the watmm GAS thread

Innnteeeresting! Ive never seen this before... The cartridge.

Btw, the orange and the grey ones are beau.ti.ful!

How much one of these modded comps could cost?

  On 3/19/2017 at 11:08 PM, xox said:

How much one of these modded comps could cost?

Dunno, it is more of a d.i.y thing, people can ask for whatever if they're selling. I'm thinking about creating a mod myself, second hand c64's are pretty cheap here and the cartridge is around 67 euro's including shipment. I already have 2 spare sid chips laying around, but soldering / investigation time is limited at the moment. 

I used a MSSIAH cart a lot for a year or two when it first came out, it work really well.

Grounding the filter input on the SID when you aren't using it makes a big difference in the amount of noise, too, although it's still noisy.

Im after a 250$  Roland Gig bag,its bloody beautiful and full of space.

Well, I'm getting about $850 next Thursday for editing work, and I think I'm going to have tho snag one of these.  I need that external key input so much!

Regular keying where you select a color or brightness range in one video source and replace that range with another video source is cool and all but being able to use a completely separate third video signal as a transparency mask for the overlay signal is exponentially better (and completely basic in software but not so common in hardware I'm finding, unless you go really expensive or really old).

Going to stick one of these in a box with enough space left to add one or two eurorack video synth modules sometime in the future, and make a panel that breaks out all the BNC i/o on it and the switcher to a little RCA patchbay.  That, and some trashpicked TVs and cameras and VCRs and I'll be pretty well set for what I want to do with this stuff for a long time, unless I find something under $100 that will do mirroring/kaleidoscope style effects.

  On 3/9/2017 at 6:32 PM, RSP said:

Ok, last one and then I'll stop with the video mixer suggestions.  If anyone is really serious about repurposing one of these for a DIY synth or controller, someone is selling a bunch of broken Panasonic "Special Effects Generator" rack units right now and they look amazing, kind of like a Mutron pedal and one of those 60s Acoustic amplifiers had a mutant baby:

 

 

 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Panasonic-WJ-4600C-6-Input-Color-Bar-SEG-TV-studio-production-switcher/122367741980

 

I might have to nab something like this i working condition next time I get some side work, because crossfeeding signals between two switchers is where things really get crazy, and this one also has an external key input which is a BIG thing, because you can use a third video signal as a mask to overlay one signal onto a second one, which opens up tons of possibilities.

  On 3/22/2017 at 5:39 PM, fxbip said:

Im after a 250$ Roland Gig bag,its bloody beautiful and full of space.

Looks like a Xbox bag

  On 3/24/2017 at 5:20 PM, sheathe said:

 

  On 3/22/2017 at 5:39 PM, fxbip said:

Im after a 250$ Roland Gig bag,its bloody beautiful and full of space.

Looks like a Xbox bag

 

I look at that thing and see so many broken knobs.

I use this for my volcas and tempest

  On 3/24/2017 at 6:19 PM, sheathe said:

 

I use this for my volcas and tempest

Yeah, I use old  laptop bags from other people's trash for a lot of my stuff, the late 90s IBM ones are really nice and sturdy.

That and Monoprice knockoffs of Pelican cases since they're like $20 (unless you need a big one) and are as good as or better than the couple of real Pelican cases I've got.

Seriously, these are really nice and really cheap for the quality. Only things I've found so far that Pelican cases have on them is that the handles are maybe a millimeter thicker where they connect to the case so they might hold up better if you need to break down a door or something with the case, and the foam rubber is a little denser in the real Pelican cases.  I really highly recommend them.

i want an oscilloscope again =\

also i've had my uncle's dead commodore for 15 years and dreamt of making a midisid since elektron made the sidstation =\

bad at soldering and shit tho. one day...

  On 3/24/2017 at 6:53 PM, juiceciuj said:

i want an oscilloscope again =\

also i've had my uncle's dead commodore for 15 years and dreamt of making a midisid since elektron made the sidstation =\

 

bad at soldering and shit tho. one day...

Perhaps you could practice soldering, then.  Watch YouTube videos and learn the elite technique of being fast and gentle, yet precise, and let the solder flow to the heat, baby all night long!!!  Once I learnt that solder is moved by heating component leads and not the solder itself the whole time, it made my soldering 500 times better.

Having a good soldering station makes all the difference.  Doesn't even have to be super expensive, a serviceable temperature controlled station can be had for like $30 and it's so worth it. Got one of these on sale about 12 years ago and it's probably the single best investment in gear I've ever made. Some kinds of work are practically impossible with the simple plug-in hobbyist irons, and nothing is easy with them.  A Weller like I linked or something similar is a little pricey but they're designed for production work and should last decades for a hobbyist.  Tips are a couple dollars and easy to find if you stick with an industry standard brand like that, too, although I've found the tips last a long time if you keep them tinned and clean, I only need to change mine once every 2 or 3 years.Yo

u want to be careful with the off brand stuff though, some of them aren't actually temperature controlled (a proper one will continuously monitor the tip temperature and keep it steady) and are actually jsut a cheap soldering iron with a rheostat to change the voltage (which changes the temperature coarsely but doesn't actually keep it even, so as soon as you start soldering it starts to get cooler as the heat is transferred into the solder joint, and the same setting swill give you different temperatures depending on how warm the air is that day, stuff like that).

