Beatseqr

Here’s a legacy look at a hardware project I created with my friend Derek Scott.

version 4.5 submitted

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version 4.5 has been submitted for a limited test run. Here are the improvements: 0. using eagle cad pro, so that means I now have schematics! 1. highly rectilinear PCB component placement. Obey the grid. 2. surface mount headers for critical pins on the arduino mega. assuming I can get them soldered easily, this will solve the major assembly problem I was embarrassed by on previous versions. (H/T: Kevin… thanks for bringing these to my attention) 3. improved hackable mini protoboard area. 4. improved hackable pins on arduino mega headers. 5. holes for support legs on faders. 6. improved spacing of ledtacts and associated resistors.. should make assembly a little easier. 7. moved the arduino mega’s USB port closer to the edge of the board. 8. WAY improved beatseqr branding on the board. 9. silkscreen on both sides! 10. improved extra pin access to faders and potentiometers. 11. squeezed a piece of art onto the board. It is contained inside the LCD cutout area, so as long as I don’t plow right into it, it should be a really cool limited edition. (5 pieces) 12. included holes to mechanically affix the arduino mega to the board. The units I’ve shipped so far have had problems staying plugged in, and this should solve that problem. Otherwise, this version, pin-out-wise, is the same as version 4. I’ll be working on changing some things from here, but this version was designed to get me back up to speed on my new tool set. No jokin’ around. I barely have a clue what’s going on with Cadsoft Eagle. I had never used it for anything before this version of beatseqr, so I have no idea what the results are going to be. I’ll have to retool just about every other aspect of production as a result of making the switch from Advanced Circuits’ PCB Artist on windows to Eagle CAD on the Mac, but I think this is going to pay off in the long run. I want to start making mutations of this board, and I just couldn’t see the way forward any more with PCB Artist. Ironically, Advanced Circuits still had the best price for the PCB fabrication needs I have at this time, so not a total loss for them. So, now I wait for my submission to clear DFM checks and head into production. Then I wait for my boards to show up. Then I need to build one out and verify everything works. If it does, then I have to redesign the CNC tooling for the PCB cutouts and the case completely, then redesign the silicone button mold and produce it in machinable wax. I have no idea what the state of my silicone parts are in, so could be ugly on that front. There are a couple few other things I need to figure out too. I probably need to reorder some parts. I haven’t found LRF support that I like. Nothing seems to stick to this PCB case, so I’ll have to source some I can mechanically fasten to the case or, much worse, fabricate a solution myself. Anyway, three of these units will be probably be available for USD$349 plus shipping and export duties where applicable. It’s going to take me a while to dial all the fabrication steps in, but hopefully by the end of april 2011, there will be some units available.

beatseqr version 4.5 – in progress

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Working on it!!

Alright, so I’ve made some hard decisions. I decided to skip showing at Maker Faire this year. I decided to buy eagle cad. I decided to scale back my ambitious product road map. I decided to learn how to walk before I try running in Eagle. Basically, I decided that the pace I was developing beatseqr at was pretty tough to keep up, so I’ve decided to give myself some time to lay the foundation first.

But, I am making progress. Thank you to everyone who has expressed interest! I’m really encouraged by your feedback, and I’m chipping away at the tasks so I can get something ready for sale.

Why arduino?

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There’s been some really awesome debate going on about how the arduino “won” and some responses from other microcontroller and hacker communities. Now, I know that the counter argument presented at hackaday was well thought out, and for a large group of hackers, their actual argument may be true (“the arduino is overkill for most things”) but… I’d like to explain why I’ve chosen the arduino for beatseqr.

1. features — The programming environment is available on every platform that 99%+ of end users would use or have reasonable access to, and it’s pretty easy to work with. There’s a ton of code out there to help you get a good understanding of how to get started. It has an integrated USB to serial interface, which I use extensively with beatseqr. It has an easy to use power supply for my project.

