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On Oct 25, 2015, at 10:59 PM, "Steve Neal steveneal351@yahoo.com.au [B9Builders]" wrote:
Hi Jeff,
I think Dave was referring to me and the CF4 he was helping me with. I could be wrong, and I often am, just ask both my ex wives, but I don't think there is too much difference between the CF3 and the CF4 with regards to scripting and sound files. The main difference, I think, is a Micro USB and Ethernet capabilities. I think I was having problems because I am completely green when it comes to this stuff. There was a lot of swearing, head scratching and gnashing of teeth. Without Dave, I'd be in the corner of a padded cell now rocking in the fetal position.
I have my CF4 connected with the un-amplified output from my EZB controller to the LINE IN on the CF4 and the LINE OUT on the CF4 connected to an external amplifier running the main voice speaker. The problem I was having initially, was that no output was coming from the CF4 at all. That problem was fixed by adding an Initiation script to the SD card in the CF4 to "Enable" the 3.5mm LINE IN & OUT jacks in the CF4. I now have sound coming from either the EZB via the CF4 or directly from the CF4 with saved files on its SD card, depending on what input is being triggered. I am however, still having problems with the files playing at different volumes. If I trigger a file from the CF4 SD card, it plays loud and clear. If I play a file from the EZB via the CF4 LINE IN jack, Its not as loud and not as clear. Still trying to nut this issue out, I might try an audio line leveller to match the two together.
All this is not too much help with your Tech22 problem though, and to make matters worse, I don't have my Neon hooked up yet so I don't have any advise that might help you further to what's already been suggested. I sincerely hope you find the problem though, nothing is more frustrating than things that don't work like they're supposed to.
Beware the men in white coats.
Kind regards
Steve Neal
On Monday, 26 October 2015, 6:18, "'Jeff DeRose' jeff.derose@comcast.net [B9Builders]" wrote:
Thanks for the scoop Dave! That s too bad that there may be forward-compatibility problems from 3 to 4. You d think that wouldn t happen as it s usually an issue with backward compatibility. Well, we ll just have to see. I handled the code in the simplest of terms so hopefully there won t be issues. Thanks for the tip on the left/right channel situation. It s typically something simple like that, but not in this case. Since I m handling his clickety-clack sounds with a separate sound system, I exported all his voice files to both left and right speakers. So it doesn t matter which I choose. From: B9Builders@yahoogroups.com [B9Builders@yahoogroups.com]
Sent: Sunday, October 25, 2015 10:53 AM
To: Tobor001@aol.com [B9Builders]
Subject: Re: [B9Builders] Tech 22 and neon problems Hi Jeff, Looks like you're making progress and have made some good discoveries. Too bad you're giving up on the CF3 but I totally understand that at some point its time to move on and try something different. Maybe you truly have issues with the firmware on your CF3 that is causing these problems. One more thing I just thought of though; If you're using the same voice file most of us are using, remember that you're only sending voice files through one channel which corresponds to only one speaker. Make sure that all your connections from the player to the speaker are attached to that side. Also make sure your Tech22 trigger wire is also attached to that same speaker side. I think you'll find that the CF4 is a great platform but there may be differences that will affect your newly coded program. Even though I'm no expert on the CF system I was trying to help another member who was having troubles with the coding of a script for his CF4. It seemed to me that it was acting differently than my CF3 with the same script on each version. I have no other info on this as I didn't spend a lot of time trying to understand it. My scripts are running fine on my CF3 and the same script was having problems on his CF4. He's on the other side of the world and that made it very difficult to work together to find the problem. I hope he was able to figure it out as I've not heard from him awhile. I'm totally thrilled and looking forward to seeing your script you've worked so hard on. I'm sure it will enhance my script and make things so much easier to code. Thanks for being willing to share! Dave Schulpius On Sun, Oct 25, 2015 at 12:20 PM, 'Jeff DeRose' jeff.derose@comcast.net [B9Builders] wrote: Hi all, Thanks for the great responses. I will incorporate all your input. I had to put away my tech 22/neon mess last night. My selfish and needy wife needed to use the table. Can you believe that? LOL
