Need some help choosing buttons

[MEEF]

Im looking for buttons for my box but im getting a little bit lost. From the other thread on here I think I want latching buttons, not the momentary ones, as i will be using them for solo/mute/assign buttons, so obviously would like them to stay on when pressed and turn off when pressed again.

I can't seem to find many about though, i found these on Voti's site - http://www.voti.nl/shop/catalog.html?M-SW-7-1 - but aren't they momentary ones?

I found some at Maplins but they're too expensive for me, voti would be good for me as im getting other stuff from there but i need to know that im buying the right thing. If anyone knows where i can get these kinds of buttons from (UK or voti) i would be very very grateful. I found a few places but they either sell in big bulks or are pretty expensive.

[DavidBanner]

how about a bit more info??

what sort of box are you building? what is it an interface for?

if you're building a post box, you won't need any buttons, if you're building a midibox you probably will... ;)

[MEEF]

haha ok...im building a mixer style box, similar to the one in the MB64 sticky in the HUI forum, an interface for ableton live. I want it to act a lot like a regular mixer so im not going for encoders or momentary buttons. I want the majority of the buttons to stay down when pressed but i cant find many about (unless the voti ones are these types?).

cheers

[dengel]

Meef, I don't really get why you want latching buttons - the software handles the toggle nature of the functions you described (for an example, map a solo/cue to a keyboard button to see how it works, even though the keyboard switch is momentary).

I would use spst momentary switches (I *am* using them :) ) and then trigger a status LED using a DOUT module, if you need the status - alternately, you can just use the monitor to tell you what's on and what's off.

BTW, I believe Ableton is skinnable, although I've never cared enough to get into that feature - so if you wanted to, you could modify things to make them more visible onscreen.

[DavidBanner]

yup Dengel is right - that's what I was asking for - you need MOMENTARY buttons for ableton

sounds like you really need to do a whole lot more reading - if you are having trouble with this, you're gonna get really confused later on unless you read up..

[MEEF]

oooh i see  :o

hehe right well that makes things a lot easier for me then, i was under the impression that the buttons would only keep the solo button pressed down when i was physically pushing it. But yes, what you've said makes a lot of sense thinking about it!

Im not sure what im gonna do regarding the LEDs, is it complicated or hard to set them up to be triggered from the buttons? I had come to the conclusion that i wouldnt use any LEDs purely for the simplicity and the less work on the panel but you've made me change my mind again  ;)

so is a "mini tact switch, extra high" a momentary one?

David - yes you are right, this has been a very steep learning curve for me but im just taking it as it comes. I have been searching for definitions of these things but for some reason the info hasnt been that easy to find.

[moebius]

so is a "mini tact switch, extra high" a momentary one?

Yes - tact switches always are.

Moebius

[DavidBanner]

Hey Meef,

>very steep learning curve for me but im just taking it as it comes

it sure is, but you'll learn a whole lot about electronics!

>I have been searching for definitions of these things but for some reason the info > hasnt been that easy to find.

it's all there - all the questions you've got right now - I've been there done that, and I promise everything is in the docs, and the forums. I read every single document and about 90% of the msgs in the forum b4 I started asking questions.

I'm not trying to put you off, not at all, in fact if anything you'll get much more from the site and the whole project if you get hard-core indepth. Think of it this way, if you don't know what is and isn't possible how can you decide what you want to do with your box? You could easy reget rushing the 1st part of the project at the end, and it's a lot of time (and a bit of money) you'll be spending on the project as a whole, with years of happy use of your interface after that...

[dengel]

Yeah, David "The Hulk" Banner is right.... Don't worry, as you need to do things it will all become clear. Don't limit your reading to just MB stuff. General electronics information with really simple examples will help you a lot as you transition the things to your project; They'll also help you figure out things as you realize that ALL the electronics are based around the same basic concepts.

My suggestion is to look up general info about (in no particular order):

Difference between Switch Types (particularly SPST, DPST, and SPDT types, all of which have their uses) as well as what is meant by Normally On and Normally Off.

Why too LITTLE power is a bad thing

Ohm's Law and the relationship between Volts, Amps, and Resistance.

The Midi specification and what "Note On/Note Off messages mean.

What is meant by the term "Ground" re electronics.

What do Resistors, Diodes, Capacitors, Regulators, Rectifiers, and IC's do (most of your MB project will involve these parts or some variant thereof. An example is a single resistor versus a resistor net (like on the R3 DINs from smashTV)

This link for soldering help Best Ever, IMO:

http://www.circuittechctr.com/guides/7-0.shtml

Lastly - do yourself a favor and buy Smash's board kits. They are incredible, well packed, and make assembly a breeze. Even if you think you can do it yourself cheaper - you can't, unless you already have the stuff lying around and like noxious chemicals.

[DavidBanner]

and check out Smash's site for the ultra cool 3d board layouts - this will help you get your head round things too

also if you're gonna order from him, the pcbs are layed out a bit differently from the docs on the board, so follow the instructions on smash's site...

>David "The Hulk" Banner

wondered how long it would take for someone to pick up on that one  ;D

[MEEF]

thanks for all the tips & pointers. I've actually pretty much finished all my boards (yet to be tested) but the other stuff i'll definitely have a read up about.