My Percussion Machine Plays Music like a Human?!

[@stackedjack8886]

Have you guys ever considered how lucky we are for his passion being for music and not bombs?

[@strixcz]

Well we only see what Martin chooses to upload on his channel 😉 And with many gentlemen in early 20th century carrying around tommy guns and such in violin cases, I wouldn't go as far as to assume being (or looking like) a musician makes you exactly "harmless" 😅

[@stackedjack8886]

@@strixcz I didn't consider that.

[@bragr_]

Hey, you never know, he might do the 1812 Overture next 😁

[@Jimmeh_B]

Nope. If it was his "passion" we'd all be incredibly safe. 5,6,7...? years and there'd still be nothing but a yt channel talking about maybe one day perhaps building a thing. Possibly.

[@EricSartor]

Do you guys hear how this pipe bomb--UH I MEAN-- shaker grooves? It's going to sound so good at the orchestra later today...where the president will be in attendance...

[@antonytorres487]

If you put Wilson at the pivot point of the shaker machine... Wilson will be effectively now part of the band, playing the shaker

[@contranym675]

this is such a good idea

[@NeonNijahn]

Wilson 2024!

[@franktrottier5749]

Wilson Shakes!

[@lucasvignolireis8181]

oh yeah!

[@reggiep75]

This!

[@mateusbmedeiros]

It's been years since I had last seen confident Martin. I like him.

[@thejesse]

10:49 "You know how f***ing good I am at this?" 😂

[@YannickSalzigerChatain]

Yes I saw that too, you look good Martin. Engineering does not always mean loss of creativity, its just a tool and you use it quite well.

[@billkeithchannel]

2020-2022 had that effect on people.

[@iRaps1]

@@billkeithchannel man you're not wrong

[@strixcz]

@@thejesse I'm looking forward for him to be confident enough not to censor that part - still a nice moment though 😅

[@vincentmartin2752]

Love seeing that youre applying physicall prototyping, human playing, maths analysis and Parametric CAD together now.

[@ellieban]

Right?! I got interested because Martin was using physical prototyping. I got worried when he started saying things like he needed to do all his design in the computer, but he knew what he was doing. Or rather, he knew he didn’t, and he knew what he needed to strengthen, and now he’s bringing it all together, he’ll be unstoppable 😁

[@goransolheim8772]

All the goodies

[@K-4U]

Man, i really didn't realise how much i missed Martin just jamming out with a piece of machine. Always such good music that comes from it!

[@quertz42]

Absolutely! Those moments have always been my favorite on this channel

[@europhil2000]

Agreed! I enjoyed the outro so much! Piece of art this is!

[@iRaps1]

Please for the love of god keep the playing in each of the videos. You're good at a lot of things, but the way you create music is, for me, by far your best skill. It feels so alive and wonderful, and it's what makes your quest to create a machine to accompany you not obnoxious and pointless. YOU make this whole thing be art as the musician

[@BuddyCrotty]

I love the new format with more actual music, your mom is right! I'm watching a musical genius manifesting a machine with pure inspiration rather than a tinkerer struggling to engineer the hardest way to play music 😅 Please please please keep it up-- I'm excited for the world tour, no matter how long it takes!

[@billkeithchannel]

Having weekly downloadable music pieces is what was missing the past year. His musical clips from past videos are golden and evergreen.

[@cgh1]

Boom... mic drop. (Listen to your mom, Martin 😃 - she's already told you she's always right!)

[@broggii]

Your mom was right about the guitar

[@cenakaze]

💀

[@gustavosiqueira7605]

I was looking for this comment xd

[@ilyaholt8607]

Umm, context?

[@yone7965]

Without a doubt

[@ellieban]

It’s a reference to a time Martin’s Mum said she was worried the engineering was getting in the way of the music, which is Martin’s real love. I don’t remember exactly how it went, but it was basically that she missed him noodling on the guitar. There’s an element of truth to it, and it looks as though he’s been paying more attention to the music since. And it’s also clear that Martin is getting huge value from slaying this dragon. Yes, his Mum was probably a bit right, and we should probably also get out of Martins life and let him live it how he wants 🤣

[@drkalamity4518]

As an engineer and a music lover, I gotta say I got emotional watching this. I'm not sure why this one in particular but I've been following you thorough your whole journey from the beginning and there's something special about this addition to the machine that speaks to the heart. Keep it up!!!