If you aren't sure how much soldering you'll in the future but want to learn, I'd grab one of these entry level Wellers.  It'll work well and since it's a very well established name you can always resell it easily and get some of the cost back.

EDIT: just wanted to say again, because it can't be stressed enough, soldering is REALLY HARD with a low end, fixed-temperature iron, and really easy with even a modest soldering station and a little practice. It's also a lot easier to work with lead solder than lead free, even though it's not exactly the best thing for you or the environment. 

ACtually looking at that cheaper Weller more I'm not sure it's fully temperature regulated either, but I used to use a really old version of it at work a long time ago, and it's what I first got good at soldering with, so I can vouch for it being a solid investment.  The Radio Shack iron I had at home back then was a nightmare, although I somehow managed to replace all of the faders and switches in an MG-1 with it and only lifted one or two solder pads.  I wouldn't recommend doing that.

Agh, I need to get good at soldering too, the replacement encoders arrived for my octatrack and I'm shitting myself at the prospect of even opening it, let alone desoldering/resoldering the encoders.. which is funny because I had no problem totally dismantling my nord lead and SY22 for repairs.

Perhaps I need to buy an actual desoldering device and not rely on the braid stuff..

And speaking of SID chips, a local secondhand instrument/synth store is selling a sammichsid for a good price.. the same price I'm seeing the nord expansion for on ebay. unnng so tempting.

  On 3/24/2017 at 4:34 PM, RSP said:

 

Well, I'm getting about $850 next Thursday for editing work, and I think I'm going to have tho snag one of these.  I need that external key input so much!

 

Regular keying where you select a color or brightness range in one video source and replace that range with another video source is cool and all but being able to use a completely separate third video signal as a transparency mask for the overlay signal is exponentially better (and completely basic in software but not so common in hardware I'm finding, unless you go really expensive or really old).

 

Going to stick one of these in a box with enough space left to add one or two eurorack video synth modules sometime in the future, and make a panel that breaks out all the BNC i/o on it and the switcher to a little RCA patchbay.  That, and some trashpicked TVs and cameras and VCRs and I'll be pretty well set for what I want to do with this stuff for a long time, unless I find something under $100 that will do mirroring/kaleidoscope style effects.

 

  On 3/9/2017 at 6:32 PM, RSP said:

Ok, last one and then I'll stop with the video mixer suggestions.  If anyone is really serious about repurposing one of these for a DIY synth or controller, someone is selling a bunch of broken Panasonic "Special Effects Generator" rack units right now and they look amazing, kind of like a Mutron pedal and one of those 60s Acoustic amplifiers had a mutant baby:

 

 

 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Panasonic-WJ-4600C-6-Input-Color-Bar-SEG-TV-studio-production-switcher/122367741980

 

I might have to nab something like this i working condition next time I get some side work, because crossfeeding signals between two switchers is where things really get crazy, and this one also has an external key input which is a BIG thing, because you can use a third video signal as a mask to overlay one signal onto a second one, which opens up tons of possibilities.

 

$27

Hopefully it works.

lol nice

I gave in and ordered the nord lead voice expansion, as well as a PCMCIA SRAM card from the same seller. Ended up costing exactly the same as what I paid for the nord in the first place.. but hey, at least now I'll have 12 voices and the ability to save drum kits..

Wicked RSP and Modey!

I was just about to pull the trigger on the Matrixbrute!  I don't need it of course but it looks so fun and I have a monosynth fetish.

I stopped myself for a second as I have to pay this months childcare today so could do with seeing my balance first.

Ahhh, the matrixbrute looks fkn insane. Sounds quite lush though, from the sonicstate review. I'd love to have a play with one.

Matrixbrute does look and sound pretty great.  Kind of in a different league than a $30 video switcher!

  On 3/25/2017 at 2:58 PM, RSP said:

Having a good soldering station makes all the difference.  Doesn't even have to be super expensive, a serviceable temperature controlled station can be had for like $30 and it's so worth it. Got one of these on sale about 12 years ago and it's probably the single best investment in gear I've ever made. Some kinds of work are practically impossible with the simple plug-in hobbyist irons, and nothing is easy with them.  A Weller like I linked or something similar is a little pricey but they're designed for production work and should last decades for a hobbyist.  Tips are a couple dollars and easy to find if you stick with an industry standard brand like that, too, although I've found the tips last a long time if you keep them tinned and clean, I only need to change mine once every 2 or 3 years.Yo

 

u want to be careful with the off brand stuff though, some of them aren't actually temperature controlled (a proper one will continuously monitor the tip temperature and keep it steady) and are actually jsut a cheap soldering iron with a rheostat to change the voltage (which changes the temperature coarsely but doesn't actually keep it even, so as soon as you start soldering it starts to get cooler as the heat is transferred into the solder joint, and the same setting swill give you different temperatures depending on how warm the air is that day, stuff like that).

