[help! my seq is dead!]

hi.. i know the topic doesn't quite explain what the problem is, but the fact is that i don't know what the problem is either ;)

i made a test setup of my sequencer, with 2 lcd's 1 din and ofcourse a core.. everything worked alright, so i decided it was time to mount everything in a case (in my case, mount the buttons/lcd's/encoders on top of a sheet of metal and screw the rest of the boards underneath it, untill i had a proper case)

so i did, and after a few days of hard work it's done, but now my setup doesn't show any signs of life!  :'(

there's not even a midi message on startup, the lcd's don't work, nothing.

i am a bit scared that i messed up my pic in the process of mounting everything.. could this be? i probably have some shorts here and there (on the interconnections between boards/lcds, not on the boards themselves), but can that result in a pic not putting out *anything* on powerup?

also i'd like to measure some voltages on the boards, but i'm scared i might mess up things even more by accidentally short-circuiting things.

at what points will i measure voltages on the core to see if my pic is still alive? could it be that it's not my pic that's causing this behaviour?

please help me out.

['running led'/rgb leds for steps]

hmm.. seems do-able then ;) i think i'll go and try it, but i have lots of bigger problems atm, like getting my seq to work.

i finished my panel layout on some metal board, hooked up everything, but when i power it up it seems to be completely dead..

not a matter for this thread though, i'll open up a new thread for this..  :'(

['running led'/rgb leds for steps]

heh.. yeah no problem :)

i think i'd be glad if i got a working standard mbseq done, and maybe then i'll think about putting it in. i have some friends who are good with code, so if i decide to do it, i can probably get someone to fix the stuff i did wrong..

btw.. will this vx be just another os for the current seq config (as fas as panel layout goes) or will it be something totally different.. i read some about it and it sounds rather promising. :)

['running led'/rgb leds for steps]

i see.. the hardware part wouldn't be too hard to accomplish then

but perhaps the fact that i had to think for a minute wtf 'asm' would mean indicates how good i am with it...  ::)

['running led'/rgb leds for steps]

hi!

i've a few questions:

is it possible to have something like a 'running led' kind of thing for the 16 steps in the sequence? or is this already part of the mbseq..

also: i have this utopian dream of having 16 bicolor or rgb leds for the steps, like, one color for the step that's playing at the moment, one color for an 'activated' (non-muted) step. is this possible? if i'm informed right it doesn't 'come with the package', does it? how hard to implement will this be?

thanks

[behuizingen]

dat is wel een goede insteek ja.. een beetje mn charmes in de strijd gooien ;)

ik ga het maar es proberen en laat horen hoe t uit is gepakt (hopelijk dmv pics van een  glimmende mbseq) ;)

[behuizingen]

mja, internet is groot :)  ik heb al heel veel plekken afgezocht, maar ik lijkt 't toch nergens tegen te komen nog..

illogik: zelf maken lijkt me ook wel wat, maar ik weet dus ook geen winkels waar je metaal kunt buigen, laat staan waar je het kunt kopen..

ik heb al zitten denken om de plaatselijke mts op te zoeken om te vragen of iemand in z'n pauze niet even een kastje voor me inelkaar wilde zetten.. maar dat leek me meer wat als allerlaatste optie als alles mislukt..

sinnsyk: ik ga m'n frontplaat zowiezo bij schaeffer laten maken..

hout kan ook inderdaad.. maar dan moet 't wel een beetje mooi hout zijn en dat is vrij prijzig geloof ik. iets als http://www.midibox.org/midibox_gallery/meek1.jpg is natuurlijk mooi.. maar het vergt geloof ik ook wel wat vakmanschap om dat netjes inelkaar te zetten..

ik denk dat het moeilijker is dan het lijkt, om zoiets goed te doen met hout.. maar misschien is dat ook wel zo met metaal ;)

ik heb al wel zitten denken om er 1 te maken uit glasvezel en polyester.. een vriend van me kan dat, maar dat lijkt me een een hels karwei..

heel veel laagjes smeren, en dan 3 weken lang het weer afschuren. ;) dan ga ik liever opzoek naar een metaalhandel..

