c0nsumer Posted July 14, 2011 Author Share Posted July 14, 2011 Here's thirty (30) SDrive NUXX PCBs with SD card connectors fitted. Yes, this means assembly is under way. The first (and only non-through hole) part is now fitted, so I can now move on to everything else. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Faicuai Posted July 14, 2011 Share Posted July 14, 2011 SwEeEeT (!) Here comes the "Nuke"-drive... RELOADED. Q: I have a Willem programmer (the latest PCB5.x version...) Could it work for a future controller-reprogramming or should I only use the on-board re-programming tools? (I do not know if the ATmega is socketed or simply soldered-through)... Cheers, F. As long as the Willem programmer will do ATmega8 chips then it'll be fine. The AVRs are socketed, so you'd just pull it, reprogram it in the Willem, then reinsert it. Or you can just use the onboard programmer; your choice. Er, also, you could use the on-board programming header to plug in an external programmer. The MISO, MOSI, SCK, Reset, and GND lines are exposed on a .100" header. Just power the SDrive NUXX externally, remove the SD card, and use the header to program with your existing programmer, if you want. Just be sure grounds are connected together. THANKS! I am going to check Willem's PCB5.X edition Documentation, for ATMega programming capabilities (I have been pretty busy, lately). If turns out positive, it seems it will be as easy as pie to reprogram it on my side. Cheers, and keep up the great work, F. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
c0nsumer Posted July 15, 2011 Author Share Posted July 15, 2011 (edited) THANKS! I am going to check Willem's PCB5.X edition Documentation, for ATMega programming capabilities (I have been pretty busy, lately). If turns out positive, it seems it will be as easy as pie to reprogram it on my side. Cheers, and keep up the great work, F. Sure thing. And yes, it should be pretty easy. I very intentionally used the stock SDrive firmware and made the device completely pin compatible so that other firmware (or future versions from C.P.U.) could be used on it without issue. Specifically, maintaining that compatibility is the reason for the mess of vias / signals that need both sides of the board (as seen here) between the AVR and the LEDs/switches. I wanted to rearrange the pins to make the layout simpler, but it wouldn't have been possible to do that without slightly changing then recompiling the firmware. I didn't want to add that layer of hassle for users who may wish to change the firmware somewhere down the line, so I stuck with the same pins that C.P.U. used. Edited July 15, 2011 by c0nsumer Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SpaceDice2010 Posted July 15, 2011 Share Posted July 15, 2011 How many of these are you going to make. 30 seems on the low side... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
c0nsumer Posted July 15, 2011 Author Share Posted July 15, 2011 (edited) How many of these are you going to make. 30 seems on the low side... 30 assembled, 20 PCB / end panel / microcontroller sets. To be honest, since I'm doing this from home and fronting all the costs I'd rather make enough to ensure that I sell out reasonably quickly. I'm not a shop (just a guy who likes making things), so while I want to make these available to people I'm not that interested in sitting on a back stock or doing a massive production run. Also, hand-assembling these is a bit tedious. If I were to do a larger run I'd probably redesign it as all surface mount, microSD card, make it much smaller, and have them assembled for me. But, if I did that I'd be cutting out the DIYers (of which I'm one) who want to build SDrives themselves; something that I don't want to do. Edited July 15, 2011 by c0nsumer Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
c0nsumer Posted July 15, 2011 Author Share Posted July 15, 2011 (edited) THANKS! I am going to check Willem's PCB5.X edition Documentation, for ATMega programming capabilities (I have been pretty busy, lately). If turns out positive, it seems it will be as easy as pie to reprogram it on my side. Cheers, and keep up the great work, F. Sure thing. The ATmega8 is super-common so it's probably supported. One thing to remember is that AVRs need a clock present for serial programming. So, if you set a AVR to use an external oscillator (done via the fuse bits, and the SDrive uses an external oscillator) and one isn't connected the chip will simply appear dead. You have two ways around that: Use HVPP (high voltage parallel programming) which doesn't require the clock, or program it in the SDrive NUXX board where the oscillator is attached. When I first started using AVRs I found this out the hard way, as I'd thought I was repeatedly killing chips when programming them. Turned out that as soon as I set the fuses for an external oscillator