nuxx.net
Making, baking, and (un-)breaking things in Southeast Michigan.

SIDbox… Goes Somewhere…

May 11, 2006


Well, power works.
(Click for more SIDbox photos…)

Well, the SIDbox PCBs came in today, and thusly, I assembled one. Well, as much of one as possible… I’m still waiting for some more sockets to arrive tomorrow, and then I need to finish building a PIC programmer. But after that I will hopefully have a working prototype of a single board SID-based sound module.

For background, I’m using what are basically a bunch of different designs from the MIDIbox projects, implemented by me on a single PCB. It will also run the MIOS software which Thorsten Klose has so kindly shared with the world. The main project has a bunch of small ‘modules’ which can be wired together and fitted together in a case to make a synth of one type or another. Well, I wanted a specific type, build portions of a number of the different modules, so I made just that.

I’ve actually been thinking seriously about selling these as kits, and after asking Thorsten (TK) about it in the MIDIbox Forum, I’m seriously thinking about doing it. If I do this, I’ll be merging 5 or 6 of the MIDIbox modules (I can’t remember right now — but it’s a good bit more hardware than seen above) on a single PCB and sticking it in a single case. With my design it’ll be possible (just with the main PCB) to have 8 buttons, an LCD, and all the stuffs I mentioned before. I’m still not sure if I want to do this work, but… I may… We’ll see. :)

Anyway, this post was supposed to be about SIDbox (photo gallery retired) photos, so I’ll link to some specific ones here:

· Mmm. SIDs. A MOS 6581, MOS 6581R3, and CSG 8580R5.
· The nifty note sent by along with some ridiculously generous SIDs.
· 600dpi scans of the finished PCBs. (photo gallery retired)
· Ahh, a nicely laid out array of six SIDbox PCBs.
· Ooh, and the SIDbox PCBs even fit in the enclosure. They fit a little too well, but that’s all right.
· Test fitting parts to be sure there won’t be any dimensional surprises when actually soldering. Everything looks good from here…
· Well, the power supply works. I was getting a solid 5VDC and 12VDC, which should be ideal for a MOS 6580 SID.
· The PCB with all parts fitted except for two sockets and all ICs.
· The bottom side of the SIDbox PCB, where one can see a hardware bugfix. After I ordered the boards I found out about a potential problem, and the blue wire should resolve that.
· The SIDbox PCB fitted with a PIC18F4620 to test on-board ICSP. It works.
· A photo which may look familiar to those of you who liked the laser printed board layout plus parts photo from before…

So, yeah. If I’m lucky I will have a working SID-based sound module either tomorrow or Saturday. If not, I’ll probably have a lot to learn… And I’ll be really upset with myself… We’ll see. For now, I’m pretty excited.

electronicsmaking thingsmoved from livejournal

RAID

May 8, 2006

Oh, when at Gibralter Trade Center’s ‘Computer Show’ (to get the aforementioned DB25 cable) I was walking past a table of $25 laptops (old Zeniths and such) I heard the guy there saying to someone else “…oh, then you need a RAID. R-A-I-D. It’s what companies use. Have you ever heard of it?”

Yeah, it’s that kind of place.

computersfound thingsmoved from livejournal

Today I…

May 7, 2006

Today I…

– Watched a pair of T-38’s take off.
– Watched other aircraft fly about.
– Went to the dirt mall. It’s full of dirty, trashy, awful people.
– Drove through Algonac, East China, and all other routes along M-29 between New Baltimore and Port Huron.
– Poked around beneath the Blue Water Bridge, likely raising the ire of the DHS. I’m sure there were lots of cameras pointing at me.
– Gazed longingly at the land of the more free (aka Canada).
– Visited Kate and Ben in Lapeer.
– Found a local place to buy Yves veggie products: Kroger
– Became frustrated at the PIC programmer I am building, as it doesn’t appear to be behaving properly.

automotiveelectronicsmoved from livejournal

New Lens…

May 6, 2006

Now I’m wanting to sell my Canon EF-S 17-85 f4-5.6 IS lens and get this one instead. 28-80 f2.8 all the way across…

Only problems I can see is that it lacks IS, but it’s a lot faster. And a bit narrower range zoom-wise… I’d probably need something wide angle. And IS works all the time. With this lens I’d just have to open it up a bit, decreasing DOF….etc.

Hrm, decisions… decisions…

Cost is pretty much not an issue since I could sell one to pay for the other. But I did just get a circular polarizing filter for the Canon lens. I wouldn’t be able to re-use it, as the new lens would be 1cm larger. Hrm.

