Posts with «hardware-hacking» label

Spoooky CircuitPython Circuits!

After using Python for a decade, I’ve decided to finally get better at it. I think diving into CircuitPython will be a nice scaled-down universe to learn to write concise “Pythonic” code. For hardware I’m using Adafruit’s new QT Py board and CircuitPython’s new ESP32-S2 support. And for a theme this month I want to [...]
Todbot 09 Oct 19:28
arduino  general  hardware-hacking  

Eurorack diversion: PT2399 Karaoke delay module hack

I’ve not been working on my Touring Machine Eurorack modular synth module, but I have been hacking a bit in that space. Back in 2019 John Park and I saw the Waveform Magazine DIY PT2399 delay module article. I got the parts and half-assembled mine, but the build guide was pretty vague in some areas [...]
Todbot 02 Oct 21:04
hardware-hacking  music  

TouringMachine connector test

One of the benefits of having a easily-generated CAD model of a PCB with components, it becomes possible to test possible interference and clearance of connectors and cables. In this case I was worried the Eurorack power cable (2×5 IDC connector) might interfere with the micro-USB plugged into the ItsyBitsy M4. So far looks good. [...]
Todbot 11 Sep 18:47
hardware-hacking  

“knobtester” for Touring Machine module

When designing my new Touring Machine synth module, two things worry me: the analog I/O section (it must be pitch-accurate) and the user interface. The UI feels like a harder problem because I’m not sure what I want. For the analog part, I can lean on others (like Émilie and Thea), and that puts me [...]
Todbot 03 Sep 21:15
hardware-hacking  music  

Trinket Touring Machine

I’ve been playing more with algorithmic melody generation by working on my own module I’ve been calling the “Trinket Touring Machine“. Like my previously-mentioned “Trinket Trigger“, this one uses a Trinket M0 running CircuitPython. Initial experiments were in Arduino using the Mozzi audio synthesis library, which totally worked, but CircuitPython is much faster to develop [...]
Todbot 21 Aug 21:27
hardware-hacking  music  

Hackaday HalloWing case

One of the goodies from the Hackaday Superconference was an Adafruit HalloWing. And I thought: surely a Jolly Wrencher case must be made for this skull-shaped circuit board! How has no one made of these yet? So I remixed an existing clip-on case that fits the included battery (Thanks DoctorWhich!), added the Jolly Wrenches and [...]
Todbot 25 Nov 21:05
hardware-hacking  toys  

ILOVELAMP: my Supplyframe DesignLab residency project

For four months this year I had a residency at the Supplyframe DesignLab.  I worked on “ILOVELAMP“, a project experimenting with creating lamps with configurable light emitting surfaces using addressable LED strips. Check out the project: https://hackaday.io/project/20121-i-love-lamp
Todbot 28 Jul 18:55
general  hardware-hacking  

New uses for old iPod 30-pin dock devices: Bluetooth Boombox!

In our kitchen a few years ago we had this pretty good Sangean WR-5 clock radio with iPod dock. It charged our phones, had good sound, and just did its job.  Then it stopped charging our phones.  And then… Between our new phones with the Lightning port and the radio no longer charging the old devices, [...]
Todbot 20 Jan 23:50
hardware-hacking  

CrashSpace BigButton w/ ESP8266

At CrashSpace we have a publicly-viewable “sign” at https://crashspacela.com/sign/ to let members know when the space is open. This sign page is updated by a big button in the front room. Press it, the sign page updates, and you’ve promised to be in the space for an hour. But last month, the button broke. So I [...]
Todbot 13 Jan 08:40
arduino  crashspace  hardware-hacking  

CrashSpace BigButton w/ ESP8266

At CrashSpace we have a publicly-viewable “sign” at https://crashspacela.com/sign/ to let members know when the space is open. This sign page is updated by a big button in the front room. Press it, the sign page updates, and you’ve promised to be in the space for an hour. But last month, the button broke. So I [...]
Todbot 12 Jan 18:40
arduino  crashspace  hardware-hacking