 

If you aren't sure how much soldering you'll in the future but want to learn, I'd grab one of these entry level Wellers.  It'll work well and since it's a very well established name you can always resell it easily and get some of the cost back.

 

 

EDIT: just wanted to say again, because it can't be stressed enough, soldering is REALLY HARD with a low end, fixed-temperature iron, and really easy with even a modest soldering station and a little practice. It's also a lot easier to work with lead solder than lead free, even though it's not exactly the best thing for you or the environment. 

i'm 99% sure my main problem is the fact that i've got like $12 radio shack fixed temp soldering iron. i initially got it to for modifying korean joystick parts (dork) but i did eventually try to build a gristleizer for a friend (http://gristleizer.com/) and it went horribly. haven't done much soldering since =\

i've got a new joystick mod i want to try which has a greater room for error that i could try my hand with a new iron before potentially butchering my sid chip ;O

definitely looking at that entry level weller

  On 3/27/2017 at 4:52 PM, juiceciuj said:

 

  On 3/25/2017 at 2:58 PM, RSP said:

Having a good soldering station makes all the difference.  Doesn't even have to be super expensive, a serviceable temperature controlled station can be had for like $30 and it's so worth it. Got one of these on sale about 12 years ago and it's probably the single best investment in gear I've ever made. Some kinds of work are practically impossible with the simple plug-in hobbyist irons, and nothing is easy with them.  A Weller like I linked or something similar is a little pricey but they're designed for production work and should last decades for a hobbyist.  Tips are a couple dollars and easy to find if you stick with an industry standard brand like that, too, although I've found the tips last a long time if you keep them tinned and clean, I only need to change mine once every 2 or 3 years.Yo

 

u want to be careful with the off brand stuff though, some of them aren't actually temperature controlled (a proper one will continuously monitor the tip temperature and keep it steady) and are actually jsut a cheap soldering iron with a rheostat to change the voltage (which changes the temperature coarsely but doesn't actually keep it even, so as soon as you start soldering it starts to get cooler as the heat is transferred into the solder joint, and the same setting swill give you different temperatures depending on how warm the air is that day, stuff like that).

 

If you aren't sure how much soldering you'll in the future but want to learn, I'd grab one of these entry level Wellers.  It'll work well and since it's a very well established name you can always resell it easily and get some of the cost back.

 

 

EDIT: just wanted to say again, because it can't be stressed enough, soldering is REALLY HARD with a low end, fixed-temperature iron, and really easy with even a modest soldering station and a little practice. It's also a lot easier to work with lead solder than lead free, even though it's not exactly the best thing for you or the environment. 

i'm 99% sure my main problem is the fact that i've got like $12 radio shack fixed temp soldering iron. i initially got it to for modifying korean joystick parts (dork) but i did eventually try to build a gristleizer for a friend (http://gristleizer.com/) and it went horribly. haven't done much soldering since =\

 

i've got a new joystick mod i want to try which has a greater room for error that i could try my hand with a new iron before potentially butchering my sid chip ;O

 

definitely looking at that entry level weller

 

That's exactly the kind I started with.  You won't believe how much easier it is with something a bit nicer. Definitely don't work on a SID (or any IC really) with that thing! 

There was one odd brand that was something like $22 shipped a few years back that actually got a lot of praise from DIY folks but I forget what it was.  That $40 Weller will be a huge improvement for you if you can swing it.

Soldering is one of those things like stringed instruments or tools where the stuff that's sold beginners tends to actually the hardest to use and takes quite a bit of practice and skill to do anything with, compared to something aimed at experienced users or professionals, which is usually the easiest to use and would be ideal for a beginner.  I'd say I'm a skilled intermediate at best.

Aoyue is a highly recommended brand of soldering iron that is relatively easy on the wallet.

I got the 469 variable wattage station for like $30 on Amazon

Dude, what the fuck are any of these...:

http://ruskeys.net/eng/synths.php

For some reason they all look pretty badass, though.  If I saw most any one of those in a shop for cheap I'd be like "YES!"

Oh, yah, and more directly related to GAS, picked up a Budda Chakra Compressor

which considering my chakras are in order, it's right up my alley.  It's also part of my "I like great things, but I also like bang-for-buck" type purchases.  Quite nice, quite nice...  It's so good that in the back of my mind, I want to buy 2 of them to put into one case, control all pots with dual-potentiometers, and turn it into a mini stereo opto-compressor unit (yah, it's opto design, so has a lot of organic qualities to the pump/attack/etc. feels good, mang).

Soviet synths seem to pop up on eBay pretty regularly but the shipping is brutal and they usually aren't the exciting ones (lots of 70s analog preset type stuff).  It's fun to look at sometimes.

  On 3/29/2017 at 9:22 AM, peace 7 said:

Dude, what the fuck are any of these...:

http://ruskeys.net/eng/synths.php

 

For some reason they all look pretty badass, though.  If I saw most any one of those in a shop for cheap I'd be like "YES!"

 

Lord knows I don't need another monosynth but fuck, I gave in.