[@cgh1]

I think it's the machine mimicking human movements - which, part of what makes music so good is it isn't perfect. The cycle of the shaker here is repetitive but it's literally based on relatively imperfect human movement, which is where the groove lives. That's what really made this video for me anyway.

[@Legacies15]

The levels of ingenuity behind all of this never ceases to amaze. It is absolutely wonderful to see the thought process behind building these devices, and seeing them come to fruition.

[@billkeithchannel]

I can see how what Martin has discovered could be used for improvements in coaster train wheel and track design. He may have a job at RMC or PTC. The two cams reminds me of what is done with 3D coasters.

[@bradley3549]

The joy and beauty of this content is not to answer the question of whether or not we should - but rather to answer the question of whether or not we CAN. The thought process involved to get from "capture a natural human motion" to "translate the motion into a mechanical contrivance" was pure beauty.

[@WumbologyPHD]

10:49 I love seeing Martin's thoughts through his engineering process, I go through the same cycles. At first I'm like "holy crap I should just end this now I'm terrible at this" and then when I figure it out I transition straight to "I am the greatest in the entire world, nobody can match my godlike intelligence and skill"

[@mhenlopotter1612]

relatable lmao

[@siegfriedkettlitz6529]

It feels to me that every few years Martin wakes up in a new house and in order to escape he has to fail building a new marble machine and every time he gets close to solving the problems he gets teleported to a new location.

[@Phriedah]

All i know while listening to that last groove at the end of the video is that Wintergatan is going to need a few saxophone solos in their concerts

[@TheRealFreekBos]

Love you Martin,... I am backing you till the end. :) You are a real inspiration

[@KamronbekAsrorov11]

Me tooo

[@advanceringnewholder]

0:24 The design is indeed very human, very easy to use

[@robindonnolly3261]

I understood that reference

[@darksmile4719]

i love the science, math and mechanical engeniering of this one shaker assembly so much with the excel sheet, shaker mapping and 3d construction to the actual prototype everything about this video makes it feel like martin is working on a actual product instead of a hobbby project SO COOOOOLLLLL MARTIN!!!!!

[@sloop-it]

I almost never comment, but dude, you're killing it. Awesome "engineering" - just figuring out how to translate what you "know" (the shaker) into a design that works - that's hard! And the feeling when it works, actually works?! - just awesome, am I right?! You rock. Thanks for taking the time to haul us along for the ride!

[@billkeithchannel]

Leave it to Martin to disappear for months only to come back in a massive hard hitting, breath taking, and awe inspiring way.

[@snowfire8436]

The song at the end is so nice! Impressive and inspired work as always 💚

[@NzeRekoRec]

Every time he plays anything it kind of makes me feel sad that he's not creating new music with Wintergatan band. MM has huge musical potential, but sadly it doesn't seem very likely that it will ever be good enough for actual music production. At least this new design is way too big and complicated for touring.

[@auronoxe]

I‘m longing for music… 😔 What if Mozart would have build harpsichords instead of playing them?

[@markuskristensen2433]

​@@NzeRekoRec @auronoxe luckily for the rest of you dont get to choose that

[@theoufdesouf]

There are some already made, free softwares that allow you to get coordinates with regard to time from a video, saving you all the hassle that you described in this video (drawing your grid, saving point by point, etc.). Try Tracker from Physlets or any other really, will be much easier than what you did.

[@EmberCitrine]

He's like "I'm probably the first to track and plot a shaker", I'm like "But you're not the first to track and plot things in general! There are tools!"

[@theoufdesouf]

@@EmberCitrine Yeah right, that's a bit painful to see him do all these tedious steps when it can be made easily

[@SiberCatLP]

@@theoufdesouf Sure, but I'm sure he got it done faster by doing it by hand than by spending the time finding a new tool, getting it working, and learning how to use it. If he needs more than one track for the final version, this is definitely the way to go. But a one-off? Probably faster by hand.

[@NeonNijahn]

Y axis be like - "do i mean nothing to you martin?" In all seriousness, glad to see you posting again! Love your work.

[@riuphane]

The one thing I still feel that makes a big difference between a human playing a shaker vs the machine is the vertical change as well. It's not just moving back and forth on an arc. That said, this sounds FANTASTIC and looks really good

[@NeonNijahn]

Yes! Where is the y axis Martin! What have you done with her!

