Monday, May 4, 2009
Gaian Verbatim Live @ 19 Broadway May 3rd 2009
Just did a great show in Fairfax at the 19 Broadway club as part of Gaian Verbatim. All of us played well and the night was very memorable. There will be video available online in the near future so keep a look out on http://www.youtube.com/kwote as I'll be posting footage. In the meantime check http://www.gaianverbatim.webs.com/ and http://www.myspace.com/gaianverbatim for info and sounds. Gaian Verbatim's lineup at this show consisted of Arlo, Vince, Chris, Clark, Jon and myself. Here's some pics of us Jammin' out,
Monday, November 24, 2008
Retro Synth PPG Mini Rom Installation
Well I'm back with the great news that I've gotten the Mini Rom installed. If you're not aware of this particular Rom please take a moment to visit Carey Robert's website http://www.retrosynth.com/products/minirom/index.html to read, see and hear all the details. It's a very well constructed page and outlines the build process perfectly.
This wasn't quite a DIY for me. I didn't have the right wire stripper. And this is very important.. do not and I repeat DO NOT attempt to strip the wires on the Mini Rom connector unless you have the recommended 26 AWG wire strippers. I enlisted the help of Plord and we actually had to make a special trip to ACE Hardware just to get a pair as it's not common to strip wires this thin.
The other main thing I took away from this installation was the art of tinning before soldering. Something I'll be doing to my Soldering Iron much more often with future builds. I'm surprised I've made it this far without knowing better. Not that I kinda didn't already.. haha.
So major thanks goes out to Plord who basically did all the work and a huge thanks to Carey Roberts for making such a badass Rom available. And that's the other thing I want to mention, this Rom was built top notch. Pops right into the slot without a bit of straightening the pins.
Here's a quick clip I did last night of a sequenced VCO running through the Mini Wave as the Mini Rom's banks and waves are swept through. The only thing added beyond that is reverb.
http://www.kwotemusic.com/MiniRomPlusReverbTest.mp3
This wasn't quite a DIY for me. I didn't have the right wire stripper. And this is very important.. do not and I repeat DO NOT attempt to strip the wires on the Mini Rom connector unless you have the recommended 26 AWG wire strippers. I enlisted the help of Plord and we actually had to make a special trip to ACE Hardware just to get a pair as it's not common to strip wires this thin.
The other main thing I took away from this installation was the art of tinning before soldering. Something I'll be doing to my Soldering Iron much more often with future builds. I'm surprised I've made it this far without knowing better. Not that I kinda didn't already.. haha.
So major thanks goes out to Plord who basically did all the work and a huge thanks to Carey Roberts for making such a badass Rom available. And that's the other thing I want to mention, this Rom was built top notch. Pops right into the slot without a bit of straightening the pins.
Here's a quick clip I did last night of a sequenced VCO running through the Mini Wave as the Mini Rom's banks and waves are swept through. The only thing added beyond that is reverb.
http://www.kwotemusic.com/MiniRomPlusReverbTest.mp3
Sunday, November 2, 2008
Wiard Mini Wave Blacet Research 2090 Build
Long time no build. Today made up for that big time with the Wiard Mini Wave. Although I've spent some time away I'd say my technique has improved overall. From setting up to wiring up. I took my sweet time like a Sunday drive and the shit worked out lovely.
The biggest thing of note was Matthew Davidson's Scale Quantizer ROM, purchasable here through David Hylander: http://www.hylander.com/mdroms.html
I'd actually been sitting on this ROM for months because, up until recently, I couldn't even get my hands on a Mini Wave kit. Needless to say I did and I have no complaints.
Quick rundown - sorted out and labeled most of the components, kept a more steady hand, didn't worry about using the perfect amount of solder(less is more), took my time mounting the led's with an unsoldered pot on the board so I could continually check that the faceplate would line up and all in all stayed calm.
Only bummer is I still don't have a proper DMM so my calibration remains rudimentary at best. I'll be picking something up this week so you don't have to keep hearing me whine about that.
