Tag Archives: build guide nintendo synthesizer

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We are excited to open the webstore to the public on Wednesday.  We will have a couple of prototypes for sale as well as modded Gameboy’s that can be inserted into any Synthboy+!

We saw a small review of our Synthboy+ from 8bitsynthtown.com!  We are excited to hear the ‘very merry chiptune!’:)

Heard about problems with extra noise in mGB mode.  A temporary solution is to try and run power from the batteries in the gameboy and unplug the power adapter.  We are working hard on reducing noise with the upcoming MOD2.  More details on that soon.

More details about the upcoming MOD2

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One of the features we have worked on in the upcoming MOD2 is the ability to add different model Gameboys.  Here in this animation you can see the orginal DMG-01, the MGB and the GBC.  This was both a technical challenge and a physical one.  The technical part was to try and accommodate different voltages for the various Gameboys.  We are still working and stress testing a few of the different models to make sure they will be able to handle the abuse.  The physical part is adding the DB9 connector so it functions in the same manner as the original DMG-01.  We have had to augment the bottoms to allow the use and access for the connector.  We are still working on the best method to do this.  We might have several revisions before we are confident on the most durable way to proceed.  If you have any suggestions or ideas, please leave a comment.

If you are wondering why we are going through the trouble of adding more models, the easiest way to explain it would be: it would depend on what you are using which model to do what with.  Each model has its strengths and weakness’.  For instance, if you would like a little less mid-range and more gritty lows, than the Pocket(MGB) is great for this.  If you want stable performance while performing extreme pitch mods than the Color is the best choice.  There are audio quality differences between models too.

Next post I will talk about the clock side of MOD2 as well as the DB9 cable change/add we did before we shipped your Synthboy+’s.  See ya next post.

 

Sexboy’s and colored Synthboy+’s are ready to ship!

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Sexboy’s and the colored Synthboy+’s are ready to ship and will ship as soon as I have confirmation of address’.  Expect to receive that email tomorrow.  Testing has begun on the rest and we expect to have the majority done this week. I have included a pic of the serialized labels that will be attached to the bottom of the Synthboy+’s.  The Sexboy’s labels are different and use a different serial code structure.

This week will be a lot of fun and we are very close.

Soichi Terada please contact me directly to resolve your pledge discrepancy.
chris@blarsky.com

Thank you again to everyone for their support!

On to final assembly and testing!

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Last week was very productive.  This week we are focused on assembly and testing.  We will start emailing you directly to confirm shipping address and give you an estimate date of delivery.  Look for more updates the closer we get as I will want everyone to keep watch for their Synthboy+.
Thank you again to everyone for all of your support.

PCB’s cut out and shapen.

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Fun week this week as we are really making progress.  Cutting out the PCB’s went smoothly and after inspecting each and every board, I have to say they look great!  This coming week we start what will seem like an eternal soldering process, but we will work as hard and as fast as possible.  Also we ship out kits to our developers so they can start testing MOD3.  More on that soon.

On a side note Josh and I are entering the Moog Circuit Bending Challenge.  We built the MCBC-01 during the week and a half we took a break from the SYNTHBOY+.  IF you like it, please ‘like it’.  We are getting a bunch of iPad haters.  The iPad is not necessary for the unit to function, just thought it would be a cool interface.  Here is the video if you are interested.

 

PCB’s have arrived!

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We received them Friday. We are excited to get moving forward on building SYNTHBOY+’s. Silver Circuits did a great job and I would recommend them to anybody who is interested in getting any board made. We will focus on cutting and shaping the boards this week. I would also like to start our rigourous testing too.

We made a few minor improvements to the code this week. We still are tweaking and testing. The code will be published right before we ship. Still working on the Gameboy Pocket model compatability. Excited to see these coming to life!

See ya soon.

Most components have arrived!

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Cases were the big one I really wanted to get started on. We had a little time this last week, so I worked up a prototype idea of what MOD2 could be. I still have a few issues I have to work out, but I’m happy with those new low tones!

I was able to get all of the top enclosures cut. Josh was working on modding Gameboys. Ordered backlights and we hope ‘Apeshit’ from ASMretro can get those shipped fairly soon. (I just sent him the email yesterday. Waiting on those last few survey’s.) I hope to get started on ‘dropping’ in the clear polyester mass cast resin windows in the top enclosures, this week.

We still have a few survey’s that have not been returned. If I don’t see them this week, I will email those people directly.

We are working intensely on a final PCB revision. I keep adding stuff I want! I’m giving myself to the end of the month.

I hope you enjoy the sounds in this video. I use NeX’s GBLFO along with MOD1 and now MOD2 to create this sound. If you have any ideas or suggestions, please don’t hesitate to contact me directly.
Talk to you soon,

chrisATblarskyDOTcom

Components Ordered.

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Funds have cleared and all components have been ordered. We expect all parts to arrive next week. This week was very productive.

First: I was able to finish the high density foam inserts.

Second: We were able to finish soldering wires to all of the components; both the power relays and DB9 connectors.

Third: I revised the DIY mod guide. A special Thanks to Flippinjax for helping me revise the guide.

Fourth:  We started tweakin’ and tunin’ the Sexboys.  These GB’s are so cool:)

Expect survey’s on Tuesday some time during the day.
I am going to delay the mod news that I wanted to share for another week.  Working out a few things.

More to come.

Getting it Going.

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Without further ado the winner of the drawing for a SYNTHBOY+ with original Gray DMG-01 is:

Mana

Congratulations!

Please contact me directly to accept your new reward. chrisATblarskyDOTcom

Worked very hard this week on several things.

First, I worked on the DIY Mod Guide. Shot pictures and revised a few things to make it easier. We will include tri-blade screwdrivers in the DIY kits so you will not have to find them. Have 90% of the guide done, just need to polish up a few things.

Second, I CNC routed all of the high density foam inserts. Made a few adjustments to my original design.

Third, we worked on all of the wires. We stripped and tinned all of the wires. I also have all of the wires finished for MOD 1.

We expect to have funds cleared by mid week. In which case we will start ordering parts and components. We will expect to send out surveys at the beginning of next week. Working on more big news we hope to release in the next update.

Stay Tuned!

Build guide step #7

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Build out of the boards is complete.  Josh did a fantastic job soldering all of the components in.  These look cool too!  Now it is on to testing.

We built a test rig to test these.

With them tested it is time to install them.

Made one modification to the back bracket.  Needed to notch out the aluminum to allow for for the larger cartridges that carry small button cell batteries inside them.

Next post we make slots in the bonnet to allow access to the cartridge slots.  Here is a start.

The Atari 2600′s are powered by synthcart. The Commodore 64′s are powered by Mssiah, cynthcart. The NES are powered by Chip Maestro, NTRQ, MidiNES. The Gameboys are powered by Arduinoboy/mGB, LSDJ, nanoloop.