ilmenator

Once you have mounted your PCBs (in a case, on a cardboard,...) it is next to impossible to change the wiring if you need to access the copperside. Therefore you put in the SIL headers and have access to the ports from the upper side of the PCB. Best regards, ilmenator

Yep, you need 11 analog control voltages for taking advantage of the full potential of that chip. You might get away with 10 if you choose between linear or log gain and leave the other away (although this might have some implications, I have not read the specs thoroughly yet). I suggest we collect some ideas first and then discuss these. I have set up a page in the Wiki, it is here: http://www.midibox.org/dokuwiki/doku.php?id=midibox_3396 Feel free to modify this anyway you want. You can find a link to the data sheet there, not more yet. But there are plenty of suggestions in the data sheet. Also, I will not be able to push this forward a lot in the next half year or so. Best regards, ilmenator

Hey Stryd, you got a bargain deal, I envy you :D. We're beginning to gain critical mass ;D. Best regards, ilmenator

Hi Jaicen, it would help if you created the setup for the DX27 in the JAVA app directly. This would make the box even more attractive to others :). I will let you know when the documentation is available. Btw, I once had a DX27, too, for some years :D. I will not say much more about this project now because it is a University project of which I happen to be the supervisor. So let us finish this internally first, and then it will get published in the WIKI. Just to give you a time scope: the internal presentation will take place on the 13th of October. Best regards, ilmenator

Hi Jaicen, you might want to wait a month or so, there is something in the pipeline that could serve your needs (and those of other late 80's / early 90's synth owners as well). It is a box that will be able to edit any synth controllable by SysEx or CC or RPN/NRPN messages. As things look now, it will come with ready-to-use editor setups for Oberheim Matrix-1000 and Emu Ultra-Proteus. Also, there will be a little JAVA app that allows you to specify the control sequences necessary for your own synth. Best regards, ilmenator

Okay, thanks everybody for staying away... :D I assume shipping will be hassle-free, so I will have 6 of those babies by the end of next week. @Rowan: I could not resist going for 6 of those chips, so please forgive me for withdrawing from you generous offer to share your lot. Maybe SLP can jump the boat now, if he's still interested? I will most probably not be able to make a design for the chips until spring of next year, as I have some other projects in the pipeline (and a familiy, too). Yet, I am always open for discussions ;D. Best regards, ilmenator

So who is going to bid on this item? I would love to, but I would not want to raise the price tag for you nice folks - nor the other way round... :-* May I bid on this article then, please? And you stay away, so I will stay away the next time? Pretty please? Best regards, ilmenator

Okay Rowan, once you worked that out, PM me! @ matthias: easy is a relative term... look at the Matrix-1000 schematics and you see what I mean. Also, the data sheet of the chip explains a number of things. Most work will have to go into designing the software properly, I guess. Best regards, ilmenator

No problem, it was more that those chips were going into my inventory, for a future project, you know... lots of future projects to be worked on... Still, I believe that it should be fairly easy to build a synth with these chips. So I am interested in two of them. How much do you ask? Best regards, ilmenator

So you were the one outbidding me... dr.wolzow... ;D Best regards, ilmenator

Hi moxi, you could glue a metal plate underneath the silicone pad, this way the tact switch cannot be felt through the pad any more. Best regards, ilmenator

I wonder if those lights aren't too bright? At least on the fotos it looks like they might blind your eyes in such a way that it's hard to see the buttons / read the panel any more, at least in dim light. It does look very cool, though! Best regards, ilmenator

Well, we had a number of threads on this topic, now I finally got around constructing this variant. It's a cheapo, total cost for each button is 0.19 Euro if you use parts from Reichelt: LED 8MM XX (LED 8mm (green, red, orange, yellow)): 0.10 Euro TASTER 3301B (tact switch, 9.5mm height): 0.08 Euro one drop of superglue, one sheet of sanding paper (graining 240): 0.01 Euro (averaged) Attached are some pictures of the result (this one uses the orange LED). How to go about? 1) Sand off the top of the LED by sliding it over the sand paper lying on a flat surface. Use circular motion for best results. The more you sand off, the flatter and bigger your button will become. This takes 15 seconds. 2) Bend the legs of the LED carefully according to the grid of your board (grid is usually 2.56mm). 3) Use a knife or cutter to sharpen the top of the tact switch. See picture. The top should fit between the two legs of the LED. 4) Place one drop of superglue between the legs of the LED and glue it to the top of the tact switch. 5) That's it. Don't worry about the fragile joint between tact switch and LED - once the item is put into a case, the LED should be secured by the front plate, so no movement to the sides is possible any more. Another advantage of this: front panel costs are reduced, because there is only one hole instead of two when using LED and switch separately. Best regards, ilmenator Edit: fixed a typo and added time it took me for sanding off the LED's top. LED-Button_1.JPG LED-Button_2.JPG LED-Button_3.JPG LED-Button_4.JPG

