SIDsyndrome

Sorry to be a bother again, but any idea what is a good time of day (include time zone please!) to reach Smash on the IRC? I've been checking in daily for a few days but haven't succeeded in connecting yet. I did shoot a PM his way though, so maybe I should just be patient now? I don't mind being patient at all, but I also want to be sure that I'm reaching him in the first place. Thanks all!

Ahh - kristal, I am in your debt for that suggestion. Altitude suggested the IRC way back when, but I did not realize that it was something that I could just access from within this forum by clicking the chat tab. So thank you Altitude and kristal both! I'm running out the door, but I have a renewed hope for my project :D Y'all rock.

Hey all, Is it possible that anyone can help me find the good Mr. SmashTV? I've ordered happily and successfully from his site before, but I've contacted him via email periodically over the past months (3-4 times total over 8-9 months, so very seldom, but I figure he doesn't need someone bugging him that hard). Should I just be more annoying? I'd really just very much like to order the MB6582 control surface PCB only. I already have the other PCB and do not want to buy it. Thanks for anyone with any suggestions!

Thanks very much, Freddy! I can be patient : ]

I asked smash via e-mail a few days before posting this - I know he gets a lot of e-mail. Just was trying to look into it a different way, but I'll bug him again in a day or two. Thanks!

Hi, I've been searching through these forums and through SmashTV's store, and I thought I'd ask here. Is it possible at this time to buy *only* the CS PCB? Thanks!

Ah, that makes so much sense! Thank you once again, Wilba. So just to be sure I'm getting it; option 3A would look like: On the back of my case in the I/O section, I'll see MIDI out (keyboard) MIDI in (6582) and MIDI out (6582) and all I'd have to do is put a short cable between the first two to have my "standard" keys setup and then I could remove that when I want external control. 3B sounds badass, but may be slightly tricky for my noobishness. I'll have to think it over and if I go that way I'll look more into DPDT switches and quite likely need some help again. Anyway, that was a very helpful clarification because I was not envisioning simultaneous external and keyboard control, but I also had the mindset that I'd be connecting the keyboard MIDI out and 6582 MIDI in within the case. It never occured to me that by simply making that an external, removable control I could very simply have what I wanted all along. Good to know that the merger was an option if I wanted to go that route though.

Hi All - I am sorry if it is bad etiquette to resurrect a year old post, but I thought it would be preferable to a new thread on the same topic. I've taken all the advice given to me about going with an existing MIDI controller and now I just have a question on making sure I understand what Wilba said above... -controller midi out -> 6582 midi in The problem with this, as Wilba describes is that it means I have no option of external MIDI control... I'm not sure what a loopback MIDI cable is, but the other idea that I had was to use the MIDImerger and go controller -> input 1 external jack -> input 2 output of merger -> input of 6582 This seems like a great plan to me but... - maybe there's something better that I don't know about? - the uCApps page for the MIDImerger says it supports * Two MIDI INs (one hardware, one software implemented) Would my description of having a keyboard controller for one MIDI in and a (probably rarely used) external option for the 2nd MIDI in fit what the MIDImerger supports? Thanks guys!

Hi Rene, I can't help with the hum issue, but I ran into the problem that my only available PS was a 128. I used the same pinouts provided by Jason and bought 4-pin XLRs to handle the job - the 5-pin square connector has nothing on one of the pins. This gave me an easy solution that is strong and reliable, plus the jacks are available in panel mounts and circuit board mounts. SIDsyndrome

Thanks so much, dubstructor! The electric piano I have is pre-MIDI and has no MIDI connections of any type whatsoever. I won't be able to look any further into the way the keys work yet until I get back from vacation, so I'll have an update in about a week.

I'm perfectly willing to gut this keyboard and just use the keys of it and whatever simple on/off switching is necessary to send information in the MIDI world... nothing fancy with touch sensitivity or retaining the original electronics is necessary... Any ideas? Thank you!

