Guitar Hero Strum Bar As Guitar Kill Switch

guitar_hero_killswitch

[Ray] had a Guitar Hero controller for PlayStation 2 sitting around. Because he moved on to playing the game on Xbox 360, he decided to cannibalize the older controller for its parts. He removed the strum bar and fit it inside of a mid-1980’s Peavy Patriot electric guitar. Once wired up, it works as a kill switch; it stops all sound from making it to the amp whenever the strum bar switch is actuated. Don’t miss hearing this effect in the video after the break and keep sending in those Guitar Hero mods.[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A6VsLi84WnE]

[Thanks Sebastian]

20 thoughts on “Guitar Hero Strum Bar As Guitar Kill Switch

  1. Wow 3 comments in a row with no complaints? This must be a really great hack. ;)

    I really like the idea. I have a digitech guitar processor which does the same thing, but you have to use a pedal. Maybe this works better.

  2. I think this is super sweet! it seems so natural opposed to a button toggle/tap er not.. you would still use an up or down motion for it so I think it would be a Comfort to use…

  3. Buckethead has a button on that les paul. id like to see the fret buttons as killswithches on it also, that would be faster to use. GREAT HACK hope i didnt break the nice comment chain.

  4. Reminds me of North Mississippi Allstars’ Luther Dickinson playing R. L. Burnside’s Snake Drive (he uses the pickup switch method, muting one of the pickups):

    [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HKUJxIzTyR4&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0]

  5. Great Mod!

    Definitely better than a button, and a lot of people are familiar with this control already from the game, so thats good.

    However, I think a fader, like the type skratch DJ’s (turntablists) use. They don’t really fade, they kutt the sound on/off completely over a small travel distance; something like, .5MM

    Vestax (Professional DJ Mixers)actually made a “guitar style” midi controller turntable thing that had a built in fader on the neck, I don’t know if it ever made it to production tho.

    Here is a pic of it
    http://www.skratchworx.com/images/plasa2005/vestax/s1_2.jpg
    http://www.skratchworx.com/images/plasa2005/vestax/s1_2.jpg

  6. I would beef up the middle “on” range of the thing; it was more off than on, but I can see where he was going with it. He can achieve a very fast manual switching rate, probably faster than attainable with just a pickup switch (it’s dead both in up and down positions, live in the middle).

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