What electrical appliances make the most appealing sound?

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I find the sound of hairdryers most relaxing... My scanner at work gives some interesting tones as well. What are your favourite whirs, buzzes and hums?

― JP Almeida (JP Almeida), Wednesday, 28 May 2003 12:52 (twenty-two years ago)

Recorded vacuuming sounds great, but kinda sucks live

― Fabrice (Fabfunk), Wednesday, 28 May 2003 12:55 (twenty-two years ago)

fridge trax.

― hstencil, Wednesday, 28 May 2003 12:57 (twenty-two years ago)

My dehumifier is a nice drone generator.

― JP Almeida (JP Almeida), Wednesday, 28 May 2003 12:59 (twenty-two years ago)

Fridges, especially the one that my former keyboardist in NYC used to have! Amazing phased drone.

And the Metal Machine Mainframe in the back room. HSA wants to come by and tape it. Two oscillating fans at differing pitching which combine and recombine in amazing wave forms.

Singing along with vaccuum cleaners = ROXOR.

― kate, Wednesday, 28 May 2003 13:02 (twenty-two years ago)

Washing Machine or Dishwasher - (The pulsing part.)
Motors with a low-pitched hum as opposed to a high-pitched whine.

-or if you like John Cage: Battery Charger.

― dave225 (Dave225), Wednesday, 28 May 2003 13:04 (twenty-two years ago)

Kettles.

― Matt DC (Matt DC), Wednesday, 28 May 2003 13:09 (twenty-two years ago)

Actually, Joe Banks to thread. Don't make me make him come in here and tell you all about mains hum and his favourite electrical appliances! Or you're DOOMED!

― kate, Wednesday, 28 May 2003 13:10 (twenty-two years ago)

A clothes dryer with something inside what's got metal buttons.

A slightly off-kilter klackitty ceiling fan.

An electric razor pressed to a hairy face.

The low-pitched breathy hum of the heater pushing air out the vents.

An electric mixer mixing ingredients into what will become cake.

A washing machine with too much in it spinning out of control and shaking the whole house.

All things I've recorded and/or sampled at one point or another.

― nickalicious (nickalicious), Wednesday, 28 May 2003 13:11 (twenty-two years ago)

I've heard a techno remix of what nickalicious is talking about.

― Lord Custos Epsilon (Lord Custos Epsilon), Wednesday, 28 May 2003 13:13 (twenty-two years ago)

Singing along with credit card payment receipt printing R0X0R!

― JP Almeida (JP Almeida), Wednesday, 28 May 2003 13:21 (twenty-two years ago)

Accidental Music

― Tracer Hand (tracerhand), Wednesday, 28 May 2003 13:38 (twenty-two years ago)

The interference noise from mobile phones.

― Siegbran (eofor), Wednesday, 28 May 2003 13:39 (twenty-two years ago)

Office sounds are really good too: the grinding of a fax machine jam, the gentle rhythmic buzzings of a laser printer, the ginormous almost vengeful-sounding growl of the photocopier, that digital gurgling noise of faxes being sent, etc.

― nickalicious (nickalicious), Wednesday, 28 May 2003 13:44 (twenty-two years ago)

and u forgot the sharp buzz of the shredder. man, I love this office environment..

re. mobile phone interference, there's an Einsturzende Neubauten wholly based on that on Strategies Against Architecure III. Very cool..

― Fabrice (Fabfunk), Wednesday, 28 May 2003 13:58 (twenty-two years ago)

Older ceiling fans.

― Charles McCain (Charles McCain), Wednesday, 28 May 2003 14:15 (twenty-two years ago)

Irons. The breath of steam, the dink of the thermostat, water plashing inside. Hot metal plate rubbing up hard cotton.

― Eyeball Kicks (Eyeball Kicks), Wednesday, 28 May 2003 14:23 (twenty-two years ago)

The back end of bowling alleys that process the pins and replace them back in their ten-pin forms make such excellent noise – wavering drones from the whirring machines punctuated by the bold clatter of the crashing pins.

A photocopy machine going quickly through its motions is really calming to me.

The start of Stinkfist by Tool sounds like my kitchen, with the sounds of the washing machine, stirring spoons against the pots and pans, laundry machines in the next room. Womp-womp-womp-tink-tink-tink-tink-tink!

