One change I’d definitely make if I were doing this would be to put a 1N4148 diode antiparallel to the LED — cathode to resistor, anode to ground. That way a -10 V CV accidentally applied won’t fry the vactrol LED. (Typical absolute maximum reverse voltage for LEDs is about 6 V.)
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Rev.1 has (at least) two minor flaws to correct, so I plan to publish a Rev.2, but I might not order any myself! All the SMD is comprised of basic JLC parts so it will be a simple matter to order from them
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RIGHT!! I mean, I wouldn’t, especially with a 20 euro chip in play.
Beast of a module. Maybe it’s just an illusion but it almost looks like the rotary switch board is at nearly the same height as the pots board next to it. Is it? The rotary switches I usually get are significantly deeper than pots, and less deep than 1/4" jacks, which is especially annoying if you need to connect each of 13 pins separately to the rest of the circuit.
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RIGHT?
That must be the picture. The rotary switch is taller than the pots, almost as tall as the faders and shorter than the jack sockets. Annoying indeed. But by now I’ve figured out the process. I solder the pin socket to the daughter board. Then, I take a row of extra long header pins, put them in the socket backwards, and push each pin into the socket as far as it’ll go. Then I stack the boards, mount everything to the face plate, and solder the pins. This way, the board can slide as far as it needs to, and I can snip of the excess length of the pins.
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Thanx that was an interesting thread
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@AriaSalvatrice @irregularshed
Recyling e-waste is where I want to take my audio-circuit learning soon. I have piles of stuff I have collected or been gifted over the years. People know I fix out-dated computers/game systems and old tube radios now and then, so the stuff just kinda finds me, and I can’t bear to throw any of it out since it will just end up in landfills. Repurposing some of it as music projects sounds terrific.
Maybe a seperate thread should be started for discussing what can/cannot be repurposed for different uses?
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So, I’m not familiar with the Mozzi boards. What’s the deal with those/what do they do?
I would 100% be down with a thread about scavenged, salvaged, and recycled electronics!
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Mozzi is an Arduino library for easy construction of synth and midi code AFAIK
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Definitely Yes!
There is a Youtuber called Diode Gone Wild and most of his projects are made from recycled stuff, sadly he doesnt build synths, but what he does do is impressive, lots of crazy high voltage stuff and diy test gear.
He also does some very amusing teardowns of dodgy phone chargers!
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Dual Rats distortion and Dual Compressor (side chain) from Moritz Klein.
Few problems during that build. I realised that the transistor i got from eBay for the Rats are fake and not working.
The compressor gave me some trouble, few errors on my side hut also it is quite hard to diagnose if it is preforming properly.
Anyway, all finished now. As Moritz Klein mentions during his video, the module is noisy when done on breadboard. I used protoboard but i think it is still picking some noise. It might be best to make a proper circuit for this (or just to buy it from the website).
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As a keen and avid recycler i think a dedicated thread to repurposed kit would be interesting. Go for it.
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Nice work!
Your final remark brings up an interesting point.
So far I’ve had up to 2 daughter boards on a PCB which were not covering too much of the mother pcb they were stuck on, so I could reach most things I needed to while debugging the device. I’m wondering what your approach is. Make things so that you can test them separately? Use test points that are easily accessible? Build a test rig for all sub PCBs, make flatcables so that you can lay out all boards on the table or … do you just feel lucky (all the time) and mostly wing it?
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He also does super dodgy phone charger teardowns …
I’ve been watching his videos for a while and I can recommend them to anyone. There is always something to learn and he explains the things he wants to point out very clearly. He often uses means other people wouldn’t touch anymore, like drawing a graph on paper instead of immediately switching to a spread sheet, and uses those expertly. With modest means this maker achieves a lot more than most others. I have a suspicion he is a teacher or maybe professor of electronics or physics (or he should be!) given his thorough knowledge of electronics and physics. Again, highly recommended youtube channel:
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Ok, so who wants to start the new thread? I dont have much to post yet.
Superrrrrrr Dodgy!!!
Done
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The daughter boards themselves contain only simple components, things I can test easily with the multi meter. The main circuit will sit on the back of the motherboard, so I can access it even with the daughter boards mounted. I will build up the circuit section by section, verify each separately, then drop in the SSI2130 last. I’ll have it all in a soldering/testing stand, so I can plug in the signal generator and the scope from the front, and prove the circuit from the back. At least that’s the plan!
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Due to the interest, making a little thread about the boards to unclog the conversation here:
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