midiphy SEQ v4+

[jaytee]

What’s the current draw on all of these?

[latigid on]

13 hours ago, pat_00 said:

The expanders look great.

So max triggers/gates is 64. What about CV?

 

80 DOUTs are possible (8 gates, 8 clocks (including start/stop if you like) and 64 triggers. That would push the SRIO chain to 20 SRs, which I think should still be okay. 

CV is 8 channels on the SEQ. 

 

 

12 hours ago, jaytee said:

What’s the current draw on all of these?

Not measured yet, but the only hungry thing might be the Vreg. All LEDs are driven from the +/-12V rails.

[jaytee]

15 minutes ago, latigid on said:

Not measured yet, but the only hungry thing might be the Vreg. All LEDs are driven from the +/-12V rails.

If I understand the video right, the Vreg can be omitted if our PSU has a 5V rail already, right?

But that’s awesome. My eurorack power is a bit wimpy, but if this is pretty low current I can probably fit it in my main rack.

[latigid on]

The power options are:

• 5V vreg, could be left out
• +5V rail from the case
• USB (power only)
• DB-25 cable (can suffer from voltage drop, thin wire)

[gotkovsky]

Hi all!

I finally finished my V4+ build, and just wanted to thank everyone in here, I've been studying the manual for a few days and also trying to find a good config with my synths/samplers setup, and so far it seems that it's simply the best sequencer in the world :)

Huge thanks to TK, Peter, Andy and everyone who helped troubleshooting. I have to that I had barely touched a soldering iron before, so without help from the community and Peter's great tutorial, I wouldn't have been able to finish the build. I'm the living proof that anyone with a few basic tools, motivation and organization can build a working V4+, thanks to Midibox awesome users (beers are coming up!).

About the build, I also agree with everything that has been said in the previous page concerning cable lengths adjustments and loose 3M shrouded headers, and I can't think right now about anything else than that could be improved, as I don't have much experience (I'll edit my post if anything comes to mind).

I already have a few suggestions and questions about the firmware, but I'm saving that for later :)

Also, I'm actually working as an artist but I've been trained as a graphic and type designer, so I'd be glad to help on anything related to that, if that comes handy at any point.

Thanks everyone again!

Best,

K

 

 

[Hawkeye]

@gotkovsky fantastic job, extremely well done, if it was one of your first DIY projects!

Congratulations on your new sequencer and enjoy the upcoming weekend! :)
Many greets,
Peter

[SimonSays]

Hi all

Newb user and newb to Midibox, so thought I'd say hi... I'm going to order the Midiphy Seq V4+ full essential kit as soon as the cases are in.

I've built a few kits before (mostly Mutable Instr - a Shruthi, a Shruthi XT, an Ambika, lots of filter cards, etc.) - I'm no expert builder, but I can follow instructions (I've bookmarked the guide and Peter's videos already) and will almost certainly ask some dumb questions here, so please be patient :)

I thought I'd get my first one out of the way: shold I go left-handed, or right-handed? I *am* right handed so my instict is to get the jog dial on the left as I assume most of the action will be on the sequencer keys... does that sound right?

Thanks all, Simon

[Hawkeye]

@SimonSays

Welcome on board! :)

Yes, many right-handed people prefer LH JOG cases, but there is no clear "right" or "wrong", it absolutely boils down to your personal preferences, in my opinion.

For example, i have the v4+ directly above my keyboard, am right handed and currently use a RH JOG v4+, as during jams, i mostly use the mute screen and need quick access from the keyboard to the left side of the SEQ with my left hand to reach the primary matias switches.

So, to decide, you should consider the placement of your sequencer relative to your master keyboard and think about which hand you will primarily use on the sequencer and which functions you need a lot. If you use the transport section (stop/start/play/record/live) and also the "menu dial" to switch the secondary matias functions a lot (e.g. switch between mute/tracks/layers modes) and want to use your left hand for that, going for a LH JOG variant is probably a good idea!

Have a happy weekend and enjoy!

Many greets,
Peter

[thresholdpeople]

Hey everyone.

 

I'm new here too. I just ordered a kit. I'm looking forward to building it and integrating it into my setup! 

 

Still need to work my way through all the documentation. Is the v4 manual apply for the v4+? Is there an addendum or anything like that going over the differences or how to take advantage of the extra interface options? 

 

Also, I'm spec'ing out an SD card- is there a size limit to stay within? The one in the BOM is 8gb, but I can get a 32gb for cheaper elsewhere, and all the 8's are more expensive for some reason... 

 

Thanks!

[latigid on]

Hello and welcome! Glad that you're interested in the SEQ v4+.

The functionality is fairly much as before, just the interface is a bit flatter. The obvious difference is the JA subassembly selects what the second row of Matias keyswitches does. But even here there is some familiarity, for instance the tracks are still in "groups" of four with the currently active track coloured differently. Labelled buttons are also almost the same.

For sure, take any SD card. The one on the BOM is just there for posterity -- we don't expect anyone to order it from Mouser. Even if you have some old ones lying around or in an old camera they should be more than enough. Let us know what cards work and or if you have any trouble.

 

 

[thresholdpeople]

Sweet. Thanks for that clarification. 

Really looking forward to it!

[thresholdpeople]

I've been looking at MIDIbox on and off for years, and found the v4 while researching a different sequencer. After a bit of digging deeper, and not being too sure which boards were necessary, where to spec them, how to get the case made to fit the face panel on top of, etc, I found this thread. 