[@gutterg0d]

@@NeonNijahn In the hands of a human, the shaker can move in 3 dimensions. So for true human movement you actually need x,y and z. :) EDIT: Also, let us not forget about the rotational axes... :D

[@EaglePicking]

@@gutterg0d ALARM: Feature creep detected.

[@simoncleret]

Yup. Should be calculating the total acceleration of the shaker for best data

[@simoncleret]

​@@gutterg0d That can be solved by increasing the number of reference points to 3+

[@warwolfx0]

11:44 thats some sharp scissors that it sticks in the wood

[@jasonbenoit2277]

This video alone is worthy of a PHD defense in either music, physics or the use of excel

[@tobyCornish]

Martin is clearly a Doctor of Groovology

[@ellieban]

Mmmm. Agree. Somebody get this man an honorary doctorate! He already deserves at least 6, he can get 6 more when he finishes the machine.

[@lassikinnunen]

You'd think that phd in excel would at least need a cpu emulator within it.

[@billkeithchannel]

Add tracking/analyzing video software creation too.

[@6061]

Martin, I use a drill in a similar way for welding round parts. A simple way to adjust the speed of the drill is by putting a worm drive hose clamp around the trigger. Then tig weld a small washer in the slot so you can adjust by hand without a screwdriver

[@stikosek]

that groove at the end was fire

[@Tymon0000]

Great to have the music back! :)

[@MarcusWoodOfficialVideos]

This feels more like the Martin I originally got interested in, unsubscribed a couple of years ago when it felt like circular machining, and kept checking in periodically every half a year, but we're getting back to actual music making again and I'm enjoying seeing him taking joy in the process of music making without it just being a pursuit for engineering perfection!

[@EllisChild]

A dream is your creative vision for your life in the future. You must break out of your current comfort zone and become comfortable with the unfamiliar and the unknown.

[@SweDownhill]

The music at the end is fire! 😍😀🎉

[@billkeithchannel]

Having weekly downloadable music pieces is what was missing the past year. Martin's musical clips from past videos are golden and evergreen.

[@SpeederT5]

Martin needs to release an album with this kind of great tunes. I would buy in a heartbeat.

[@SweDownhill]

@@SpeederT5 Me too! 😍

[@ponzy]

@@SpeederT5yes please!!

[@cgh1]

@@SpeederT5 Indeed!

[@mattrickard3716]

So in another 50 years and a little more feature creep, we should expect the marble machine infinite to essentially be a marble powered, AI robot Martin with 80-100 hands so that it can be it's own orchestra? Sounds awesome, can't wait! If that does eventuate, Wintergatan could be the most commercially successful band to never tour. All jokes aside, keep up the great work. I just hope that if the marble machine is the simply the means the an end (an awesome world tour) it doesn't become the end in itself and consume what could otherwise be a stellar music career. I often find myself envious of my friends who can just get things done without waiting for the ideal moment. They get runs on the board while I am still procrastinating and convincing myself that I'm not ready.

[@zbrumbach]

The number of skills required to make a mechanical shaker sound human is amazing. Great job!

[@robinjandu]

You're mom was right! Having a bit of Guitar in each episode is great. Keep up the great work Martin. Really happy you're back at it, and can tell you are having fun again too!

[@J87NL]

You could make 2 tracks for both the shaker and the tambourine with a neutral position in between and choose with multiple leavers and springs for left/neutral/right track 👌

[@GustavoOliveira-hq2dr]

regarding having other cam profiles, you could build a cylinder with all the profiles you want and for each profile you lower the cylinder or you raise the bearing from the cylinder than move the cylinder to the desired profile. I see that left/neutral/right track as variable timing so you can switch the time while still playing

[@EaglePicking]

Sounds easy, but I don't see it being implemented that easily. You would have to move the whole shaker arm, including the spring. Still doable if you put the whole thing on a slider and would give 2 different shake sounds, so it's an option but it's also feature creep.

[@ezrasmith5711]

That's a great idea!! Two springs & two Bowden cables for each shaker/tambourine arm facing opposite directions. Pull one cable to engage one spring (tensioning the spring), which pulls the cam against the opposite side of the track. Pull the other cable to engage the other side, both cables in neutral position would make the cam float in the middle without touching the tracks. Awesome!

