Patent ID: 6852919

Claim:
A steel guitar signal processing and control system comprising: a plurality of strings; a plurality of vibration-sensing transducers, wherein each vibration-sensing transducer of said plurality of vibration sensing transducers is coupled with an associated string of said plurality of strings, wherein each vibration-sensing transducer of said plurality of vibration-sensing transducers generates a distinct electrical transducer signal responsive to vibrations of said associated string; a plurality string signal processors, wherein each signal processor of said plurality of string signal processors is adapted to receive said electrical transducer signal generated by an associated vibration-sensing transducer of said plurality of vibration-sensing transducers, wherein each of said plurality of string signal processors shift the pitch of said electrical transducer signal according to a variable degree of pitch shift to generate an associated plurality of processed electrical signals, wherein at least one string processor control signal is used to vary a degree said pitch shift; a controllable mixer for mixing electrical transducer signals generated by said plurality of vibration-sensing transducers and said plurality of processed electrical signals generated by said plurality of signal processors to generate at least one outgoing audio signal, wherein a mixer control signal is used to control said mixing; a plurality of physical controllers generating an associated plurality of physical controller signals in response to user operation; and a control processor for generating said at least one string processor control signal and/or said mixer control signal according to a control signal algorithm responsive to one of said plurality of physical controller signals generated by said plurality of physical controllers.