EEVblog Electronics Community Forum

EEVblog => EEVblog Specific => Topic started by: EEVblog on October 19, 2015, 02:00:00 pm

Title: EEVblog #809 - Mailbag
Post by: EEVblog on October 19, 2015, 02:00:00 pm
Mailbag Monday
Dave opens his mail, just in time for the Back To The Future 30th anniversary! October 21st 2015

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wQwARwRqMQo (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wQwARwRqMQo)

SPOILERS:
http://www.radiomods.co.nz (http://www.radiomods.co.nz)
Back To The Future October 21st 2015
CNC Crafted OUTATIME number plate:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UVthW-VMopg (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UVthW-VMopg)
Cheap boost converters
http://www.ledsales.com.au/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=1680 (http://www.ledsales.com.au/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=1680)
ZX Spectrum USB Keyboard conversion kit:
http://blog.tynemouthsoftware.co.uk/2015/04/zx-spectrum-usb-keyboard-conversion-kits.html (http://blog.tynemouthsoftware.co.uk/2015/04/zx-spectrum-usb-keyboard-conversion-kits.html)
Tons of retro computers projects: http://blog.tynemouthsoftware.co.uk/ (http://blog.tynemouthsoftware.co.uk/)
SinCronos
Signal conditioner module: http://www.bloguetronica.com/2015/09/modulo-condicionador-de-sinal-sincronos.html (http://www.bloguetronica.com/2015/09/modulo-condicionador-de-sinal-sincronos.html)
Lift control PCB
LeMaker Guitar ARM SoC Single Board Computer: http://www.lemaker.org/article-46-1.html (http://www.lemaker.org/article-46-1.html)
Dymo Letratag Label Printer

Title: Re: EEVblog #809 - Mailbag
Post by: Barny on October 19, 2015, 02:13:25 pm
07:10 at the Video:

Lernen = teach
von Hand = "from hand"

=> manual teaching
Title: Re: EEVblog #809 - Mailbag
Post by: TheDefpom on October 19, 2015, 08:18:53 pm
Thanks for the mention Dave, I have been updating my bench equipment recently, I purchased a siglent sds2102 from tautech a few weeks ago. And also picked up a few things from eBay too, so have dragged my lab into a more recent period in time... Not 1985...

I'm trying to attach an updated pic of my gear, but the forum doesn't accept a .jpeg which is what my phone saved images as (not jpg), so I took a screen shot of the image... Forum says image is too large... Face palm.
Title: Re: EEVblog #809 - Mailbag
Post by: AF6LJ on October 19, 2015, 08:38:00 pm
Good Mailbag Dave.  :-+ :-+ :-+
Title: Re: EEVblog #809 - Mailbag
Post by: g.lewarne on October 20, 2015, 12:59:28 am
I have been wondering - how do I get in touch with Dave to see if a couple of items I have are of interest to him?

I can send out:

Mainboard and Twin Optical Solar Cell Audio input board from a Dolby CP-45 Analogue Cinema Sound Processor (as used in actual cinemas on 35mm projectors)
Brand New 2kw Osram XBO Short-Arc Xenon Digital Cinema Projector Lamp

The lamp will be costly to send - fragile, huge box, regulations etc so don't want to waste my money if he isn't interested.

I know the lamp isn't really an EE thing, but he might have fun trying to power it, they need about 20-22v DC @ 80 Amps


Title: Re: EEVblog #809 - Mailbag
Post by: Rubi on October 20, 2015, 05:59:33 am
Hi Dave

Nice mailbag video.
You missed the link to Jussis website.

Cheers
Rubi
Title: Re: EEVblog #809 - Mailbag
Post by: crispy_tofu on October 20, 2015, 07:03:51 am
On the context of sockets (on the lemaker)...
No matter how much light I shine on this stick, it's still SODIMM...  :'(

Nice mailbag too!  :popcorn:
Title: Re: EEVblog #809 - Mailbag
Post by: forrestc on October 20, 2015, 07:55:29 am
Just in time for the Back To The Future 30th anniversary! October 21st 2015

Dave:

The lack of a decent option for you to see the trilogy just plain sucks.  I can't believe they'd miss out on this opportunity.

Stateside, I'm looking forward to going and watching the trilogy in my local theater which obviously isn't going to miss out on any opportunity to get money from the movie-viewing public.   My local theater chain (Cinemark) has actually bumped "The Martian" from their largest screen for the evening to play the trilogy starting at 4:30pm.  It will be awesome to see this in a 4K theater with a oversized screen, even if it likely is only a 2K transfer - especially since I didn't get to see it on the big screen originally.