So in closing get your ass over to Blacet and buy yourself a Mini Wave! Store and info here:
http://blacet.com/store2.html
http://blacet.com/MW.html
Now check out the day's pics and a video:
Come back soon as I'll be posting a follow up once I get a hold of the Mini Rom from Cary Roberts.
The biggest thing of note was Matthew Davidson's Scale Quantizer ROM, purchasable here through David Hylander: http://www.hylander.com/mdroms.html
I'd actually been sitting on this ROM for months because, up until recently, I couldn't even get my hands on a Mini Wave kit. Needless to say I did and I have no complaints.
Quick rundown - sorted out and labeled most of the components, kept a more steady hand, didn't worry about using the perfect amount of solder(less is more), took my time mounting the led's with an unsoldered pot on the board so I could continually check that the faceplate would line up and all in all stayed calm.
Only bummer is I still don't have a proper DMM so my calibration remains rudimentary at best. I'll be picking something up this week so you don't have to keep hearing me whine about that.
So in closing get your ass over to Blacet and buy yourself a Mini Wave! Store and info here:
http://blacet.com/store2.html
http://blacet.com/MW.html
Now check out the day's pics and a video:
Come back soon as I'll be posting a follow up once I get a hold of the Mini Rom from Cary Roberts.
Sunday, October 26, 2008
AH Bay Area 10.25.08
First off I just want to thank everyone and especially Techshop for making this such a great event. Everyone had some real cool setups and I learned a lot. Here's the pics:
Sunday, July 13, 2008
Blacet Research MX2040 Mixer Processor Kit Build
What's up again everyone. This time around I built the Blacet MX2040 Mixer Processor Module. Definately my quickest and best build yet but not without it's stumbling blocks. Quite an interesting build.
There were a lot of quirks I experienced. The main one being the manual. There were things it suggested that didn't really square up with the other modules I had built and it even seemed to lack a little detail. What I realized later was this is an older Blacet design. Around 2003 judging from the PCB. What really gave it away was when it mentioned the PS100 or PS200. Both of which I didn't know existed. Obviously the current incarnation is the PS500.
Anyways, the order it suggested for what components to stuff the board with was a bit different. Not necessarily bad though. Thing is I'm getting to the point where I don't have to refer to the manual as much as before. Except for specifics I understand the basic coding on the PCB. Might be obvious to some but I just recently realized R = Resistor, RN = Resistor Network, D = Diode and so on. This kind of thinking saves a lot of time. Glad I finally picked up on it.
Here's where it got iffy and I deliberately ignored it. After soldering the pots and LED's it suggests to give the board a 2nd wash. Well I had already started using the no clean and was definately not gonna go there. And even still I wouldn't have done it anyways. I'm sure it's not all bad or it wouldn't have been written in the first place but I suggest that people building this kit or any other kit use the no clean for this stage.
This was also my first time soldering LED's. The LED's go on the solder side of the PCB and it's suggested to mount them after the pots. On hindsight I'd mount the LED's prior to the pots as there just wasn't much room on the component side for soldering.
I also accidentally bridged a couple solder points and got kinda worried. Fortunately I got in touch with Hans and ultimately learned that as long as it's on a trace that is connected to each point it's all good. It's only when it's two traces that shouldn't be connected that you have to worry about the bridge.
When testing time came I was thrilled because it mostly required a good ear, which I believe I have. lol. The DMM helped establish the +/-15V although it was kinda jumpy. I didn't get the DMM working properly on the Bias calibration but fortunately the LED's were working perfectly and served as a proper visual aid.
One last thing I'll mention is on the pcb it looks as if there should be two more transistors. However these weren't on the parts list and weren't included or mentioned at all. They were on the diagram however. Basically I just crossed my fingers and went for it, figuring I could fully trust Blacet. So no worries but thought I'd mention it as it was a little confusing.
I highly suggest people get this kit. At barely over 100 bucks it's well worthwhile. Pics below.