[@ezrasmith5711]

@@EaglePicking Nope, it's pretty easy actually and you wouldn't need to move/slide the shaker arm or the springs. If you look at the lever set-up Martin made at 11:48, he's tensioning the spring by moving the piece of wood in the negative x-axis direction, which creates tension on the spring and pulls the top of the shaker arm with it, which consequently swings the bottom of the shaker arm in the positive x-axis direction to make contact with the track. If you take that whole assembly and mirror it along the z-axis (being the vertical axis going through the pivot point of the shaker arm) you have two sets of springs & levers with two opposing shaker tracks. So tensioning the left-hand spring would engage the shaker reader with the right-hand track, and engaging the right-hand spring would engage the reader with the left-hand track. No reason to move the shaker arm because everything is happening in one dimensions (the x-axis). Another way to imagine this is taking the first cam design Martin made where there is a groove that the reader sits in. If you just increase the distance between the two halves of the cam (i.e. adding lots of layers of invisible paper) you will get two tracks separated by a space. As long as the gap between the two halves of the cam is large enough for the reader to only touch one track at a time, you can easily switch which side of the track the reader is in contact with by tensioning the right- or left-hand springs. And then the neutral position would be zero/equal tension on both springs so that the reader floats in between the two tracks.

[@EaglePicking]

@@ezrasmith5711 Long explanation for something I already understood. The problem is that if you have two different profiles, the distance between the profiles is going to be much higher and then it's not going to work that way, unless specifically designed.

[@guilhermeleoni25]

WOW. This video is a fun engineering masterpiece. Love how your thinking changes over time and circles back (now with much knowledge) to the fun/musical part. Love it!

[@xFanth23]

Hey! Something like "kinovea" is exactly what you want for recording the motion of the shaker from video! It does automatic motion tracking from video! Also, you might want to use a "Crash Dummy Symbol" that gives you a zero dimensional point for tracking in video!

[@BRAX-vv6yr]

My engineers heart is filled with positive energy, joy and pride after watching this video

[@str2706]

This is pure joy and I love seeing Martin glow again! 🎉

[@KilianKlein]

Since the bearings are now only touching one side of the printed profile, you could actually have 2 different shaker patterns for the same song using a different print on the other side. It could also be used to "store" the shaker pattern of the next song and make it less long to proceed to a new song because the previous one could be replaced while the next one is playing ;)

[@xymaryai8283]

keep having fun Martin. videos where you have fun are worth years of not having the machine.

[@kikokiko7611]

The weekly ocd video is back

[@claypoly]

I felt the passion this week. Music + science + silliness = art. Thanks for continuing to inspire me, Martin.

[@loleczkowo]

new video YOOOO i love to watch more amazing machines!

[@richlevenson6605]

Martin always boldly goes where no percussionist, and mechanical genius has gone before that's why we follow him! If you can't do it than no one can!

[@strixcz]

5:55 This right here is why I love what you do, Martin! It's so rare in today's world to see something that's never been done before. Most people trying to achieve this goal choose to go for cheap shock value (as seen on the "talent shows"). Yet you manage to generate these completely unique ideas while also having purpose behind them. That's just so inspiring... 😌 Thank you!

[@SidneyLaurie]

Most great people have attained their greatest success just one step beyond their greatest failure.

[@AdmiralSenn]

Martin, I think this video is a great example of where you should be when figuring these things out. Aesthetics, technical design, musical viability, but all without getting lost in the weeds. I hope you keep this energy up as you work out the rest of the machine!

[@moment37]

My day just got better. Your energy makes me smile.

[@daseiner]

Makes me so happy that you finally seem to be trying to build something that works in a robust and flexible way, and not trying to figure it all out. The magic of music, and life, is in what can't be automated. And you're way more likely to make things that actually make great music, reliably

[@scaredyfish]

I love to see you having fun with this, and making music (and learning). This video is the mission statement of the project brought to life!

[@andrewkemp6477]

Whats interesting is the up-and-down movement. It may be possible to recreate that with a second cam, and it may help it sound even more natural

[@janberentsen9890]

This contained so much little creative musical sprinkles and extra flair! Absolutely awesome. That creativity is why I love these videos.