Title: Re: EEVblog #809 - Mailbag
Post by: g.lewarne on October 20, 2015, 08:02:59 am
I have been wondering - how do I get in touch with Dave to see if a couple of items I have are of interest to him?

I can send out:

Mainboard and Twin Optical Solar Cell Audio input board from a Dolby CP-45 Analogue Cinema Sound Processor (as used in actual cinemas on 35mm projectors)
Brand New 2kw Osram XBO Short-Arc Xenon Digital Cinema Projector Lamp

The lamp will be costly to send - fragile, huge box, regulations etc so don't want to waste my money if he isn't interested.

I know the lamp isn't really an EE thing, but he might have fun trying to power it, they need about 20-22v DC @ 80 Amps

The lamp is very explosive and dangerous, so if I were you, unless I am sending it to a lamp professional, I won't do that.

It is still in its original explosion proof plastic container, inside a box with a massive amount of foam padding, inside a wooden shipping crate.  I already have a international service that ships these things.  I know first hand how dangerous these things are, ive had several explode inside projectors and one while I was handling it during removal.  Always wear full body "armour" and face shield!
Title: Re: EEVblog #809 - Mailbag
Post by: westfw on October 20, 2015, 08:09:28 am
I've been wondering whether it's possible to hack those cheap label printers into printing arbitrary bitmaps (from an external microcontroller, presumably), but the internals (as you showed) tend to have a really high level of integration, and I can't find any data on printheads of the appropriate size (which are presumably completely custom for a given manufacturer/design.)  (this would allow printing things like chip labels, perhaps.  One at a time, as needed, rather than a sheet full of laser-printer labels...)   Has anyone done any experiments or found any data?
Title: Re: EEVblog #809 - Mailbag
Post by: Balaur on October 20, 2015, 08:18:40 am
I've been wondering whether it's possible to hack those cheap label printers into printing arbitrary bitmaps (from an external microcontroller, presumably), but the internals (as you showed) tend to have a really high level of integration, and I can't find any data on printheads of the appropriate size (which are presumably completely custom for a given manufacturer/design.)  (this would allow printing things like chip labels, perhaps.  One at a time, as needed, rather than a sheet full of laser-printer labels...)   Has anyone done any experiments or found any data?

There are USB versions of those that are basically printers. I have a Brother P-Touch PT-1230PC, bought for not too many euros.
Title: Re: EEVblog #809 - Mailbag
Post by: EEVblog on October 20, 2015, 09:50:42 am
I have been wondering - how do I get in touch with Dave to see if a couple of items I have are of interest to him?
I can send out:
Mainboard and Twin Optical Solar Cell Audio input board from a Dolby CP-45 Analogue Cinema Sound Processor (as used in actual cinemas on 35mm projectors)
Brand New 2kw Osram XBO Short-Arc Xenon Digital Cinema Projector Lamp

The lamp will be costly to send - fragile, huge box, regulations etc so don't want to waste my money if he isn't interested.

I know the lamp isn't really an EE thing, but he might have fun trying to power it, they need about 20-22v DC @ 80 Amps

The lamp is very explosive and dangerous, so if I were you, unless I am sending it to a lamp professional, I won't do that.

Yes, I concur. Odds of being broken in transit is high.
Thanks for the offer though.
Title: Re: EEVblog #809 - Mailbag
Post by: g.lewarne on October 20, 2015, 10:22:18 am
I have been wondering - how do I get in touch with Dave to see if a couple of items I have are of interest to him?
I can send out:
Mainboard and Twin Optical Solar Cell Audio input board from a Dolby CP-45 Analogue Cinema Sound Processor (as used in actual cinemas on 35mm projectors)
Brand New 2kw Osram XBO Short-Arc Xenon Digital Cinema Projector Lamp

The lamp will be costly to send - fragile, huge box, regulations etc so don't want to waste my money if he isn't interested.

I know the lamp isn't really an EE thing, but he might have fun trying to power it, they need about 20-22v DC @ 80 Amps

The lamp is very explosive and dangerous, so if I were you, unless I am sending it to a lamp professional, I won't do that.

Yes, I concur. Odds of being broken in transit is high.
Thanks for the offer though.

No problem.  If I get chance ill send you the dolby board - it is quite interesting early 90s audio tech
Title: Re: EEVblog #809 - Mailbag
Post by: bookaboo on October 20, 2015, 10:30:05 am
I have been wondering - how do I get in touch with Dave to see if a couple of items I have are of interest to him?

