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bcbox

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Everything posted by bcbox

  1. just an update on the midibox. I am transferring all the pics to my new web hosting so some of the pics may not be back up yet. As for the 60,000 mile update it is still working very well. I have been using it quite a bit and it has taken a minor bit if abuse you could say. Everything is holding up fairly well. The MEC push-button switches had me worried as they didn't seem very robust. Some of them seem to have lost a little bit of their 'click' action - they maybe don't click as snappy. They still work fine but if I'm really paying attention I can sometimes feel a variation in the amount of 'click force' from one to the next. Something definitely to consider if your midibox or other hardware project is going to take abuse. The only other complaint I have is the Panasonic 9mm pots. The action on some of them after they wear in become 'loose' or lighter than the majority of the others. They're just not the highest quality part I have used. I was restricted with size and orientation in this project and the panasonic 9mm was the best choice. Ideally though an 11mm or 12mm pot would be best for most situations. Other than those two gripes the midibox is hanging in there quite well...
  2. I was just reading the thread again and I saw your post Drin. That's funny, I'd like to think at worst I just had a nervous breakdown ;) you should get your switches today or tommorrow. I think my girlfriend almost had a nervous breakdown when I was building this box. I designed and built it pretty fast - about 12 weeks. That's a lot of spare time disappearing into the "lab"! Actually when I finished my box I got an email from this marketing lady from Allen & Heath. They came across my box somewhere and were somewhat upset, partly because it is so similar to their xone stuff and partly because the Xone:3D was delayed 6 months and here was this kid making an A&H style controller in 3 months! Little did they know I worked for a sister company of there's (and hence the access to their parts). If anyone has any specific questions or request for pics or something just send me a message I'm not that scary :-X It's really not that difficult to build a nice midibox if you have a technical background and if you do a bunch of research first and take your time, the hardest part for me was figuring out what exactly MIOS was and how to configure the firmware part (it took me about 3 weeks to figure out if I 'needed' a bankstick or not!). I would post pics of my other midibox that's built into my xone:92 but it looks exactly the same as the stock one. I'm thinking about doing a little video with my DV camcorder showing it in action.
  3. Hi this is Brian here - the guy who documented this midibox. Apologies for not keeping it up. I had to transfer everything to new web hosting - I have all the pics and everything. When I get a free moment I will update. You have my word my box was not a scam and works and everything ;) After finisihing my Midibox64 I completed another midibox that I integrated into a "real" Xone92 (not just the chassis). I ripped out the mic and aux send/ret system that I don't use and put in 20 pots and 20 switches to control ableton live. This one works awesome when there's lack of space at a venue.
  4. Hi, the faders are in the middle. They are no where near those super light ones, like the ones on an allen & heath Xone92 or a typical crossfader. They aren't stiff either by any means. They are in the middle somewhere. Brian.
  5. I made alot of progress this weekend. I've got most of the wiring tested and working. I'm still getting some ranndom data because of some missing grounds or something - probably something related to one or more of the 64 pots. I have trouble shooted and fixed a number of small problems. I feel like I'm getting close. I was hoping to finish it this weekend becuase I wanted to use it for a show next week - but as of Saturday night I have decided to give it a break and come back next week. I've got a 4 hour show so I need to spend time working out some music and auditioning a bunch of new stuff this week - so no time for the midibox. At any rate I'll leave this post with what else, another pic. This is the finished midibox, all plugged in and working. I do not have the DOUT module active yet - I'm taking the testing one step at a time - so you won't see any DOUT related led's lit up... Image removed due to possibly malicious content. Download at your own risk, it contains a strange script. - stryd_one http://www.alphazone1.com/midibox/midibox-complete3.jpg
  6. I'm setting up my MIDIbox64. I was planning to use the MIDIBox64 code exactly as it is since it seems exactly what I need. One thing I notice on the DIN PDF is that for MB64 setup J4 is for F1, F2, F3, and F4. What the heck is F1 - F4? I understand that J3 is for the controls but I thought J4 - J10 were all open for assignment. Can someone clue me in as to what F1 - F4 stand for. Why are you linking to an IP address? That's dodgy! - stryd_one http://66.97.36.105/midibox/mb-din.bmp Thanks, Brian
  7. great info. Thanks to both of you! This will probably help a lot of otheres wondering the same thing..
