Experiments in sound, silicon chips and voice
Technology becomes most interesting when curiosity meets experimentation.
1m2lab exists because of that curiosity.
This site is a personal laboratory where I explore the intersection of:
- single-board computers
- embedded Linux systems
- audio technology
- music
- and the human voice.
Many of the projects documented here begin as simple questions:
- What happens if you run a guitar processing system on a small embedded computer?
- How far can modern SBC platforms be pushed in real-time audio processing?
- How are the extreme vocal sounds used in heavy music actually produced?
- And how can we build better tools for musicians using modern technology?
This lab is where I explore those questions.
Curiosity as a way of learning
I am on the autism spectrum, which means that when something captures my interest, I tend to explore it deeply and technically.
Rather than being a limitation, this has become a strength in technical exploration. It allows me to focus intensely on problems, systems and ideas that deserve deeper investigation.
1m2lab is a way to share those explorations.
Instead of keeping projects hidden on a hard drive or in notebooks, I document them publicly so that others can learn from them, critique them, or build something better.
Tinkering as a philosophy
Tinkering is not just about building gadgets.
It is about understanding systems.
Taking things apart.
Rebuilding them differently.
Discovering what happens when you push a system beyond what it was originally designed to do.
Many of the things explored here live somewhere between:
- hobby projects
- engineering experiments
- and musical tools.
Sometimes the result is a usable system.
Sometimes the result is simply knowledge.
Both outcomes are valuable.
Sound as a system
Sound is one of the most fascinating technical phenomena.
It exists simultaneously as:
- physics
- biology
- mathematics
- perception
- and art.
The same signal can be studied as:
- an acoustic waveform
- a DSP processing chain
- a musical instrument
- or a human voice.
Understanding sound means understanding systems that span multiple disciplines.
This lab explores those systems.
Heavy music as an engineering challenge
Modern metal music is also an engineering problem.
Extreme guitar tones, distorted vocals, complex signal chains and dense mixes all rely on carefully shaped sound.
Genres like deathcore push these systems to their limits.
As a musician and a technologist, I find it fascinating to explore:
- how those sounds are produced
- how they are processed
- and how new tools could make them even more expressive.
Projects like Widowmaker and PiPedal-Distro exist partly because of this curiosity.
The voice as an instrument
The human voice may be the most complex instrument of all.
Extreme vocal techniques used in metal music are often misunderstood, even by musicians themselves.
Through experimentation and technical study, I want to better understand:
- how harsh vocals are produced
- how airflow and resonance interact
- how distortion mechanisms work
- and how vocalists can produce aggressive sounds safely.
This exploration may eventually grow into a technical book about voice and sound.
Open technology matters
1m2lab also supports the development of open and decentralised technology ecosystems.
I actively participate in the Fediverse, both as a user and as a service operator. I run and experiment with several federated platforms and contribute by testing, reporting issues and participating in community discussions.
Decentralised systems are important because they give people more control over the infrastructure of the internet.
Technology should empower communities, not lock them into walled gardens.
Building, learning and sharing
Ultimately, 1m2lab exists for one reason:
To explore interesting systems and share what is learned along the way.
If these experiments inspire someone else to start building, questioning, or experimenting with technology, then the lab has already succeeded.
Welcome to 1m2lab.