[@ericmorrison278]

You're a mad lad indeed! Figuring out how to track your hand each frame at a time blew my mind. I fucking love this channel!!!

[@Earthenfist]

This is just, like, the most PERFECT fusion of mad engineering and artistry. Graphing out a 'groovy' shaker rhythm in order to mechanically copy that motion is peak Marble Machine, I think.

[@misterk7_-]

My favourite video yet

[@OlaKarlsson-01]

It's soo great to see you back in the groove Martin! seeing you so excited and happy just puts a smile on my face 😁 And you may joke about how good you are but the crazy thing is that YOU ARE THAT GREAT! I can't imagine there's many people around who could pull off what you just did , doing it all yourself, from the music all the way to the working mechanical prototype. You should be proud, well done!

[@EpcasOrangeFridgePalace]

It's so unusual to see someone who made a shaker machine powered by a drilling machine just for the sake of it, amazing.

[@SpeederT5]

It's for the shake of it. 😄

[@Goryus]

The flywheel powering this needs to spin up because of dropped marbles.

[@jalphototecture]

Best episode in ages! The process of getting the known sound from an unknown process, and all the steps you took to get there was extremely fascinating and it freakin’ worked!! Much more excited about this whole project now than I was in previous episodes

[@Smeagol44]

Honestly Martin, I'm loving this, a lot. I'm addicted to this videologs. This machine looks amazing already, and I'm sure it's gonna blow my mind when it's finished... I'm just a bit worried that's not actually gonna be a marble machine... just a music machine. Shouldn't you have some kind of "requirement" that maybe, somehow, every part/instrument should be played/manipulated somehow by marbles?

[@kingfaze147]

When Martin is looking for those key hit points they all sound the same to me, but to him! He can hear those very fine details. That’s why he’s the greatest

[@ugowsky]

Now tthis is what I call next level. Such a tiny element and such a big progress. Bravo Wintergatan!

[@dpatts]

This is the Mega Sword of creativity: an incredible synthesis of maths, music, engineering and production. So fun to watch. That groove at the end is more than just the sum of its parts: it's imbued with your story of perseverance and elevates it to something truly sublime

[@MacroAggressor]

If you use the radius of the cam to actuate a second dimension, you can simulate rotational playing in the patterns and get different sounds.

[@Ammoniummetavanadate]

This is genuinely an impressive use of CAD, Photoshop, and human kinematics

[@pizzapuntthomas]

The song at the end is so beautiful! You are a very talented musician and I am happy you make these videos

[@JuLian-cq2qv]

For multiple tracks, you could add a bistable or "tristable" mechanism with the middle position as the muted, left and right positions for the different tracks. That would allow for 2 tracks that can be swapped within a song. It may potentially even allow for a mid song swap of one of the tracks as long as it is muted. However, that last part may be quite difficult to realise. Hope that helps.

[@billkeithchannel]

A pivot mechanism in the handle could flip the tension of the spring from one side to the other. A programming wheel profile could flip the mechanism to the other track pattern.

[@MSKS6]

The ending was just beautiful! And the shaker.... chef's kiss!

[@MangoTango6.9]

this video oozes of "we're so fucking back" vibes and I couldnt help myself but to smile for its entirety. You're such an inspiration, martin

[@robertj.welleii6166]

That groove at the end though... It feels like Martin is really getting back into his groove! Full song on Spotify please!! 😅❤🎶

[@billkeithchannel]

I'm sure it will be on the bandcamp downloads.

[@tiller6750]

As a musician myself, it is just fascinating to watch you work though this process. This shaker machine sounds incredible!

[@Akuzid]

Omg this goes so hard !!! I'm so impressed, I did not expect it to sound THAT better with a nice sounding shaker !!

[@Subjective0]

really love the vibe of the new videos. Doing things more simple and fun definitely was the right call. Keep it up Martin!!

[@JustinIrving-e5g]

Just as much as we see in others we have in ourselves.

[@styifer]

What an absolute delight to be able to follow this amazing dream project. Which more and more is comparable to life itself with all its ups and downs with moments of setbacks, misfortune, pain & anxiety but then there is growth, glory, hope and victories. And the stream of positive energy forcing its way through the screen when Martin has this confidence is simply smile inducing. Not to mention the stunning music created along the way. Thanks for the ride!