  8. I have a simple quetsion maybe someone can answer. I'm setting up my MB64. Everything works so far. I am going to be using 64 pots, 64 buttons, and 32 LEDs. I have uploaded MIOS v1.8 and MB64 v2.4. My question is about how I should go about testing the knobs, buttons, and LEDs. Right now I have nothing plugged in - just 4 buttons plugged in to the first DIN to hopefully operate the LCD. When I turn the MIDIbox on I get continuos random MIDI data. The MIDIOx input monitor show continuos MIDI crap and the LCD shows something like .... [iNT] B Volume #16 --- and the value keeps changing randomly. Basically I want to ask is it OK to test the Midibox using the MB64 firmware or the AIN_DIN_DOUT test firmware when I don't actually have all the pots, buttons, and LEDs plugged in? I was hopping to test everything one at a time. Does the fact that I'm getting garbage when I turn on my box with nothing plugged in tell me there's something wrong with my connections from core to AIN (for example) or could it just be that I don't have everything plugged in. I hope this makes some sort of sense! Brian.
  9. Just wanted to add my findings here. I'm using a Crystalfontz CFAH1602B-TMC-JP 16x2 negative transmissive LCD. The datasheet shows that there's possibly a negative voltage generator built into the package. It doesn't actually say which models have it and which don't. I have determined that at least this model does indeed have a negative voltage generator built in, so Vo is just positive voltage just like normal LCD's. No need to have to generate a -5v supply just for the LCD - just give it Vo from the regular 5v supply and it'll take care of the rest. This also helps when using the midibox core module - you can just use everything as it is.
  10. I just got back from a short vacation yesterday afternoon. My new PIC arrived in the mail! After many long hours of testing and debugging I got the news I was hoping for.... Image removed due to possibly malicious content. Download at your own risk, it contains a strange script. - stryd_one http://www.alphazone1.com/midibox/midibox-complete1.jpg yes, my PIC works and my LCD is working :D I'm now going to use some test programs to test my knobs and buttons and stuff. Then I can hopefully get the full midibox64 application going. While I was installing the PIC and cleaning up some other things I added bypass caps to my boards... Here's a pic of what the box looks like now on the inside. I moved things around from the way I had it set up before to try to decrease the changes of any noise or interference (I really tried to get everything away from that transformer too). Image removed due to possibly malicious content. Download at your own risk, it contains a strange script. - stryd_one http://www.alphazone1.com/midibox/midibox-aug9-1.jpg
  11. ...still working on it. I've been wokring on debugging the core module. I've spent quite a few hours on it. In the end I found my PIC is bad. I really didn't expect that but that's exactly what it came down to. I when ahead and built a JDM programmer and check the PIC to verify - sure enough it's bad. I ordered another pic and I'll have it in my hands Tuesday. Since I've now explored every inch of the pcb's I don't foresee any more problems. I'll update on Tuesday... by the way, the bad PIC was my fault - I blew it up somewhere along the way. It worked when I first got it from SmashTV. Don't want anyone to think I just got a bad one ;)
  12. great. Thanks for the quick response! Brian
  13. I'm at the point where I'm testing my MB64 and I have a few questions, including the main one in the title: 1) I bought my PIC from SmashTV. I believe it has the bootstrap loader burned into it already. There's a sticker on it stating it s bootstrap loader v1.1b and has ID 0 etc... from my understand I believe this means I just need to load the MIOS operating system and then load the MB64 program. 2) A followup to the question above. Do I need to load MIOS v1.8 before loading the MB64 v2.4 application or does the MB64 v2.4 application include everything already? 3 I can't figure out if MIOS requires a Bankstick. The whole time I was building my MB64 I was thinking the PIC had all the required memory on board for one program. Can someone please explain or let me know if MIOS/MB64 requires a banksitck? Thanks in advance. Brian.
