Introducing Odd Ball: The Fun and Intuitive Way to Make Music
Odd Ball is a company that has revolutionized the way we create and interact with music through their innovative electronic bouncy balls. These unique devices allow users to generate MIDI sounds simply by tapping, bouncing, or using various gestures like spinning, twisting, moving, shaking, and even throwing the ball in the air. With Odd Ball, making music has never been more accessible or entertaining.
New Gestures and DJ Mode
The latest app update from Odd Ball introduces a range of new gestures, categorized as Triggers (tap, shake, twist) and Modulators (move, spin, air throw). Triggers are likened to playing a note, while Modulators function similarly to knobs on a console. The intensity of the gesture also plays a role in the sound generated, with harder or faster spins and shakes resulting in different effects.
Image Credits: Odd Ball
In addition to the new gestures, Odd Ball has introduced a DJ mode, complete with background tracks and on-screen instructions for each track. By combining one or more gestures, users can layer sound effects over the background track, essentially becoming the DJ at their own house party.
Image Credits: Odd Ball
Unlocking the Potential of Built-in Sensors
Pasquale Totaro, founder and CEO of Odd Ball, revealed that the company had been sitting on an unused motion sensor within the ball’s hardware. The recent update has finally put this sensor to use, unlocking a wealth of new features and possibilities.
“The hardware originally had one motion sensor we did not use at all, it was just sitting there. The idea was to later push a new firmware that would bring it to life. That’s where we are now. It took a lot of R&D to unlock all the features. Imagine a trackpad that understood only taps… now it also has zoom, pinch, drag, pan, etc.”
Totaro emphasized the significant effort put into distinguishing one gesture from another, ensuring a seamless and intuitive user experience.
The Origins and Future of Odd Ball
Odd Ball’s journey began in 2018 with a successful Kickstarter campaign, leading to the release of their first version in November 2020. The company’s mission has always been to make the music-making process easy and fun, and they found that playing with a ball, an activity that comes naturally to humans, was the perfect way to achieve this goal.
Image Credits: Odd Ball
To date, Odd Ball has sold over 25,000 devices, with kids and music lovers being their primary customers. Despite not having raised any institutional money, the company remains profitable and has plans to expand its product line. Two new devices are currently in development, including a version of the ball with multiple RGB LEDs for an added dimension of interaction.
Looking to the future, Odd Ball’s adaptive gesture technology has the potential to extend beyond their current form factors. Totaro hinted at the company’s ambition to enable everyday objects to become useful in the XR/VR sector, opening up exciting new possibilities for the world of music and technology.
1 Comment
Odd Ball, because who said music can’t come in shapes?