So for the v4, while the open-ended nature of building your own, to your own spec, etc, is really wonderful, along with a lot of community support along the way, that level of open-ended project is deeper than I am currently looking for, and it was going to be prohibitive for me. The way I work, it would have sprawled and prevented me from focusing as much on making some music. So making something like the midiphy kits available is a huge boon for me.

So I want to say thank you for making and compiling the kits, cases, and instructions! If it wasn't for you and Hawkeye doing this, I wouldn't be building one now. 

 

[secrethero303]

On 3/6/2019 at 5:12 PM, Hawkeye said:

Great job, Bruno, Elektruck and southpole! Sorry for my absence, we were moving and I still have to unpack a lot of boxes until normal operations can proceed :).

Because there was a discussion ongoing regarding resistors for color mixing and lowering the resistor values e.g. for custom keycaps with smaller windows - the superflux LEDs should be able to withstand more current, and in my experimentation i went as low as 10R for blue and green (use a higher value for red!) - but then the currents are way out of datasheet specs - you are on your own, then! :-) Imho it would be best to play safe and go for 47R, then these LEDs should have a very high life expectancy and the superflux brightness is then also somewhat balanced with the brightness of the OLEDs and the matrix displays.

To achieve the red/cyan mix as seen in the first tutorial video, you can use a single resistor going from A to 1 (red color for the running step indication) and another single resistor going from B to 2 AND 3 (cyan color for the "step has a note" indication). That second resistor results in a blue-ish cyan, as the forward voltages of blue and green are slightly different, green will not be as bright as blue. You could also try with three resistors (there is a second hole in modern LeMEC boards or you could just attach to the same pin) for fine-tuned color mixing.

Have a good evening!
Many greets, Peter

Peter,

To clarify, are you saying to achieve the cyan/red combo use 1x 47R for A (red) and 1x 47R for B (blue and green)?

Thanks,

John

[Hawkeye]

@secrethero303

correct, the easiest way to go for "red/cyan" is to connect a single resistor from A to 1 (red) and single resistor from B to both 2 and 3 (blue+green mix). (Note: this shortcut driving 3 "logical" LEDs with only 2 resistors only works, because green and blue have very similar diode forward voltages, so current flows through both, if there was a bigger difference, most current would flow through one of the LEDs not resulting in a color mix)

So, for better blue/green hue control, it might be better if you use two individual resistors going from B to 2 and from B to 3.

Also, within limits, you can experiment with resistor values other than 47R to achieve a better color mix.

While the resulting peak current (only during the duty cycle, average current is much lower) is officially out of "superflux specs" (and we don't support it), you might go down to 22R resistors as a minimal testing value, like this you could find an improved color mix, for example (untested!):

A <- 47 R -> 1 (normal red brightness)

B <- 22R -> 2 (increased green brightness)

B <- 56R -> 3 (lowered blue brightness)

-> resulting in cyan with a hue shift towards green

Modern LeMEC boards have two holes for individual resistors at insertion point B, but you can also solder a "fork" at a single "B" insertion point, if there is only one - that should be easy.

In my personal opinion, the superflux LEDs can withstand 22Rs, as they are operated only in a 1/8 duty cycle, BUT - this is out of specs and we do not encourage lower resistors than 47R from our side - while it worked for me, your mileage may vary and you might burn them up for good. If that happens, you know where to find replacements! :) As Andy knows, i had some great fun abusing a few of mine while looking for new color combinations! ;-)

Many greets and have fun!
Peter

[Antichambre]

Hi everybody!

The custom keycap were arrived.





again, thank you guys for this "+", and the amazing case that comes with!
 

Edited May 21, 2019 by Antichambre

[latigid on]

The caps are not to my taste, but good for you if you are happy with that look :).

[thresholdpeople]

Those look great. Are they snap on replacements? 

[Antichambre]

50 minutes ago, latigid on said:

The caps are not to my taste, but good for you if you are happy with that look :).

Yes I like this "polar" style. And it appears a more finished machine for me but like you said it's a question of taste so there's no debate.

It just misses a huge and ostensible "MIDIbox SEQ v4 +" at the back on the white part to assert the whole ;)

Best regards
Bruno

[Antichambre]

57 minutes ago, thresholdpeople said:

Those look great. Are they snap on replacements? 

Yes they are ALPS stem.
But all the set are reserved. There was a MOQ, I was obliged to do that bulk to get mine, I've got it now, I already said that's a 'first and last' bulk.

Best regards
Bruno

[thresholdpeople]

Ahh bummer. Well, they look great. 

[otropom]

It just misses a huge and ostensible "MIDIbox SEQ v4 +" at the back on the white part to assert the whole ;)

49 minutes ago, Antichambre said:

Yes I like this "polar" style. And it appears a more finished machine for me but like you said it's a question of taste so there's no debate.

It just misses a huge and ostensible "MIDIbox SEQ v4 +" at the back on the white part to assert the whole ;)

Best regards
Bruno

Actually i work at a french adhésive Brandt (GT-Stickers) that make premium adhésives, keep me on Touch if you want, we Can Do that on measure :)

[Elektruck]

wowie I like it more than expected, looking good!

[jaytee]

Any updates on the AOUT/DOUT eurorack modules? Just curious :)

[latigid on]

9 hours ago, jaytee said:

Any updates on the AOUT/DOUT eurorack modules? Just curious :)

We should get panel samples in a week or two, then do a PCB run. Still a wee way off.

[thresholdpeople]

I've been scanning through this thread now that I'm getting ready to build mine.. Wish I'd done so before I ordered the bulk of the parts!!

 

Antichambre - your custom mods look fantastic. I'd like to use the same pushbuttons and caps as you. They look really great. Did you have to use a different value resistor to accommodate the different LED?