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Okay, I think I have wrecked the board. I’m so sorry. I want to purchase another one ASAP to continue on this project so please let me know as soon as you have any more available. I still have the working one that I built previously, but I am not going to try to modify it. I’d rather purchase another one or more kit from you ASAP and just try again.
Good news! the new Altura MkII+ boards have just landed! We are flashing software and performing QC tomorrow, Friday May 20, 2022. New kits should be ready to ship by the 23rd, so place your order for a MkII now and enjoy the introductory price. Kits include a steel chassis and more robust LED display design. The software is the same.
Great news! I was afraid I was going to have to give up on my little project. At least for the time being I’m going to put the current board down to experience and try to not make the same mistakes again. Ordered, please send ASAP and I will be able to proceed with this little project.
Hey, still eagerly awaiting the kit, have redone the breakout box, hope to do yet another one but let’s get this one working first:
https://i.imgur.com/XU3v7Uf.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/3YtxC4c.jpg
Brach, I’m going to ask your advice on the 3 switches. It looks to me like in the schematic 1>>>>>2 and 3>>>>>4 are grounded to each other, or however you put it. I think it’s that the bottom two and the top to should be wired to each other, right? As you can see, I’m hoping to use arcade buttons instead of the little guys in the kit. So if I understand correctly, I can wire the top 2 legs of the switch together and same for the top, then run a wire out to my external box for each one of them. Or am I mixing them up and they should be the left and right?
The tact switch pins 3 and 4 are just connected to the ground bus, so you can just connect one lug of your arcade switches to your breakout box’s ground wire…don’t even run a wire to the switch’s pad.
Connect the other lug on your arcade switch to pin 2 (only pin 2) of the switch on the board.
When you are holding the board up, with the pots at the bottom, pin 2 is on the top right of S2 and S3. Pin 2 on S4 is the top left pin.
I hope that makes sense.
-Brach
I think it does. I really appreciate all the help you’ve offered. And now that I’m seeing how pretty the new metal box is, I’m thinking I should try to assemble it with pots and everything and maybe just mod my old one instead. Because boy is that pretty. I would still really like to see some kind of protective cover or lens over the LEDs, but I can maybe come up with something easily enough.
And to that end, here’s another question. Can I have the LEDs pressed up against glass or something? Would it do any harm to have a protective glass cover, do you think? Because I could easily put a clear cover over it, and I could just as easily use tiny standoffs or spacers and have the glass lifted above it and not touching.
I’ve received notice you’ve shipped it out, I’m very excited, can’t wait to see it and I hope mine looks as sweet as this:
It wouldn’t do any harm to have something pressed against the display. But on the other hand, it wouldn’t do much good either (at least on the new model). The 7 segment display is fairly robust and doesn’t get damaged easily. On the older model, where it is just floating in the headers, a clear pieces of acrylic would probably help hold it in better.
That’s my thoughts.
-Brach
Cool, right now I’m thinking of finding some cool hipster thing too, maybe find some kind of prism or crystal or something.
So far, I’ve used the Altura to control 6-10 different cheap MIDI keyboards (as well as a half dozen better synths too) and it has worked with every one, well and easily. It was my de facto MIDI tester for keyboards for a while because it was reliable. And it really brings a *whole lot* of life into playing cheap plastic keyboards too. I think kids would really enjoy it and benefit from the learning involved in just using an Altura. Octaves, harmonies, arpeggios, those all kind of get learned by listening, and they can greatly enhance knowledge in playing and listening.
Maybe you guys should look into making an accelerometer-based controller too. I think the hardware is available and cheap at this time, and the Arduino community may have something you can use. For myself, I purchased a device from Doepfer that is I think supposed to work with these accelerometer chips I bought on ebay, but I haven’t made it any further with that little project yet. I think an Arduino would possibly cost less than the Doepfer hardware too, by just a little(?)
And BTW, I think that with some devices the Altura appears to work very well with a foot pedal controller that sends program changes and stuff, as well, for anybody that can get their hands on one. These old school foot controllers can be found secondhand more easily than they can new, but mine was made to go with a wind controller and I really lucked out in finding it for $60 because its application with the Altura is very similar. The Altura actually goes through and the footpedal enhances the MIDI signal, adds some minor humanization, it’s all very nice. A Yamaha MFC2. Just in case anybody wants to take their Altura one step beyond.
I really feel like the Altura is possibly one of the very best instruments available for making atmospheric electronic music, and using it with a decent delay pedal and possibly some other effects can yield incredible little worlds of sound. One of my favorite toys to play with is a Korg NTS-1 and I usually have the Altura connected. I have modded my NTS-1 in a similar fashion to how I’m doing my Altura now, and very happy with the result. It has a mount for the Altura on it too.
[img]https://i.imgur.com/rvBqY6S.jpg[/img]
And I really like the new enclosure, I think that’s a good idea. It looks like it’s not arriving this weekend but I’ll be ready to start on it Tuesday.
In a more completed form:
Daggonit I meant to paste in this:
Very Cool! Thanks for sharing the photos!
I love the roller-controllers. That looks like a road-ready rig. Great job!
-Brach
I think the wheels should really send the Altura to the moon.
Okay, I just got my new Altura, this kit looks GREAT! I hadn’t noticed that the Mk2 appears to be a simpler assembly too. That box is REALLY stout, in my eyes that’s always a good sign of a solid component company. And the new battery compartment is nice and stout, should be a simple assembly. I’ll report later.