  14. Here are a couple more pics showing the newly painted front panel semi-stuffed Image removed due to possibly malicious content. Download at your own risk, it contains a strange script. - stryd_one http://www.alphazone1.com/midibox/panel12.jpg Image removed due to possibly malicious content. Download at your own risk, it contains a strange script. - stryd_one http://www.alphazone1.com/midibox/panel-13.jpg Image removed due to possibly malicious content. Download at your own risk, it contains a strange script. - stryd_one http://www.alphazone1.com/midibox/panel14.jpg Here is the backside of the panel... Image removed due to possibly malicious content. Download at your own risk, it contains a strange script. - stryd_one http://www.alphazone1.com/midibox/back2.jpg Image removed due to possibly malicious content. Download at your own risk, it contains a strange script. - stryd_one http://www.alphazone1.com/midibox/back1.jpg
  15. ...still finishing up the last details. I'm being very anal because I want everything to fit perfect and be reliable. I finished painting the panel last week and now I'm finishing up mounting the very last part to the panel. I will post more comments on the completed panel and chassis as soon as it's completed. Once the everything is in place I will upload the firmware and start testing. I've already tested each block of componenets individually so hopefully I won't have many problems. I took pictures while I painted the panel. Here's what I did... 1. After sanding and cleaning I primered the panel with krylon primer. I think a lot of people think krylon and spray paint in general are not good paints but I have used this stuff many many times and it's great. Dries fast and sticks... Image removed due to possibly malicious content. Download at your own risk, it contains a strange script. - stryd_one http://www.alphazone1.com/midibox/midibox-paint1.jpg 2. The paint cures faster in the heat so I put it in the oven between layers. I put on 3 light layers of primer and let it dry for an hour in the oven before going on. Image removed due to possibly malicious content. Download at your own risk, it contains a strange script. - stryd_one http://www.alphazone1.com/midibox/midibox-paint2.jpg 3. The color I wanted I made with a combination of several colors including two metallic powders. I used acrylic enamel as I found it was a good paint for using on aluminum. This is actually that acrylic stuff they sell at hobby stores. Image removed due to possibly malicious content. Download at your own risk, it contains a strange script. - stryd_one http://www.alphazone1.com/midibox/midibox-paint3.jpg 4. Here it is after 3 layers of paint. You can see the metallic look. It's a fairly rough texture at this point. The paint is applied with an airbrush. I got good results with a standard airbrush (not to mention I'm not qualified to use the big spraygun). Image removed due to possibly malicious content. Download at your own risk, it contains a strange script. - stryd_one http://www.alphazone1.com/midibox/midibox-paint4.jpg 5. After the color is applied I let it dry for several hours and then sprayed it with 2 layers of clear acrylic. Image removed due to possibly malicious content. Download at your own risk, it contains a strange script. - stryd_one http://www.alphazone1.com/midibox/midibox-paint8.jpg 6. After another hour I sanded it down with 800grit wet/dry paper to "flatten" the paint. This makes the surface very smooth and not textured. 7. After another 2 layers of acrylic clear glossy spray it starts to look good. I sanded it again lightly with 1200grit. 8. After a final 2 light layers the finish looks nice, a typical satin, slightly glossy finish. The acrylic paint dries hard but you have to give it some time. I let the panel sit for more than a day before touching it and installing any parts. ..more to come..
  16. I didn't use power for the LCD backlight from the core module. I powered it straight from the power supply I designed. The resistors on the DOUT board are there for current limiting. You probalby noticed the first 22 are different than the last 8. That's because the first ones are for clear blue LED's, which are very bright and don't need much current. From the LED spec they should run brightest with about a 5K resistor. I tested them for brightness ahead of time and found I like them when used with about 8K, which is about what those resistors are. The remaining 8 resistors are 220ohm and are for standard brightness red LED's.
  17. Nice move Thanks ;) Sometimes you take the time and think of a simple solution like that and sometimes you just do stupid things. I've done a few stupid things on this project - I will get to explain them all with time but I'll tell you one here. I burnt out the backlight on the LCD. I assumed the resistor was built into the PCB of the LCD itself and didn't even look at the data sheet. Come to find these LCD's never come with a current limiting (series) resistor installed for the backlight LED. I ended up buying a second LCD a week and a half back; after some calculations I found I needed a 69ohm on that sucker - probably 1/2W is good enough but I just went with a 1W resistor. All is fine now with the LCD!
  18. I see you've screwed your pot sliders top the board - did you manage to get ones that were at the correct height for your fader knobs or did you have to cut them down? good question! the shaft was too high by about 0.2" I figured this out way ahead of time so I designed the fader pcb's to work with 0.2" spacers, so there is a plastic spacer between each slide pot and the back surface of the panel. I thought about cutting them down and decided it was too risky. In the end it worked out perfect.