There were a lot of quirks I experienced. The main one being the manual. There were things it suggested that didn't really square up with the other modules I had built and it even seemed to lack a little detail. What I realized later was this is an older Blacet design. Around 2003 judging from the PCB. What really gave it away was when it mentioned the PS100 or PS200. Both of which I didn't know existed. Obviously the current incarnation is the PS500.
Anyways, the order it suggested for what components to stuff the board with was a bit different. Not necessarily bad though. Thing is I'm getting to the point where I don't have to refer to the manual as much as before. Except for specifics I understand the basic coding on the PCB. Might be obvious to some but I just recently realized R = Resistor, RN = Resistor Network, D = Diode and so on. This kind of thinking saves a lot of time. Glad I finally picked up on it.
Here's where it got iffy and I deliberately ignored it. After soldering the pots and LED's it suggests to give the board a 2nd wash. Well I had already started using the no clean and was definately not gonna go there. And even still I wouldn't have done it anyways. I'm sure it's not all bad or it wouldn't have been written in the first place but I suggest that people building this kit or any other kit use the no clean for this stage.
This was also my first time soldering LED's. The LED's go on the solder side of the PCB and it's suggested to mount them after the pots. On hindsight I'd mount the LED's prior to the pots as there just wasn't much room on the component side for soldering.
I also accidentally bridged a couple solder points and got kinda worried. Fortunately I got in touch with Hans and ultimately learned that as long as it's on a trace that is connected to each point it's all good. It's only when it's two traces that shouldn't be connected that you have to worry about the bridge.
When testing time came I was thrilled because it mostly required a good ear, which I believe I have. lol. The DMM helped establish the +/-15V although it was kinda jumpy. I didn't get the DMM working properly on the Bias calibration but fortunately the LED's were working perfectly and served as a proper visual aid.
One last thing I'll mention is on the pcb it looks as if there should be two more transistors. However these weren't on the parts list and weren't included or mentioned at all. They were on the diagram however. Basically I just crossed my fingers and went for it, figuring I could fully trust Blacet. So no worries but thought I'd mention it as it was a little confusing.
I highly suggest people get this kit. At barely over 100 bucks it's well worthwhile. Pics below.
Saturday, June 28, 2008
2nd Blacet Dual Filter Modular Build
Sup Everybody. Finally got another build under my belt. Took a big break and ironically enough I ended up building another Dual Filter. Thanks to Hans for the trade.
Anyways, I'll keep this brief. Things went much smoother and quicker. I was much more thought out and used my experience to my advantage. I also had a little warming up this past week building power cables from Blacet's cable kit. It took me 3 or more hours less to build and test. Sounds good and I'm happy.
The only real worry I had was another wiring issue. A couple wires where it was stripped seemed close to breaking after I already got things soldered and the panel on. Hanging by a thread so to speak. Just added some solder to those parts.. easy fix.
Here's the flicks so you can contrast from the last go round.
Anyways, I'll keep this brief. Things went much smoother and quicker. I was much more thought out and used my experience to my advantage. I also had a little warming up this past week building power cables from Blacet's cable kit. It took me 3 or more hours less to build and test. Sounds good and I'm happy.
The only real worry I had was another wiring issue. A couple wires where it was stripped seemed close to breaking after I already got things soldered and the panel on. Hanging by a thread so to speak. Just added some solder to those parts.. easy fix.
Here's the flicks so you can contrast from the last go round.
Monday, April 21, 2008
Dual Filter Build Sesh
I built the Blacet Dual Filter module the other day and it was quite the learning experience. I had built the Dual Linear VCA before but had a helping hand so this time around I was really forced to learn things more fully.
The build was a day long process for me. I’m by no means the fastest builder at this point. My first step after setting up my workspace was to do a parts check. I just wanna take this moment to commend Blacet for their excellent and meticulous manual. Particularly the Resistor color key, that no doubt was 100% necessary for me to correctly identify em all.
After spending a healthy length of time with that it was time to solder. I checked things as I went and found more of a flow for finding where to place things on the PCB. The PCB layout was definitely well thought out. I had a bit of a learning curve in the beginning as I had sort of lost my technique from the last build. By the end of the day however, I had a style of soldering that seemed to work pretty consistently.