― Fivvy (Fivvy), Wednesday, 28 May 2003 14:26 (twenty-two years ago)

the short'n'sweet descending purrrr-piece performed by the little ventilator in my 'puter after every switch-off

― t\'\'t (t\'\'t), Wednesday, 28 May 2003 15:41 (twenty-two years ago)

i like when something it can't digest gets stuck in the garbage disposal. well, the noise anyway---it's rather exciting and frightening. of course i don't want to think about what will happen if whatever it is shoots out of the disposal at speed...

air compressors make good noise. as do chainsaws. and lawnmowers. and leaf blowers (as evidenced by Sr. Hansen, i believe). and edgers!

― janni (janni), Wednesday, 28 May 2003 15:52 (twenty-two years ago)

I like the sound of when you put money into a coin operated machine

― Andrzej B. (Andrzej B.), Wednesday, 28 May 2003 18:58 (twenty-two years ago)

When my office phone rings, it sounds like the beginning of a dub by Yabby U.

― Tracer Hand (tracerhand), Wednesday, 28 May 2003 19:55 (twenty-two years ago)

My parents had the most amazing sounding dishwasher when I was in my late teens. It had a wonderful rhythm.

― Christine 'Green Leafy Dragon' Indigo (cindigo), Wednesday, 28 May 2003 20:13 (twenty-two years ago)

Gygercounters!

http://userpic.livejournal.com/4027832/515656

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Wednesday, 28 May 2003 20:18 (twenty-two years ago)

Percolating Coffeemakers.

― David Beckhouse (David Beckhouse), Wednesday, 28 May 2003 20:44 (twenty-two years ago)

that blue guy is stealing my moves :(

― stevem (blueski), Wednesday, 28 May 2003 20:45 (twenty-two years ago)

CD players

― Curt1s St3ph3ns, Wednesday, 28 May 2003 23:31 (twenty-two years ago)

hairdryers i find extremely soothing. i could happily fall asleep on the spot when i hear one.

― dog latin (dog latin), Thursday, 29 May 2003 00:01 (twenty-two years ago)

Air filters are the best. Very nice background drone.

― Chris Barrus (Chris Barrus), Thursday, 29 May 2003 00:03 (twenty-two years ago)

Tom Ze's vacuum-blender thingie.

― b.R.A.d. (Brad), Thursday, 29 May 2003 00:08 (twenty-two years ago)

uh, the dirty answer: the resulting sounds of a vibrator

― JasonD (JasonD), Thursday, 29 May 2003 00:40 (twenty-two years ago)

ask Keith Rowe.

― hstencil, Thursday, 29 May 2003 00:42 (twenty-two years ago)

the user made a composition w/Okidata printers that I quite liked, so my answer is: Okidata printers

also the tea kettle's whir & clatter is nice

― truant (truant), Thursday, 29 May 2003 04:16 (twenty-two years ago)

It is kind of loud when you are close, but i like how a circular or table saw sounds going through a solid piece of wood.

I worked at a factory that had this huge metal press that would have made a killer percussion sample.

― earlnash, Thursday, 29 May 2003 04:54 (twenty-two years ago)

I love the sound of airplain engins, ever since my first flight, especially when you're outside near the engines. but for electonical appliance it'll have to be air-vents.

― Jrvision (visionjr), Thursday, 29 May 2003 07:34 (twenty-two years ago)

Well not really close to the engines cuz than you'll literally go death.

― Jrvision (visionjr), Thursday, 29 May 2003 07:39 (twenty-two years ago)

(deaf)

― Jrvision (visionjr), Thursday, 29 May 2003 07:40 (twenty-two years ago)

Just this morning I read a review of an album by Xerophonics, an album made entirely of sounds from the photocopier. I find this idea much more appealing than I probably should. Photocopier sounds are great, so big and clunky and rhythmic.

― NA. (Nick A.), Thursday, 29 May 2003 10:41 (twenty-two years ago)

Lawnmowers. If you could control the pitch, it would be "To Here Knows When"

― Johnny Badlees (crispssssss), Thursday, 29 May 2003 17:44 (twenty-two years ago)

Hand-held hammerdrills, especially if you shift them back and forth between reverse and forward. It's not especially rhythmic, but sort of warm and reassuring. Ahh, the batteries I have wasted.

(rigid machines - for cutting, deburring and threading low carbon steel pipe - sound incredible when threading, all low ground-metal hum and occasional manic squeaks, but they're a bit hard to define as 'appliances'.)

― cis (cis), Thursday, 29 May 2003 21:39 (twenty-two years ago)

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