anyway, illogik: weet jij toevallig zo'n winkel ergens? :)

[behuizingen]

hoi!

m'n mbseq is zo goed als af, alleen moet ik nog een behuizing hebben. ik heb hier ook al es een thread over geopend in parts questions (geloof ik), maar daar kreeg ik nooit een antwoord op.

anyway: weet iemand een plek waar je voor niet al te veel geld behuizingen koopt? standaard 19" behuizingen zijn niet zo'n probleem om aan te komen,

maar ik wil eigenlijk een ondiepe 19" kast hebben, of iets waar ik evt. zelf rackoren aan kan maken (16" ofzo), 3u hoog, en 10 cm max diep. ik begin alleen onderhand in de veronderstelling te geraken dat die dingen gewoon nergens te koop zijn.

wat ik ook al dacht is er zelf 1 maken, maar ik heb geen flauw idee hoe ik dat aan moet pakken. weet iemand daar iets zinnigs over te zeggen misschien?

[lcds stay blank]

:o :o :o :o :o :o :o :o

i fixed it!

it was ofcourse a typical newbie-thing: yelling really hard that everything is okay while it was just bad wiring: i mixed up Vo and RS on one of the lcd's.

thanks for the help and sorry for another demonstration of newbie'ism ;)

[lcds stay blank]

i disconnected the din and the second lcd is still not working.. the button - lcd going blank thing might be something different, since that part did work okay for a while, also with 2 lcd's connected.

i checked the connections to the PIC for false wiring (easy to make a mistake with all the double wires) but that part seems to be okay.

i have a feeling it might have something to do with the enable line.. gonna check those solder joints..

edit: well, i checked every joint on the lcd, the j15 pins, but they all work. measuring a neat 0 ohms.

i also measured the lcd > j15 connections on the bottom side of the core pcb to be sure that the error wouldn't be in the connection of the pins to the board, but it all seems to be safe. as far as any soldering errors go: the error must be in the data or enable lines, or else the lcd wouldn't even show me the black bars, or light up the backlight.

are you sure i don't need to enable anything in the seq application? did i perhaps upload the wrong hex file (i uploaded setup_mbseq_v2.hex) ?

edit 2: i tried switching the enable lines. this doesn't help much, apart from that i now see what's supposed to be on the other screen. apparently nothing wrong there..

edit 3: i think i found a short, but i'm not sure if this is due to my lack of electronics knowledge. it's between vss and vdd on the j15 pins. i'm wondering if it's really a short or if it's supposed to be there, since there is not really any bad soldering in that area, and i can't get it to go away (i tried screaming, waving crucifixes in it's direction and finally soldering it again ;)

any idea? :)

edit 4: since the working lcd also has the same problem, in theory it can't be this short, right? my not-very-reliable meter gives me about 450 ohms between vs en vd.

[lcds stay blank]

update:

the problem has changed a bit: i fiddled with the contrast pot some more and now the first lcd is working again.

still leaves my with the fact that the second one only shows me black bars on power up, and nother after that.

is it a software error maybe? i checked the standard config files but it was configged with 2 2x40 lcd's by default, so i doubt it will be this.

still puzzled.

edit:

some more info: i've uploaded mios onto my preburned pic, and uploaded the mbseq application. i can't measure voltages from the core j15 to the lcd's since my multimeter is a bit weird. i measured the resistance though, and that was all fine. i doubt it being a voltage error, but on the other hand i have such little knowledge of electronics that i can't really say anything about it.

edit 2: i notice when pressing certain buttons (i can't say wich are wich since i have it all just loose in a shoebox) the first screen goes blank.

other buttons seem to work normal though.

edit 3: uploaded midio128 to check out if there is anything wrong with the connected buttons and they all send out a message as they are supposed to do. the only weird thing is that the lcd just goes entirely blank from the beginning here, although i am not sure anymore if this is the way it's supposed to be.

