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Project Ideas for the Spectrum Analyzer in the Classroom

Here are several engaging Spectrum Analyzer and FFT demonstrations and applications for a classroom setting. These examples leverage the hardware you have (microphones, speakers, displays) and focus on creating music-reactive experiences that students will enjoy.

Music Visualization Demonstrations

1. Real-time Audio Spectrum Analyzer

  • Use the FFT code (like in 22-fft-256.py) to create a live visualization of music frequencies
  • Display the spectrum on an OLED screen as colorful bars that react to music
  • Students can observe how different instruments and sounds create distinctive patterns

2. Beat Detection Light Show

  • Create a system that detects bass beats in music using the lower frequency bins of the FFT
  • Trigger LED lights to flash in sync with the beats
  • Students can experiment with different threshold settings for beat sensitivity

3. Voice Pattern Recognition

  • Have students speak or sing into the microphone and observe their unique voice patterns
  • Compare different voices and sounds visually on the display
  • This demonstrates both FFT applications and introduces concepts of voice recognition

Hands-on Learning Projects

1. DIY Music Reactive LED Matrix

  • Build a grid of LEDs that responds to different frequency bands
  • Low frequencies could light up the bottom rows, mid-range in the middle, and high frequencies at the top
  • Students can modify the code to create different visual patterns based on frequency analysis

2. Audio Fingerprinting Experiment

  • Record FFT patterns of different songs or instruments
  • Create a simple program that tries to match new audio inputs to the stored patterns
  • Introduces concepts of audio fingerprinting and pattern recognition

3. Sound Wave Physics Demonstration

  • Use the FFT display to show the difference between pure tones (sine waves) and complex sounds
  • Have students generate different tones with instruments or tone generators and observe the FFT display
  • Excellent for connecting music with physics concepts

4. Custom Audio Equalizer

  • Build a simple equalizer that can boost or cut specific frequency bands
  • Use a potentiometer or rotary encoder to boost low or high notes
  • Let students customize their music listening experience
  • Demonstrates both signal processing and practical audio applications
  • Have a list of presets that boost or lower specific regions of the spectrum

Interactive Classroom Activities

1. Musical Scavenger Hunt

  • Challenge students to find objects that produce specific frequency patterns
  • They can use the FFT display to verify their findings
  • Teaches critical observation and connects everyday objects to frequency analysis

2. Sound-Controlled Game

  • Develop a simple game controlled by sound input
  • Different frequency bands could control different game actions
  • Combines programming, physics, and fun game design

3. Audio Illusions Exploration

  • Use the FFT to analyze famous audio illusions
  • Students can see the actual frequency content while experiencing the illusion
  • Great for discussions about how our brains process sound

4. Environmental Sound Monitoring

  • Create a system that monitors classroom noise levels throughout the day
  • Display a real-time "noise thermometer" and collect data for later analysis
  • Connect to discussions about environmental sound pollution

For implementation, you can start with the 22-fft-256.py sample code you shared as it has a well-optimized FFT implementation. The microphone setup is already configured, and you could adapt the visualization part to work with different display types or LED arrays.

Which of these ideas sounds most interesting for your classroom? I can provide more specific implementation details for any particular demonstration.