I'm forwarding this from the Synth-DIY list because I know there are
people here that would be interested.
If you're one of those people, please drop Andrew a line @
amartens@... ----- Original Message -----
From: "Andrew Martens" <amartens@...>
To: <synth-diy@...>
Sent: Tuesday, August 28, 2001 10:00 PM
Subject: [sdiy] touchpad controller project, please read and respond
> I would greatly appreciate it if you could take the time to read
this and
> respond (just respond to me privately - no need to copy to the
list).
> Within a few days or a week, I'll compile the feedback and let
everybody
> know how things stand for this project. Okay, here we go:
>
> Having done a bunch of reading up on Tactex's touchpads for a
previous
> project (my SID synthesizer almost used one to control the filter,
but I
> still haven't gotten around to finishing off the synth), I've been
doing a
> bit more thinking about them since I found out Bob Moog was using
one in
his
> new synth. That led me to contemplate a new project that may be of
interest
> to people on this list.
>
> And so, I have a lot of questions regarding whether or not anyone
would be
> interested in this. So please, reply to me privately with a "Yes, I
would"
> and other answers to the questions below - or a "No, I wouldn't"...
and if
> you do say no, if there is a specific reason why (ie, a feature
missing
> below), or if it's just not of interest to you. This'll only take a
minute
> for you (and far longer for me to compile the results), so if you
can find
> it
> in your heart to respond, that would be great :-)
>
> I can't comment on pricing of the touchpads yet. From talking to my
> professor (through whom I dealt with Tactex), the prices sounded
reasonable.
> From looking at the price on their website, I am starting to become
far
less
> hopeful. Far, far less. If people on the list are interested, I
will
check
> with Tactex about their OEM pricing.
>
> (1) Would you be interested in:
> (a) a touchpad->CV controller (ie, three CV outputs, one for X, Y,
and
> pressure);
> (b) a touchpad->MIDI controller (selectable channel & message type
for
each
> dimension);
> (c) one controller that incorporated both (a) and (b);
> (d) neither. You can stop now and just send this back to me. Tell
me
why,
> if you aren't interested. :-)
> (e) you have better ideas, like way more CV, and a bunch of cool
controls
to
> save presets, morphing between different outputs, etc. Feel free to
> elaborate.
>
> (2) Would you want to buy:
> (a) a fully assembled unit, just give it a wallwart, plug'er in,
and go;
> (b) a kit, with PCB, preprogrammed microcontroller and an OEM (ie,
no
> case/cable) touchpad included;
> (c) just PCB included (you buy your own consumer-level touchpad from
Tactex
> yourself for a ridiculous amount of money and connect it up via a
serial
> port, and I give away the firmware for the microcontroller for you
to
> program yourself)
>
> (3) What size would you want the touchpad to be?
> (a) a standard size, like the MTC Express's 5" x 3.75"
> (b) (fill in your own size) __________________________
>
> (4) What sorts of things would you like to be able to do with the
touchpad:
> (a) just track a single point (X, Y, and pressure)
> (b) glide between multiple points on the pad (rate determined by a
Glide
> pot)
> (c) (something else cool) __________________________
>
> (5) What price would you be willing to pay for a PCB + OEM touchpad?
> (If you're touchy/suspicious about this question, feel free to omit
it).
> I'll bring up the pricing issue again once I figure out what the
OEM price
> is for the touchpad size that I'm thinking of using for the design.
> (a) (in US $, or your own currency - just specify what it is)
_________
>
> (5) Comments. Ideas. Suggestions. How complete a MIDI
implementation
you
> want. Criticism. Anything.
>
> That's the survey. I'm not really trying to make any money on this.
Maybe
> get a free unit for myself, but that's about it. In an ideal
world, I'll
> get an evaluation OEM pad from Tactex, develop a prototype
schematic,
write
> some firmware for the thing, and get it working. Then, someone with
better
> board-layout and design experience on this list could do a proper
layout
of
> it. Then, take some orders, print up some PCBs, get some
touchpads, and
> ship
> them off to people.
>
> So yeah... let me know what you think, and whether or not I should
bother
> building this. I'll compile everyone's feedback into a final
version of
the
> design and see how many people would be interested in ordering one,
before
I
> actually get an OEM unit from Tactex and start building this. And
if you
> take this idea and market it yourself... well, kudos to you for
being a
> shrewd businessperson. I just like designing stuff :-)
>
> Cheers,
> Andrew Martens
> 4th year Computer Engineering student
> University of British Columbia
>