Wiring was my most notable and painstaking stage. I underestimated the length to cut for the wires and foolishly soldered em all to the jacks before realizing I’d have to desolder and recut a new length for the bottom jack's common ground. The other commons made it but the lack of play is evident in the photos. Literally a stretch. I even got one of the non common’s caught in between the faceplate and PCB after screwing the Plate on. I was exhausted so I just trimmed it and moved on.
Got dinner at my wife’s pleading request around 8:00pm … WHEW!..
Needless to say all I could think about was housing the IC’s in the sockets and firing this baby up. So when we got home that’s exactly what I did. Beauty hit my hears. I love this filter. Very simple and yet so darn flexible. Great job Blacet!! I highly recommend anyone who’s interested in DIY and needs a solid Filter at a cheap price(only 69 bucks), grab this up while it lasts. Once they’re gone.. they’re gone. Might even pick another one up myself. Here’s a link:
http://www.blacet.com/DF.html
Now check out the day’s pictures:
The build was a day long process for me. I’m by no means the fastest builder at this point. My first step after setting up my workspace was to do a parts check. I just wanna take this moment to commend Blacet for their excellent and meticulous manual. Particularly the Resistor color key, that no doubt was 100% necessary for me to correctly identify em all.
After spending a healthy length of time with that it was time to solder. I checked things as I went and found more of a flow for finding where to place things on the PCB. The PCB layout was definitely well thought out. I had a bit of a learning curve in the beginning as I had sort of lost my technique from the last build. By the end of the day however, I had a style of soldering that seemed to work pretty consistently.
Wiring was my most notable and painstaking stage. I underestimated the length to cut for the wires and foolishly soldered em all to the jacks before realizing I’d have to desolder and recut a new length for the bottom jack's common ground. The other commons made it but the lack of play is evident in the photos. Literally a stretch. I even got one of the non common’s caught in between the faceplate and PCB after screwing the Plate on. I was exhausted so I just trimmed it and moved on.
Got dinner at my wife’s pleading request around 8:00pm … WHEW!..
Needless to say all I could think about was housing the IC’s in the sockets and firing this baby up. So when we got home that’s exactly what I did. Beauty hit my hears. I love this filter. Very simple and yet so darn flexible. Great job Blacet!! I highly recommend anyone who’s interested in DIY and needs a solid Filter at a cheap price(only 69 bucks), grab this up while it lasts. Once they’re gone.. they’re gone. Might even pick another one up myself. Here’s a link:
http://www.blacet.com/DF.html
Now check out the day’s pictures:
Thursday, April 10, 2008
Tools Of The Trade
Here's a list of must have tools for DIY modular building courtesy of the homie Hans:
Items purchased from http://www.mouser.com/
5166-801 Lead Benders $2.94
DP-100 OK Industries Desoldering Tools High Vac Desold Pmp $20.80
5876-103S DES Tools WIRE STRIPPER W/SPR $8.04
GA54-J Xcelite Cutters ANG BLD FLUSH CUTR $24.69
NN54 Xcelite Pliers 5" SLIM NDL NOSE $17.780
PTA7 Weller Soldering Accessories .06" SCRDR TIP $6.26
24-6337-6401 (1 LB) Kester Solder 63/37 .020 1#SPL $20.79
24-6337-8800 (1 LB) Kester Solder 63/37 .031 1#SPL $14.07
Don't forget a Weller WTCPT(got mine at Fry's for cheap), a digital multimeter, a magnifying glass(atleast 2x), some calipers, a bright halogen desk lamp, a fan for blowing solder fumes away from your face and a toothbrush for washing the boards.
Pictures of most of the items listed are below:
And now..... some ducks in a pool.