Right before I did, though, I tried one more thing. I unplugged the speaker wire from the CFS3 and plugged it into the second amp s speaker out. I started to get a reaction from the Tech 22 and neon! It was weak, but it was there. I went back and forth between the two units and it was clear that I got random signals from the CFS3 while it registered the sound files through the other amp. I am now pretty confident that I have a flawed CFS3. Not only is it a 3, it is the earliest version of the 3, meaning it has pretty significant handicaps when compared to later 3 s and the 4. Some of you may recall that a few months ago, I began attempting to learn ACS BASIC code so as to build a simple routine for the CFS3 where he will play a bootup file when I throw one of his PB switches and then begin endlessly and randomly looping sound files. Well, it was a looooooooong journey. After many failures (and even the tech support folks scratching their heads as it SHOULD have worked), I attempted to update my CFS3 S firmware. I inadvertently updated it to a version that was beyond my hardware s ability to accept. It seemed dead. I then re-updated to the correct version and it was again operational. But I may have inadvertently harmed it in the process. The good news is that I finally have BASIC code that works!!!!! When the dust settles, I will post it to the club. I feel I have never been in a situation to give back to a club that has offered so much to me, so it s the absolute least I can do to help ensure that other builders with CF Sound players may not have to spend the months coding as I did. I will document the heck out of the code before I post so that folks will know what each routine does and also know how to tweak it to their needs. That said, the unit still acts a bit strange. For instance, I should be able to use up to 254 files in my random subroutine. Yet after about 10 minutes of play, it will hang on random files, requiring a reboot. Anywho, long story longer, last night I broke down and ordered a CFS4. When it arrives I ll determine if it fixes my neon flashing problems, as well as my # of random files problem. Thanks to you all! Jeff- P.S. David (toblueiis), I don t see a need for a call at this point as everything is boxed up. But thank you so much for the kind offer!!! P.P.SI installed the David H back plate with Craig R neon into my Fred B torso and they look fantastic!!! Neon almost touches the inner torso, so little to no gaps. Couldn t be happier. I also did it without silicon. So no mess or visible glue. So far, so good. From: B9Builders@yahoogroups.com [mailto:B9Builders@yahoogroups.com] Sent: Saturday, October 24, 2015 11:42 PM
To: Tobor001@aol.com [B9Builders]
Subject: Re: [B9Builders] Tech 22 and neon problems Jeff, You must have something hooked up wrong, a bad connection or something backwards. Please go back and triple check every connection and wire and make sure you have the proper circuit paths. Then take out your continuity tester and see if you have a signal across all your connections. Even though you labeled everything before you took it apart you still may have something wrong. You may have even labeled a connection wrong. I've done this exact thing more times then I want to admit. It usually takes me a few times looking at something before my mind will see the problem. The other thing would be a bad component. You may have accidently shorted something out while either taking it apart back then or hooking it up now. On Sun, Oct 25, 2015 at 1:15 AM, Jeff DeRose jeff.derose@comcast.net [B9Builders] wrote: Hi Gary, Thank you for the email. Yes, every ground is tied to the power supply (something like 4 or 5 of them). Now I did not do anything with the negative speaker wire. Nor had I done anything with it before. Should I have?
Sent from my iPad
On Oct 24, 2015, at 5:14 PM, "'gary olley' gary_olley@bigpond.com [B9Builders]" wrote: You say you have connected the positive but have you also tied all the ground to the power supply From: B9Builders@yahoogroups.com [B9Builders@yahoogroups.com]
Sent: Sunday, 25 October 2015 10:39 AM
To: B9Builders@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [B9Builders] Tech 22 and neon problems Ok, I'm at my wit's end here. It's been a hugely frustrating robot day and I'm hoping one or some of you can help me out. Background:About a year ago, I set up my neon/Tech22/CF3/amp combo on my dining room table. In the beginning, the neon just stayed on. So I took the advice of the Tech22 people and wired in the included attenuator as the amplitude was too high. At that point, he was talking and blinking in sync. Other than fine adjusting, he was working perfectly. I boxed it until today. Today:I set it all up again as I'm ready to install the neon into the b9. As far as I can tell, it's set up the same as it was 1 year ago (I labeled all wires and kept most of them connected as they were). Only now, it does not seem to be reading the signal that is coming in from the positive speaker output on the cf3. When I adjust the two tech 22 knobs, the neon will go from always on to always off (which is what it did when it worked and was just out of adjustment). But now when I hit the in-between portion, the neon just blinks randomly, having nothing to do with the sound that is coming through the audio source......like Morris code. I've hooked a speaker directly to the cf3 speaker output and it works, so I know there is a signal coming through that should be registering. I've also cranked the volume all the way up on the Cf3, thinking it might have been set too low. Know change. I believe I've tried everything. I've removed the attenuator and the result was again that the neon stayed on mostly all of the time. So I wired it back in. I've experimented with all combinations of the connectors (A, B and C) and there is no impact. It's as though the tech 22 is listening to another audio source other than the speaker out on the CF3. Could the Cf3 have quit working while sitting in a box for a year? High level setup:CF3 speaker out is feeding Tech22 and it plays voice files. Line level connection from CF3 to another amp and that other amp has the speaker hooked to it. This is how I hear the files. Help me Obi Wan Kenobi's. You're my only hope..... Jeff (having a bad day) DeRose= No virus found in this message.
Checked by AVG - www.avg.com
Version: 2015.0.6173 / Virus Database: 4450/10883 - Release Date: 10/24/15