[@reggiep75]

This shaker project has been a solid project from start to end. The analysis, design, reanalysis and redesign was spot on.

[@DK-Dennis]

Of all your videos, and I have seen a lot of them, this must be my favorite 🤩 It’s just impressive to see how you brake down the problem and solve it. 🚀 - You record a human motion - tracking the pattern - converting it into a circular motion And boom 💥 you replicated the shaker sound. It’s just elegant, and that’s why it’s my favorite 🤩 Keep up what you are doing. I am looking forward to following your journey. 🙏

[@wjdragon]

I really appreciate you showing how you came up with the CAD design for the cam. As someone who dabbles in CAD designs recreationally, for it's always a challenge to figure out the right steps in order to generate a complicated model. Your approach is genius!

[@estodamus]

So pumped you're back! This video was great- cool engineering, beautiful music, excited Martin. 10/10.

[@aoeuable]

You might want to look into non-planar 3d printing for those cam parts, saves on sanding and you keep the cad precision. Long story short: Don't have steps at the top layer but have the printer print the last layer(s) actually following the curved shape.

[@64jcl]

The short music segments seriously lift the quality of these videos as your music creativity also gets to play out (no pun intended).

[@ironsm4sh]

I'm so happy that you're back into it again!

[@harmonic5107]

This whole process is so freaking cool dude. Translating organic human movements into mechanical motion. It really does make it sound beautiful.

[@bohn90]

This is absolutely beautiful. The level of creativeness, ingenuity, and musicality is mind-blowing. One of your best videos ever. ❤

[@GNoldman]

Martin, this is SO COOL!!! So long as you keep making awesome new instruments and great videos like this, I don't care how long it takes to finish the machine. I'm here for the journey, and I'll come back every week :)

[@mattfisher1387]

Wow, this is absolutely incredible. I bet he got so much dopamine from this. Been watching since the begging, so glad to see him happy and still doing cool stuff.

[@1992djg]

Honestly I like this approach to the marble machine slow perfecting every instrument before it gets anywhere near the machine

[@billkeithchannel]

Having weekly downloadable bandcamp music pieces is what was missing the past year. Martin's musical clips from past videos are golden and evergreen.

[@Theroadslesstraveled]

Thanks for the beautiful combination of music and mechanical engineering. I love watching you groove and get lost in the music next to these machines!

[@yaofanskra]

I already have a favourite yt channel, it falls into the "cute tranquil life" category. But yours, sir, is undoubtedly the coolest ever. Simply awesome!!

[@tommiller7291]

Yay Music! Wintergatan videos are sooo much better when there is music being made. Seems like the break has re-invigorated music. Thanks Martin!

[@mvadu]

These are the videos that remind us about why we started following this channel in the first place!! Love these new human inspired mechanisms

[@DHoberer]

I love this song that you’re playing at the end of this video. Such a wonderful sound. You are making the best music on the Internet. Here’s hoping that your 2025 is the best year yet.

[@Mutaburasaurus]

Very enjoyable video. I haven't really followed your channel for a few years, but this feels just like some of the videos that got me into this channel to begin with.

[@gaz66chris]

feels really good to be seeing oldskool hands on videos again. nice one martin. thanks for the entertainment and good luck!

[@lkpnkarl]

Love to see that the musical joy is back in the videos! Keep up the fantastic job you do with this creation.

[@Balin_O1]

You honestly probably are my favourite artist your music is amazing and the determination you have to push through this project is inspiring i hope you come to France during the marble machine tour when you finish the machine

[@malamdg]

Your videos make me want to start new mechanical projects ty so much for such a qualitative work. As an engineering student I really appreciated the evolution of your working process from the MMX until now. It's not sketchy anymore and the planning plus the milestones plus the iterations you are making this time compared to the previous project are in my opinion a sign that you will be able to put everything together and that this time it is a marble machine that will go around the world. I've been able to witness your evolution for 6 years now and it's better and better please continue that way. Again thank you so much for your work I look forward to see more of it.

[@rp8564]

He friggin done it! Nice one Martin

[@keinole]

Wow Martin This was truly inspiring, I could really imagine you playing on a worldtour with your set up. I’m following your since the MM1 music video and followed every step since then. And this time it really feels like you’re in the right track, maybe not as fast as MMX but actually working this time. Continue your journey