Comment by crazygringo | Hacker News Reader

Comment by crazygringo | Hacker News Reader

Incredibly cool, and the video explains how they made a 3D scan of it in order to reconstruct a playable version with broken parts replaced.

Which seems like it would be the coolest thing ever to 3D print. I'd love to have this on my bookshelf.

Unfortunately, I can only find a primitive playable version that was recreated from an illustration [1], and the museum gift shop sells a 3D-printed version that is unrestored and therefore unplayable [2] -- though the museum shop page doesn't seem to load any content [3].

But 4:34 [4] in their video shows the detailed scanned version with restoration that is playable: "To this end, we made a 3D model of the replica in which Ljuben Dimkaroski added the missing pieces."

I wonder how I could get/print one of those...?

(I also wonder whether a 3D printed plastic one would sound any good... Another source [5] indicates the playable version is a clay replica.)

[1] https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:500840

[2] https://www.3d-solutions.si/en/neanderthal-flute/

[3] https://www.nms.si/en/museum-shop/replicas

[4] https://youtu.be/3agcq7fSGC8?t=274

[5] https://www.classicfm.com/discover-music/instruments/flute/w...

For a flute it'll make minimal difference if it's plastic or clay or bone. You can find endless discussions on this on flute- and whistle forums, but it all boils down to the fact that the sound is produced by a standing wave of air inside a tube, and not by any vibrations of the actual tube material (i.e. totally different from string instruments). Though the material can make a difference when it comes to the actual part where you blow across an edge (very minimal differences are audible - and working with different and more or less difficult materials affect this). (I own flutes and whistles made of plastic or other synthetic materials, various types of metal, and wood)

Isn't the main difference due to the component of the sound that is travelling through the material?

Just my hypothesis. I have compared flutes for the same key but with different woods (and steel).

There's always some discussions about this, but the general consensus is that there's no really audible part travelling through the material. It's a bit cumbersome, but try covering a flute in wool or some other material, and only let the holes (and fipple, for whistles) uncovered. You won't normally hear any difference in sound quality. But extremely small changes to the fipple and edge of a whistle or recorder will change the sound.

I think this artist demonstrate your point:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R35N43h8M5U (The acoustic of PVC pipes - Nicolas Bras)

That video just got more and more interesting throughout! I own a few PVC whistles and I know how to make them, but this guy showed much more. And yes, demonstrated how the material doesn't matter for the actual sound.

fantastic stuff. I'm fiddling with screenshots from your [4] link video to try to pull 3D model from multi-image 3d model build tools. I too would very much like a print of their playable reconstruction on my desk. Please update if you get to a usable STL.

Ask them

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