Author Archives: rt

MP-1: Improving reliability with ACK and adding a PANIC! button

Posted on 2012/12/04 by rt

Since the Jeenode’s RFM12B is a bit slow (transceiving at 49.2K bps) and midi is a bit slower at 31250 bps, the processor doesn’t have much time to process all the traffic. Keep in mind that the Jeenode has to … Continue reading →

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MP-1: Adding a small display… and a rotary encoder

Posted on 2012/12/03 by rt

A display is necessary to be able to really augment the functionalities of the MP-1. A couple of LEDs blinking is fine for Power-ON and Battery status, but a small display adds much more flexibility. Since one version of the … Continue reading →

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MP-1: Wireless testing and midi commands

Posted on 2012/12/01 by rt

The MP-1 will include a wireless interface. I decided to test the possibilities of the technology I chose. Mainly, I will be using an RFM12B transceiver to exchange data between components. So, I designed a very simple interface using off-the-shelf … Continue reading →

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Re-thinking the PU-2 interface: long live the MP-1

Posted on 2012/11/29 by rt

A lot of work was done on the PU-2 over the last many months by Emanuele and I. More specifically, we wrote hundreds of line of code to make the FCB1010 work with Banks of Stompbox mode midi commands. This … Continue reading →

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VC-1: New circuit

Posted on 2012/02/07 by rt

The first circuit design for the VC-1 was a bit unstable and very dependant on the quality of the control signal. Since the goal here is to control the resistance with a PWM signal from the micro-controller, the control signal … Continue reading →

Posted in Electronics, Music equipment, VC-1 | Tagged , | 15 Comments

Tech Preview: Alesis Vortex (updated)

Posted on 2012/01/24 by rt

Update 16/1/31: The Alesis Vortex has been replaced by the Alesis Vortex Wireless . But the links below about in-depth reviews and complete user manual are still applicable and current. Update: 2012/12/21 – I am reviewing the Vortex in new posts. … Continue reading →

Posted in Electronics | Tagged , | 4 Comments

EM-1: Energy Monitor – Completed Hardware

Posted on 2012/01/07 by rt

Christmas vacations are for having fun. I did have fun! I completed a project that had been sitting idle for some time: The Energy Monitor for the house/office. The project is described over a few other posts. Most of the … Continue reading →

Posted in Arduino, EM-1 | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

VC-1: Volume Control Beta

Posted on 2011/12/24 by rt

The VC-1 is. On the left, the Silonex Audiohm opto-couplers (OC) with the electronic drivers. it has been described here. On the right, the line-buffer/impedance-controller described there. It works as expected, using two digital pins on the Arduino micro-controller to … Continue reading →

Posted in Arduino, Electronics, Music equipment, VC-1 | Tagged , | 1 Comment

VC-1: More impedance control

Posted on 2011/11/06 by rt

In the previous post, I described the circuit that I’m using to emulate a potentiometer using a couple of opto-isolator (or opto-couplers?). There is one small problem with the circuit: the input impedance has to be quite low. If you … Continue reading →

Posted in Arduino, FCB1010, Pedal board, VC-1 | Tagged | 3 Comments

VC-1: Digital/Midi Volume Control

Posted on 2011/11/06 by rt

A user asked if I could design an FCB1010/PU-2 volume control. I love challenges… It took me weeks to get one working properly. The are two main parts to this: the analog side and the digital side. The analog side … Continue reading →

Posted in Arduino, FCB1010, Pedal board, PU-2, VC-1 | Tagged | 3 Comments