If you don't want to go through the trouble of molding the buttons, you can also use large diameter LEDs (Reichelt sells e.g. 8mm and 10mm diameter for 0.08-0.12 Euros each). They are round on top, so the touch is not so nice, but if this was a problem you could easily flatten the top using a belt grinder (be careful with your fingers, though ;D). Regards, ilmenator

Basically you are trying to ground the -12V line of the P1 PSU with the other PC's ground. Don't do this, and don't try to remove the ground from the PSU, it will become dangerous. Instead, use batteries for this - they have a 'floating' ground so what you are trying to do (use only the voltage difference but not the absolute voltage value) will actually work. Regards, ilmenator

http://cgi.ebay.de/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=9735358205&ssPageName=MERC_VIC_ReBay_Pr4_PcY_BIN_IT A very cheap source of 240 x 64 (backlighted) GLCDs. He is selling one after another, but I have already bought four of his displays for my projects. They contain the Toshiba T6963C controller - ideal if you want to use the display in a vertical way. Mine will be used for a general purpose synth editor box with knobs to both sides of the display. Regards, ilmenator

Hi seppoman, wouldn't you like to contribute your driver to the download section of the WIKI? Or send it to TK, so it can be placed directly on the display drivers page on ucapps? Best regards, ilmenator

stryd, I couldn't agree more... As for RME, IMHO I think longer lifecycles of products are rather positive. Usually you get a better support and the manufacturer is interested in a product that actually works. Not only the hardware, but also the drivers. RME is an excellent example for that policy. Regards, ilmenator

Then I would build the LC, just for the fun of it ;D No, honestly, the Behringer DDX has no advanced MIDI remote functionality. Although you can download some Cubase MixerMaps from their website, I believe only the faders and one row of buttons is supported. I tried it only once and decided that it doesn't make sense for me. Regards, ilmenator

Hi Criss! In terms of audio quality (measured values), the Behringer DDX desk is no low quality product. Even for the original price tag it was a bargain. The mic preamps are of very good quality, no matter what people say about Behringer - they just don't know (or need the exclusivity of higher priced brands). In terms of sound quality I find it acceptable to pleasing. I used to work with an O2R in my job, and I find the Behringer superior in terms of sound quality. Of course, the O2R is 10 years old, which is far more than a lifetime in digital audio - but there are hundreds of very good sounding (and well selling...) mixes out there which have been done with that desk. Also, the Behringer is easy to operate. I would not buy it for its MIDI remote capabilities, though - but you wanted to build an LC anyway, right ? :) Best regards, ilmenator

Sorry, what are you talking about? I can't see any reference here??? Regards, ilmenator

Wenn sie als Encoder nix taugen, geben sie immer noch ordentliche Taster ab :-) ilmenator

Hello, I saw the discussion on Yamaha Cards and remembered that I always wanted some for my Korg Wavestation. Well, I have found a place with some infos on a D.I.Y. card I would like to share: http://www.xs4all.nl/~fjkraan/digaud/korgS3/index.html Regards, ilmenator

Sorry for not being able to write in french language: would somebody care to put a translated summary of this thread into the WIKI? Also the pictures would be nice to see - most of the links included by moxi are dead now. Thanks, ilmenator

At first sight, I was under the impression that this could be a MIDIBox, too. But then, it might just be that all of these units share some characteristics: Display, buttons, faders, knobs, almost always in groups of eight or multiples thereof. And they all have microcontrollers inside... But most of them are way less customizable 8) ;D Keep us posted what they say, will you? Best regards, ilmenator