Oh, also, do any of you know a place where I could get some velvet? I could use white, black, and maybe red. Maybe… 4′ square pieces. I want something for the background when photographing things, but I want it to be non-reflective and not especially well defined.

acquired thingsmoved from livejournal

Coyote?!?

May 6, 2006


Coyote?
(Click for full size image…)

So today I showered and shaved, applied sun block to my head, and headed out to Holland Ponds Park to test out the new lenses I received yesterday. In short, they seem really nice… But that’s not what this post about.

No, this post is about the animal pictured above, which I believe to be a coyote. I was walking quietly along a path when I saw something largeish in front of me, and I was only able to bring the camera up and fire off a few shots. Unfortunately I didn’t have a chance to turn AF off, so focus is actually on the branch in front of the animal. Also, I only had it in single shot mode, so I wasn’t able to get more than three shots. That one there is the only decent one, I think.

Do any of you think that it might be something else? According to the Michigan DNR coyotes are found throughout Michigan, but I surely didn’t expect to find one in a park at ~1:30pm.

Also, turtles are very hard to photograph. They seem to notice if anyone is within 100′ of them, and then they dive right off of whatever log they happen to be on. I got a few decent shots of turtles — including one the size of a hard hat — but nothing I’d call great.

moved from livejournaloutdoors

Camera Lenses

May 5, 2006

Wow, the lenses I mentioned the other day are excellent. The Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 II is really… interesting. It’s amazingly light, takes really nice images, and seems to be a lot nicer than I expected. The focusing ring only moves about 1/4 turn which is great to operate with a fingertip. It also seems almost weightless, which makes me think I’ll keep it on the camera a lot. It’s also dirt cheap.

The Tokina 100mm f/2.8 AT-X 100 PRO D Macro seems excellent as well. Despite the cheesy (and strangely Asian-looking) gold accents and lettering, it feels better made than any lens I’ve yet been able to use. It feels ridiculously solid, and it’s just a dream to use. It also focuses much faster than I expected. Also, a 100mm 1:1 lens just seems EXCELLENT. Focused at the closest, something just past the lens hood. Oh! And the lens hood can be stored on the lens hood reversed, which is just *great*. The Canons don’t do that.

acquired thingsmoved from livejournal

PIC Burner

May 5, 2006

Tonight I made a parallel port PIC programmer from the MIDIbox PIC Burner schematic. Except I left off the power supply (I’ll use my benchtop one (photo gallery retired)) and added a DIP18 socket for the PIC16F88.

I’m able to switch VPP, VDD, Data, and Clock on and off with the proper voltages coming out of them. Unfortunately the software isn’t recognizing the programmer nor is it able to identify which PIC has been inserted in it. Ah well, I think it’s a matter of parallel port settings, which I’ll mess with another night.

Oh, and I had to etch two PCBs for it, because I screwed up the first one. I also learned what was most wrong with the PCB for the Casio SK-1 MIDI Modification which I screwed up. I think I didn’t let the photoresist ‘develop’ for long enough. I’ve found that with a fairly warm lye solution (the bottle had been soaking in hot tap water for half an hour) it takes about 1:30. With a room temp / cold solution after 12 minutes things still aren’t right. And when a contrast-y image appears, there is still some photoresist left in some points, which makes for an unclean etch.

At least now I know. Now I can go to bed and stuff. Oh, but only after I wash the lead off of my hands.

electronicsmaking thingsmoved from livejournal

Camera Lenses

May 3, 2006

Well, first off, both of my auctions sold via buy-it-now. This is good, especially as I purchased the lenses for less than they actually sold for. Not much less, but I didn’t lose any money.

Second, after talking a bunch with a bunch about lenses, I ended up ordering two lenses instead of the single Canon 60mm macro I had been previously considering.

What I ended up getting is the Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 II which is an especially cheap 50mm lens which receives some great reviews. It’s less than $80 shipped, and almost every review I read of it says that it’s an excellent lens just to have around.

The second lens I ordered, which also receives excellent reviews, is the Tokina 100mm f/2.8 AT-X 100 PRO D Macro. It’ll do 1:1 (life-size) at 30cm, and seems to be pretty well made.

So, the end result is that for an additional ~$100 I’m getting a 100mm 1:1 macro, a 50mm walk-around / portrait / whatever lens, and protective filters for both. Also, the Tokina comes with a hood in the package….

acquired thingsmoved from livejournal