I can send out:

Mainboard and Twin Optical Solar Cell Audio input board from a Dolby CP-45 Analogue Cinema Sound Processor (as used in actual cinemas on 35mm projectors)
Brand New 2kw Osram XBO Short-Arc Xenon Digital Cinema Projector Lamp

The lamp will be costly to send - fragile, huge box, regulations etc so don't want to waste my money if he isn't interested.

I know the lamp isn't really an EE thing, but he might have fun trying to power it, they need about 20-22v DC @ 80 Amps

Photonicinduction might be able to "test" your lamp at a lower postage cost.
Title: Re: EEVblog #809 - Mailbag
Post by: TheDefpom on October 20, 2015, 05:30:13 pm
Those cheap DC-DC converters I sent in were brand new, never even connected to a load, I was hoping Dave could see why they blew up when just connected to a supply, as I have 7 more of them... Don't want to just bin them!

To me it looked like a bad trace bridging between a couple of pins of the device.
Title: Re: EEVblog #809 - Mailbag
Post by: Fungus on October 20, 2015, 06:10:41 pm
Those cheap DC-DC converters I sent in were brand new, never even connected to a load, I was hoping Dave could see why they blew up when just connected to a supply, as I have 7 more of them... Don't want to just bin them!

It's a bit difficult to find out after they've melted down and you don't even know what parts are on the board.

Reason: Bad soldering? Go over the rest with a magnifying glass before you plug them in.

If you got them from eBay then find out how many of them are working and ask for a refund on the rest.



Title: Re: EEVblog #809 - Mailbag
Post by: rollatorwieltje on October 20, 2015, 06:16:21 pm
Ah, the Siemens/Infineon C167 processor. 16 bit model, usually runs at about 20MHz. Altium bought a (the?) toolchain manufacturer for those, Tasking Software. Apparently these ancient processors still aren't dead after more than 20 years on the market.
Title: Re: EEVblog #809 - Mailbag
Post by: coriolan on October 20, 2015, 06:42:47 pm
I couldn't find the link to the USB-LED driver in the description. Here it is:
http://jussikilpelainen.kapsi.fi/wordpress/?p=174 (http://jussikilpelainen.kapsi.fi/wordpress/?p=174)
Title: Re: EEVblog #809 - Mailbag
Post by: BloodyRipper on October 20, 2015, 10:40:18 pm
Any chance that the Hangout to watch Back To The Future is going to happen? :)
Title: Re: EEVblog #809 - Mailbag
Post by: crispy_tofu on October 20, 2015, 11:29:29 pm
Any chance that the Hangout to watch Back To The Future is going to happen? :)

I would join that too if it went along. Promise I won't be annoying!  ;)
Title: Re: EEVblog #809 - Mailbag
Post by: tommiph on October 20, 2015, 11:32:30 pm
Hey, Dave! Another Fan from Finland! I just wanted to say you forgot Jussi's URL from your YT description: http://jussikilpelainen.kapsi.fi/wordpress/ (http://jussikilpelainen.kapsi.fi/wordpress/) Pretty cool stuff, hope nobody misses it! :)
Title: Re: EEVblog #809 - Mailbag
Post by: TheDefpom on October 20, 2015, 11:35:10 pm
Those cheap DC-DC converters I sent in were brand new, never even connected to a load, I was hoping Dave could see why they blew up when just connected to a supply, as I have 7 more of them... Don't want to just bin them!

It's a bit difficult to find out after they've melted down and you don't even know what parts are on the board.

Reason: Bad soldering? Go over the rest with a magnifying glass before you plug them in.

If you got them from eBay then find out how many of them are working and ask for a refund on the rest.

I sent Dave three units, the blown one, one I desoldered the ic on and cut between the pads and replaced the ic, and one still in its original package as new never powered up.

Yes they are cheap, but I still expected something so basic to actually work!

They were a bit of a lesson for others, test these things before actually trying to use them!
Title: Re: EEVblog #809 - Mailbag
Post by: tommiph on October 20, 2015, 11:50:40 pm
Might be a stupid question, cause I'm just learning things with the help of this vlblog, but was the trimmer potentiometer set to it's lowers setting from the start? I'm just combining stuff I've learned, might nothing to do with your case :D Sorry :D
Title: Re: EEVblog #809 - Mailbag
Post by: Xenon Photon on October 21, 2015, 09:35:59 am
Where can we buy the LeMaker Guitar?
Title: Re: EEVblog #809 - Mailbag
Post by: Fungus on October 21, 2015, 09:38:40 am
Yes they are cheap, but I still expected something so basic to actually work!

I've bought loads of those and never had a problem.  :-//
Title: Re: EEVblog #809 - Mailbag
Post by: Xenon Photon on October 23, 2015, 12:38:16 pm
Where can we buy the LeMaker Guitar?

