Telex: Teletype expanders

[trickyflemming]

Thanks! No rush, though. I won’t get a chance to test these until late tonight.

[Leverkusen]

i was hoping to get another change in before that (working on it today), in the meantime i can build a hex file and post it here (it won’t have the default scenes though, if that matters to you)

There was a plan mentioned in the i2c debugging thread to get the tt firmware fixed and working before adding new stuff and I wonder if this is still planed - I am a bit worried that the system could be getting more unstable again by adding a lot of new features and then the bugs would be harder to track…I would really wish for a fully functioning monome remote system if I could since it never really did for me…

[scanner_darkly]

i haven’t been keeping close track but i thought most of the bugs were fixed. are there still some outstanding?

[Leverkusen]

I did not use it much over the last weeks out of a bit of frustration and cause I wanted to wait for a somehow temporary final firmware update before programming new stuff on the modules but what comes to my mind spontaneously is:

crashes/performance hick-ups on hotplugging controller,
still skipping i2c remote commands at regular tempo ranges,
read/write value ranges on cycles do not match (64 vs. 255),
crashing on startup with scripts adressing non active modes on Ansible via i2c.

[scanner_darkly]

probably best to continue this discussion in the ansible bug thread (could you link it? i can’t seem to find it).

in any case, i would say that the telex additions and the ones i’m working on should not introduce any new issues as these are all new operators, not changes done to the existing ones. some shared code is changed too but again these are additions, not modifications, so while the risk of introducing new bugs is non zero it’s still very very low.

[Leverkusen]

Oh, there are so many Ansible (and Earthsea) bug threads and some of it might belong in the i2c bugs threat. It’s all scattered around the forum I suppose and my attempts to collect together die not work out:

http://llllllll.co/t/official-ansible-thread-for-discussion-feedback-and-bug-reports/5321

Official Ansible thread for discussion, feedback and bug reports?

Hi all!

I wondered which one is the official Ansible thread to discuss the use, features and problems or report bugs and issues. I did a short search and did find several which are a bit overlapping and while some sound as if they could be ‘the one’ they seem less frequently used.

Also I am a little unsure if the individual apps should be discussed on individual threads (which sounds good to me) as the feature requests are since Kria and Meadowphysics also are trilogy firmwares.

I find this a little confusing and I actually overlooked something that gave me an unnecessary frustrating start with Ansible. Also I am afraid if reported issues or requests could stay unseen by Brian.

There are some more with specific topics but these seem to be the most general:

http://llllllll.co/t/ansible-1-0?source_topic_id=5321http://llllllll.co/t/ansible-1-1?source_topic_id=5321http://llllllll.co/t/new-module-ansible?source_topic_id=5321http://llllllll.co/t/ansible-begins-and-arc-shipping-update?source_topic_id=5321http://llllllll.co/t/ansible-docs?source_topic_id=5321http://llllllll.co/t/ansible-kria-feature-requests?source_topic_id=5321http://llllllll.co/t/ansible-arc-levels-features-requests?source_topic_id=5321http://llllllll.co/t/ansible-cycles-feature-requests?source_topic_id=5321

After all I did not mean to discourage the commitment to the expander software - picked up my PCB’s from the customs office today…

EDIT: How do I just post a link to another thread?

[tehn]

@Leverkusen Ansible 1.4.1

i’m sorry to report that i’m simply not going to have time for preset import/export anytime soon-- it’s a big feature. but hopefully you’ll find this version stable.

[trickyflemming]

Success! First TXi up and running. Now to finish the others…

[GoneCaving]

Back in the mists of time there was a post about using a dfu-programmer command to grab in the installed firmware from White Whale. Would that work in this instance as a possible workaround?

[hardy]

As a non-DIYer, I’m jealous to see you reaping the rewards of your DIY skills

Nice work!

[bpcmusic]

Congrats!!! That is damn-exciting to see. Can’t wait to see your TXo shining in that case!!

[trickyflemming]

As a non-DIYer, I’m jealous to see you reaping the rewards of your DIY skills

It’s really not that hard! I recommend trying it out if you’re interested. I only picked it up recently.

The initial investment is about $100 or so for a mid-range soldering iron, wire cutter, wire stripper, mini screwdrivers, solder, desoldering wick, and a selection of common components.

It’s very relaxing. I find myself playing fewer video games at night. It’s also a fun way to make some hobby income, as people have been hiring me to build Nonlinear Circuits and Random*Source modules. It’s pretty bad from a $/hr standpoint, but from a “I would have been doing this or video games anyway” outlook, it’s awesome. That, and I’m not sitting in front of a screen.

[sam]

It’s very relaxing.

Yeah it really is. It’s a kind of mindfulness.

[Larrea]

It’s very relaxing.

Yeah it really is. It’s a kind of mindfulness.

I wish I could have told myself that back when I was soldering mindless XLR and TRS cables and snakes for my studio 15 years ago.

Looking at a 256 point bantam patch bay was the breaking point. I was done.

Anybody want to buy a 256 point bantam patch bay, out of a Neve desk, with fancy oxygen free copper?

[sam]

I wish I could have told myself that back when I was soldering mindless XLR and TRS cables and snakes for my studio 15 years ago.

I’ve had to solder 3.5mm and 6.35mm jacks before, it’s horrid and fiddly. I don’t think I could contemplate having to do 256…

At least to me, PCB soldering with a good iron is worlds apart.

[Larrea]

At least to me, PCB soldering with a good iron is worlds apart.

Yeah, I was kind of being silly.

One day, when I have time, I wouldn’t mind giving this stuff a go. My real constraint now isn’t will, but time. I just don’t have it.

Plus, if I do have time to melt metal, I’d much rather be TIG welding (I build my own furniture and hardware and stuff…).

I love the smell of molten steel in the morning.

[trickyflemming]

It’s (partially) alive! Gates 2, 3, and 4 work. 1 lights up but nothing comes out of the jack. I think it’s shorting against those pesky balance pins. Trying to decide how best to repair that without too much destruction.

CV outputs don’t work
That DAC is going to be beastly to get to with the Teensy headers in place…

[bpcmusic]

Sorry to hear you were having trouble. I was so looking forward to seeing you jamming with the output expander. Don’t worry, though. I’ve been able to get every single build I have attempted running fairly easily.

The DAC is the trickiest part of the Build. Check the connections between the teensy and the backboard first before going through any major surgery. A cold solder joint on the pins that matter can leave the DAC dormant. The schematic up at the site has all of the pertinent details. If you need more help, please PM me.

Do your LEDs light up? They are controlled independently and should still function even if the DAC is not connected properly.

The pesky balance pins have gotten me twice. You will have to remove the Jack for TR 1 and reduce the size of the pin that pokes through underneath it. In my building tips, I recommend trimming that to be board level before installing the jack. That said, I’ve been able to successfully trim it down after first assembly on a number of occasions. Just the desolder the two pin header, take it out, trim the pins, and then re-solder it flush.

[bpcmusic]

@saintcloud - most of the new additions rely on hardware capabilities of the expanders (+/- voltage support, higher sampling rate, extra processing power). That said, there is a collection of functionality that could be coded for the Teletype if folks want it (and if @tehn is interested in adding it to the command set).

[tehn]

i haven’t looked at the codebase. which commands could be reasonably ported back?