2. cost — Limitations always bring out your creativity. For some, the limitation is the cost. So they do what it takes to get to their results with less parts and less cost. For me, the limitation is time. My time is way more valuable to me than the cost of the arduino. Yes, it’s true, if you’re doing an RGB LED mood lamp, the ~USD$35 cost of an arduino uno is way overkill. Consider this, though. It’s obvious that it’s overkill. It’s way above and beyond what you’d expect to *leave* in an RGB LED mood lamp project, so it encourages you to take your successful early projects apart and build something else. So the expense encourages you to squeeze more utility out of your purchase, which encourages more learning. For beatseqr, the benefit I get from having all of the arduino mega ready to plug into my board makes the cost worth it. It’s a significant portion of the work already sorted out for me, and I feel like that’s an acceptable factor in the overall cost of goods for what I’m doing. In fact, it’s been my plan all along to offer a version of beatseqr, *without* an arduino mega in case you already have one.

3. availability — There’s many different variants, but the same basic functionality. As long as the IDE works for the board you buy, and you understand how to connect the board to your computer, you’ll have a predictable experience. Because so many people produce variants, you can find them all over the place. To include the above point, you can find an arduino for most every price point and form factor need.

4. upgradability — with the exception of the new surface mount boards, most arduinos have their main chip seated into a socket. So that made it pretty simple to order a ~USD$5 chip and double the memory in my arduino board. Presumably if Atmel continues to produce higher memory versions of the chip that the arduino uses, you would be able to continue upgrading an arduino fo evah.

5. easy user access to program, reprogram, and/or repurpose — You don’t need to know much when you buy an arduino. You don’t need a whole lot of extra parts to program one. My admittedly limited exposure to working with bare AVR chips was interesting and confusing and short lived. And I know for a fact that it’s the right set of tools for some people. The people who can get their heads around the command line tool chain to program bare microprocessors are people who you want to call your friend, definitely. And I also feel like it’s ok that I’m not one of those people. Basically, the arduino mega snaps onto the beatseqr board. If you ever get bored with a beatseqr, you can take the arduino mega out of it and reuse it for something else. 🙂 That’s a plus in my book. My goal is to never let the beatseqr become that boring. But you could if you wanted or needed to.

6. firmware access — There are options. You can release your firmware or not release your firmware. There’s a reasonable expectation that a relatively technical user could download a firmware upgrade and reprogram a product you make that includes an arduino. Or, better still, modify the firmware to suit their exact needs. This may be possible with other microprocessor solutions, but I really feel like the arduino’s cross-platform programming environment is suited for the widest possible number of users. You download it go, regardless of what computer you’re on. If Pic or Parallax had cross platform gui programming environments, maybe I’d look, but they don’t, so I can’t. By the way, I also don’t program postscript or gcode by hand.

To recap, beatseqr isn’t like most things that are powered by an arduino. 🙂 So using the arduino isn’t overkill. In the most simple way, I’m using almost every pin on the arduino mega for the beatseqr v4 circuit board. Two pins were intentionally left unused explicitly for hacking. And now that I’ve been working on the project for almost two years, I’m starting to imagine a better user experience, and that will require more i/o than even the arduino mega has. So that’s pushing me to learn some things beyond the arduino… which i think is exactly what both Phillip Torrone and Caleb Kraft were advocating, just on different websites.

mailbag 2011-02

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We get letters! Well, email. I don’t actually get letters in the mail. But I do get email. So here are some of the correspondences I’ve had with people who have emailed me.

Iz asked me:

is there any possibility to develop a specific device, in the future, based on my needs and design ?
If such a project was remotely possible (as i don’t know who else to turn myself to), what would be the costs involved in making it happen ?
I guess it would vary with the difficulty of realization and various factors like the time you’d spent on r&d etc… but i’d want to know what costs i’m facing…

to which I said:

I’ve spent thousands of dollars developing beatseqr, just in terms of cost of tools, hardware, software, prototyping circuit boards, silicones, cases, and buying parts. I can’t even begin to imaging how much time I’ve spent on it. Hundreds of hours, easily.

