Tahoe for Wennebostel

Objective:

To put the effect features of the initial white Tahoe mic into the much smaller Wennebostel D1 digital microphone in a manner ideal for optimal comfort and usability.

Market Segment: Prosumer

Target users: live loopers, beatboxers, hip hop artist’s, and experimentalists.

The price point of the wennebostel system is aimed at entry level professionals.

Inspirational cues

BalanceRefinementClarity Hierarchy Elegance

Sketch ideation

The biggest asset to sketching was in finding the aesthetic balance of the artifact. A issue in the initial prototype was the lack of flow from feature to feature; with some going completely unnoticed.

Rough form development

Exploring different feature configurations, button layouts, fader location, etc. From the chaotic 3D printed prototypes six final directions were chosen to be presented to possible users.

User interview: Meg

“I need to put it [the mic] on the stand whenever I have to tinker with this” as she points to her equipment on the floor

“I don’t want to be hooked up like that. I always see guys with the laptops and stuff and I think to myself what are they doing back there?”

User interview: Daniel

“I don’t use my feet. I used to, but not anymore. I want my focus to be off the ground”

“I don’t want to accidentally grab the microphone and push any of the buttons”

“I don’t want to have to look at the microphone to locate the buttons. It should be natural.”

Takeaways from interviews

Having the ability to use the mic with both hands

Place on mic stand without pressing buttons

Intuitive hand placement

Form refinement

Initially a knurled texture for the fader portion was chosen, but was later changed because it did not coincide with the elegance and refinement qualities that were aimed for.

Ideal depth and curvature of the concave buttons were also determined at this point.

Mechanical Engineering

The inner housing had to reworked to fit a additional PCB on the opposite side without altering anything on the finished backside.

The battery housing had to change from the intended AA configuration to a AAA battery configuration to make more space.

The rotating fader had to actually WORK!!!

(SO MANY CHALLENGES! WHERE DO I EVEN BEGIN?)

Exploded view

Works like Prototype

Feel was everything to this project. So it was crucial to have a model that felt close to the real thing with a mechanically working fader.

Detail shots

Muting capability

Easy to locate power and pairing button for your receiver

Features

Programmable effects can be set to the individual buttons of your choosing by linking to your ableton system.

The six LED’s correspond to the individual buttons indicating which ones are active or inactive.

By pressing down on the LED button you can deactivate the LED feedback system.

Rotate the fader for continuous control adjustments. Like reverb or delays

How it works

The fixed slide potentiometer on PCB is moved up/down by the outer shell that has a curved cut out which gives the 8mm of travel.

There are stoppers on both the black housing and outer shell to limit the rotating part from breaking off the potentiometer.

Effects enabled microphone