Upcoming MBHP_MF_NG module

[SMIDIRIN]

:frantics: got mine. great service TK, very quick delivery!

:thumbsup: these complete the electronics.

now i gotta whip up a frontplate. :rolleyes:

[leighke]

Hi there.

This looks like a very nice project for me to undertake.

Any news on when smashTV might have pcbs available?

thanks,

Leigh

[chrisk]

Thank you TK, i've received my PCB's last week. One of them is assembled and working well.

Whats the easiest way to get it sending CC#1-8 on Channel #10?

Thanks,

Chris

Edited October 5, 2011 by chrisk

[Per Cramer]

I Thorsten,

any pcb's left?

Another question, where can i buy the Alientek oled displays that are shown in this post? They look very nice with the blue and yellow.

Regards,

Per

[Protosx]

Since the beginning of my researches on how to make a my own custom midibox one of the biggest part was which LCD to use. I wanted my box to be as compact as possible so I soon realized I would need to source these 55x2 Displays. I was thinking of maybe buying a used C4 from ebay and cannibalize it. I also asked at different Mackie repair services how much a spare display would be and was offered one for varying prices inbetween €150-250!

In the end I saw the M-Audio using a similiar display and asked the manufacturer (Varitronix) if they would sell it to me. Well, they can´t because it is a custom layout they are not allowed to sell to anybody else. But they offered me to design a similiar display if only I would buy >500 units a year, hmmm....

Then I asked a friend who is working at a studio supplier and tech service if he could get them for me and this is how it happened!

Yes, these are the original displays used in the "Project Mix I/O", and I could try and ask if he could get some more, but they are not cheap. I payed €90,- but I really wanted them... They don´t use the HD44780 but a different controller, nevertheless they work out of the box (well, with some customization in lc_hlp.inc).

Cheers, Emre

Hi Emre,

yes, I known, I'm really crazy, but I've just oredered 4 pcs of Varitronix 55x2 LCD from M-Audio service to be added to my 32ch MBLC. In the past I purchased all kind of displays (2x40, 2x28 and GLCD 128x64) but I was non satisfied completely. I was thinking about Varitronix LCD 'cause I have a M-Audio ProjectMix I/O but I was a little bit afraid about connection and sw changes.

I paid €65 + VAT (21%) each + shipping €14 = €328,6 which means €82 each display. It's quiet expensive, but I want them.

Could you help me by sending me the pinout and the file that you modified in order to have the right characters display?

Thank you very much in advance!!!!

By

Peppe

Edited October 29, 2011 by Protosx

[analogback]

hi everyone, i'm new here and would love to make a fader box. i have ordered the pcb but not sure which is IC5 or if some pre programmed one can be bought from smashtv. i can't see the kits available.

does anyone have some info or advice?

and a question on the midi, is it possible to send the fader midi data out also?

cheers!

[veermaster]

Hi Emre,

yes, I known, I'm really crazy, but I've just oredered 4 pcs of Varitronix 55x2 LCD from M-Audio service to be added to my 32ch MBLC. In the past I purchased all kind of displays (2x40, 2x28 and GLCD 128x64) but I was non satisfied completely. I was thinking about Varitronix LCD 'cause I have a M-Audio ProjectMix I/O but I was a little bit afraid about connection and sw changes.

I paid €65 + VAT (21%) each + shipping €14 = €328,6 which means €82 each display. It's quiet expensive, but I want them.

Could you help me by sending me the pinout and the file that you modified in order to have the right characters display?

Thank you very much in advance!!!!

By

Peppe

Hello Peppe,

I´m sorry for answering so late but I haven´t been here for a while.

Puh, I know this is a little OT but here is a quote from somebody I found in my documents:

"If you change the last parameter from 0 to 1, then the spacing between channels is larger.

;; print host messages at position 12/0, (0=normal spacing)

SET_CLCD_HOST_MSG 1, 12, 0, 0 <--- to 1

After setting this you can also customize the spacing to your own liking by changing the parameters in "lc_hlp.inc".

as Frank said, you do this in lc_hlp.inc under LC_HLP_MsgCursorPos. You can position your messages just by counting the characters and spaces (retlw 0x00 + x for the first LCD, retlw 0x80 + x for the second, x goes from 0 to 39). By default lc_hlp.inc gives the arrangement of my controller (two 40x2 displays).  

It´s also possible to shorten the messages, i.e. to have 8 channels on a 40x2 LCD with 4 characters per channel plus a space between each. To do this you have to push the not-to-be-displayed characters to a non physically existent position (i.e. retlw 0x00 + 40)."

I attached my modified lc_hlp.inc file for this particular display.

Cheers, Emre

lc_hlp.inc

[ilmenator]

I notice that in MIOS Studio, the faders are counted from 0-7, whereas down in the "Fader which should be traced" selector they are counted from 1-8. Just a minor detail, but maybe that should be changed in future releases for consistency?

