nebula

Yeah, that seems to be the going *bay rate. In the past hour I've actually found them individually from a local broker for less. So I might be on the right track. As for help with the software: I'll bet you could be a huge help. But I think this is going to be my MIDIbox coding baptism. Since I've shown up here I've built only a couple of things, and I haven't yet touched a line of code, so this will be my chance to make something cool. Be forewarned: once I get going I'll probably be asking for general help here in the forum, including some nasty n00b questions, so go easy on me! ;)

Thanks Stryd, but I've been planning to work on something 3394-based for a long time. Now that I have AOUT working, I want to get busy! My goal is to hack the MIDIbox SID code to work with the 3394. In order to control multiple voices, I may still wait until MB-SID is mature on STM. But even if only as spares for my Six-Trak, I'm ready to buy some 3394's now! The 3396 is the voice of the Matrix-6 / Matrix-1000 and the Cheetah MS-6, so you'll probably get some cool stuff out of that too. It looks like one of the key differences is that the 3394 is controlled with voltages while the 3396 is primarily controlled digitally.

To further clarify: the opposite of "push to make" is "push to break". So yes, "push to make" is what you want. BTW are you the "Atom Heart" that made the ultimate glitchy cover version of Bowie's "Ashes to Ashes"? If so, I'm a fan!

Thanks prof - but they're not the same thing. CEM3372 = VCF CEM3394 = VCO, VCF, VCA in one IC ... used in some Sequential stuff from the period (Six-Trak, Max, Split-Eight, Multi-Trak), and also in the Akai AX60, some others ... it was also used in several video arcade games as I understand it.

If you can't get it to work right, just keep the parts of the board that accomodate the rubber buttons, and build an MB808 sequencer in it. All those light-up rubber buttons ... it's perfect!

Wow, that is pricey. Technology Transplant was selling them on eBay 6/$99, but seems to have just raised the price to 6/$149 (OUCH). These ICs appear to be remarkably easy to control ... did you know that the Sequential stuff (Six-Trak, Multi-Trak etc) uses only a single-channel DAC to control 6 of these buggers with no special s/h chips? I thought it might be fun to control some with an AOUT, but the price seems a little stupid.

Yay! Good news, and it puts to rest the fear that the YMF batch could have issues. How does that MBFM patch sound now? Do you still get that weird "every 4th note louder" thing, or does that seem resolved as well?

Anybody got any CEM3394 ICs to sell?

NS-10Ms were once the only nearfields to have. They got a reputation for being fatiguing because they are nearfield monitors, which in itself is theoretically fatiguing - the whole concept is that you reduce or eliminate the sound of your room from what you hear. That's a pretty unnatural way to listen to music. So if you think back to the control rooms of yesteryear, engineers would switch from the NS-10Ms to the big speakers because they would get on your nerves after a while. This was of course before home studios got big, in which people can usually only afford one decent pair of monitor speakers. Today's (awesome) studio monitors are a bit more of a compromise - they are usually ported, and therefore not true nearfields by strict definition, but they are designed to function well as your only set of speakers. I don't particularly recommend NS-10Ms. They're overpriced on the used market. I got them working for me, and I mention them only as an example of an unconventional monitoring system that happens to suit me well.

I remember reading the "Keyboard Report" and thinking how cool this was: the first commercially available 16-bit sampler. I wonder what that "terminal port" on the back is. (Is it a DB25? Maybe it's RS-232 ... I wonder what would happen if you plugged a terminal emulator into that via a null modem cable... )

The copper on my board got partially etched, so it's pitted, which for me just compounds the same soldering problems you're seeing. Nevertheless I'll try to find some time tomorrow to clean it up. That's the problem with this layout: the pads for the resistors etc are so small that the holes really should be plated, because there's almost nothing for solder to grab on to. Makes sense to combine this one with a Core, since the existing Core doesn't already have a header suitable for this. I know ... sorry for the hijack :(

Looks great SineSurfer! I'd love to see some high-res closeups of your final product.

I make PCB's using the "toner transfer" method, and I did etch an OPL board, and I started building it... ... normally when using the Pulsar toner transfer, after applying the toner you then apply the "TRF" (toner reactive foil), which makes the toner-based resist less porous, for better traces. For some reason I guess I got too excited when I made my OPL3 board because I forgot to use the foil. I got the surface mount ICs on just fine, but the rest of the board is just an absolute mess - solder doesn't want to stick to it. It is such a mess, in fact, that I kinda want to just pitch it and start a new one. Like, it's the worst PCB I've ever made. So part of me wants to find time to fix it, and part of me wants to make a new one ... but as I also discovered, the layout for the OPL board on UCAPPS is arguably the least home-etch friendly of all of them. Small traces, small pads, tiny holes close together, holes in the middle of ground planes, orphaned ground planes ... I need to either buy Smash's boards or create a new layout. Most likely the former. Hmmm... maybe I'll do that right now.