Hi All, I am working on a MB-6582 MIDIbox SID project, and I want to combine it with the midification of an old (non-working) electric piano that I have lying around. I'm looking for some advice as to how I should approach this, and if it is indeed feasible. What I'm working with is a Univox 61-key electric piano type keyboard... It is not a tine piano like a Fender Rhodes... but I'm not exactly sure what the means of tone production is. I can take pictures soon if that would be helpful, but in the meantime if anyone has any experience with this type of keyboard, I'd love to hear what you have to say. Thanks, SIDsyndrome

Yes! That's exactly what I had in mind - using separate Core/DIN modules for the keyboard and then connecting that to the Base. The keyboard is an old Univox Electric piano if anyone has any ideas on how to approach that? I'll be looking into the Midification forum posts some more, too. Thanks

Hello, I'm partway into a project where I intend to use the MB-6582 by Wilba as the synthesizer heart of an old non-working keyboard I have. Basically what I would like to have is simple: -I'd like to mount MIDI i/o/t panel jacks on the back of the keyboard case or at least the i/o jacks. -I'd like the 61 keys to be able to send the typical on/off messages, and have no need for anything fancier. So even though Wilba's synth can be a standalone MIDI module that could be accessed by a keyboard, my plan is to keep it inside the keyboard case. I'm having trouble understanding exactly what kind of path I'd need to follow in order to do this successfully though. Something like...? Keys -> DIN -> DOUT -> MB 6582 board -> the MIDI/Audio outs from the MB 6582 board? Am I correct in assuming that I'll need 2 DINX4 modules and 2 DOUTX4 modules to cover the 61 keys? The plan is to also create a similar control surface functionally to the MB 6582, but to customize the layout and cosmetics to fit the keyboard casing using individual modules instead of Wilba's control surface. I just really liked the consolidation of everything on the base PCB which is why I decided to build that one. Thanks to anyone for help! SIDsyndrome

Hi - I found some helpful info regarding the compatibility of C128 power supplies with the MIDIbox SID in some old posts, and since that's all I've got, I'm glad I can use it. Tonight I split apart the 5 pin square connector from the C128 and found the following: ( background info on connector/pin-out here: http://pinouts.ru/Power/c128power_pinout.shtml ) Inside - - Pin 1: Yellow AND Brown lead* Pin 2: Nothing Pin 3: Red lead Pin 4: White lead* Pin 5: Black lead *there is a ceramic capacitor soldered to pins 1 and 4 that is marked 104 Y5T Additionally, there is a silver braided shield around the 5 leads which was soldered to a clip that attached to half of the housing for the square socket. Basically, my intention is to use a 4 pin XLR to replace the obsolete 5 pin square connector because they are sturdy and additionally I can get a nice panel mount jack. My (newb) questions about doing this are: -Do I need to put a capacitor between the ground and the 5V DC? Is 100 nF the correct value or am I reading that wrong? -Do need to solder the silver braided shield to the XLR connector somehow? What is necessary and what are the smart ways to go about doing this? -A friend of mine mentioned that the 9V AC maybe different from each other - one hot, one neutral or something like that. Does it matter which one connects to which of the 9V AC pins of the SIL header on the circuit board (MB-6582 by wilba) ? Thanks so much for helping. -S

Thanks! That was my guess, but I didn't want to go into it blindly.

Hi - I'm currently working on my MB-6582 base PCB and I am just not sure which way to orient the V1 voltage regulator. I understand only enough about them to know that it matters which way they go, but not enough to know the answer to this probably simple question. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Also, I plan to run 8 SIDs and it seems as though putting a heat sink on the voltage regulator is the wise way to do it? Am I right in this assumption? Thank you, -S

Hi - I am in scenario 4... is this the right place to make a count me in comment? Also, regarding Wilba's 6582 MEGA-SALE page, it says that the sale is in progress but offers a list for people who wish to buy sparer SIDs. Is there a way to participate in the sale that is in progress by just buying them now? I've added my name to the list regardless. Just curious.