serial programming would simply stop working. To get around this for the batch programming of the SDrive chips I use an AVR Dragon fitted with a ZIF socket in HVPP mode. This, along with avrdude allows me to flash them from command line on my Mac. For what it's worth, the command line is as follows: avrdude -q -p m8 -P usb -c dragon_pp -U lfuse:w:0x3f:m -U hfuse:w:0xdf:m -U flash:w:SDrive.hex:i -U eeprom:w:SDrive.eep:i (This is the setup that was shown a few posts back.) Edited July 15, 2011 by c0nsumer Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Faicuai Posted July 17, 2011 Share Posted July 17, 2011 THANKS! I am going to check Willem's PCB5.X edition Documentation, for ATMega programming capabilities (I have been pretty busy, lately). If turns out positive, it seems it will be as easy as pie to reprogram it on my side. Cheers, and keep up the great work, F. Sure thing. The ATmega8 is super-common so it's probably supported. One thing to remember is that AVRs need a clock present for serial programming. So, if you set a AVR to use an external oscillator (done via the fuse bits, and the SDrive uses an external oscillator) and one isn't connected the chip will simply appear dead. You have two ways around that: Use HVPP (high voltage parallel programming) which doesn't require the clock, or program it in the SDrive NUXX board where the oscillator is attached. When I first started using AVRs I found this out the hard way, as I'd thought I was repeatedly killing chips when programming them. Turned out that as soon as I set the fuses for an external oscillator serial programming would simply stop working. To get around this for the batch programming of the SDrive chips I use an AVR Dragon fitted with a ZIF socket in HVPP mode. This, along with avrdude allows me to flash them from command line on my Mac. For what it's worth, the command line is as follows: avrdude -q -p m8 -P usb -c dragon_pp -U lfuse:w:0x3f:m -U hfuse:w:0xdf:m -U flash:w:SDrive.hex:i -U eeprom:w:SDrive.eep:i (This is the setup that was shown a few posts back.) Thanks for your detailed answer. I will carefull check the Willem's documentation, as I am not sure clock or HVPP mode is mentioned in the user's manual. Cheers, F. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
c0nsumer Posted July 19, 2011 Author Share Posted July 19, 2011 (edited) Here's another teaser image. All resistors, the diodes, and the DIP socket are now fitted. After this it's on to the pin headers, crystal, capacitors, voltage regulator, LEDs, and DIP switches. Then it's time to wash and dry the boards. Edited July 19, 2011 by c0nsumer Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flashjazzcat Posted July 19, 2011 Share Posted July 19, 2011 Just browsed through your whole gallery of SDrive NUXX production photos - awesome stuff! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+wood_jl Posted July 19, 2011 Share Posted July 19, 2011 (edited) Just browsed through your whole gallery of SDrive NUXX production photos - awesome stuff! Indeed! You can't say c0nsumer doesn't document thoroughly! Edited July 19, 2011 by wood_jl Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
c0nsumer Posted July 19, 2011 Author Share Posted July 19, 2011 (edited) Here's another. The box of these was sitting on my front porch and I didn't find it until after posting the previous image. I now have all the requisite parts. Now I can kit up the PCB+Panel+uC sets and finish the rest. Yay! (Note that there is protective plastic on all the panels; that's not wear or scuffing.) Edited July 19, 2011 by c0nsumer Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
c0nsumer Posted July 19, 2011 Author Share Posted July 19, 2011 Just browsed through your whole gallery of SDrive NUXX production photos - awesome stuff! Indeed! You can't say c0nsumer doesn't document thoroughly! I find that photos tend to be super-convenient documentation a few years down the line. Looking back through them gives a bunch of hints for how things were done. It's also kinda nifty to look at old projects and remember doing bits of them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+orpheuswaking Posted July 19, 2011 Share Posted July 19, 2011 I'm a big fan of photo documentation of my mods, and I really enjoyed looking through the SDrive NUXX website. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keaton Blue Posted July 20, 2011 Share Posted July 20, 2011 (edited) I think I would like a kit. Just to take the pressure off trying to get a fully assembled one! Edited July 20, 2011 by Keaton Blue Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
