Flemming

So i finally got started :) I built a core and a SID module, both from Smash.. As far as i know, the core is working (no display attached). It sent a single sysex string every time at startup, so i uploaded the 8580 hex file and checksums kept saying 'OK' while sending data.... is it really then ??? it still sends a single sysex string at startup.... The SID module does not give me any reading between pin28 and pin14 when powered, so i never came around to connecting the two modules :( being honest I have no idea about electronics in general, but i set my multimeter to '20 DCV' and then i can read about 15 from my PSU (it's a 12V PSU actually), but if i try to read between pin 28 and 14 of IC1 i get a big boring zero :( Did i kill my SID module?? and is my core really ready for action???

I found mine in the mailbox today :) Thanks a bunch!!!

I received my GM5 + PCBs today :) thanks!!! ... and i must agree, it looks really good :)

I wish i could.... there are no screws, it's the old beige PSU.. i think Cimo's PSU is the same as mine? Maybe it would be easier for me to cannibalize the newer white PSU. I really like the concept of internal PSU, especially for transport.. it bugs me to have a separate psu to carry around. If it was secured inside the breadbin itself, i imagine it would be much easier to carry around :)

I'm probably gonna use the optimized C64 PSU solution, but i really would like to put it inside the 'bread bin'.. if i tear the PSU out of it's box, will it be small enough to be inside the bread bin?? I'm asking because if not, i will prefer to keep in the present condition :)

An active midiboxer from Denmark.. nice :) that's very good news - i sent you a PM. Today i received my first parts from Mike (thankyou Mike for really good service!) so now i consider myself to be active too ;D

Hmm, really ... you mean pr/day or what :) - rumors are heard that 1billion fig newtons are consumed each year in the US http://www.foodreference.com/html/ffignewtons.html Ontopic: 890 newtons sounds just fine - when i tweak knobs and pots the max strain is about 700 newtons anyways ;) so i guess these standoffs would be excellent despite the massive soundpressure level that a MB-6582 will deliver!!

Heyhey, don't get all audiosexual here... after all, kids could be watching ;D - "Sorry guys, i wont come to practise this sunday... i have to rub my audio equipment with leather care!" ;)

I had great luck by posting on facebook that i needed C64s .. i now have 3 of them allready :) just from friends having them lying around in attics, garages or whatever.... i just hope the SIDs still work ;) A Danish webshop called http://www.retro-computer.dk/ recently begun to sell C64 with datasette for 250US$ - That is just crazy!!!! I mean, the retro value is incredible, but an emulator easily satisfies my retro needs... Anyways, the reason i wanted to post in this thread in the first place was to ask about Sasha's posted photo... none of the three C64s i opened had the SID soldered directly to the PCB. They were all in sockets ready to be popped out by a SID scavenger... like me for example ;) one of them is even a 8580R5 as in the picture.. Sacha, is your photo from a C128 ??

Wow, looks very sexy!!! ...kinda 'moulin rouge'-theme, both decadent and sophisticated all in one - now thats a girlfriend you will want to hold on to for a long time, buddy ;) Is this your first build? I want to make a little cute box too, but i seriously doubt that it will be as sexy as yours!

Wondering about what kind of case i would use for my first minimal-sid setup .. i looked a lot in the galleries on these pages, and most of the stuff looks so goddamn professional... anyway, i may have a cute idea; What if i found a cheap 2nd hand midi controller keyboard with a little leftover space inside. I imagine that i could connect the core midiports directly to the keyboards midiports - voila, a mbsid synth with keyboard :) a cute little keyboard would be good to compliment my micron synth I searched for rack-cases but didn't find anything.. i wonder how the guys in the galleries made their rack-cases.. Well i could maybe also find a cheap 2nd hand rack of some sorts, strip the insides and make a new frontpanel...

My meet-up with Cimo was my very first midibox experience outside these pages :) it was good to meet a mb-guru who actually built a mb-sid!! I know there are more midiboxers from Denmark, so if anyone is up for it, i would like to meet for some coffee and verbal exchange of tips/tricks, or maybe we could order our parts together to split the shipping costs ;)

Thats fine with me ;) Sounds even better for me than the spacers! Thats really awesome!! I will join the list then.. and i'm in absolutely no hurry 8)

I recently ordered a PT-10 and would love to have nice panels too :) Doug, i understand you are willing to ship me a set of panels even though i live in the EU, Denmark?? And i have to ask.. because i'm not sure i get it quite right... Wilba's design has no through-holes, but have spacers glued to the backside? And these spacers are going to hold the CS PCB in the right height also?? The reason i ask is that i don't want to end up having to improvise any creative stuff to get the CS running properly - I'm not as hardcore as you guys so i need to take care to do it clean and easy :-\

