How do I get started with DSP programming etc?

Or, even less hassle, try something where you can write DSP code in a live-coding type plugin:

https://www.bluecataudio.com/Products/Product_PlugNScript/

https://www.reaper.fm/sdk/js/js.php

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Ah ok, that makes a bit more sense. So it’s not necessarily using assembly language and dealing with stuff at that low a level, unless doing really efficiency-critical stuff for more limited chips?

I’ll check out that stuff, thanks :slight_smile:

Yeah. I mean, whatever platform you program on, you’ll probably end up doing some kind of optimisations eventually; e.g. SSE on PC. But I think worrying about that before you can code a working audio thing is really putting the cart before the horse :slight_smile:

It’s not so much the code as and a rough guide to how things go together and an introduction to the maths. I’ve done a bit in Reaktor Sequencers mainly. I also did a little bit of modelling from technical drawings, which was quite interesting.

There’s quite a few levels too it all.

Haha, true. I’m just fascinated, really. Do people often get that low level with this kind of stuff? Is there ever any programming from the ground up or is it usually a mixture of high and low level programming? Just wondering since Ess mentioned that he prototyped the Digitone in Max and then Elektron’s “DSP guy” translated it for the processors they use. What would a typical process look like for this?

Yeah, good point. I suppose I should study how to actually design some of the things at a math level first before I worry about the implementation stage!

Hey guys. I’m just starting my journey into learning DSP, reading books and trying to brush up on my math skills. I’ve been a designer and web dev for the last 12ish years so I know my way around programming in general, and my strong point is in UI/UX design.

I have a crazy idea for a thing I want to make, and essentially I’m planning on just figuring it all out myself and doing it, even if it takes me years (which it probably will).

I don’t want to get too specific about what the idea is on this thread, because ideas are cheap anyway and I’ve got a long way to go before I’m really qualified to even have one.

I’m currently reading “Understanding Digital Signal Processing” by Richard G. Lyons, and have been reading a lot about DSP chips and hardware etc.

Very interested in Faust and the Daisy as possible starting points.

How are you getting on with the math side of things? That’s kind of where I’m at right now and it’s been so long since I actually studied math at all. From what I gather, the most important parts are trig and linear algebra, which aren’t too insane.

I actually haven’t got into DSP at all yet, haha. I’m studying interactive design at the moment and focusing on interfaces and sequencers for the time being. It’s only a matter of time before I start messing around with deeper synthesis and math etc though :slight_smile:

Ah I see! In what context are you studying ‘interactive design’?

As part of a larger course, covering elements of game design, sound design etc. as well. It was intended as a pathway for me to get deeper into sound design, but I’m loving the programming side a lot more than the sound design side (probably due to the sound part of this course already covering stuff I’ve known how to do for many years).

I may end up going on to a degree next year, which will probably be where I get into the deeper stuff :metal:

Nice! Sounds really interesting.

I’ve been doing UI/UX design for years, but mainly in the context of the web, rather than native or hardware interfaces etc. The fundamentals are all the same though, especially when it comes to usability. That’s one of the reasons I’m interested in doing some DSP - I think if I could get that technical aspect covered I’d be pretty well equipped to make some cool stuff. Feel free to hit me up if you ever hit a wall with design/interaction/usability stuff - more than happy to help if I can.

Oh nice! Might hit you up sometime.

My girlfriend is also a UX designer, but I never really wanted to get into the UX side tbh. I’m more a technical design kinda guy, and I think the emotional/psychological side isn’t for me, as much as I have respect for UX people! I love making interfaces in code though, the ability to make things super precise really does it for me. Plus, all the designs I have in mind probably violate several key UX principles :stuck_out_tongue:

I really do wish I’d studied web design instead of print design many years ago though, that would have made things a lot easier to pick up. I really do not like HTML/CSS…

Hah yeah I used to hate the idea of UX actually. Once I started getting more into the deeper fundamentals what makes UI designs actually good, I started to find UX quite interesting; it’s like an invisible language that everyone understands but not many people can speak it. Everything you design is being interpreted by people, but unless you can speak the language, you can’t be sure that what they hear is what you meant. The other side of it is all to do with boring stuff like conversion rate optimization and marketing etc, but I don’t really care about that stuff.

You’re not alone in disliking CSS either lol. I adore it, but I totally get how frustrating it is when you’re starting out!

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