jaytee

One last ditch effort to find this apparently unobtanium switch. Anyone have a spare they want to get rid of? Anyone have a gutted C64 with in-tact switch? Anyone know of a replacement part? Fingers crossed. Thanks.

I have Hawkeye's tutorial on a permanent tab on my computer browser ;) I can't seem to find anyone in North America selling those switches, unfortunately. I would honestly pay $10 or so for the right switch (fuck it!) but $10 plus international shipping is getting ridiculous. Unless someone has a spare or a suitable replacement is found, I'm probably gonna find something to panel mount, as much as I hate it.

Is there any way we can just get the board files released to the MIDIbox community? Or even just sent to Tim at the MIDIbox Shop for occasional small runs, a la the MB-6582? It feels insane to have this many people waiting for years on the next run of kits. I don't want to diminish the hard work that @nILS and @Wilba put into these designs; quite the opposite, actually. I admire the designs greatly and don't think I would be capable of creating something on the same level. I totally understand why they would have wanted to keep the board designs to themselves while sammich kits were in production—demand was enormous when these kits were originally announced and keeping the board designs private ensured that nobody shady would take advantage of the situation and begin selling kits themselves. But circumstances have changed, and it seems like we're back to the normal state of MIDIbox affairs: just a few DIYers who want a fun project for themselves. Now that the kits are long out of production, what purpose does keeping the design files private serve? Also—and I mean this as a sincere, curious question, with no intention of being accusatory or inflammatory—the TAPR license that all MIDIbox designs fall under seems to imply that any derivative designs are to be "open" as well, at least with regard to sharing documentation. So I'm left feeling confused as to why certain MB designs end up as proprietary. Obviously, the sammiches were produced with @TK.'s explicit approval (aka word of God), so there's no suspicion on my part of wrongdoing—rather, I am just hoping for a clarification on the rules of the TAPR.

Ah, I see what you're talking about. I actually hadn't even considered the board-to-board connections yet; I was still stuck on the headers for the panel-mount stuff on the back (mix out, expansion port, etc). But it is good to know that the CS board will fit them, if barely. Probably going to order more parts tomorrow!

Thanks @jjonas! This is very helpful. With the knobs, I always just worry that I'm misinterpreting a measurement, like that the diameter is the inside of the knurls instead of the outside, or that they won't cover the threaded section of the pot... I think I need to just bite the bullet and buy some, and if they fit, they fit, and if they don't, I learned something. As for the connectors.... Hmm. At the very least, it's encouraging to know that they come in "kits." Previously I was trying to look up the right parts on Mouser/Digikey and I couldn't make heads or tails of what bitsies went with which bobbinses. Hopefully someone else can chime in about whether the cheaper-but-taller connectors fit in the Pac-Tec.... Or I could just skip the Pac-Tec altogether. I know someone who makes sheet metal + wood cheeked enclosures that look really nice. They've made MB-6582 cases in the past I know. I haven't inquired about price (I'm sure it ain't cheap) but the Pac-Tec seems like a little bit of a pain in many ways (space mostly). I only figured I'd go with it because I found a source of cheap panels.

Thanks @Janis1279. I will be using a Recom switching regulator to get 5V. It comes well-recommended by other members of the forum, and those that have installed it report no heat issues or switching noise. I am not worried about this aspect of the build at all. Re: feedback pots. Thank you for confirming the necessary resistance. Do you know if log or linear is better? Can you recommend a specific pot/knob combination? Have you noticed any noise issues with the feedback pots as opposed to tying the inputs to ground?

