I discovered that my $7.99 plasma ball from Banggood generates unintended electromagnetic interference that gets picked up as MIDI messages by my Modal Craft Synth when connected via USB.

The plasma ball is so badly shielded that the electric signals are picked up somehow as MIDI messages. While having the Craft Synth App open, I realized that it picked up some MIDI messages constantly and some changes when I put my fingers on the Plasma ball.

How it works

• Device: Modal Craft Synth (connected via USB)
• Control: Plasma ball interference creating MIDI signals
• Software: Ableton Live

The effect was discovered during a live jam session for the “Digital Water” event, streamed via Mixlr.