PixiVisor Lets You Treat Video As Sound, So You Can Use Your Monotron To Mangle Kitty Videos

Developer Alexander Zolotov has released PixiVisor, a tool that lets you send and receive video as audio.

And because it lets you handle video as audio, it lets you use your complete toolkit of audio-mangling tools for mangling video.

PixiVisor is multi-platform, with versions planned or available for Android, Windows, LInux, Mac and iOS. 

PixiVisor consists of two parts:

  • Transmitter converts the video (static 64×64 image or 10FPS animation) to sound, pixel by pixel (progressive scan). This lets you listen to the sound of your image. But the main function of the Transmitter is to transmit the signal to receiving devices.
  • Receiver converts the sound (from microphone or Line-in input) back to video. You can set the color palette for this video, and record it to animated GIF file.

Here’s an example of using an audio mixer to mix lo-fi video:

And here’s a more experimental demo, showing a Korg Monotron being used to mangle a kitty video:

Features:

  • file formats supported by Transmitter: JPEG, PNG, GIF (static and animated);
  • real-time video export to animated GIF;
  • 64 predefined color palettes;
  • iOS: iTunes File Sharing;
  • iOS: Wi-Fi Export/Import (in the File menu of the Transmitter);
  • more functions in the next PixiVisor updates…

Applications:

  • wireless Lo-Fi video transmission over audio;
  • video signal transmission through audio cable; you can then modify that signal by some mixers or audio FX processors;
  • VJing;
  • sound visualization;
  • save any sound to animated GIF;
  • hide some images and animation in your music;
  • searching for hidden messages in the ambient noise; EVP;
  • experimenting

See Zolotov’s site for details.

If you’ve used PixiVisor, let us know what you’re doing with it!

via PalmSounds

13 thoughts on “PixiVisor Lets You Treat Video As Sound, So You Can Use Your Monotron To Mangle Kitty Videos

  1. Alexander Zolotov is one of the most interesting and avantgarde developer in the audio/video field.
    His softwares are amazing, innovative and very stable. And they are cheap, too.

    Going to buy the Android app soon!

  2. This looks incredible. Couldn’t help it and just got the android app to try it with the pc app.
    Unfortunatly not working on my htc desire s.
    Hope he updates and fixes soon.

    1. The first device is taking video and translating it to an audio signal.

      The second device is doing the opposite, translating the audio signal back to video.

      You can put any device you like in between, so you use a Kaoss pad, for example, to mangle video.

      Now if he could just get the iOS version running!

  3. the visuals still look like something from 20 years ago. This could be done with a newtek Video toaster on Amiga, but not the video affecting the audio part… That part is interesting. Still cool at the end of the day to have it on a phone or ipad… Would be nice to have the video being triggered on a computer so your not limited like you are on an ipad.
    Thumbs Up

  4. Nice concept, and I like the super lo-fi aspect of it, but it needs to be expanded to accept at least VGA resolution continuous video to be more than a toy. I immediately thought, “Cool… you could run a live video feed into it and use ANY effects unit to mess with the video, and then project the result,” but that’s not what this is. I think I’d get quickly bored running animated GIFs through it, and I LIKE qlitchy stuff a LOT! MIght be useful to make DIY background video loops though!… worth a try for sure!

    1. Unfortunately we have a limit – 44100 Hz. 10 frames per second. 44100 / 10 = 4410 bytes per frame. It is not enough for higher resolutions.

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