I’d plan on $500 if you’re going to build something from scratch yourself. At first the bits and pieces don’t seem like they’ll add up to that much… it just seems to creep in that direction if you haven’t done it before. I’d plan on it costing more if you want someone else to build something for you from scratch. 🙂 prototyping is pretty expensive, which is why I’m trying to sell copies of my project… All that work I did to figure out how to build one, might as well do to a bit more work and try to make more copies.

Keep in mind that the beatseqr firmware is open source, and there are/will be at least one hackable pin on the circuit board that you would be able to use to add a midi port if I can’t get one into the project natively. I’m kind of shooting for that, even if i can’t figure out how to make the box use it immediately… the firmware is always upgradable and either myself or hopefully someone else with a beatseqr will be able to write a version of the firmware that would have a reasonably accurate clock that could be used for midi/sync clock. That’s what’s cool about beatseqr… it’s open and upgradable. If you have a better idea for how it should work, you can modify the program on the arduino… and hopefully share your great idea with other beatseqr users.

Alternatively, you could take a look at a couple of other resources:

livid has what appear to be some really nice DIY things if you’re going to build one copy of a project.
http://shop.lividinstruments.com/builder.html

Sparkfun has some stuff too:
http://www.sparkfun.com/products/9598
http://www.sparkfun.com/products/9108
http://www.sparkfun.com/products/9595

It’s hard to believe, but the electronics are the easy part of building a controller. the case, knobs, and interface stuff are the hard part. Nothing’s impossible, though! I’m not a professional product designer or electrical engineer. When you’re adequately motivated, you can really achieve anything. Don’t try to solve all of the problems at once, just keep solving small parts of the problem and before you know it, you can start to see the overall picture. If I can do it, you can too. 🙂

-steve

Justin ask me:

I recently found your posting on all fader types for your project. Quite a nice piece. Not really a digital guy myself.

I recently bought a old disco mixer, a GLI 5990. In short, I’ve been searching the web for replacement parts, specifically the slide faders with LED’s built in. I found your site with the crazy big picture of sliders, and you have the one pictured, I think, that I’ve been looking for.

I was wondering if you could be of help. I just don’t know what to search for when it comes to faders with the LED in the center of the slider. My old dj mixer used 2 of the faders for cue pan and volume.

Sorry to ask this question out of the clear blue, but I’m just trying every avenue I can find. This mixers over 30 years old and I don’t know if these types of parts are available anymore.

Thanks Steve,
Justin

Ugh, this is a problem I have trying to source parts for beatseqr.

Hey Justin… Thanks for writing! Finding an exactly matching replacement part for *any* gear, regardless of age, can be a frustrating experience.

Mouser has some. Digikey has some as well. I don’t know if they’ll fit, or if the pin configuration will work, or if they’ll have the right resistance, curve type, etc. There are an awful lot of parameters to watch out for. making some careful measurements of the part you need to replace, and then reading the data sheets for candidate parts is going to be key.

good luck!
-steve

Keep those emails coming. 🙂

Midi Channel Select and Octave Adjust

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Here’s a video of me playing around with the new features I wrote into the beatseqr v4 firmware. You can now change the midi channel per voice from a new mode on the faders, and you can also now offset the octave of the midi note numbers from a new knob mode. I’m still working on the interface on the LCD to make it clear what’s going on when you’re jumping around modes but as soon as it’s ready, I’ll make the source available.

Oh, and then I also have an iPad with Korg iMS-20 running. 🙂

Steve Cooley beatseqr arduino based drum sequencer plus reason & iPad + iMS-20 from stevecooley on Vimeo.

midi channel select and octave adjust

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wooo, well. I didn’t get around to the treadmill tonight or to recording a 3rd performance. I *DID* implement two kinda nice new features.