  19. I have the headphone output hooked up straight to the back of the unit - but I don't actually plan to use it. I actually don't use the headphone out from the m-audio when using ableton. The cue level is software controlled and is assigned to the knob in the lower right corner of the box. BTW I'm not done with this thing yet...I'm still doing some things. I just painted the panel (again). It took some time but I finally got the exact color and texture I was looking for. It was a pain in the ass...it ended up a mix of 5 colors and a couple metallic powders. It looks really good now. I just got back from a week long road trip so I'm back to working on it. There will still be many pictures and comments to come!
  20. I ended up buying them from Target Electronics. They're a big distributor in the US for a lot of companies. There was no minimum quantity but the piece price was higher. I paid $89 for 25 green led switches model #3FTL622 and 25 clear caps model #1S11-16 not cheap but not too much more than the other quotes I got with big lead times and minimum quantities...
  21. I am still in the prcoesses of building and testing and as mentioned I plan on poitning out many of the pitfalls I found, as well as some time saving stuff. I took a pic of both the back of the panel and also the inside of the chassis so you could piece together what is going on here. The chassis houses the power supply, all the midibox modules, including the core module, 2xAINX, 2xDIN and 1xDOUT modules. The chassis also houses an M-Audio audio/midi interface. The midi connections between the M-Audio Firewire and the Midibox take place right inside the box. Also the audio record input and outputs are wired to Rca jacks on the rear of the unit. Other revelent connection from the M-Audio Car, including the level enclode pot is also placed at the rear of the chassis. The only connector from the M-Audio Firewire that needs to be plugged in is the Firewire jack. I am currently installin a firewaire jack to the rear of the chassis. Lastly I have installed a BNC jack at the upper right-rear of the chasis for a 12V lamp. Image removed due to possibly malicious content. Download at your own risk, it contains a strange script. - stryd_one http://www.alphazone1.com/midibox/inside-1.jpg The panel looks a mess on the back. It's actually not. Everything is organized. I terminated all the wires from all the panel mount section to terminal heads so they just plug into terminal housing on the midibox AIN, DIN, DOUT modules. This was so I could easily take the panel on and off if needed... Image removed due to possibly malicious content. Download at your own risk, it contains a strange script. - stryd_one http://www.alphazone1.com/midibox/backside1.jpg
  22. yeah, I planned things out really well ahead of time but there were some challenges. When I get all the pictures cropped and stuff I'll a bunch more info on each part. Right now I'm actually still stesting and assembling minor parts of it. The Xone:92 chassis came from allen & heath - I bough it from the parts department. It took a while to get becuase they didn't stock it in the US but it just came in 3 days ago. They really don't even have records of serial numbers in the US - they're all at the UK location - so they really didn't even ask any questions (even though I actually do own a Xone:32 and a I have a Xone:62 at a friends club I set up). I also had to order the knobs from Allen & Heath. I know they are made by Rean and I tried to get them from Rean in the US but the color combo was strictly and allen & heath choice and not off the shelf so I couldn't get them. I needed 55 of them and I paid right about $2 each so that wasn't the most economical decision I made...but I wasn't going to compromise on the design I wanted so I went ahead and did it.
  23. it's been a few days since the last update. The final parts have finally come in and I am finally finishing this thing and testing it. I've put a lot of hours into it - it takes quite a bit more time than it looks! I had to redesign a couple PCB's as I mentioned in my last post because there was some problems with everything fitting together properly. There are still a few minor details to figure out. I will be posting some specific stuff about what's been going on with the build this past week, but for now I'll sign off with a shot of the back of the panel stuffed and a shot of the complete unit during the 'light that thing up' test ;D Image removed due to possibly malicious content. Download at your own risk, it contains a strange script. - stryd_one http://www.alphazone1.com/midibox/midibox-jun23-2.jpg [sorry, can't find this image - will upload in future if I can find] Please don't - stryd_one Image removed due to possibly malicious content. Download at your own risk, it contains a strange script. - stryd_one http://www.alphazone1.com/midibox/midibox-jun23-1.jpg
  24. I was having a hard time finding high quality stainless steel and alloy screws...you know the small metric kind you use on electronics such as the midibox. All I could find was those cheap zinc plated ones you find at hardware stores. Anyway I found this place... http://www.fastener-express.com they're in the US - california. Quick. easy. fast website. Prices are relatively expensive (say $3.40 for a 20 pack of 3mm flathead stainless etc..) - for a project like the midibox maybe you only need a couple. I needed two kinds so it was $8 or something.
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