I would also love to have the feedback parameter value included in patches .. it really gives the sound a more analogue character vs. the traditional sid sound. While both are very important, they could be a vital part in a patch to make it dry and digital or wet and organic! (these statements are solely based on the soundclips on these pages + the clips on the original Alpha-mod-website ;D) imagine a lead-patch containing of a warm feedback low-mid saw funtamental with dry detuned SIDish modulated pulsewaves on top.. like icing :) But i wonder.. this mod will loop the sound from the sid back into it's own input, right? If the filters in the SID is 12dB, wouldn't the feeback-loop actually cause the filtering to reach a 24dB slope?? This is highly appreciated in synths ;) maybe even routing the audio through SIDs in serial, just like cascaded filters. If the filters are in bandpass-mode, they could be used to attenuate certain frequencies and maybe lend the sound a vocal character (kinda like a formant filter).. if lot of filters with high reso (at the same cutoff freq) is in serial, it will create very loud signals though, so caution is advised!! Waveforms with an obscure nature does best in this manner f.ex a noise-waveform will sound like a whispering, and a ringmodulated sound may have a robotic character. Cascaded bandpass-filters could also be used as EQ :) My dream-scenario would be to have some gain-reduction function to compensate for the level when feedbacking with high reso settings. On synths like Novations Supernova II this parameter is called 'q-norm', but really is just a soft limiter (i guess.. i have no idea how!) Anyway, these are commonly used techniques in modular synthesis, and they work well for me when i do VST-plugins f.ex..... they may not do good in a MIDIboxSID!

Well me too :) i thought it would be a great way to start, and hopefully learn the trade of the mb-community. But as i am starting to get a feel for the loong waiting periods (waiting for parcels, waiting for PCBs and kits to be ready and such) i thought i might as well could start to collect the parts - but no hurry at all :) i will use plenty of time with the few parts i already have ordered - and if sound is even produced, i will have great fun with it until i am in the line for a MB-6582 project :)

Ooooh, i thought i was far too late to get into this deal - although i already ordered a PT-10 from the danish RS site, and i also am on Wilba's list for 8 left-over 6582 lucky shots :) and i'm listed for some GM5 kits aswell hoping to incoorporate USB into my build. But on Smash's site i only see the two 6582 PCBs.. no kits? Where do i sign up for a complete MB-6582 kit including the full component-list and PCBs ??? Also can't find a list of changes between MB-6582 and MB-6582 v2... or is the v2 update due to the update of the sid module ??

I really do understand and respect peoples privatelives and dedication to the community... i'm very sorry if i came on too harsh, but even a little 'will catch you later' or something would have convinced me that there at least was some kind of life in the other end :) or a server-generated order-confirmation or something.. The reason i contacted Smash in the first place was because i read in this forum how satisfied you all were, and i found his posts very friendly and helpfull. So i guess i took his time for granted, very stupid of me.. and ofcourse he has a privatelife, and ofcourse i respect his dedication to the work done here. Now, i will stop whining and sit tight to wait for an order confirmation :)

Whoa :) You know Brinck in Copenhagen ... well, i checked their site, and it seems pretty thin - it may help to visit the shop i guess, if their homepage is outdated or something... Aaaargh, this diy-stuff is sooo hard!! I read and read every day, but still my biggest problem is to get hold of parts - i mailed SmashTV 3 times, 2 from his contact-form on his site, and once inhere.. but i got no reply... i even placed an order for around 60$ in his shop, but still no reply of any kind, not even an order confirmation.. oh, well paypal confirmed for me that the transfer was cool... so i imagine someone sitting somewhere with my 60 bucks in their pocket, laughing at me I didn't imagine that the hardest part of building a mbsid would be to get hold of parts..

So now i look for a display.. found this one - would it be fine for mbsid use ?? http://eekit.dk/product.asp?product=484

This would absolutely be the most lovely solution, but unfortunately i don't have a C64 PSU .. I was in the local electronics shop, and the clerk convinced me to not build one myself, but to buy a factory-made PSU and stick inside the box. He might be right .. ;) So, a 12v switching PSU with a 1.5A current will be enough to run 4 cores, 8 sids, control surface and display ??

Hmm, i wouldn't want noise... what would you suggest i use then ??

Yes, with time i really hope to own a full 8-sid model, but i have to learn a lot while building - the concept of building it in small steps suits me just fine :) Good then, so i will find one in a local store Thanks, i will go on in my venture - will be back if i achieve anything

I heard from Doc, and he can't help me atm.. looks like i have to get a hold of SmashTV.... Smash :) are you here ??

I want to build a midibox sid, and i have 2 sid chips. I'm very inexperienced with electronics, so i will be happy to just build the minimal version (1 core, 1 sid + minimal CS.... if i dare) So, to build a midibox-sid with one 8580 i need 1 sid-module kit v2 with 78L09, and 1 core module kit v3 with pre-burned PIC18F4685... right??? My problem is, where do i get these 2 kits.. i wrote SmashTV but never got an answer, and since i live in Denmark i found out that Doc would be closer, but he hasn't answered yet... man, i hope to get started soon, because i just love the sid sound!! Anyway, one of my sid chips is from a faulty 'breadbox' and i'm afraid the sid has taken damage.. is there any way i can check the chip using a multimeter or something?? I really would like the psu part to be built-in, so i just have to stick the synth in the wall outlet. How do you guys manage that ?? I figured that i eventually would solder the mem chips inside the box. Will this cause any problems, maybe about how the patches are handled by the software in the chips?? ....I love this stuff :) and i really envy you for building your sid-boxes - it's the sound of my youth, and i want it back now!!! Flemming