PLAN B analog blog

Hi.

What a week, glad it's over.  Our new staff (of which I'm very pleased
with, btw) completed their first lot of modules to Noisebug (shipping
was easy as all we have to do is take them downstairs!!) a lot of 18
Model 15's - the first made in our new home.  The good (great!) news
is only two had problems first pass into test.  Not that easy to do
considering two of these guys had never done this before and of all
the products we biuld, along with the M14 and the M28, these are the
toughest.

Rack cases:  We've made the arrangements for a closed system - a metal
box similar to that everyone else is doing.  These types have their
application.  but for those who mount the rack boxes into an
enclosure, it's always seems a bit over kill and who's paying for
that...the end user. So this alternative - rails only, connecting to a
central power unit - seems like a very good way to go if the box isn't
needed.

Regarding the use of a switched supply and one of our members recently
sent me some information about this offline which I am addressing here
- if we go this route, the switched supply will act as the central
power distribution, yet on board on each power strip there will be
power conditioning and linear regulation which will handle the
electrical noise/interference issues sometimes attributed to
improperly designed switched power systems.  VCO resets will not be
effected once the power hits the bussrails.  Also, individual returns
from each connector (ground will not be daisychained as they are in
other Euro racks, each will have it's own patch to the source) will
keep noise generated by the modules themselves from effecting one
another (possibly infecting is a better word).  This covers electrical
noise.  That which is generated by EMI should not be an issue as the
central power unit can be placed far enough from the modules
themselves and when placed in a faraday cage (metal box) any radiation
from the main PSU - the switcher - will not be an issue.  It shouldn't
be anyway.

That's it for now.  I'll be attending Bebe's memorial service this
afternoon and will be filing a report on how that went on this blog
later in the weekend. Leonard will be showing clips from Forbidden
Planet, taped interviews with Bebe from throughout the years and will
be playing audio from that piece, WIlliams Mix and her last piece
Mixed Emotions. I sure it'll be quite an unforgettable memorial
(pardon the pun!).  

- P