In this workshop participants will build simple audio synthesizers using recycled disposable vapes. Participants will leave with an understanding of disassembling vapes for parts and constructing an analog noise making circuit. Together we will review the necessary circuitry, and make breadboard variants inspired by the work of Forrest Mims in his “Timers Op-Amp’s and Optoelectronic Circuit.
We’ll also discuss opportunities for further experimentation and creative adaptations for both vape components and synths inspired by global traditions of resourceful making including gambiarra (Brazil), jugaad (India), Shanzhai and Lajilao (China), and shared ethos with community-based workshops like:
- NYC Resistor’s “Grab the Guts: Salvaging Electronic Parts from Street Trash” and “Use Those Guts: Building from Salvaged Components” series
- Disengineering Society’s “Vape Mic” workshop, where disposable vapes are salvaged and repurposed into functional microphones
No experience necessary. Participants will be provided vapes and all necessary electronics.
Who is this workshop for:
- Anyone curious about transforming discarded electronics into creative tools
- Artists and technologists working with electronics and sound
- Designers and makers interested in sustainable practices and material reuse
- Researchers exploring alternative design methodologies
About the Instructors: shuang cai, Kari Love, and David Rios, are all New York City-based creators working together as Paper Bag Team. They make projects that blend applied technology, art, and craft, while evoking a sense of fun and surprise. They met working at NYU ITP and began collaborating on an overlapping interest in making salvage parts more accessible to use and educating folks about how disposable vapes became an outsized source of e-waste. They gave a talk about the Vape Synth at Open Hardware Summit 2024.
This is a masks optional event.
We are a proactively inclusive space, and prioritize creating opportunities for the whole community to engage with our events, across all identities of race, creed, ethnicity, age, religion, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, physical appearance, and ability; please read our Code of Conduct to familiarize yourself with our community’s values before attending. We are also an 18+ space, and accessibility information can be found here.
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