[lcds stay blank]

hi there!

i've managed to get my mbseq working in a shoebox, thanks to the forum and all the docs on here. it was really quite easy! (for someone with no electronics skills whatsoever)

anyway, now the troubles come:

i tested with one 2x40 lcd (the ones from voti.nl) connected, and this worked without any troubles. then i decided to hook up the second one.

after some soldering this also seemed to work, with the only problem being: only one lcd showed text: the other one gave me the black bars on startup and went blank after that (only the backlight stayed on).

hoping it would help any, i decided to fiddle with the (very awkwardly placed, on mikes pcb's) contrast trimpots. i powered off, turned the pots a little, powered on again and voila: no more lcd's.

now only the backlight comes on, and i get only the black bars on lcd #2, the one that didn't work in the first place.

the first lcd just stays entirely blank.

i tried turning the contrast back the other way again, but this doesn't seem to help any..

i also checked the connections and everything seems to be wired up correctly (i wanted to state 'tidily, but i'd be lying ;)

read any post that had 'lcd' in it and i'm totally lost.. please help!  ???

i'd like to know why i don't see anything on either lcd anymore, and why the second one only gives me the black bars, since that was the problem in the first place.

thanks a million

[voti lcd's]

ze zijn er weer trouwens ;)

ik heb er hier 2 liggen.. nu eens uitzoeken hoe je ze aansluit ;)

[making a sturdy frontpanel / using fiberglass]

hi people

i'm in the process of getting my mbSeq done.

i finished the core, din's and dout (wich was a quite simple, beyond expectation.. thanks to this site and forum with all the info)

now it's time for the case and frontpanel, and especially the stuff that's beneath it, mounting the rotaries, buttons and leds.

the big question is, since i've no experience whatsoever on this field.. what would be the best way to get a sturdy feel for the rotaries and buttons?

i've this novation remote le keyboard, wich just feels crappy and cheap. you can move the pots around in their holes on the front, etc. maybe they are just cheap pots, but i think the way they are connected to whatever they are mounted on is pretty important too :)

also, what will be the best way of connecting everything? mounting them on a metal plate and use direct wires, or just fix the whole bunch on vectorboards and wire it up from there? or perhaps fixing vectorboards on a metal plate?

also i'm wondering about using fiberglass for the casing, and especially a good material to shape the mold to form the fiberglass/polyester around.

i'd love some tips from experienced builders, i think it would prevent me from making stupid first-timer mistakes :)

thanks a million! :)

[voti lcd's]

ik geloof dat dit ongeveer m'n eerste post is hier, dus bij deze: hoi! ik ben bas! :)

om gelijk maar met de deur in huis te vallen:

ik wilde wat 40*2 lcd's bestellen bij voti.nl, maar ze zijn uitverkocht, merk ik.

is er hier toevallig iemand die er nog 2 heeft liggen voor ongeveer zo'n prijsje?

of gewoon een andere plek waar ze voor een niet-belachelijk bedrag te vinden zijn 8)

danku!

bas

[places for cases]

hi people,

i'm considering building a midibox seq.

i'd like to build it in a slim 19"-ish case somewhat like the nord modular g1 rack, or the acces virus, or like the seq Artesia built. ( http://www.midibox.org/forum/index.php?topic=5818.0 )

so, about 16"/18" or so wide, and about 3 or 4u high. i'll make my own rack ears and decide later if will actually put it in my rack or just use it as a tabletop sequencer.

now i was wondering, do any of you know places to look for, or a relatively easy and tidy way build a sturdy case out of steel or aluminium (anything not wood or plastic anyway) that would suit my needs?

the problem with all 19" cases i come across is that they have the panel on the front, and not on top. this way i'd end up with a half empty box, and also it would only be fit for use in a rack, cause putting it on your table would have you on your knees in front of your desk all the time ;)

also these standard 19" cases usually have the rack 'ears' attached.

also i'm looking for a way to get nice square, transparent 'rubbery' backlit buttons like on that monome interface (i suppose you have seen it), i've looked into mec buttons but they turn out to be about 5€ per button if i'm correct, i think/hope that can be done for less.

but i think i'll open a separate thread for that sometime. suggestions are welcome anyway ;)

thanks!