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Subject: Re: [motm] Crazy Larry's Magic Bus!!!!!

From: "J. Larry Hendry" <jlarryh@...
Date: 1999-07-10

> From: JWBarlow@...
> Now, I hate to admit it Larry, (in fact I REALLY hate to
> admit it) but I'm starting to think your crosswise bus strip
> is a good way to go. It would provide a needed "gap"
> between two MOTM rows for the slack of a cable (of
> reasonable length). Also you could run several obvious
> CV sources along the bottom of a row of modules thereby
> eliminating much of the need for multiples.

Well, this is where I was coming from except the "obvious CV sources" would
have their own respective jacks that could be connected to any multiples
for distribution. Nothing wold be normally connected in the one in my
head.

> I do think such a strip should not be wired in any particular way, but
rather
> custom wired for each specific system (maybe this is too DIY for the MOTM

> ethic). I also believe that if such bus strips were offered, there would
> still be a place for my 1U MOTM 900-X panel I mentioned.

I agree 100% - My idea (which started as a diy thingy and not a real module
suggestion) was for distribution mostly and would not have to take the
place of multiples, but it could do both jobs.

> Color coded washers are a great start, but I still think a patchbay
> legending strip would be better.

OK, I agree. BUT (darn, there's always that but), my diy 19" panel would
not dedicate any of the multis to anything. So, if you had the colors
distributed on all the 19" I U panels, then you could just pick one and
make it whatever you wanted. For example, blue might be connected as the
gate today. Anyplace on the system you needed that gate, you just plug
into blue. Next week, that same blue distributed multiple might be used
for CV that is connected to 4 oscillators (if I was as fortunate as Dave to
have 4). This would be easy even if 2 oscillators were on one row and two
were on another row at a differnet level.

> And finally, I too believe that (as a general rule) multiples should
> be grouped and not distributed, if only to help to avoid plugging outputs
in
> to outputs.

Yes, I agree for just multiples. But, I am trying to get cross town
traffic from mine at the same time. :)

> So Larry, now that you've been doing the modular thing for a while,
what's
> your general take on it?

Well, after spending 1 hour standing in front of mine tonight trying to get
the audio of my guitar to make a decent gate so I could drive an EG, so I
could use that EG to CV control the VCF that my guitar audio was running
through, I have to say. DAMN, this is fun and frustrating. Fun because of
all you can do. Frustrating, 'cause I wanted that little module that I
don't have to do that one thing I wanted to do. I NEED MORE STUFF. I did
get some success using the MOTM-700 as my audio to gate converter by
putting DC on one of the inputs. However, I needed something to mix the
guitar audio with DC so I could bias the signal so it was always on one
side of zero so I could gate the 700 with the two added together. That
would have made my MOTM-auto-wah guitar sound complete. Now, what was your
question?

From: "Paul Schreiber" <synth1@...>

> 3) "free-wiring" of mults: again the problem arises:
> how do you (OR somebody else) remember what is
> back-wired to what?

The colors man. All the blues are wired together, all the yellows, etc.
So, no matter if you like clusters, groups, families, or cluster groups
(for you perverts), the connectios are easily known from the frint and
easily changed if your needs change down the road.

> 4) Certainly, I like the 1U wide 5U tall stuff. Much easier
> to ship, for 1 thing. Also, you can get black 19" wide
> panels from Newark and Allied and even Musician's
> Friend pretty cheap. Drill away! It's ∗OK∗ to populate
> factory stock MOTM with homebuilt.

I agree 100%. I will take on the personal responsibility to make up serial
# 001 MOTM homebuilt 19" rack mount 1 U distributed multiple. I will send
photos so everyone can see what Crazy Larry's magic bus looks like.

> 1) If anyone knows a source of colored washers,
> let me know. I like that idea.

Well, I know a good way to mark with colors that I will use on crazy
Larry's magic bus. Get one page of colored paper for each different color
you wish to have. Laminate each page is one of those nifty palstic
laminators (like I have at work). Cut round circles from the laminate just
slightly bigger than the jack washer. cut a hole int he middle for the
jack to pass through. It will ride next to the panel just behind the
washer and peek out just enough to show you the color. Of course, if one
could find plasitc sheets of the right thickness (perhaps report covers) in
a variety of colors, that would be cool too.

5) I'm watching all this dialog with keen interest. Will start pcb layout
of
'410 filter next week. Stay tuned!!

You go Paul. I need more stuff !!

Larry "I'm sorry I put so much diy stuff on the motm page and made these
posts so long and I can have a long middle name like John Barlow" Hendry