connecting to audio device

[WilliamTBeck]

When I try to connect my Procyon to my pc or PSP or any other audio device to use the audio synchronization feature, it does nothing, I wasn't sure what mode it is supposed to be on and tried all of them, but still nothing. I thought it was AS but that's AudioStrobe. According to the manual you just plug everything in. Can anyone help ?

[Andy]

Hello and welcome!

It sounds like there's a little confusion with the modes of the Procyon. There is no "audio synchronization" mode for the Procyon.

There is the AudioStrobe (AS) mode which requires you to play back AS-encoded music into the Procyon. The procedure for this is documented in the manual.
There is also the Synchromuse (dAS) mode which requires you to play back SM-encoded music into the Procyon. The procedure for this is explained here.

[Adrock]

Hello and welcome!

It sounds like there's a little confusion with the modes of the Procyon. There is no "audio synchronization" mode for the Procyon.

There is the AudioStrobe (AS) mode which requires you to play back AS-encoded music into the Procyon. The procedure for this is documented in the manual.
There is also the Synchromuse (dAS) mode which requires you to play back SM-encoded music into the Procyon. The procedure for this is explained here.

I just got a new Procyon in the mail today, and am having the same issue as William. I too was mislead by the ambiguous language in the marketing and manual for the Procyon. Music-to-visuals was one of the main reasons I bought the Procyon. I'm curious: older machines (like the NovaPro) have this feature; why doesn't the Procyon? I tried a short session and was very impressed with the visuals. However, I may opt to return the Procyon in favor of a unit that *actually* has real dynamic audio input. The Novapro has a hefty price tag. How do the visuals compare? Can you tell me what I'd lose by making that switch(i.e., why should I keep the Procyon)?

[Andy]

Hello and welcome to the community!

I'm sorry that the literature was not as clear as it could be. We'll have a look to try and make it better.
The MindPlace AVS products are designed primarily to aid in Brain Entrainment, and as a side benefit, for entertainment. Flashing lights in time with music without any regard to desired brain wave frequencies does very little in terms of Brain Entrainment, and would merely be for the purposes of entertainment. The MindPlace products are much more advanced than that and offer real tools; the more advanced the product, the better it works for it's primary purpose, Brain Entrainment.

That being said, MindPlace tries to have a product for everyone's tastes, and therefore they offer an entry-level product, the Sirius, which does have a music-to-light mode for those that want this sort of functionality. The Proteus and Procyon's goal was to concentrate on Brain Entrainment, and therefore used it's processing power and memory to that end. Adding additional entertainment features would have left less room for it's primary functions or for session memory.

All is not lost, however. If you are interested in Brain Entrainment from the leading product in it's field, the Procyon, but want to use it with music, I would recommend looking into AudioStrobe media. These products combine the best of both worlds, with music AND control signals for the lights so you get Brain Entrainment WITH your music.

If the music selections available from AudioStrobe are not to your liking, there is an excellent piece of software from Transparent Corp called Mind Workstation which allows you to take your own music or audio and build audiostrobe signals.

Additionally, you can build your own Synchromuse sessions which allow synchronization of lights with music, using some free tools, detailed here.

Of course, if you feel that the Procyon, while being the most advanced of the product line, is just not what you want, you may contact the office for a refund or exchange to another product. I would recommend, though, that you give it a fair try with some AudioStrobe media and the built-in sessions as it's a great product.

[Adrock]

Thanks Andy, I appreciate your prompt reply. And as it turns out, I was wrong: the NovaPro also has audiostrobe; it does not have music-to-light.

For some reason, I thought music-to-light could also achieve entrainment. As this is not the case, such a feature would (as you point out) be purely for entertainment. Your focus on superior core functionality was a good decision. My initial disappointment may have been exaggerated since I was looking forward to receiving the product so much. I will give it the time it deserves, and try audiostrobe, before making a final decision.

I just had an idea... Correct me if I'm wrong, but I think the entrainment comes from the flash patterns, not the color. Perhaps you could develop a feature where the flash patterns for a session remained stable, while the color fluctuations would change based on audio input? Although the visuals would most likely be less impressive than the sessions as they are already programmed... Just a thought.

[Robert Austin]

Color does have an influence on mood, with blue being calmer, red more stimulating, and other colors in-between, so changing color during stimulation at a given frequency can affect your mood. If you are feeling adventurous, try cutting ovals out of paper which fit into your ganzframes, curving over the LED covers and slotting it at the top and bottom of the ganzframes. Then turn down the brightness and open your eyes. Works best in a darkened room but works surprisingly well!

We've experimented with various approaches to audio-driven control of lights; the venerable color organ being the simplest example (the Sirius has a bass detection filter which responds to the beat of music). It's much harder to extract non-randomish flicker control signals from the midrange and treble portions of the audio spectrum, though. BTW check out Mind Stereo and Neuroprogrammer 3 from Transparent--they can also be used to meld your favorite music with Audiostrobe control. Enjoy!