Making a big Mouser order for the MB-6582 parts I couldn't source from Tayda. I have a few questions about the BOM. - Is there anywhere to source the necessary rocker-style power switches? All I can find is a couple references to Wilba selling them from a larger batch. I used the photo on the old group buy wiki page to figure out what part it was, but can't find any place to purchase it. Is there another suitable part? Does anyone on the board have these? Should I just go with some other (probably panel-mount) switch and adjust the rear panel design as needed? I think I'm going to do that with the power jack anyway, since I'm gonna run it from a single 12V supply and want to use a standard jack instead of the 7-pin DIN jack. EDIT: I seem to have found a switch that matches. First of all, it looks like the switch that Wilba was supplying is the R8011L from Salem (caveat, this is my best guess based on the image on the group buy wiki page). As far as I can tell, this switch (E201J1AV2BE2 from C&K) seems to be a close match. Only difference I can find is that the rocker sticks out an extra fraction of a millimeter. Not cheap, unfortunately. I'll probably buy one and give it a shot unless anyone points out that I've missed some crucial detail that makes it incompatible. I'll report back whether it works or not. Hopefully this is a help to anyone else looking for this rare part. Actually, upon closer inspection, I think the switch that Wilba supplied was the R8017L from Salecom. Ever so slightly different. C&K lists a matching part in their datasheet (E201J1V5BE2 ), but it doesn't seem to be for sale anywhere. Back to the drawing board. - The feedback pots aren't on the BOM. I think they're supposed to be 500k dual-gang pots, right? Log or linear taper (I think log, right)? Can anyone suggest a matching pot/knob combo? I know that the pots probably aren't hard to find, but I feel totally inept at match knobs to pot shafts. - Speaking of the feedback pots, how useful do folks find them? I'm considering leaving them out entirely. Despite seeing successful installs from other folks, I worry about noise coming in on the audio-in pin, and about eventually blowing the SID filters, which I've heard the audio-in can do. I'm using 8580/6582 SIDs, if it makes any difference. - There's nothing in the BOM about securing the base PCB to the Pac-Tec case. Are the screws included with the PT-10 sufficient or are those only to close the case? I can't really tell from the PT-10 data sheet. - Can anyone give me a quick primer on crimp pins/female connectors for the headers on the base PCB? I promise I've googled this, but I must not be searching for the right things. It seems like a lot of DIY stuff assumes knowledge on what pieces and parts one needs to buy to assemble female connectors for headers, but this will be my first time not just soldering wires directly to the board in lieu of headers altogether (trying to do this right!). - Speaking of connectors, can anyone offer Mouser part numbers for the correct LCD connector. I have a better idea how to assemble this piece at least, thanks to the guide to MIDIbox display cables, but I just want to be sure I'm getting the right part; again, first time working with these types of connectors. -Any other parts that aren't on the BOM that I should pick up? Even just basic stuff that most folks would already have in their workshop. Only things I've come up with are shunts and a few machine-pin female headers (for SID capacitors and LED resistors). Sorry, I know this is a ton of questions about stuff that most folks here (and elsewhere in the DIY world) take for granted as simple matters. Just looking for a little guidance before I drop a bunch of money on parts. Better to ask these questions now than after parts arrive and I get the wrong stuff. As a post-script, let me just say that I do not recommend buying IC sockets from Tayda, or at the very least, not the 28-pin wide sockets (i.e. SID sockets). On two separate sockets, a pin came loose while placing it into the PCB and the wipers slid upward. Really poor quality.

@jjonas, the last time that page was updated was before the most recent batch of stock was put up.

I received mine last week. If you haven't yet, try emailing Tim at the email address listed in your order confirmation. He got back to me pretty quickly that way. It sounds like he's been traveling and busy with non-MIDIbox stuff.

Can you give a quick explanation on how your proposed solution works? I took a look at that data sheet but can't really figure out what it does. either way, definitely interested to hear if it works!

