BlueClone - The Blue Room's Own Comms System

[boatman]

This is looking really good. Not much clearance between the top of those caps and the case - did you have to swap the originals for something that was physically smaller?

 

No the height was right, but they collided with an internal web on the case in version 1.0 and had to be moved slightly towards the centre of the board. That was when the Gerber file error crept in. I have been in touch with the PCB layout software vendors and they are now aware of the problem and have offered a solution which seems to work OK.

 

Hi Boatman,

 

 

I would take a board or 2 off you if the price is right and the shipping to Ireland. Also is there any boards done for the belt-pack yet

 

Tony

 

I have nine bare boards here and you are welcome to a couple. They will be £8.50 each plus carriage @ £3.50 to the Republic of Ireland (1, 2 or 3 boards will all be the same on a 5-day delivery). There are no front or back panels yet, but they are in the pipeline and the bill of materials will be available in the next day or two.

 

Someone else is dealing with the beltpack boards and I don't have any of those available yet.

[bigclive]

Which CAD package has the Gerber issue?

[boatman]

Which CAD package has the Gerber issue?

 

EasyPC version 17. The problem only appears occasionally when the Gerber resolution is set to 3 decimal places. I've now set it to 5 and all seems to be OK. Their support person is aware of the problem and there's a discussion about it on the EasyPC forum here. I've always used the 2.3 setting for Gerber files in previous versions (I've been using EasyPC since the DOS version from about 20 years ago!) and never had a problem until the Windoze release 17.

[Hieronymus]

Hi!

 

 

Great work. Curious to the costs I made this Excel file. It uses the component list as posted in the new doc-thread.

 

I've listed the prices for a single quantity. I also added the 'normal' farnell ordering codes and the prices as they would be in the Netherlands.

 

the excel

 

I don't know how to add files directly to this post, so it's in the public space of my Dropbox....

 

Acutally I think I don't understand how to wire this thing... The power unit has a switch to connect two seperate comm loops so why are there 4 XLR connections? (maybe I figure this out under the shower... but I'll ask anyway...)

[ddproduction]

2 XLRs on each channel, both genders for ease of use?

[boatman]

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I've listed the prices for a single quantity. I also added the 'normal' farnell ordering codes and the prices as they would be in the Netherlands.

.

.

 

Hmmmm, (® Ynot) I think it's time to start ordering from Farnell in Holland! Although, you have omitted the fact that the CPC prices are for packs of 5, whereas the Farnell prices are for individual components, so there's not quite as much difference as it first appears.

 

 

 

.

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Actually I think I don't understand how to wire this thing... The power unit has a switch to connect two separate comm loops so why are there 4 XLR connections? (maybe I figure this out under the shower... but I'll ask anyway...)

 

 

2 XLRs on each channel, both genders for ease of use?

 

The original Tecpro power unit had three circuits capable of being commoned, with a single male connector on each circuit. To increase flexibility, we decided to offer a male and female on each circuit, but restrict it to two circuits.

 

The other difference being that you need an external 24V power supply for the Bluecom base unit. Something like this would be fine for most systems. For a large installation you may need to go to this one.

[Rob_P]

What a great project. Thanks for pulling it all together.

 

I aim to build a small set to use on smaller gigs when I don't have access to venue comms.

 

Is a part number for the case available?

[boatman]

Yes, it this one (click on the picture for a link to the Farnell page):

 

http://uk.farnell.com/productimages/farnell/standard/1549965-40.jpg

 

You can get blank metal panels and seals, but I am designing PCB front and back panels. The panels will come on as a pair on a common PCB which will have to be sawn in half as that's a much cheaper manufacturing option.

 

Once the beltpack board is finished there will be PCB panels for it too.

[bruce]

So, it's £7.79 from Farnell. Or 23 quid if you want to buy it on eBay..... Just goes to show that EBay isn't always a bargain

[Rob_P]

Wouldn't life be simpler if CPC would cross-order stuff from Farnell though so this could all be a single order!

[Hieronymus]

Hmmmm, (® Ynot) I think it's time to start ordering from Farnell in Holland! Although, you have omitted the fact that the CPC prices are for packs of 5, whereas the Farnell prices are for individual components, so there's not quite as much difference as it first appears.

 

 

Yep, you're right. I re-made my homework and updated the spreadsheet to take in account the price for a single quantity, the minimum order and the order multiple.

 

This results in a actual cost per unit, and your total order size/cost. You can change the number of BlueComm base units you need on the top left.

 

Note that I added the case for the Farnell codes. If you subtract the costs of the case and compensate for the exchange rate, Farnell in the Netherlands is actually more expensive... (bummer!)

 

Hopefully this is more usefull. I'll update any faults and also when the belt unit comes available.

 

https://dl.dropboxus...013165/BOM.xlsx

Edited November 24, 2013 by Hieronymus

[Owain]

Would this project be of interest to people over on controlbooth.com forum as well? As it's 'open source' presumably the wider take-up of the system the better.

[bigclive]

You can get blank metal panels and seals, but I am designing PCB front and back panels. The panels will come on as a pair on a common PCB which will have to be sawn in half as that's a much cheaper manufacturing option.

 

Are you adding snap-apart routed channels in between the fascia PCBs? That would provide a much neater finish than having to physically saw a PCB in half. Most manufacturers will add routed channels anyway if you give the separate PCBs separate outlines.

 

Sawing PCB material is messy and tends to leave a rather rough edge, hence why most PCB material is chopped by guillotine or panelised as snap apart boards.

[boatman]

You can get blank metal panels and seals, but I am designing PCB front and back panels. The panels will come on as a pair on a common PCB which will have to be sawn in half as that's a much cheaper manufacturing option.

 

Are you adding snap-apart routed channels in between the fascia PCBs? That would provide a much neater finish than having to physically saw a PCB in half. Most manufacturers will add routed channels anyway if you give the separate PCBs separate outlines.

 

Sawing PCB material is messy and tends to leave a rather rough edge, hence why most PCB material is chopped by guillotine or panelised as snap apart boards.

 

As all of the prototype boards are being made at my own personal expense, I am currently using a cheaper PCB manufacturer based in China. Unfortunately, they don't support partially routed or drilled breakaways, only silk screen cutting lines. The designs can easily be transferred to a manufacturer who will produce such boards but they are a lot more expensive.

Edited November 25, 2013 by boatman

[andrew.p.r]

What is the recommended PSU amp wise to drive this?

 

Thanks

 

Andrew