Linnstrument bug - cannot play parallel notes on two adjacent rows ...

[Rob Rayle]

Found this problem while setting up the Outersect Modeler to work well with the Linnstrument.

If you try to play parallel notes on two adjacent rows of the Linnstrument,
only ONE of the two notes will sound.

This makes it nearly impossible to play classic Hendrix rhythm
idioms on the LS in string per row mode.

You can see the bug by looking at the lights to see which notes are activating ...
no need for sound.

I was looking for a place to report this directly to Roger, but this forum is all I found ...

OS version 2.33 (latest)

See (unlisted) video:
https://youtu.be/e5mLT86Jgiw

[Roger_Linn]

Hi Rob,

I'm sorry to say that this is a fundamental electrical limitation of LinnStrument's sensing system. It is stated on the LinnStrument FAQ page, Pre-Sales tab, 2nd FAQ, paragraph 2:

"If 3 note pads are pressed that are 3 corners of a rectangle, presses to a note pad that is the 4th corner of that rectangle will be ignored. This is a fundamental electrical limitation of LinnStrument's sensing method and cannot be changed. Without this limitation, a different and far more expensive sensing method would be required for LinnStrument's large playing surface that would have less velocity accuracy, higher latency, and would interpret two close touches as one. This is why no other polyphonic 3D touch surface exists with a large playing surface, low latency and the ability to recognize two close touches as distinct. Fortunately, LinnStrument's Fourths String Note layout provides multiple instances of each pitch, so if you encounter this limitation with a particular chord fingering, there will be alternate fingerings for the same chord."


I'm sorry if you weren't aware of this. If you feel this is too large a limitation for you, hopefully you are within the dealer's return policy and can return it. However, LinnStrument players generally feel that the advantages of LinnStrument are worth this relatively minor limitation.

[FranklyFlawless]

I was looking for a place to report this directly to Roger, but this forum is all I found ...

https://www.rogerlinndesign.com/about/about-contact

[Roger_Linn]

The signed letter you received in your new LinnStrument contained my direct email address and direct phone number, as did the LinnStrument Support page near the top of the page. I sincerely want to help my customers and I'm perhaps the most accessible company founder in our industry.

[Rob Rayle]

Hi Roger -

We've met.

I bought the Linnstrument directly from you at your house in Berkeley before you moved to Los Gatos.

So ... it's out of the warranty period by quite a lot.

I was not aware of this limitiation, I guess I did not read the manual carefully enough.

Disappointing, but yes I'd still keep the LS anyway. It's still useful.

-Rob

[Roger_Linn]

I'm sorry, Rob. It was a while ago and I didn't recall your name. But thanks for understanding. Fortunately, the multiple instances of each pitch make it fairly easy to find alternate fingerings for a given chord.

Thanks for owning a LinnStrument, and for being a fairly early adopter.

[John the Savage]

This makes it nearly impossible to play classic Hendrix rhythm
idioms on the LS in string per row mode.

Hi Rob,

Speaking to you as a fellow guitarist, who tours with a LinnStrument in a professional context, and has long since adapted to its "limitations" as compared to the guitar...

Hendrix has to play those double-stops inside that pentatonic box thusly; perhaps ironically, because of the physical limitations of the guitar in this case, which the LinnStrument doesn't suffer from.

To that end, there are countless alternate fingerings to be had on the LinnStrument, that would otherwise be impossible on the guitar.

I can tell you firsthand, as a guitarist who also gets hired to play synths, the LinnStrument has proven a godsend. That said, in my experience, the best thing you can do for yourself as a player is to let go of the notion that the LinnStrument ought to behave like a guitar; and instead, treat it as the autonomous instrument that it is, rather than the instruments you might be hoping to emulate with it.

Here's a cute little video for you, if only to serve as inspiration...

Cheers!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U37ysgI02r8

[FranklyFlawless]

So ... it's out of the warranty period by quite a lot.

Okay, well your LinnStrument may be due for several hardware upgrades at this point. Compare your LinnStrument's serial number against this page's list for an understanding of how many hardware revisions have been applied after your purchase:

https://www.rogerlinndesign.com/where-t ... uying-used

For touch sensor upgrades, contact Roger directly.

[John the Savage]

What does this have to do with the question at hand, Frank?

[Rob Rayle]

"Here's a cute little video for you, if only to serve as inspiration"

Challenge accepted ...

[FranklyFlawless]

Challenge accepted ...

Great, let us know your results once you have something ready to share.

[BobDog]

When I first got my LS I was a bit put off by this as well, strangely after a while I didn't notice it at all, my brain reconfigured itself.

[Rune_7s]

When I first got my LS I was a bit put off by this as well, strangely after a while I didn't notice it at all, my brain reconfigured itself.

I've found it to be a non-issue for me, even though it did bother me at first. As my technique has developed I have found myself purposely avoiding the kinds of grip/shape that would cause this problem in the first place due to preferring to spread out my fingers on chord voicing rather than to bunch them up, ESPECIALLY when the notes are vertically adjacent.

[Rob Rayle]

Probably not the final version yet, but ...

https://youtu.be/WGx0QwGF4kk

[FranklyFlawless]

Great work so far Rob.