Items purchased from http://www.mouser.com/
5166-801 Lead Benders $2.94
DP-100 OK Industries Desoldering Tools High Vac Desold Pmp $20.80
5876-103S DES Tools WIRE STRIPPER W/SPR $8.04
GA54-J Xcelite Cutters ANG BLD FLUSH CUTR $24.69
NN54 Xcelite Pliers 5" SLIM NDL NOSE $17.780
PTA7 Weller Soldering Accessories .06" SCRDR TIP $6.26
24-6337-6401 (1 LB) Kester Solder 63/37 .020 1#SPL $20.79
24-6337-8800 (1 LB) Kester Solder 63/37 .031 1#SPL $14.07
Don't forget a Weller WTCPT(got mine at Fry's for cheap), a digital multimeter, a magnifying glass(atleast 2x), some calipers, a bright halogen desk lamp, a fan for blowing solder fumes away from your face and a toothbrush for washing the boards.
Pictures of most of the items listed are below:
And now..... some ducks in a pool.
Wednesday, April 9, 2008
Dual Chime DIY
Well I've finally begun the DIY trip after toying around with modules since last June. I thought about it a bit and I decided some dedicated drum modules were much needed in my setup. So for ease of build and flat out cheapness I went with one of the more simple modules in the CGS lineup, the Dual Chime Simulator.
I've just received the faceplate today and have all my DIY tools & solder expected to arrive tomorrow. And the Dual Chime kit from elby-designs.com should be coming soon too. I'll be sure to continue documenting this build as well as all others I take on. Check back for updates. I'll be dedicating a seperate post to each module I put together.
Thanks to http://www.cgs.synth.net/ http://metalbox.com/ and http://elby-designs.com/ for the designs, inspiration and good service. Also a big thanks to all the guys at http://modularsynth.net/ and http://muffwiggler.com/forum/ for all their enthusiasm for modulars and all the great ideas. Been a lot of help.
I've just received the faceplate today and have all my DIY tools & solder expected to arrive tomorrow. And the Dual Chime kit from elby-designs.com should be coming soon too. I'll be sure to continue documenting this build as well as all others I take on. Check back for updates. I'll be dedicating a seperate post to each module I put together.
Thanks to http://www.cgs.synth.net/ http://metalbox.com/ and http://elby-designs.com/ for the designs, inspiration and good service. Also a big thanks to all the guys at http://modularsynth.net/ and http://muffwiggler.com/forum/ for all their enthusiasm for modulars and all the great ideas. Been a lot of help.
Monday, March 31, 2008
Journey To Somewhere available now!!
My EP is officially for sale!! You can purchase it right now here. Check the righthand side of my blog for details, a preview(also featured on my playlist) and paypal purchase links.
You won’t be disappointed. I’m pretty proud of this piece and it brings me good vibes as I’m sure it will you.
-Kwote
You won’t be disappointed. I’m pretty proud of this piece and it brings me good vibes as I’m sure it will you.
-Kwote
My music in an indy flick
I did some music prior to the composition of my EP for a movie entitled ’Scary Stories’. Posted below with descriptions(also featured on my playlist):
http://www.kwotemusic.com/Jedi%20&%20Nightshade.mp3
Jedi & Nightshade is a composition by my homie Vincenzo featuring some great musicians and a few bleeps and blips from me. Crafted for the soundtrack to Scary Stories.
http://www.kwotemusic.com/terrorize%20your%20neighbor.mp3
terrorize your neighbor is a 30 minute droan(yes I said 30 minutes) composed by me, also for the soundtrack to Scary Stories. The version you’ll hear in the movie has lots of overdubs contributed by the maker of the film. Get the pure unadulterated version right here.
http://www.kwotemusic.com/Jedi%20&%20Nightshade.mp3
Jedi & Nightshade is a composition by my homie Vincenzo featuring some great musicians and a few bleeps and blips from me. Crafted for the soundtrack to Scary Stories.
http://www.kwotemusic.com/terrorize%20your%20neighbor.mp3
terrorize your neighbor is a 30 minute droan(yes I said 30 minutes) composed by me, also for the soundtrack to Scary Stories. The version you’ll hear in the movie has lots of overdubs contributed by the maker of the film. Get the pure unadulterated version right here.
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