sammichsid kits still availible?

[sweetsynthchuck]

im not sure if this is the right place to post, but are there any more complete kits availible?

Thanks

[m00dawg]

You'll have to ask Wilba. I would send him a PM on the forums but based on the sammichSID wiki page, it would seem to be no officially. Wilba might have a few left though who knows.

He won't have any SIDs left though and the Sammich doesn't appear to have enough room to stuff it with a SwinSID so keep that in mind if you are considering building one.

[Nasrudin]

about swinSID moondawg, have you allready seen http://www.nightfallcrew.com/05/04/2011/nano-swinsid-prototype-unboxing-and-first-impressions/ ?

Looks like this one "could" really fit in ;-)

[Antichambre]

There's some 8085R5 on ebay. -> http://cgi.ebay.fr/MOS-CSG-SID-8580-R5-Soundchip-fur-Commodore-64-C-/160557571420?pt=Klassische_Computer&hash=item2561fa1d5c, maybe ask him for two from same version.

Edited April 22, 2011 by Antichambre

[m00dawg]

Wow if that the nano-SwinSID is real that would be amazing! I guess he hid the SMD AVR under the 32MHz crystal, which is pretty clever. At least I think that's where it is since there are traces coming out form under the crystal that would not seem to be a part of it (and via holes when looking at the bottom).

I think the SwinSID is pretty neat - eventually I might throw in a few in my MB-6582 but my reasoning is a bit different than replacing SIDs. I want to use the extra SwinSID features and tie them to analog filters (like the SSM2044.

Apart from that, as a SID replacement, keep in mind the SwinSID is doing emulation - only on a microcontroller instead of in a VST. I haven't tried TK's MB-SID VST yet but it looked pretty neat so that might be a workable solution if one can't find SIDs but wants something close to that sound.

[sweetsynthchuck]

i never got a returned pm, thats why i posted on the forums,

what other options do i have i have been looking all over the internet.

i found a few

hardsid4u (just usb audio in also, No midi)

hypersid (no audio in/ but midi and usb)

any other units i should take into consideration? (not mssiah cart as using a cs4 is too clunky)

i have been on the fleamarket and every one i pm'd had already sold theres,

i grew up on a c64 ya ha kung fu, bruce lee, international karate, turbo charge, the ocean light gun games, m1 abrahams tank simulator with keyboard overlay, huey (helicopter sim) ace, ace2, i loved very much,

i just want to have that classic sound at my disposal,

any ideas guys? ps no software either, i want the real deal.

Thanks

[m00dawg]

HardSID4u is pretty nice at this point. I still much prefer the MB-SID platform (partly for the DIYness but partly because it's cleverly powerful). How the two compare is something that's harder for me to say since I have only used the MB stuff.

Your problem is not which synth you go with but simply sourcing the SIDs. If Wilba doesn't have the sammichSID kits, you can go with the MB-6582. I know SmashTV has boards for it still and the front panels designs are available online. It's not the cheapest route to go but it's much more powerful than the sammichSID simply by having a dedicated control surface.

One thing you gain by being on the MidiBox platform is the ability to extend stuff. It would be a bit awkward using the sammichSID but adding external filters can be done (such as the SSM2044's I mentioned). External filters are already supported in the firmware so you can store your filter settings in a patch. MidiBox also supports all the extra features of the SwinSID. Since the MB-6582 supports up to 8 SIDs, you can mix and match real SIDs with SwinSIDs and get the best of both worlds.

Unfortunately, finding SIDs is going to prove difficult, but not impossible. The last order Wilba had of SIDs was last November :/ So eBay or harvesting chips from C64's on your own is your next best bet.

[sweetsynthchuck]

hi moodawg, im hopeless at DIY, i spent 2 hours soldering 3 bits of wire onto a battery for my yamaha 4op fm synth, i cant build a box from scratch i am not skilled enough,

thats why i have been looking at ready made solutions, fleamarket been looking pm'ing people just having no luck,

is there any where else i can get a ready made sid synth to just pick up and play.

regarding the sids, i can pick one up from ebay as theres always sids for sale.

[m00dawg]

Not to discourage you but if you're not into DIY you should probably go to something like the HardSID. If you can't work on your own synths, you probably want a warranty or someone else to fix it. Even if you bought something off the flea market, you really should have some know-how into how the synth works and how to repair it should something go wrong.

That said, soldering is not a difficult skill with some practice - almost all of my soldering experience has been on MidiBox projects and I can attest to it being easy if you put some time and some initial investment into it. In all honestly, I have shitty eyesight too so I'm at a disadvantage but still find that, with the proper tools, it's easy. Even SMD soldering (such as that required for the MB-FM stuff) was easier than I thought which just a tad bit of practice.

Don't let soldering discourage you if skill is the only roadblock. I ran into a cool book recently I want to buy that you might find helpful:

http://oreilly.com/catalog/9780596153755/

TL;DR; if hobbyst synths are really not for you, I recommend you go commercial.

It's also empowering. I'm building my own customized MB-SID based on the MB-6582, but it's not rocket science. It's just knowing a

[sweetsynthchuck]

moogdawg how much is a midibox sid usually cost the builder to fully assemble?

something like this one, with no sequncer etc?

[m00dawg]

If you're in the states, you can get the parts from SmashTV. He sells the CORE and SID modules separately or the MB-6582 boards. He sells an optional parts kit for the mainboard two which is $125 (for board and parts). He only sells the CS board bare last I checked. Prices are there though so you can see the raw costs of the boards and other kits.

If you don't go MB-6582, you need a CORE and 1 SID module (2 for stereo). You don't need any control surface whatsoever if doing it on the cheap but you'll want an LCD to use at least while debugging. My first MidiBox SID in a shoe box with a 2x20 LCD and some buttons for a minimum control surface and a knob that only sort of worked :) But I had fun with it and with the patch software you can get by without having much of a control surface if you have a pretty nice DAW you use.

If you want buttons and knobs you would also need at least one DINx4 board. If you want LEDs, you need at least one DOUTx4 board. The MB-6582 has a clever transistor sink design to cut down on the number of pins so if you know you're going to want a full control surface and/or more than 1 or 2 SIDS, I would highly recommend you go that route unless you want to figure that stuff out on your own. Using the individual modules will take quite a bit of boards (and space).

You need other odds and ends too - ribbon cables, crimp terminals, phono plugs, and things like that if not using the MB-6582 kit. Those costs are usually marginal, though.

So I know that didn't have any costs on it but you can get an idea by just going to SmashTV's site. If you're not in the US, there's a place you can get boards (I think from Germany). Info will be on ucapps.de for that.

[Param1]

An important note about the Hardsid:

You can only edit one oscillator at a time and not copy the settings to other oscillators. The End.