Did this ever go anywhere? I currently use an Axis 49 together with some software magic to achieve a Wicki-Hayden layout. Now don't get me wrong, I like this set up a lot. I've never been much of a player-of-instruments, so it really just functions as a more-intuitive note input device and musical sketch pad, meaning my requirements are rather modest co pared to someone who is looking to play live keyboard parts. That said, there's always been a few things about it that irk me and ever since I got this set up four years ago, I've been looking for alternatives, either DIY or commercial (and come up dry). The main things I want to address: - The Axis is USB MIDI only. I would love to control hardware directly without a computer in between; normally I would look at a USB-MIDI host device, but because I rely on software to get a Wicki-Hayden layout, that won't work. - The Axis 49, when turned 90° for Wicki-Hayden, is not quite wide enough to provide for optimal fingering in all keys. Right now it's set up in the best compromise layout, allowing good access to the most common scales, but there are a few scales with sharp or flat roots that are impossible to play without "wrapping" from one side of the keyboard to the other. - No aftertouch or other expressivity beyond velocity. I feel like a grid layout would be even better for polyphonic aftertouch control than a piano keyboard; you don't need to stretch your fingers as far, so you may achieve better control. @Wilba, as you mention, I could gut the Axis and install a MIDIbox core. This could at least solve the first problem, allowing me to define note assignments at the hardware level and add DIN MIDI. I even have a second Axis 49 (I bought two to achieve the ideal "jammer" layout, with the notes on the left-hand keyboard mirroring those on the right, but I find I rarely use the second keyboard in practice) so I wouldn't even be risking my prized, now-out-production main keyboard. However, that still doesn't solve the other two problems, which are honestly the most important to me. I've looked into dozens of possible DIY solutions for making my own velocity-sensitive keyboard, and most of them are less-than-satisfactory. There's one person who built an isomorphic keyboard using a different Cherry modification technique (cutting off the bottom so the plunger can go through the PCB and hit a tactile switch on a second PCB underneath); this seems less than ideal. I've looked into having my own silicone membranes manufactured to do something like what is inside the Axis 49, but with the silicone as the actual button (like a TV remote or Monome); this gets expensive quickly, but could maybe work. And I looked into a company called Sensitronics who make sheets that when coupled with a properly designed PCB allow for any layout of FSRs you can imagine; I like this idea the best, but don't know what I would do for the actual mechanics of the keys. I had the "brilliant" idea of using SPDT switches and timing the difference between the make and break...only to find this thread (which is how I ended up here) telling me that no such switch exists. Le sigh... Anyone come up with any other ideas in the last few years? It's surprising to me that nobody manufactures a part that can do this.

Doh! What's it doing there?! thanks TK, lifesaver as always.

Sorry for the dumb question, but where the heck is R80 on the MB-6582 base PCB? I've been looking for about twenty minutes and feel like I'm going crazy.

The sammiches were always one-off kits; I don't believe they were ever sold as just PCBs. I could swear SmashTV had SID module PCBs available as recently as yesterday or the day before; maybe I'm imagining things though. In any case, keep checking back; he can be slow to restock, but he always does eventually. I don't think he's offered parts kits in a long while, but they're all standard, easy-to-source parts. Alternatively, the module Eagle files are available; you could have your own boards made pretty cheaply and easily.

@latigid on, you did another run of PCBs? I've recently been thinking about doing an MBSEQ... I tend to sequence all my music from my computer, so an external sequencer doesn't really fit with my normal workflow, but I'm looking into musically enriching activities for when I'm really not feeling my normal recording routine. I had originally dismissed the SEQL, since I didn't think boards were available, but it might be more ideal for quick, off the cuff jams; I don't need a studio "brain" like the full SEQ seems to be. anyway, do you have boards? I can't guarantee I'll buy one, but I'd like to at least price out a build to see if it's feasible right now.

I really hope to build one. I've wanted a 2600 ever since I found out it was R2D2's voice, lol. Hopefully I can at least get a PCB and panel, I don't mind waiting to slowly collect parts if it means I can spread the cost out over a year or so. I did the same thing with SID chips, and I'm finally starting my MB-6582... I'm a patient man.

