So what does this futuristic robot guitar actually do? Well, it's not
really all that flashy, relative to the imagery "robot guitar" conjures
in the brain. But if you've ever played the guitar, you'll agree it's
very useful. Basically, the robot guitar tunes itself. Built in sensors
"listen" to the individual strings and monitor when things go flat, or
sharp, as the case may be. All the guitarist has to do is
press the main control knob. Mechanical elements (the "robotic"
angle) actually turn the tuning knobs and adjust the strings
accordingly. Several illustrative videos can be found here.
The
guitar can also auto-adjust itself to many of the alternate tunings
used by that most adventurous of artists -- the rock musician. This can
be enormously helpful, as switching to alternate tunings during a
performance is a time-consuming buzz-kill, and decidedly unsexy. (Most
musicians -- who can afford it -- simply keep multiple guitars handy
and switch 'em out when needed.)
You may be asking yourself,
"Hey, Doc. You're a scientist. How do you know so much about rock
guitar concerns?" Well, I wasn't always a sober and endeavoring
scholar, gentle reader. Modesty, and several still-outstanding
warrants, prevent me from going into too much detail. But let's just
say I served my time in the School of Rock. Keith Richards and I used
to hang out quite a bit, but he eventually decided he couldn't really
keep up with my various rock-star indulgences. Nice bloke, Keith. Bit
of a lightweight, though.
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