Mr modnaR

capacitors are under electronic components, power & connectors | Passives | Capacitors rectifiers are under Electronic components, Power & Connectors | Semiconductors & Optoelectronics | Discretes | Bridge Rectifiers Single & Three Phase, then type 'pcb' in the 'Search within these results' box at the top of the right hand column. hope this helps

rswww.com are ok too. bit expensive, but fast delivery (like order something online at 20.30 one evening, and recieve it at 14.00 the next day!)

ok, i was wrong! keep the knobs! keep the knobs!!! really really great work. well done! FM next.... ;D

the transformer that he's using outputs 12VAC not DC. rectified to DC = 17ish Volts. transformers are cheaper to buy than PSUs, i guess that's why he got one. i think he also wanted the PSU inside the case, so he could just run a mains cable to the box. you'll get annoyed with having to plug in two wall warts, if that's what you plan to do.

cool thank you.

12 vdc i not enough for the sid module if you have the 7812 stuffed on it. voltage regulators lose a volt or two, not to mention the rectifier. 12vac would have been fine, or, like is suggested in the optimised psu schematic, 14vdc. hope this helps.

ok, so it turns out that audio commander is right! a red filter in front of green lettering gives red lettering! how weird!

yeah i tried red, didn't do a thing. i think green would mask both the characters and the background. (i think it's the opposite of what you say AC). stryd one, i also tried altering the backlight brightness, and it was sort of ok, but still not quite what i wanted. the background is blue when the backlight is switched off, so i was thinking the red filter would mask that, but no luck. i guess i'll keep trying or give up, one or the other ::)

hi all, i have a negatively polarised red led backlit lcd from crystalfontz. basically, i don't like how the background lights up. i need to find out what color transparent perspex i could put in front of the lcd to 'filter' out the background, in order that only the characters appeared to light up. any ideas? ta.

ok, thanks, much appreciated. how's your PSU going, by the way?

ok cool. am i right in thinking that 4 SID boards won't pull more than 400mA? would a 600mA rated trafo be ok in that case? cheers

is that just the 5V rail, or the whole lot?

yeah i thought something would be wrong... i was just trying the last possible thing to prevent me from having to buy anything else! i have a 7809, but all my 7812s have been soldered to the sid boards, and the pins have been chopped, which means the heatsinks i have won't fit! grrr, my parts ordering finger's about to get a workout! thanks once again man, much appreciated!

ok got a slightly different design: i'm going on the premise that the optimised psu design that TK suggests uses the 5VDC as a ground for the 9VDC, hence making 14VDC. is that possible? cheers

the led legs (pins would be better off being bent in a curve from the base of the led to the pcb. having a right angled bend in them makes them highly susceptible to fatigue. i think they'll last less than a decade, but if i'm wrong i'll be happy for you! ;D

now that's a cool technique! it would also work well on clear or tinted, but transparent) acrylic (Perspex) where you put the stickers on the bare acrylic, and afterwards, stick a few leds behind the panel, and voila! backlit letters 'n' lines! thanks for the suggestion mate!

loving it! just loving it! ;D

yeah i guess so, plus alignment could be a problem if they were made adjustable. they say on the pulsar site that the rollers are made of neoprene, can that be right?

it's a shame they don't make adjustable laminators.

the only problem i have with this design of button, is that the led legs will eventually break. could you not put lengths of multi-core wire on the led legs to make it last longer? great idea otherwise though! ;D

no, you explain it so well, thank you. i understand now! (fingers crossed)

going back to this flawed design: you say that the 7805 will recieve negative voltage, which is bad. is it not possible to stick a diode in front of it, or will that still mean noise?

you could always upload to megaupload or somewhere like that, then provide the link in the forum.

if that's with nothing connected, yes that's normal. connect a few things, and they'll use up the power quick enough.

i'm pretty sure the optimised version is the one to go for.