Pyotr Posted June 24, 2010 Report Share Posted June 24, 2010 Hello all As I'll become unemployed soon, I'll have plenty of time (if not exactly a lot of money) for a hobby project such as the Midibox SID. I guess I could stop smoking... Riiight... Now, I've had a fairly good look around at the site and forum, and while the fully fledged box with 8 SIDs and all the bells and whistles and pretty lights is the end goal, it's way too difficult to start with. But since I want the fully tweakable control surface, the sammichSID or something similar is not really to my taste or needs. So I wonder, would the best (read: easiest, simplest) starting point be with the compact MB-6582 PCB or the 1xSID, 1xCORE in-a-shoe-box? If I choose the latter, can I upgrade to the MB-6582 without too much hassle? Which would be the best route to go if I want to fit it all in a C64 case somewhere down the road (i.e. in a year or so)? Btw, maybe you could have a noob section where people wouldn't be afraid to ask beginner questions. Just a friendly suggestion. Thanks in advance for your answers and patience. -Pyotr Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lemonhorse Posted June 24, 2010 Report Share Posted June 24, 2010 Hey Your first Post - welcome to MIDIboxing Pyotr! It will be Your first MIDIBox Project, so I would choose the 1xSID, 1xCORE solution. It's a good starting point. And after some MIDIbox practice it's easy to expand the MB SID step by step. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shuriken Posted June 24, 2010 Report Share Posted June 24, 2010 1xSID, 1xCORE will give you what you want, but won't easily let you upgrade to MB6582 (well you can use the PIC and the SID chip...but that's it) The MB6582 won't fit a C64 case (first model) it might fit the second model but it would be a snug fit. I think you should stick with the 1xSID, 1xCORE and gain some experience. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Altitude Posted June 24, 2010 Report Share Posted June 24, 2010 (edited) 1 SID and 1 core wont do anything control surface wise, he will also need DIN and DOUT modules + LCD for the minimal CS. I do agree this is the way to start since it will teach the basic concepts very well that OP will need down the road And the 6582 mainboard definitely fits a C64 case: Edited June 24, 2010 by Altitude Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pyotr Posted June 24, 2010 Author Report Share Posted June 24, 2010 (edited) Thanks for the inputs. So there seems to be general agreement that the modular approach is the way to go for a newbie, and that it'll be the easiest to fit in the C64 case. I would have thought it'd be the other way around, due to the compact size of the MB-6582 boards. The case is of the later generation (1990?), which if I'm not mistaken contains an 8580. So I got some bits to get me started. It irks me that I'm going to murder a perfectly functioning C64, but on the other hand I never use it. It just sits around gathering dust. Still, I apologize to the C64 community... I'm sorry, ok? As for the control surface, I can live with only having access to the various parameters via the PC (or the Yamaha RM1x) for now, but I do love me some knob twiddlin', so that's a must have in the months to come. Edited June 24, 2010 by Pyotr Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shuriken Posted June 24, 2010 Report Share Posted June 24, 2010 Thanks for the inputs. So there seems to be general agreement that the modular approach is the way to go for a newbie, and that it'll be the easiest to fit in the C64 case. I would have thought it'd be the other way around, due to the compact size of the MB-6582 boards. The case is of the later generation (1990?), which if I'm not mistaken contains an 8580. So I got some bits to get me started. It irks me that I'm going to murder a perfectly functioning C64, but on the other hand I never use it. It just sits around gathering dust. Still, I apologize to the C64 community... I'm sorry, ok? As for the control surface, I can live with only having access to the various parameters via the PC (or the Yamaha RM1Xx) for now, but I do love me some knob twiddlin', so that's a must have in the months to come. Open your Commodore up to be sure what type it is. You wont be murdering it...just crippling :whistle: The SID chip is in a socket. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nILS Posted June 25, 2010 Report Share Posted June 25, 2010 Welcome aboard Pyotr! :flowers: The modular approach isn't necessarily easier to fit into the case, but it comes with lotsa other advantages: 1) It's modular. You can upgrade your system step by step. That means, SMALL steps which are easier than one giant leap (teehee) and it also means smaller amounts of money at a time (buy the next upgrade when you got some cash) 2) Since you'll be connecting the modules yourself, chances are you'll get a far greater understanding of what does what. That's crucial if you run into some problems (which you most likely will at some point) 3) If you decide that 2 sids was actually enough after you've built the next core - you can just use it for some other cool project :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pyotr Posted July 14, 2010 Author Report Share Posted July 14, 2010 So I've ordered all the parts necessary for an MBSID w. 2x6581 and a Step A CS, to start with. One thing I've found that cheesed me off a little bit, is that I could order everything from Mike in Germany (fast and cheap, Germany is right next door), except for the PIC18F4585. And you can't not have that, so I had to order that from SmashTV at a considerable cost and it won't be here for many weeks. I don't know who to blame, so it's just some general venting... But Mike, please consider buying a bunch of PIC18F4585's...! Anyway, what I actually wanted to ask was; I've bought 2 x 6581 off of eBay instead of "crippling" my C64 (it'd be like horribly disfiguring an old friend, then laugh about it) but I can't see which revision versions they are. From the picture, I can see they were made in week 50, 1984 (says '5084'). Is there any way I can figure out exactly what type they are? Some test perhaps? Are the various 6581/8580 revisions different enough to warrant tracking down more pairs for even more varied SID action? Thanks guys :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nILS Posted July 14, 2010 Report Share Posted July 14, 2010 Ya know, that's the beauty of DIY. You do stuff yourself. Like buying ICs. If you have people around who do the anti-fun part of it all for - like buying parts and making PCBs, the better way to go is "yay, I got most stuff I need from one person instead of having to source everything myself and worry about making PCBs or doing some majorly nasty verboard work" rather than "why can't I haz everything from one place?"</rant> About SID revisions: Google "sid revision" and come up with http://sid.kubarth.com/sid_revisions.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pyotr Posted July 14, 2010 Author Report Share Posted July 14, 2010 nILS, fair enough. I'll shut my piehole and buy you all some beers as a thank you for effectively lending me your brains (and time), once the synth is up and running. And cheers for the link, just what I needed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smithy Posted July 14, 2010 Report Share Posted July 14, 2010 It could also be the case of Mike not being able to stock PIC18F4585s for reasons beyond his control. Thats something you must keep in mind when dealing with the one-man operations. Some people have posted crazy and insulting rants in the past for failing to think of this! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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