1. midi channel select fader mode. After doing these two solo perfs at home, I realized that if I had another kong loaded up and listening on midi channel 16, I could use faders to flip from channel 1 to channel 16 with confidence (all the way up, all the way down) … and that might help me transition from one preset to another. That would maybe free my other instrument up on the other dj mixer channel from *having* to have a kick drum in it.

2. octave adjust knob mode… this basically modifies the midi note number by a factor of 12 as you change it. I couldn’t figure out how to get max/msp to change all of the midi note numbers as I sent the new osc message to steppa… so it just modifies the value when the fader changes the midi note number. So, the knob range is octave adjust -3 to +5 … that covers everything… I probably over complicated it like this, but… just trying to keep things working as-is and then using the working state as the point of reference… (we start at midi note number 36. so any octave adjust is going to be relative to 36 being the “start”… so hence -3 octaves to get to midi note number 1… )

The user interface on the LCD is wiggity weird, but the functionality is pretty fun. I’m starting to wonder if we should have some way to turn off features you never use if you like. it’s starting to turn into a lot of paging…

So yeah, steppa, roxor, and the arduino firmware all need updating to get at this new stuff… uploads coming soon. I feel like I want to think about the interface a bit more before I unleash this on you.

beatseqr Kickstarter 2011 preplanning

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Hey so I’ve been working with Kickstarter.com to figure out a project I can do to help fund building more beatseqrs, and I thought since the holidays are mid-way through, I should just wait until after the new year to put it up and get it going. But, I’ve also been thinking that I could put my plan up here ahead of making it go live to gauge interest and make adjustments as necessary.

The short description of kickstarter.com is that someone makes a proposal to do some kind of creative project, and then offers different rewards for different levels of support from the community. The project has a target amount that it needs to raise in pledges from people in the community by a set time frame, or else nobody has to actually give the money they pledged, and everyone walks away. So, it’s an All-Or-Nothing kind of deal. If the project gets enough support to meet the target funding goal, then everyone who participated gets the reward for the level they pledged to. Pretty cool.

If you choose to participate, you’re helping to fund a project that is awesome. As an early adopter, you will get some cool extras to help you feel engaged in the project. I’m looking to raise a minimum of $1500, which would end up being only 5 assembled units. And, if we get over the target amount, I just keep building and building and building until everyone who participated gets what they pledged for.

So, here’s what the plan currently is for my beatseqr-on-kickstarter in descending order of pledge amount and rewards:

$1000 “give one, get one + training for two”:
Two v4 assembled beatseqr + case
one custom limited edition Acrylic/circuit board wall sculpture or custom painting incorporating prints made from parts circuit boards & parts
one chunk of a prototype Casting mold
1 year advertising tile space, significant funder page, or Artist page on beatseqr.com
One s.f. bay area training session in person for two people[restrictions apply: local bay area only, Saturday only, 2 weeks to plan, etc]
Up to two names on a future circuit board
two CDs or digital download releases of tracks made with beatseqr
two Patch, some Stickers

$750
any v4 assembled beatseqr + case
custom limited edition Acrylic/circuit board wall sculpture or custom painting incorporating prints made from parts circuit boards & parts
a chunk of a prototype Casting mold
1 year advertising tile space, significant funder page, or Artist page on beatseqr.com
s.f. bay area training in person [restrictions apply: local bay area only, Saturday only, 2 weeks to plan, etc]
name on a future circuit board
a CD or digital download release of tracks made with beatseqr
a Patch, some Stickers

$500
any assembled v4 beatseqr + case
Custom paintings, prints made from circuit boards
Chunks of a prototype Casting mold
Artist page on beatseqr.com
s.f. bay area training in person [restrictions apply: local bay area only, Saturday only, 2 weeks to plan, etc]
name on a future circuit board
a CD or digital download release of tracks made with beatseqr
a Patch, some Stickers

$450 Beatseqr, assembled, in a Wood case
A chunk of a prototype button Casting mold
Artist page on beatseqr.com
Custom painting or print made from circuit boards, beatseqr parts
a CD or digital download release of tracks made with beatseqr
a Patch, some Stickers