I think that modern music surpassed the capabilities of the NS-10Ms sometime in the early 1990s, when big bass became the norm. Back in the day, when I started recording in budget/semi-pro studios, it was the late 80's, and every place I went to used NS-10Ms for monitors. Fast forward to the late 1990s: I had some money and bought the NS-10Ms new, just before they were discontinued. I had found myself working in underground dancefloor styles, and I was really disappointed with the NS-10Ms. They are extremely revealing, but you quickly realize you have no idea what's going on in that way-too-important deep bass area. Instead of getting rid of them for something else I decided to augment them with a nice studio sub. The Tannoy I'm using has balanced XLR ins and outs, with an adjustable HPF for the output, which goes to my amp for the NS-10Ms. You can tune this with a DX instrument "INIT PATCH", which is just a sine wave. With the highpass knob in the right place, the sound seamlessly transfers from the subwoofer to the nearfields over about 3 notes on the keyboard, with no perceived level change. With the subwoofer tuned, I have to sometimes move my chair to a sweet spot a few feet back in order to make decisions about bass levels, but I never suffer ear fatigue. I also have little parties in my studio, after a long night out with anywhere from 5 to 15 people, and we can crank the monitors and keep the party going for a few days! Everybody likes the sound. I really like this setup, but it might not be for everyone, which is the point of my original post: there probably aren't many people who are doing what I do with such antiquated monitors, but since I know the system, I can create stuff that sounds good. I think that any monitors you use will probably have a learning curve. As long as the response is reasonably flat with no distortion, you have the tools you need.

As long as your speakers aren't horrible, it shouldn't matter too much what kind you use, as long as you take the time to learn how to mix on them. That is a lot of work, and a lot of trial&error. Since I don't have as much time to spend on music as I would like, it literally took me a few years to really get a feel for mixing on the system I have had for the past 8 years: a pair of Yamaha NS-10M Studios with a Yorkville SR300 amp and a Tannoy powered subwoofer. My mixes have been getting better and better as I start to really understand how what I hear translates to other systems. Right now I don't think I'd trade my pieced-together system for something worth 3 times as much, because I'd just have to re-learn it!

You got an excellent deal. I thought I did well, picking up a 24-ch Soundcraft Spirit Studio mixer for $600 USD a couple of years ago, but your deal is amazing. For summing lines and bussing synths to inputs on my 828 mkII, I am far happier with my beastly console than I could ever be with a multi-input audio interface. Sometimes it's nice to rock out with the computer off, know what I mean? If I were you I wouldn't go too crazy upgrading op amps unless there is something about the sound that you don't like. Re-capping is a good idea though. Did you know that re-capping can reduce or eliminate the staticy sound of dirty pots and switches?

Does nobody in the UK ever use the term "board", i.e. "mixing board"?

Here are some shots in the dark ... I'm curious if 0.28 V on DOCD is the voltage you saw before or after you cut the trace. Did you try the MBFM app? Does it behave as expected on outputs 1/2? Another way to prove quite conclusively whether a usable signal is coming from DOCD would be to cut the DOAB line as you already cut the DOCD line, and send the DOCD signal to the upper YAC - that might help erase that final bit of doubt. But I'm hoping that maybe it's just a slightly out-of-spec signal that could maybe could be coaxed to work. I wish we could scope those digital outputs. You could get a reasonably insightful view using one of the s/h lines (SMPxx) as a trigger source. I don't know the input impedence on the YAC, and whether a borderline YMF might benefit from pull-up/down on the DOAB/DOCD lines.

I use a Mackie Control with Logic Pro to produce techno/house. I wish I had more channels than 8. 24 would be ideal. I also wish I had enough desk space for it.

Nice of you guys to share, but if I may interject: Any time you have a "I thought this might be of use to some people here" thought, but you're not asking or answering a specific question, and the information you're sharing isn't particularly time-sensitive, you probably have an excellent wiki candidate on your hands. Consider adding or enhancing a Wiki page, then just post a link to it from the forum. Sharing info is always great, but the Wiki is a much better way of compiling knowledge into an actual reference. (This is of course merely my two cents) Cheers

^^ if your browser supports it, right-click on the huge image and select "open image in a new window" or "view image" or whatever. it will scale to fit the size of the new window, and you don't need to copy it to your hd. It looks HAWT in white. I've always thought it would look cool in black silkscreen on a bare aluminum panel, maybe even with the "bone" coloured PT-10.

LOL - I sold/traded/gave away a lot. I have a few projects planned, which will leave me down to a dozen or so ... and I never want to run out. They are simply great encoders. So .... interested in 96. I wanted 103, but you're being difficult.

Interested in 96.

I think I'm getting this. The Wikipedia page is helpful, but it links to this page: http://hem.passagen.se/communication/vfd.html ... provides some good guidelines for the DIYer to fire up a scavenged VFD. It suggests that there are three different methods for filament drive in VFDs: AC Drive ("most popular method for the audio system and large-size VFDs.") DC Drive ("mainly used for small-size VFDs driven by the car batteries.") Pulse Drive ("used for relatively small size VFDs which are driven by the car battery not by DC drive.") Which drive method is most likely to be required by the displays in the eBay link I posted, above?? It looks like DC drive would be the easiest to implement, but if you're using an AC supply I guess you could tap off that before it gets rectified. I might buy one of these flats of displays to experiment with. 25 pieces for 37+15 bucks works out to $2.08 USD per display, shipped to me. If anybody wants 5-20 pieces, let me know, and maybe we can share. I'm on the fence about this.

Go on any web site like Mouser, Farnell, Newark, or Digi-Key, and search for B3W-9000.