[Protosx]

Hi Emre,

thank you very much!!!

Sorry to everybody I don't want to be OT, but Emre, could you send me also the Varitronix LCD pinout?

Thank you very much again!

Cheers

Peppe

[veermaster]

Hi Emre,

thank you very much!!!

Sorry to everybody I don't want to be OT, but Emre, could you send me also the Varitronix LCD pinout?

Thank you very much again!

Cheers

Peppe

Attached you´ll find the docs for the Varitronix display.

Regards, Emre

55 Zeichen Display.pdf.zip

[Protosx]

Thank you very much Emre!!!!

I'll post pix as soon as I'll finish the job.

Bye

Peppe

[FantomXR]

Hey,

I'm new here and I'm thinking about, building a little faderbox. But I want to know something:

Is it possible, to switch between presets? I want to control my 8ch Soundcard and his auxwedges and I need many different CCs. Should be around 8x8, so 64CCs. Would be fine, if I can add 8 buttons, each for an aux-wedge.

Thanks

Chris

[herrmann]

Is this V3 able to drive Penny and Giles faders ? Like the PGFM3200 (12V coreless) ?

[s-light]

Hello Community :flowers:

@hermann: just look at or MIDIbox Hardware Platform, Motorfader NG Module

The MF_NG module is the successor of the MBHP_MF module and has following design targets:

• find a solution to handle high-quality faders like Alps K faders with "coreless" motors
  
• find a solution for MBHP_CORE_LPC17 which doesn't deliver stable enough ADC conversion results due to the reduced 3.3V voltage range
  
• ...
  

@Thorsten: is there somewhere an in detail description of the used 'algorithms'?

my goal is to build a 'software servo control' prototype with an atmel ATmega328 (arduino) microcontroller that controls just one or two faders

(will be part of a bigger project if its working ;-) )

sunny greetings

Stefan

Edited March 3, 2012 by s-light

[TK.]

Hi Stefan,

the most detailed description can be found in the source code... ;-)

Best Regards, Thorsten.

[s-light]

Hey Thorsten,

thanks for the Reply :-)

is there a Place where i can download / see the source? ;-)

i dont find it^^

sunny greetings Stefan

[FantomXR]

I think, he means the tutorial:

http://ucapps.de/mios32_c.html

#013

[TK.]

The firmware is located under: http://svnmios.midibox.org/listing.php?repname=svn.mios&path=%2Ftrunk%2Fapps%2Fcontrollers%2Fmbhp_mf_v3%2F

Best Regards, Thorsten.

[Roelli]

Hallo zusammen.

Habe gerade mal 5 MF_NG gebaut und die eagle Datei mit den Bauteilewerten ergänzt. Lässt sich dann schneller bestücken und es passieren weniger Fehler.

Dateien sind hier... wem's hilft...

Bestückungsdruck mit Bauteilewerten als pdf

Eagle Datei mit Bauteiltewerten und Infos

Mal sehen ob ich die Sache mit 40 Fadern ans rennen bekomme. :unsure:

[BasketCase]

Hey guys!

Will the MBHP_MF_NG module run under the motormix emulation?

[TK.]

No, MBHP_MF_NG doesn't emulate Motormix - is this really required? Logic or Mackie Control should be sufficient?

/Edit: Mackie HUI and Motormix are now supported with V1.002 of the firmware, see postings in June

I just have released a new version, it can be downloaded from http://www.ucapps.de/mbhp_mf_ng.html

V1.001 got some new operating modes:

The additional CC modes allow to use more than two MBHP_MF_NG modules with unique CC numbers

Please note that the mode IDs are incompatible to the previous version!

-> if you are using MBHP_MF_NG V1.001 (or higher), you can only configure it with MIOS Studio 2.2.3 (or higher)

Best Regards, Thorsten.

[Roelli]

Hello.

I just made a connection diagram... could someone please check the drawing?

MF_NG connection diagram

Thanks,

Roelli.

Edited April 14, 2012 by Roelli

[TK.]

I really like this connection diagram, thanks for the inspiration!

I will link it to the MBHP_MF_NG page once the connections have been proven at your side. :)

They look correct. I'm not 100% sure if the polarity for the motor is correct, but if it runs into the wrong direction just swap the cables (and please also update the diagram in this case)

Best Regards, Thorsten.

[Roelli]

Okay... I will do the wiring at the weekend...

Cheers!

[SimonH]

Hi Roelli,

Nice diagram.

As Thorsten suggests, I think you have something swapped. I compared your diagram to my MF_NG wiring: the motor wiring is identical, but I have swapped 5V and GND on the servo track ends compared to your diagram (i.e. I have slider pin 1 going to 5V and pin 3 to GND). I suspect that I have my faders mounted upside-down to convention here :)

So swapping your motor connections around should do the trick. Good luck!

Cheers,

Simon.