Drums are already an interesting to watch instrument but we felt more could be done. We decided to create a drum set that will react to it being hit by lighting up an LED strip inside the drum.

Step 1: Materials/Tools You'll Need

Arduino RedBoard
Breadboard
Mini USB cable
12V DC Power Adapter Supply
Electret Microphone Breakout
NPN Transistor
RGB LED Strip
Varying(4.7K-10K) Resistor
10 Wires

Tools:

Lots of tape
Scissors
Wire cutters/strippers
Soldering Iron/Solder
Shrink wrap/heat gun

Step 2: Solder Wires to Microphones

I decided to use a white wire for the analog connection(AUD-A0), orange to ground(GND-GND), red to 5V(VCC-5V). This makes attaching the breakout to the Arduino easier.

Step 3: Solder Wires to RGB Strip

For the RGB Strip, I soldered the V+ to a yellow wire, B to blue wire, G to the green wire, and R to the orange wire. After this I decided to shrink-wrap the base of the wires so that they won't touch.

Step 4: Connect Everything

TLDR; There it is.(LED Light Represents LED Strip)

Step 5: Put Everything on the Drum

I taped the LED strip to the inner rim of the drum but far enough away to not disrupt the sound. Then I stuck the Arduino to the side of the drum close to the hole so that I could connect it to the 12V power source. Once everything is secure I started to code.

Step 6: Coding

TO CHANGE SENSITIVITY YOU MUST CHANGE THE VOLUME VALUE ACCORDINGLY IN THE IF STATEMENT. TO TEST THIS SET IT TO AROUND 100 AND HIT THE INSTRUMENT AND SEE HOW SENSITIVE. YOU WANT TO MAKE IT SO THAT ONLY THAT INSTRUMENT MAKES THAT LIGHT GO OFF.

int currentValue;

int maxValue;

int minValue;

unsigned long timer;

int sampleSpan = 5; // Amount in milliseconds to sample data

int volume;

void setup() {

Serial.begin(9600);

resetValues();

}

void loop() {

currentValue = analogRead(A0);