode - rising edge trigger or level trigger

playback menu
source - internal trigger or external trigger
control mode - rising edge trigger or level trigger
looping mode - looping, pendulum, flip, one-shot, retrigger

overdub menu
source - internal trigger or external trigger
control mode - rising edge trigger or level trigger

modulation menu
speed, quantized speed, scrub, trim, mirror

gate output menu
hand, reset, playback gate, record gate, quantization gate

sync output menu
1,2,4,8, or 16 pulses

perfomance modes
overdub - overdub an actively playing sequence on one or more axis
sequence - quickly switch between up to four recorded sequences
scratch - play a sequence like scratching a record
mute - quickly turn outputs on and off