$350 Beatseqr v4, assembled, in a black ABS case
a chunk of a prototype casting mold
Artist page on beatseqr.com
a CD or digital download release of tracks made with beatseqr
a Patch, some Stickers

$300 Beatseqr fully assembled, no case
Artist page on beatseqr.com
a CD or digital download release of tracks made with beatseqr
a Patch, some Stickers

$300 Beatseqr kit, with black abs case + silicone buttons and mounting hardware
Artist page on beatseqr.com
a CD or digital download release of tracks made with beatseqr
a Patch, some Stickers

$250
Beatseqr kit, no case, with arduino mega
Artist page on beatseqr.com
a CD or digital download release of tracks made with beatseqr
a custom embroidered patch from a limited run
Beatseqr logo stickers

$200
beatseqr kit no case, no arduino mega
Artist page on beatseqr.com
a CD or digital download release of tracks made with beatseqr
a custom embroidered patch from a limited run
Beatseqr logo stickers

$150
limited edition wall sculpture
A coupon for $50 off a future purchase of a beatseqr kit or assembled unit
a CD or digital download release of tracks made with beatseqr
a custom embroidered patch from a limited run
Beatseqr logo stickers
Publicity on beatseqr.com

$75
Prototype circuit boards, signed
A coupon for $30 off a future purchase of a beatseqr kit or assembled unit
a CD or digital download release of tracks made with beatseqr
a custom embroidered patch from a limited run
Beatseqr logo stickers
Publicity on beatseqr.com

$60
Silicone button test castings, signed and mounted for wall hanging
A coupon for $30 off a future purchase of a beatseqr kit or assembled unit
a CD or digital download release of tracks made with beatseqr
a custom embroidered patch from a limited run
Beatseqr logo stickers
Publicity on beatseqr.com

$40
Beatseqr illustration Tshirt
A coupon for $20 off a future purchase of a beatseqr kit or assembled unit
a CD or digital download release of tracks made with beatseqr
a custom embroidered patch from a limited run
Beatseqr logo stickers
Publicity on beatseqr.com

$20
a coupon in the pledge amount good towards the purchase of a beatseqr kit or assembled unit
a CD or digital download release of tracks made with beatseqr
a custom embroidered patch from a limited run
Beatseqr logo stickers
Publicity on beatseqr.com

$10
a coupon in the pledge amount good towards the purchase of a beatseqr kit or assembled unit
a CD or digital download release of tracks made with beatseqr
a custom embroidered patch from a limited run
Beatseqr logo stickers

$5
Beatseqr logo stickers
a coupon good for the pledge amount good towards the purchase of a beatseqr kit or assembled unit
digital download release of tracks made with beatseqr

$1 donation:
My undying thanks and gratitude for your encouragement.

Your comments are welcome, please chime in!

Jonathan Golub rockin’ a beatseqr v3

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Yeah, check this video out!!

from Jonathan’s youtube description:

This is me playing around with Steve Cooley’s amazing beatseqr hardware controller. I’m running it through a Macbook Pro, with Roxor and Steppa, the open-source software designed specifically for the hardware. The Macbook is sending MIDI out to an Emu ESI-32, and I’m also adding Space Echo, spring reverb and digital delay to individual tracks. I spent about 10 minutes beforehand programming the step sequencer, otherwise everything is live.

SUPER sweet video, dude!!

Some back story … I met Jonathan back in 1997 when he was one of the guys running the legendary and seminal weekly internet radio broadcast show called the Beta Lounge. In fact, the beta lounge continues to broadcast, and they have, gasp!!, every show in their archive?! WHOA, they even have my very first DJ set in front of people, which consisted of me playing one turntable with vinyl, and a laptop running a program my brother wrote for me called “QTTurntable”… in 1997. Think about that. That was some cutting edge stuff for the time! But I’m sure my set sounds awful. I don’t even want to go listen to it, but it’s there. Too embarrassing for me.

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