Sorry to bump this thread, but @Rowan, did you see they're doing another run of the TTSH? I was just cruising through some of the MB forums I rarely visit and saw you mention it, figured I'd give you a shout out if you missed it during the first two runs. I know I was kicking myself for not jumping on when I had the chance; I'm not gonna let another opportunity go by. just so I'm not completely derailing this thread, I'm gonna put down the MB SID as my favorite DIY synth. I personally have a sammichSID that I managed to snag in a trade as an unbuilt kit about a year after the kits stopped being made. Phew! Best (music) decision I've ever made. I'm about to start working on an MB-6582 though, which I've listed after basically since I found out about them. Took me a couple years to get comfortable enough with MIDIbox and DIY in general to understand what goes into building an MB-6582—the sammichSID was my first DIY project and I never would have gotten through it without the detailed build guide—and then another couple years for board availability and funds to finally line up. Why is it my favorite? Well, for one, I really appreciate that it's a completely original project. Stuff like the x0xb0x and TTSH is awesome, and I don't want to dismiss the amount of work that goes into reverse engineering an analog synth like that, but there's something really romantic about knowing that the the MB SID was basically designed from the ground up by one guy working in his spare time. It's really inspiring, isn't it? Like TK just sat down one day and thought "Why doesn't my dream SID synthesizer exist?" so he opened up his laptop, got out his soldering iron, and a few years later, he unleashes the definitive SID synthesizer on the world. Which leads me to my second reason: it's a goddam badass synth. I feel like a lot of DIY project synths end up somewhat feature limited or even incomplete. Meanwhile, the MB SID implementation puts most *commercial* synths to shame. Even just the "Lead" engine is crazy powerful, between the multi-stage envelopes, mod matrix and trigger maps. And then you tell me that there's a 303 emulator mode, a drum machine mode, and a poly/multitimbral mode? *And then* you tell me that not only can I stack two SIDs for stereo, but I can then stack four of those stereo SIDs and operate them all independently or as part of a "super-poly" mode? It sounds hyperbolic, but when I read interviews with Bob Yannes and he talks about how he originally envisioned that the SID chip would be sold to synth manufacturers as a building block for their designs, similar to CEM/SSM chips, I can't help but think that the MB SID must be pretty close to what he had in mind (probably without the VCA/envelope glitches though, lol, but that's just what makes a SID a SID).

I PMed Androsid, never got a response. In any case, I'm all taken care of thanks to @Psykhaze. I don't think he has extra SIDs left, but he gets my solid recommendation as a stand-up seller.

Have you looked into @Altitude's thread on powering an MB-6582 from a single supply? IIRC, you just use any ol' 12V DC wall-wart, then regulate it on the board to 9V and 5V with a 7809 with a more efficient 5V switching regulator with a very high frequency. It requires a couple jumpers, but otherwise works with the MB-6582 PCB just fine. Seems like the simplest solution.

I just need a handful, it probably makes more sense for someone in Europe to handle the GB and to just add my small amount to the order. Maybe it's time for a new thread, if anyone wants to take charge?

Not trying to step on anyone's toes, and specifically trying to *avoid* pestering ALBS with small orders, hence the effort to get the next GB going. @kristal=, can you tell me what the minimum order amount would be for an ALBS group buy? I checked their website, but couldn't find specific information on this; I'm gathering that they don't do a lot of business in English.

I wouldn't be opposed to running the GB, but I'm in North America; I imagine it would be cheaper if someone in Europe is home base? Although maybe not, if most of the buyers are NA too...

This has happened just often enough in the last week or so that I want to get to the bottom of it. During the last few long sessions with my sammichSID, about 3-4 times I've looked down and realized that it has, seemingly spontaneously, changed banks and thus patches. For instance, I'll be using patch B022. My mix will sound weird, I'll look down, and it has switched to A022. When I go to the ensemble page, it displays that I'm in Bank A, but when I go to adjust it, it jumps straight to C, as if it thought it was still in Bank B; I have to notch it up (to C) then back down to get back to Bank B. It's entirely possible that this is error on my part. The last issue I had with my MB SID turned out to be some garbage CC automation that had showed up in my DAW somehow. Is it possible I'm sending some kind of Program Change MIDI message unintentionally (using Ableton Live, FWIW)? Is there a MIDI message that changes only banks and not patch numbers? I haven't "caught" the issue happening yet; as I said, it's only been a handful of times over the last week or two. Normally I would hook up a MIDI monitor to see if that's what's causing it, but I would have to leave it running for a day or two to catch it and then sort through once I notice it's happened. Not impossible, but I just thought I'd ask for a little guidance first.

Is your external input tied to ground? On a sammichSID, the input is a switching jack, so if there's nothing plugged in, it *should* tie to ground automatically, if it hasn't developed a soldering fault. If there's anything plugged into that jack....unplug it! It might also be the VCA leakage. I've noticed that some patches tend to leak worse than others. A bad/noisy power supply can also cause noise issues.

Any chance we can get another GB going?