Eigenharp Tau

Abhoth · 2015-06-03T08:45:53.000Z

I just bought an Eigenharp Tau from eBay. This is probably of very little interest to anyone, but I’m so excited right now I had to tell someone.

The Eigenharp Tau is a thin, 120cm long instrument/controller with lots of super-sensitive keys moveable in three directions, similar to how the Linnstrument works. It also has a ribbon controller along the side, 12 larger pads and an optional breath controller.

Unfortunately, and unlike the Linnstrument, it does not work on its own, but needs to be connected to a computer running the companion software “EigenD”. The software configures the instrument and allows configurations from simple midi out on a specific channel to complex live performance setups with VSTs, long strings of midi data sent when certain events happen, step sequencers, loopers, etc. One can also create a “control panel” that allows an iPad to change parameters via wifi.

My intended use for this is as follows:
A simple midi only setup on a Raspberry Pi 2 so that I only need to configure it once and then forget about the PC part. The twelve pads for muting/unmuting channels on my Octatrack and A4, the ribbon controller as the OT crossfader. And then the rest of the buttons to play the A4 and modular (via the CV outs). Because of the sensitive keys, the fingers can modulate the sound instead of envelopes, allowing for (hopefully) expressive playing.

vos · 2015-06-03T09:58:44.000Z

Sounds great ! Let us know how things evoluate …

Abhoth · 2015-06-03T12:49:57.000Z

""vos"":

Sounds great ! Let us know how things evoluate …

I will. It will take a couple of weeks for it to arrive, but I’ll try to report back on how good/bad of an idea this turned out to be once I’ve spent a bit of time with it.

I like this video, btw. Not a Tau, but the bigger Alpha. More keys etc, but works in the same way. The animoog demo at the end is pretty much what I expect/hope to do with the A4.

glaciertree · 2015-06-03T22:51:47.000Z

interesting stuff, keep us posted

weepomineeyes · 2015-06-25T17:57:39.000Z

I have an Eigenharp Tau as well and love it! Have not thought about integrating it with the Elektron gear as yet though. Keep me posted on how you make out

Abhoth · 2015-06-26T06:55:34.000Z

Nice! I haven’t received it yet (still 3-4 weeks away, and the wait is killing me), but I’m quite confident the A4 and Eigenharp will be an excellent match. If Overbridge runs well in EigenD it would probably be even better as midi can be avoided altogether, plus the A4 can function as a sound card for the Tau.

Do you have any tips for a new Tau owner? Some particular VSTs I should get? Something else I should be aware of? I bought a strap, stand and breath pipe as acessories, btw. I wanted a cello spike but that isn’t available anymore.

Abhoth · 2015-07-29T10:07:43.000Z

I’ve had the Eigenharp Tau for two weeks now, and have been spending all my spare time with it since then. My thoughts so far:

Hardware
Wow! I didn’t think the Tau looked all that great in pictures, but in real life it looks nice. The weight, touch of the keys etc. makes it feel like a quality instrument. Playing it is a very pleasant, ergonomic experience, but difficult at first since the keys are super sensitive. It takes a while to get used to them.

The really important part, which is also the most difficult to describe in words, is that the direct connection between every slight movement of ones fingers and the resulting sound removes a mental barrier of sorts. I don’t have a sense of controlling a synth that creates sound. Rather, I’m the one creating the sound. I don’t know if this makes sense. But playing a synth this way feels great.

Software
EigenD, the software part of the Eigenharp was confusing at first. One isn’t required to spend much time with it, as premade setups are provided. But being of a geeky disposition, I have spent a lot of time creating my own setup from scratch and learning the basics of “belcanto”, the underlying scripting language. It is a very clever piece of software, but complex.

If one is willing to put in the effort to learn EigenD properly it is a very powerful tool, not only for the Eigenharp, but for integrating other gear as well. But learning how to use it is hard work and probably not for everyone. EigenD is free, opensource and does not require an Eigenharp.

In combination with A4
I don’t want a computer as part of my setup, so I installed EigenD on a Raspberry Pi 2 that autoboots into EigenD with a midi setup. That means the software runs on a tiny, noiseless box hidden away in a drawer and I do the things I want, like switching octaves, scales, midi channels etc, directly from the Eigenharp. I have the A4 connected to the Raspberry via USB-midi.