I couldn't find out what they cost. This video says $45 for the pair of boards. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DSy2XkZH00Y (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DSy2XkZH00Y)  That is all I could find. Dave seemed to like the split boards style but I am not so sure about it. How often will you want to swap the SOC board to a different base-board? If not at all then it is just another point of failure. I think they do it simply because the SOC vendor has provided a reference design for the more difficult PCB the SOC is mounted on with the DDR3 memory. Then anyone who chooses to use it can make the much less demanding PCB for all the peripherals they chose to offer.

 I have questions in mind about the heatsinking. The Actions s500 SOC doesn't seem to have a 1GBit/sec capability so I am unsure how they have implemented it. Perhaps a USB3 bridge which may not realise the full 1Gbits/sec speed. The IR sensor is right next to the power connector so a home theater PC has to have the power cable facing the front. Which seems strange and not at all well thought out.

The Odroid XU4 is more expensive but may be more powerful and has a heatsink with a fan. The eMMC flash memory is an extra cost option. http://www.hardkernel.com/main/products/prdt_info.php?g_code=G143452239825 (http://www.hardkernel.com/main/products/prdt_info.php?g_code=G143452239825)
It also offers later ubuntu 15.04

I also can't find any information on where to buy this board. Please post here or PM me if you found any updates.
I really like the separate boards style for the instance when software update requires more processing power. Changing the SoC and RAM without changing the interfaces and the casing when embedded in a system, this will save a lot of money specially these days when software updates are very fast and more powerful (for example Android).

What do you mean by "1 GBit/sec capability"? I can't find any reference to it on the site or board specs.
Heatsinking is an issue, They didn't mention the operating temperature. I don't like the fan cooled computers because in industrial environment, the fan gathers all the dust and grease from the air on it and on the board as well. For home appliances I think it wont be a problem unless the user lives in a dusty weather. Some designers tend to use filters on the fans but this is the worst idea ever for a home device because people usually won't read the manuals and never change or clean the filters.
I agree that is the IR position next to power cord is very poorly designed.

The Odroid XU4 looks amazing, I'll check it out although it is very expensive, the network performance looks incomparable.
Title: Re: EEVblog #809 - Mailbag
Post by: Godzil on October 23, 2015, 01:25:23 pm
Where can we buy the LeMaker Guitar?

I couldn't find out what they cost. This video says $45 for the pair of boards. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DSy2XkZH00Y (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DSy2XkZH00Y)  That is all I could find. Dave seemed to like the split boards style but I am not so sure about it. How often will you want to swap the SOC board to a different base-board? If not at all then it is just another point of failure. I think they do it simply because the SOC vendor has provided a reference design for the more difficult PCB the SOC is mounted on with the DDR3 memory. Then anyone who chooses to use it can make the much less demanding PCB for all the peripherals they chose to offer.

 I have questions in mind about the heatsinking. The Actions s500 SOC doesn't seem to have a 1GBit/sec capability so I am unsure how they have implemented it. Perhaps a USB3 bridge which may not realise the full 1Gbits/sec speed. The IR sensor is right next to the power connector so a home theater PC has to have the power cable facing the front. Which seems strange and not at all well thought out.

The Odroid XU4 is more expensive but may be more powerful and has a heatsink with a fan. The eMMC flash memory is an extra cost option. http://www.hardkernel.com/main/products/prdt_info.php?g_code=G143452239825 (http://www.hardkernel.com/main/products/prdt_info.php?g_code=G143452239825)
It also offers later ubuntu 15.04

System on Module (SoM) like this one, are not made to replace the module on the "mainboard" but to allow you to develop your own mainboard that will use the SoM, it's like the Raspberry Pi "Compute Module", it's basically a split version of the raPi 1, (and much more expensive) but the idea is not to use it directly like this but to allow you to develop the board that the SoM will sit in, so you don't have to design the complex digital part like DDR routing could be, or soldering nasties BGAs
Title: Re: EEVblog #809 - Mailbag
Post by: mcs_5 on October 23, 2015, 11:29:13 pm
ROE electrolytics (from the lift board) are German. Roederstein 'lytics are labelled ROE and the film caps are labelled ERO. The company is now owned by Vishay (what isn't?).
Title: Re: EEVblog #809 - Mailbag
Post by: Xenon Photon on November 01, 2015, 03:23:06 am
Where can we buy the LeMaker Guitar?

I couldn't find out what they cost. This video says $45 for the pair of boards.

I just saw it listed on the site for 45$
http://www.lenovator.com/product/91.html#@ (http://www.lenovator.com/product/91.html#@)