MIDIbox 64 questions

[ANdrw]

Hello,

I was thinking about building one since the 1st time i found ucapps about 6 months ago, but due to lack of time/money i postponed this. But starting next month, i want to build one... i only have some (noob) questions for you guys.

I want to build something similar to this one:

Forum Link:

Complete pic: http://www.alphazone1.com/midibox/midibox-complete1.jpg

What kind of rotary pots, sliders, buttons and LED's do i need? I saw a big list on Farnell and I got confused.

What other things do i need ?

What is the cheapest place to buy them from? And.. could anyone tell me (from their own experience)the total amount of money needed for a MidiBox 64?

Thanks.

[nILS]

Welcome aboard, ANdrw :flowers:

70% of your questions are answered in the first thread you linked to. 29% percent are answered on ucapps.de.

The last 1% is this:

And.. could anyone tell me (from their own experience)the total amount of money needed for a MidiBox 64?

Depending on what you have in your spare parts drawer and where you wanna go somewhere between 0€ and 42,000,000€. With the box you linked to I am guesstimating 400-500€.

[ANdrw]

Great! I guess i should start reading then.

Thanks a lot for the fast reply.

[ANdrw]

Back once again..

So, here's what i want to build..

A controller with 4 faders, 17 rotary pots, 20 buttons (4 of them like push to mute/un-mute for example, and the rest simple ones), 8 LEDs for mute/un-mute, (not sure about this yet) one display, and one off/on button

Please help me with parts list... here's what i figured out so far:

1 Core Module

2 AIN Modules

2 DIN Modules

1 DOUT Module

---------------

4 Faders

17 Rotary Pots

21 Buttons

8 LEDs

1 Display (maybe!)

------------------------

Is this list correct? Do I need anything else? Except for the case obviously :)

Thanks

[nILS]

* Do you want potentiometers or encoders?

* You do want the display. It's really nice to have a display for debugging purposes, and generally helpful after debugging.

* 20 buttons -> 1 DINx4 module

* 17 + 4 = 21 analog inputs -> 1 AINx4 module

* 8 digital outputs -> 1 DOUTx1 module (get a DOUTx4 for expandability)

* You also need a power supply

More LEDs are generally nice for more visual feedback, too. Throw together a mockup of the panel, that'll help us find possible problems a lot easier :)

edit: fixed DIN/DOUT typo mixup

[ANdrw]

Thanks for the reply nILS. I got the mockup for the panel ready.

Here's a picture, and below, some explaining of what they mean :)

From top to bottom:

Brown(ish) circle: Larger rotary pot (that i'll probably use for main software output)

Pink rectangle: Off/on switch

Orange rectangle: Display

16 Dark grey rotary pots (mapped for eqs and stuff)

Red: 16 Buttons (that i'll map to trigger samples, etc)

Green: Mute/Un-mute buttons

Blue: LEDs (one will be on while green button is down/one will be on while green button is up) - 2 colors for LEDs

Grey Vertical lines are the faders. But im sure you figured that out by now :)

You asked something about potentiometers/encoders. I think i want potentiometers. They are able to send MIDI data, right? I dont know what encoders are... could you please explain?

It's not the most original deisgn, i know... but it suits my workflow :)

Oh, and the power supply too

Edited April 12, 2010 by ANdrw

[SLP]

Hey ANdrw,

You asked something about potentiometers/encoders. I think i want potentiometers. They are able to send MIDI data, right? I dont know what encoders are... could you please explain?

everything you connect to your midibox will send midi data. buttons, encoders, pots/faders.

You could even connect a methane detector to it, so that it will send midi data when someone in the room farts.

pots/encoders:

=encoder&s[]=pot#what_s_the_difference_between_potentiometers_sliders_motor_faders_and_encoders]wiki

Edited April 12, 2010 by SLP

[nILS]

Pots vs. encoders: http://midibox.org/dokuwiki/doku.php?id=questions_and_answers

* You'd prolly want an extra encoder and some buttons for the display (to allow quick and easy menuing)

[lylehaze]

* 8 digital outputs -> 1 DINx1 module (get a DINx4 for expandability)

I believe you'll find that a DOUT module will drive those outputs with a better response time. :)

Have Fun,

LyleHaze

[nILS]

hehe, whoopsie :) Typo DINx1/4 -> DOUTx1/4, fixed original post, thx lyle!