On the A4, I just map the midi controller data I transmit from EigenD to whatever parameters I want them to control. The ribbon on the back of the Tau I use for performance macro A. I have the 12 percussion keys on the Tau send chromatic notes on a separately configurable midi channel. On the A4 I use the multimap feature to trigger drum sounds, switch patterns or similar. Note: modwheel and breath CCs is listed in the A4 manual as supporting 14bit values, but that doesn’t actually work. So 7bit only, unfortunately.

Since so much of the sound modulation can be controlled with the parameters sent from the Tau, creating useful patches on the A4 is very easy. Even simple beeps sound great when played expressively.

I love using the A4 CV outs to play my modular from my Tau. That is what I’ve been enjoying the most so far.

I’ve also tried using overbridge and integrating the A4 VSTi into EigenD to control parameters directly in high resolution instead of going via midi. That worked, but didn’t really seem all that useful to me. I liked using the A4 as a sound card for the EigenD instruments, though. But again, since I prefer not to use a computer, midi only from the Raspberry is what I’lle be using. If I really wants to use overbridge and software instruments, I’ll buy a Mac Mini and run EigenD and overbridge on that.

jemmons · 2024-12-18T18:36:10.020Z

What is the status of Eigenlabs these days? Are they defunct? I know the software got open sourced (thank goodness!) and that it’s possible to run the various Eigenharps on modern stacks (thanks in no small part to @thetechnobear, I believe?). But are any new devices being made? Will they ever?

I finally found a half-working Pico on ebay after what seems like years of searching, and even in its condition I’ve been having a blast with it. Such a shame if they’re no longer available new in any form.

chrisb78 · 2024-12-18T21:13:25.406Z

I love this! All power to you!

Abhoth · 2024-12-19T08:02:54.150Z

EigenLabs has shut down, so no new models, unfortunately.

If you’re on Mac you have some additional software alternatives now, btw. thetechnobear made a library for communicationg with the Eigenharp hardware. There are at least three applications using this library.

Meta Morph (by thetechnobear) is a set of modules that integrates Eigenharps into VCV Rack.
ECMapper (by me, VST plugin/standalone) is intended as an easy way to output midi.
MEC (by thetechnobear) is a slim console application well suited for running headless on a raspberry PI, say.

thetechnobear · 2024-12-19T10:33:42.817Z

Yeah, I don’t think anyone has had much luck contacting John at Eigenlabs for a while now ( years?). And their website has been down for a while I think.

Hardware support is therefore a concern … though in fairness, a few years back, I had an issue with my Alpha … and John did resolve it for me.
So maybe he is still available in these cases?!

Fortunately they open sourced the software, so as a community we are able to support the software side.

It’s a shame, I still love playing the Eigenharps, they are unique in their approach.

They kind of reach my ideal of playing like an instrument yet being able to utilize modern technologies ( laptops etc).

In a lot of ways ahead of their time, when released laptops etc weren’t quite powerful enough to drive both the eigenharp software and your daw/vsts - but a modern Mac does this all in its sleep

But for now , all is good, we can enjoy these wonderful instruments /)

CitizenJ · 2024-12-19T13:42:12.399Z

thetechnobear:

…their website has been down for a while I think.

Their website seems to be working fine on my iPad in Australia just now. Of course, that’s no guarantee the company is still operating but hosting isn’t free so perhaps there’s hope?

CitizenJ · 2024-12-19T13:46:42.715Z

Scratch that, sorry!

Their landing page at http://www.eigenlabs.com is indeed broken.

I was misled by the fact that the following URL does work, along with all the links I tried on the page: http://www.eigenlabs.com/product/

It was the first result I got for that domain when I Google-searched “Eigenharp”.

Anyway, there’s definitely the whiff of absent landlord about it, sadly.

thetechnobear · 2024-12-19T14:16:28.797Z

also the SSL encryption is broken (probably out of date cert), so you couldn’t order etc.

all that said, its good that its still being hosted, and the forum/documentation/downloads are still available.
note: we have taken a copy from all the software etc, just in case, one day it disappears.

so yeah, its kind of in limbo… but everything is kind of working still

jemmons · 2024-12-19T14:44:55.885Z

I use Eigen Core and ECMapper to play my Pico in Bitwig, so thank you both for your contributions!! It feels like it would have been easy to let this slip away, so I appreciate your efforts.

Shame about Eigenlabs demise, and with them the hope for parts/repair. I’ve got most of my Pico is working, but the ribbon is beyond my ability to fix, I think. And even simple things like the mouthpiece being badly cracked are an annoyance. 3D printed shapes all look smooth enough until you put your lips on them :-/

I suppose the solution is to keep an eye out on ebay.