One side of the glasses stopped flashing. I may have to tinker around with it. Eventually I do plan to get a new one. I like the idea of a wider color spectrum.

By the way, for those who have tripped while using mind machines: have you noticed more honeycomb-like patterns as opposed to using them sober?

I consistently experienced this using my mind machine while on LSD.

The last couple of days, i have ended my day with various binaural and isochronic tones. I noticed that this seems to lead to a much improved sleep. I can get to it quicker, my dreams are vivid and pleasant, and i wake up more refreshed. I have no idea if this is placebo or not, but it is promising. I also do get bodily effects from this audio, it does affect me. Based on this, i have decided to swallow the bitter pill and try a proteus. If it can sustainably enhance my sleep and wellbeing, it will prove to be worth the price. I'm now very excited to have my first mind machine session soon. I guess i lumped it together with other "esoteric mumbo jumbo" such as devices to measure ones karma etc, but since other methods of changing my brainwave patterns seem to yield effects, it makes sense to believe that a mind machine will too. I'm adding nothing new to the discussion, this is more meant to be an update.

That's great obliguhl!

I have used binaural beats before and found much more instantaneous results from the mind machines mixture of light and sound, at least in my experience anyway.

Adding in outside music or ambient sounds through the aux input is also a great add on to a session too.

Let us know how you get along once you get it

Sounds like either a loose contact, broken wire or dead LED. Should be easy enough to isolate the problem and fix it if you are so inclined. I have mentioned a number of times how I kept an ancient machine running with spit, electrical tape and willpower... so I know it can be done.

That said, a new fully functional machine is definitely a joy.

@ obliguhl

Cool to hear you will be taking the plunge. As IP said, the effects from Light & Sound are far more obvious (and fun) than audio alone techniques. I suppose this is because humans are very visual animals.

I got a chance to play with brainwaves over a neurophone once and would love to play with that setup more. I may have to breakdown and buy one eventually. (A device invented by Patrick Flanagan that allows one to hear through the body and bypasses the ear drums... some deaf people are actually able to hear with them.) It is also nice to get a huge loudspeaker (or at least a subwoofer) and place a futon over it so that your body really vibrates with the waves... note: this can be a bit much for some people.

I think that sound is powerful and have done a lot of work with sound healing, didj baths, chakra tuning, sonic acupuncture and even more bizarre things. But as far as brainwave entrainment goes I find that light alone is significantly better than audio alone... so much so that light and sound is only moderately better than light alone IMO.

Anyway. We'd love to hear about your experiences. Make sure to pop back in once you've had a chance to play with it a bit and tell us your impressions.

HF

A semi-related thread I started a while back about "dream machines" Which are basically a one setting, light-only analog mind machine. Only costs about 5-15 bucks if you already have an old turntable or can get one cheap.

Dream Machine

Using mine sober led to a nice theta level meditative state with visions increasing in complexity, looking much like sacred geometry after the 20 minute mark. I have had actually had to back out because it got so intense before. Only entheogen I tried it on was LSD and that was a bit mentally abrasive with the extreme light.

I would still rather meditate on the breath, concentrate on music, or do choiceless awareness exercises because the homemade dream machine is a bit of a pain to setup.[wire hanging from ceiling, using an old turntable, adjusting the cardboard form, etc.]

Makes me wonder if I'd be more likely to benefit from the easy to use electronic light/sound combo machines...

Thanks for creating that thread, no knowing. I believe that would be a great way for people to check if this is something they'd enjoy. I have to say that it probably isn't for me. All i've gotten so far is terrible motion sickness. The visuals these thing creates are interesting, but most likely because i wouldn't have thought that flickering LEDs can do that. I think a custom tailored program with very slow flickering LEDs or very intense strobing set at lower brightness might be interesting in conjunction with low doses of mushrooms or something....

I just checked out a few videos of the SoundSelf/Oculus Rift headset... WOW! Pretty amazing concept. I'm not a gamer by any means but man, that is a tempting piece of technology right there

I can't speak for the Dream Machine setup described in that thread, but I played with a number of similar concepts back in the day. In high school I DIY'd a pinwheel with a tube to blow it and a simple means of fixing it before the eyes. If you lay down in the sun and closed your eyes, you could dial in a decent Theta if you controlled your breath.

All I can say is that these kinds of things are no comparison to the real deal Mind Machines. Seeing as the Dream Machine seems to only have one speed, one brightness level etc. it is hard to say if you would react similarly from a session on a good device. I think you would find that you could very easily tailor a mind machine in a way that was not annoying or strobing in the least... and that not all frequencies are created equal.



Just out of curiosity, did you actually build one of those with an old turntable?

Yea Hyperspace Fool...I built a functional one with an old turntable. It is underwhelming to say the least but the glimmers of meditative states I have had on it make me long for one of those programmable real deals.

Interesting fact, the inventor of the Dreammachine, Brian Gysin, thought the Dreammachine could replace TV in the new age as it lead to meditative states rather than a hypnotic and suggestible state.

But for reasons such as the work involved in quieting the mind and using such a device and the important fact that you can't advertise through a Dreammachine they never got picked up by a large company for mass production.

Just to clarify: I'm using a proteus.

I bought the Laxman Sound and Light machine last year but the binaural beats drive me crazy, my throat area contracts and effects linger for a week afterwards.

Is there a light and sound machine that is free of any binaural beats?

Simply don't use a headphone?

I played with a Laxman for a bit, and found the goggles to be nice. The ganzfeld effects on that device were the best I found... but I agree that the audio part tended to be less awesome.

Like obliguhl said, you can just use the light goggles without any sound.

You could also turn the sound way down. Having the tones loud doesn't help, and can be irritating.

It is possible that you are sensitive to programs that start in the Beta range... I am not a fan of beta or the more hyper frequencies either. As such, I tend to program my sessions to start in low-mid alpha, and then go down from there.

It wouldn't surprise me if an aggressive high frequency brainwave combined with a volume set too high could cause tension.

Another option is to use the great sounds from Neuro Programmer 3 or Mind Workstation, and bypass the Laxman sounds altogether. My NP3 audio tracks are awesome... you can easily layer ambient sounds of waves, chimes, forest noises, rain, didj, chanting or whatever floats your boat. You can use any of a half dozen entrainment techniques, and if binaurals are not your thing you can simply not use them. I think they are overrated personally.

Hope you find a way to make it work for you mate. Binaural sensetivity could come from a variety of reasons I suppose... involving right\left brain hemisphere sync, inner ear issues or whatever.

I just used the Laxman without sound and it has great effects. I was depressed all day and now it is lifted! I wonder how the other machines differ from this one. I had my eyes open, do people get better effects with eyes closed?

I was OK with binaural beats until I used Holosync level 2 program, that messed me up for years, it was heavy. I definitely don't want to use binaural beats. I will see if I can use sound with no binaural beats.

I will try the Laxman L/S machine tommorow while using the Chi Machine

Laxman with Chi Machine creates too much motion.

I REALLY wish there was a L/S machine that gave ElectricSheep types of visuals.

I recommend eyes closed.

Unless the brightness is way down, most AVS machines would be rather annoying with eyes open. The Laxman goggles are an exception in that the lights reflect off a membrane and are designed to allow for open eye use.

I used to take my Procyon lightframes and angle them to flash on a crisp white card stock, and thus created a rather spacious ganzfeld space for open eye use. It is cool enough, but I prefer the closed eye technique... better visuals.

I might have to try a chi machine / AVS session. I am visiting a friend who has one, so the time is right.

Hehehhe

HF