Circuit Bending

Circuit bending is one of the most interesting forms of tinkering. It's the creative short-circuiting of low-voltage, battery-powered electronic audio devices such as guitar effect pedals, children's toys, and small synthesizers to create new musical instruments and sound generators. The heart of this process is the "art of chance". It began in 1966 when Reed Ghazala, by chance, shorted-out a toy amplifier against a metal object in his desk drawer, resulting in a stream of unusual sounds. What I like about circuit benders is their ability to create the wildest devices by tinkering away with technology without necessarily understanding what they are doing on the theoretical side.

It's a bit like the Sniffin' Glue fanzine shown here: during the punk era, knowing three chords on a guitar was enough to start a band. Don't let the experts in one field tell you that you'll never be one of them. Ignore them and surprise them.
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