#423

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

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#424

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? :expressionless:

2 Likes
#425

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.

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#426

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.

2 Likes
#427

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 :confounded:
That DAC is going to be beastly to get to with the Teensy headers in place…

2017-02-25 01.05.22.jpg2428×3237 2.07 MB

#428

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.

#430

@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).

1 Like
#431

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

#432

Is it worth merging the TO and TI namespaces into just TX namespace? I’ll admit that sometimes I end up typing e.g. TO.PARAM rather than TI.PARAM, and if everything just started with TX there would be a little less cognitive overload.

#433

@sam - for me, O for Output and I for Input makes a lot of sense (and helps keep the devices distinct). I’ve been doing it that way since the start of this, so it could simply be practice. The only concern about merging I would have is if the command set conflicted at some point. Anyone else have thoughts?

@tehn - there are some commands that would make sense to replicate on the Teletype. I’ll look through the list and propose something at some point.

1 Like
#434

i did catch myself doing TO.PARAM and such occasionally but hasn’t been a major issue. i’m good with either option.

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#435

I would personally vote for TO. TI.
as this seems less confusing for me, less cognitive load trying to understand what you are doing for which module, you know that from writing it, well with multiple modules you will need to remember more :slight_smile:

2 Likes
#436

Turns out my TXo worked this entire time! I gotta thank Brendon for the helpful troubleshooting messages. If you’re just going by the printable command reference, it’s missing the key step that you have to set an output to a CV first before you start its oscillator.

I can’t wait to dive into this after my vacation.

2017-02-28 23.18.25.jpg2428×3237 1.96 MB

7 Likes
#437

Totally made my night!!! Hooray!!!

The markdown reference has explanations for the extended and experimental functionality that are worth reading. They interact with the base TT commands in interesting ways. Printable is just for an on-hand reference.

When I’m shipping things, I’ll do a few tutorials. :slight_smile:

I’ll do a proper progress update tomorrow - in the meantime check out my upgraded travel rig - now self-contained:

Congrats again, @trickyflemming!!!

8 Likes
#438

Here is the update that I promised. Wrote it yesterday - forgot to post it. :expressionless:

I’ve updated the Crazy Verbose Status + Timeline with the latest details. In short:

We’re still on track for my planned schedule of doing the final pricing, funds collecting and shipping at the beginning of next month (April).

Might slip a few days if life gets in the way - but I’ve got a good clip going right now.

I was able to get a lot of the little parts needed for assembly (jumpers, headers, etc.) cut to size and ready while I was recuperating from a cold and jet lag (and penguin joy). This will have me more ready for the assembly phase. Plus - I’ve moved like lightning through the TXi SMD work.

75% of the boards are complete; the only board left is the bottom board for the TXo. This is the most complex board, with a good number of components on both sides (including the pesky DAC). I’m moving pretty quickly now - but this one is going to take the remainder of the week and weekend to finish.

On @sam’s suggestion, I made a modification to my plans for the i2c cables. Originally I was making a black mark on one of the wires to help orient the ground wire. As they are multicolor, sometimes this worked and sometimes it was invisible. @sam tried using a sticker on his - which looked great:

The problem is - the pesky things would come loose on their own. I’m going to use a paint pen to clearly mark one of the sides so we don’t get confused (especially when one of the devices is racked).

TELEX HANDY LINKS
TELEX Microsite | Ordering Process Details | Crazy Verbose Status + Timeline
Open Source Repository | Printable Command Reference

6 Likes
#439

for your consideration

1 Like
#440

wonder about that actual amount of devices(i imagine different devices contribute differently too)…
would TT+2xTXO+TXI+JUSTFRIENDS+1-2(possible future devices for i2c) sound like over the limit?(if not, maybe what would be approximate latency from end-to-end thinking of “worst” devices in that chain ends?)

1 Like
#441

latency isn’t the issue. it’s bus traffic. you can put a ton of devices on the line provided care is taken with cable lengths etc.

you of course can always have multiple i2c busses that are isolated.

1 Like
#442

Milestone Update

All reflow work for the TELEX expander build is complete.

Lots still to do before shipping - but this is a significant point in production. All of the SMD components are affixed to the boards.

Whew; that was a lot of work.

Next, I’m going to take care of the last bit of prep work that I need to do prior to assembly. A little bit of business travel this week will slow me down - but I should be able to continue to maintain the beginning of next month shipping date.

Then, it is time to start putting these things together and testing them. I’ll keep updating as I progress through this process.

Thanks to everyone for their support and patience!

TELEX HANDY LINKS
TELEX Microsite | Ordering Process Details
Crazy Verbose Status + Timeline | Printable Command Reference

14 Likes
#443

Check out that pile of component-filled TELEX PCBs - weighing 5.73 lbs

3 Likes