c0nsumer Posted July 20, 2011 Author Share Posted July 20, 2011 I think I would like a kit. Just to take the pressure off trying to get a fully assembled one! Hehe, thanks. I'm working through them. I just have to find some time to finish them off, but I figure that the PCBs will be assembled in a week or so. (I've got a bike race on Saturday and loads of other personal plans that have to come first.) I'm going to be taking orders for and shipping it all at the same time, just to make the post office trips easier. I'm thinking end of the month is not an unreasonable target. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
c0nsumer Posted July 21, 2011 Author Share Posted July 21, 2011 Tonight was capacitor soldering time, which means more progress is being made. Next up? The last couple capacitors, the LDO voltage regulator, then the LEDs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+orpheuswaking Posted July 21, 2011 Share Posted July 21, 2011 With a kit will the SD slot be presoldered? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
c0nsumer Posted July 21, 2011 Author Share Posted July 21, 2011 With a kit will the SD slot be presoldered? No. The kit will only contain the PCB, end panels, and preprogrammed microcontroller. I don't currently have any extra SD connectors to offer this as an option, either, although it does seem like a good idea. I wonder how I could do something like that... Hmm... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
c0nsumer Posted July 21, 2011 Author Share Posted July 21, 2011 With a kit will the SD slot be presoldered? No. The kit will only contain the PCB, end panels, and preprogrammed microcontroller. I don't currently have any extra SD connectors to offer this as an option, either, although it does seem like a good idea. I wonder how I could do something like that... Hmm... Hmm. I'm thinking I could do pre-soldered SD card connectors on the PCBs, but that'd push the cost up $10. Those connectors are almost $5/ea, plus shipping for me to do another order just for them, plus my time. I'm not sure it'd be worth it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+orpheuswaking Posted July 21, 2011 Share Posted July 21, 2011 Could be, Through hole I can do no problem... Those SD Slots look like a PITA and I know I'd screw it up! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mimo Posted July 21, 2011 Share Posted July 21, 2011 Could be, Through hole I can do no problem... Those SD Slots look like a PITA and I know I'd screw it up! The SD slots are a lot easier than it looks, I managed to do 2, and repair a Dingoo with a similar (but smaller) slot @Consumer, do you have any prices? I am thinking maybe building a very barebones version using one of your PCB's and hide it in my 1200xl Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
c0nsumer Posted July 21, 2011 Author Share Posted July 21, 2011 Could be, Through hole I can do no problem... Those SD Slots look like a PITA and I know I'd screw it up! The SD slots are a lot easier than it looks, I managed to do 2, and repair a Dingoo with a similar (but smaller) slot @Consumer, do you have any prices? I am thinking maybe building a very barebones version using one of your PCB's and hide it in my 1200xl Agreed. These SD connectors are quite easy. There's a bunch of space between each pin and the only thing to worry about is not using too much solder. For pricing I'm looking at US$150 for an assembled device, and US$40 for a PCB/Panel/uC/screw set. All prices include shipping in the US. For international shipping it'll be an extra $10 for each assembled device and for every five PCB / end panel sets. The work-in-progress ordering page is here if you want to see it, but orders there just go to the sandbox right now so they can't be completed. As mentioned earlier once the devices are complete and packaged I'll set a date/time when I'll start accepting orders, announce that here, and the order page will go live then. This should give everyone a good chance to order without a surprise start time, since once the parts are sold out they will be gone. For the time being I'm not planning on a third run. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
19Echo Posted July 22, 2011 Share Posted July 22, 2011 Beautiful piece of hardware. Unfortunately out of my price range. Anyone have an older original one for sale, I'm game Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Faicuai Posted July 25, 2011 Share Posted July 25, 2011 Beautiful piece of hardware. Unfortunately out of my price range. Anyone have an older original one for sale, I'm game ...And made-in-USA, for the most part. F. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
c0nsumer Posted July 25, 2011 Author Share Posted July 25, 2011 Beautiful piece of hardware. Unfortunately out of my price range. Anyone have an older original one for sale, I'm game ...And made-in-USA, for the most part. F. I could say Designed and Assembled in Detroit if I wanted to stretch things a wee bit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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