switchable LED colors. brilliant; too complex; or stoopid?

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controlvoltage
 
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switchable LED colors. brilliant; too complex; or stoopid?

Post by controlvoltage »

So I found a nice set of bicolor LEDS which happen to create the color scheme I want for my x0xb0x. BLUE/RED, so if both are on you get purple.

Originally I was just going to cut, bend and solder as necessary so that one section of LEDs was red, one was blue and one purple.... but then I got too clever for my own good and thought how good it would be to have the sections switchable, so that each functional group of LEDs could be any of the three color possibilities... ohh the sheer aesthetic joy of it... but when I fell to thinking, I realized it was perhaps not so simple since each LED has its own logical address, so they aren't all on a nice switchable gang but must be addressed individually.

So, what would really be required to do this, do you think... A huge number of analog gate ICs to route the LED state signals to LED A, B, or Both for each location? Or could it still be done more simply, with a mechanical switch, while preserving the control of individual LEDs? Is it even worth it just for cute?

I'm interested in the opinions of others. Cheers, and happy Hannuchrismasolstikwaanzaturnalia to all! :)

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hamburgers
 
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Re: switchable LED colors. brilliant; too complex; or stoopi

Post by hamburgers »

controlvoltage wrote:Cheers, and happy Hannuchrismasolstikwaanzaturnalia to all! :)
I believe you missed Festivus.

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controlvoltage
 
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Re: switchable LED colors. brilliant; too complex; or stoopi

Post by controlvoltage »

mome rath wrote:
controlvoltage wrote:Cheers, and happy Hannuchrismasolstikwaanzaturnalia to all! :)
I believe you missed Festivus.
Dang, I miss it every year! Probably because no one sent me a card.

Hannufestichrismasolstikwaanzaturnaliavus then?

good call


back on topic, I have an inkling I might be able to do it using some sort of simple transistor switching... what I am looking into is if there is a simple way to take one input signal, and and an A_control and B_control for the A_output and B_output... whichever control is high, the input is connected to that output. Or could be the connection happens when the control is low, doesn't matter from the user's POV. However this is getting straight back to the large numbers of analog gates... would take less space to do it with ICs instead of trannys anyway I think... I guess I could do it with twenty 4066 or 4016 chips... but that just seems absurd, there has to be a simpler way.

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controlvoltage
 
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Post by controlvoltage »

Yep, one 4016 quad switch will allow color-control of two bicolor LEDs while maintaining the unique logic for each LED.

So it would take twenty 4016 IC's, three three-way switches, and a small telephone exchange's worth of wire, and I could have selectable-color LEDs for the sequencer, note-entry, and c0ntr0l sections separately.

The chips are only ~48 cents a pop... ~$0.44 for the SOIC package... I'm really tempted to do it.

It would look so cool when finished... but it's one of those things that's probably just not worth the work involved.

Thanks for providing me with the bandwidth to blather on endlessly about LEDs... I appreciate it. :D

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subatomic
 
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Post by subatomic »

if you're going to go to the trouble, you should really consider using RGB LEDs... and have three knobs, one for R, one for G, one for B (or get clever and devise a circuit to translate into HSV - hue sat value)...

I know, it would make it a lot more complex both in the circuits, and in the controls (you'd need 3 knobs for each _section_ of color you want to independently control)....

on the other hand, you'd be a god. so maybe it's worth it. :twisted:

Jonnay
 
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Post by Jonnay »

Hell. Why stop there? Get another microcontroler to sequence the RGB values. Or maybe even just use the one that is there (I have no idea how easy/feasible that is).

Maybe the RGB values could be retrieved from the pattern data... so every time you play a different pattern, the colours change. Maybe the changes sync to the x0xb0x.

I mean, you're already going to the drouble of using RGB LEDS and having 3 knobs.

You'd be a meta-god!

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subatomic
 
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Post by subatomic »

ah yes, scrolling rainbow color gradients across your b0x.
Imagine in pattern edit mode, you hit done, and pulsy floaty rainbows happen. ahh happy b0x says, thanks for giving me that nasty acid...

Not to be completely useless, but I think they also make OLED buttons that have tiny video displays in them (I saw a keyboard like this once). you could cut the holes bigger where each LED is to accomotate them... then you could run the whole thing off a separate PC running nearby connected to your b0x with USB/firewire. yay. Hell, connect it to the internet and set up a webpage so people can control the blinkenlights. Earn your place on slashdot.


sorry, i'll quit now.

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chairman meow
 
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ricer x0x

Post by chairman meow »

Image

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controlvoltage
 
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Post by controlvoltage »

is the above perhaps a commentary related to the possibility that going overboard on blinky LED technology is a cheap and superficial way of "hotrodding" an instrument?

Well, perhaps so. Ultimately I am far more interested in CV-control, live modulation capabilities, and expanded sonic possibilities. But, y'know, I like blinky stuff too...

bizzubby
 

Post by bizzubby »

Not that I enjoy stereotypes (one is necessary in this case), but I see a major parallel with LED mods and putting spinners and wings on Honda Civics. The RGB idea is pretty fresh, but let's not forget why we (I'm guessing) made these in the first place: nasty, drippy, gritty saw acids, square-wave whaaaaahsss, and thumping accented basslines issue forth that have never been achieved (or approached) by any other synthesizer.

I am surprised at how little audio output is being posted considering how many kits have been sold.

mux
 
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Post by mux »

bizzubby wrote:I am surprised at how little audio output is being posted considering how many kits have been sold.
too busy writing music to bother recording right now. :)

man, I want swing. all these un-swung 16th notes are getting me down.

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