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Playing Black Sabbath on Tesla coils with an iron guitar, standing in a Faraday suit
boingboing ^ | 2-4-12 | Cory Doctrow

Posted on 02/07/2012 9:11:12 PM PST by bigbob

If you need me to explain why you should spend 1:26 watching a man wielding an iron guitar in a Faraday suit playing Black Sabbath's "Iron Man" on MIDI-compatible Tesla coils, you are in the wrong place, pal.

ArcAttack is performing a Tesla Coil version of Iron Man by Black Sabbath. The Guitar Player is using an iron guitar in a faraday cage

ArcAttack testing out the world's first lighting-proof MIDI guitar in their warehouse in Austin, Texas.

The MIDI signal from the guitar is routed through a fiber optic cable to control the Tesla coils.

Update: From the comments, ArcAttack clarifies, "The guitar isnt iron though, its actually made out of wood with shielding and a couple of micro-controllers hooked up to a switch bank (the fret board) and is all optically isolated. The giant fan in the back isn't for sucking ozone. It was 100 degrees that day and being in a metal suit can get pretty hot. And in reference to Manny's comment, our interview went as follows "THEM: What happens when something goes wrong? US: We have many safety controls to minimize any major problem. If something goes wrong we just turn it off. THEM: is lightning deadly? US: Lightning is very deadly, but our machines arnt nearly as dangerous as real lightning."


TOPICS: Music/Entertainment; Weird Stuff
KEYWORDS: arcattack; blacksabbath; ironman; tesla
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Let's be honest - - who amongst us has NOT wished we could play "Iron Man" while 10 foot lightning bolts discharge all over our glorious metal-clad body?

The stuff techno-geek dreams are made of!

1 posted on 02/07/2012 9:11:21 PM PST by bigbob
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To: bigbob

If 5,000 screaming groupies throw their panties at once, won’t the thing short out?;)


2 posted on 02/07/2012 9:16:16 PM PST by Frank_2001
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To: Frank_2001

Only if they are damp.


3 posted on 02/07/2012 9:18:17 PM PST by Nik Naym (It's not my fault... I have compulsive smartass disorder.)
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To: Nik Naym

and for anyone within a hundred feet of this thing, they would be ;-)


4 posted on 02/07/2012 9:21:40 PM PST by bigbob
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To: Nik Naym

Are they are going to play in the rain?


5 posted on 02/07/2012 9:24:24 PM PST by MaxMax
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To: bigbob

Love this!


6 posted on 02/07/2012 9:29:44 PM PST by Beowulf9
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To: bigbob

The next big genre of heavy metal?

I will pay to see and hear it just because it sounds so cool.


7 posted on 02/07/2012 9:36:01 PM PST by wildbill (You're just jealous because the Voices talk only to me.)
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To: bigbob

I don’t care what. With a thread title like that, I had to see this. Awesome.


8 posted on 02/07/2012 9:37:24 PM PST by Lazlo in PA (Now living in a newly minted Red State.)
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To: bigbob
Thank you from a 40yr Black Sabbath fan.

Best rock band ever.

9 posted on 02/07/2012 9:48:08 PM PST by Mariner (War Criminal #18)
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To: Mariner

Me too, love Sabotage from 1975.


10 posted on 02/07/2012 9:52:17 PM PST by toddausauras (The)
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To: bigbob

Probably was a lot better in his head.

Could have been playing pop goes the weasel.


11 posted on 02/07/2012 9:54:07 PM PST by TASMANIANRED (We kneel to no prince but the Prince of Peace)
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To: bigbob

Shouldn’t they be playing Tesla on Tesla Coils?


12 posted on 02/07/2012 9:54:37 PM PST by dfwgator (Don't wake up in a roadside ditch. Get rid of Romney.)
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To: Mariner; All
For those who disagree with my contention check this out:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xtqy4DTHGqg

Best rhythm section ever...and best rock band of all time.

Give it 3 minutes.

13 posted on 02/07/2012 9:58:20 PM PST by Mariner (War Criminal #18)
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To: bigbob

We took our 3 children to see them LIVE. It was awesome. They did a science presentation for the kids before the ‘concert’ and took lots of questions after. They had a robot playing drums.


14 posted on 02/07/2012 10:05:41 PM PST by christianhomeschoolmommaof3
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To: bigbob
Playing Black Sabbath on Tesla coils with an iron guitar, standing in a Faraday suit

Now why didn't I think of that?

15 posted on 02/07/2012 10:06:21 PM PST by TigersEye (Life is about choices. Your choices. Make good ones.)
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To: bigbob

I saw Black Sabbath in Tallahassee when they did their “Iron Man” tour in the early ‘70s . . . . . been a fan ever since.

Can’t play a lick on a guitar but I’d sure love to have one of those suits and a lightning generator. That looks like too much fun!!!


16 posted on 02/07/2012 10:13:45 PM PST by radu (May God watch over our troops and keep them safe)
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To: bigbob; All
I had the pleasure of seeing ArcAttack at MakerFaire 2010. Not only were they nice guys, but they put on a good, loud, bright, inventive set of tunes. Oh yeah, with lightning.
17 posted on 02/07/2012 10:18:56 PM PST by Othniel (No, I don't have a plan. And that scares you to death, doesn't it???)
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To: humblegunner; Grizzled Bear; shibumi

Electric heavy metal ping


18 posted on 02/07/2012 11:04:00 PM PST by Salamander (You don't know what's going on inside of me. You don't wanna know what's running through my mind)
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To: bigbob

I like that song, but the way it was played it sounded a whole lot more like DEVO than black sabbath!


19 posted on 02/07/2012 11:13:36 PM PST by Mount Athos (A Giant luxury mega-mansion for Gore, a Government Green EcoShack made of poo for you)
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To: raven92876

ping


20 posted on 02/08/2012 6:28:22 AM PST by stylecouncilor (Some minds are like soup in a poor restaurant...better left unstirred.-PG Wodehouse)
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