Willzyx x0xb0x - maker wanted

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paulson
 
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Willzyx x0xb0x - maker wanted

Post by paulson »

Hi there,

I bought a Willzyx complete x0xb0x kit about 18 months ago thinking it would be doable for a novice. Since reading the manual and being intimidated by the complexity of soldering work it's been sitting around gathering dust.

I'm looking for advice on someone who could build this for me at a reasonable price. I've been in touch with a couple of UK x0xb0x builders who only make from their own kits so a bit stumped.

Any advice is most gratefully received.

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antto
 
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Re: Willzyx x0xb0x - maker wanted

Post by antto »

i was scared too, but it's doable

get something small to build, or some old broken PCB and try to desolder something, then solder it back
watch some youtube videos about soldering thru-hole components to get a sense of how the solder flows
then give that broken PCB another try

once you feel more comfy with the iron - just go ahead and start building the x0x
shout if you have any questions
you can also hang out on IRC (irc.freenode.net -> #x0xb0x) where you can get quicker response

it's doable!

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paulson
 
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Re: Willzyx x0xb0x - maker wanted

Post by paulson »

Thanks for the reply Antto - nice up your confidence and maybe I will give that a try!

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juke179r
 
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Re: Willzyx x0xb0x - maker wanted

Post by juke179r »

I understand paulson. I still have an adafruit x0xb0x #911 kit still in the box from when I purchased it back in 2008! I
really need to get it put together.

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Tray
 
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Re: Willzyx x0xb0x - maker wanted

Post by Tray »

Did you finfd a make to build this for you yet?

Or did you take the plunge and build it yourself?

Just curious how it worked out.

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paulson
 
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Re: Willzyx x0xb0x - maker wanted

Post by paulson »

Hi Tray,
Sorry for the late reply.
I found someone to build it for me - not cheap (£300) and I've got a problem with the keyboard tracking and midi integration (it has a big latency issue - funnily enough it records ahead of the signal which I've never come across before!). However, it's an absolute beast of a unit. I love it. I've been using ABL3 as the best of the VST clones and nothing comes close to the sound of the x0xbox. Thoroughly recommend the tortuous process of getting this made. It's going to make me into a techno star!
Cheers....

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Tray
 
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Re: Willzyx x0xb0x - maker wanted

Post by Tray »

Cool man,
Glad to hear it worked out.

I actually have one now and the sound is truly amazing.

I have considered doing some mods to it (or upgrading to a fully modded unit, but I would really like to try one with all the atomic mods before taking the plunge on that.... videos just don't compare to experimenting in realtime).

So far the only mod I have made was adding a power switch... probably the easiest mod in the world... I find though that it makes the unit alot more usable. Been thinking about adding an small internal amp and some speakers as that would make it a great idea machine (plenty of room in the case, though shielding may be an issue) but to really make that worthwhile (for me) I would have to also add a battery power option... which adds more complexity.

Finding good portable idea machines are kind of a hobby for me. Korg volcas are kind of like that but each one always seems to have some really important features missing... and connecting multiples together kind of kills the hand held portability thing. Best I have ever found in that category is the Yamaha QY70/QY100 (battery powered and portable, though they have no speakers built-in)...Granted they are not analog at all, but the capabilities each of them is really astounding.

UPDATE 1:
You might want to take a look at this thread about the midi timing issue...especially page 3. It seems that the latest version of Maros OS firmware fixes alot of midi timing issues: viewtopic.php?f=7&t=11666

UPDATE 2:
Actually, the above thread refers to another thread that refers to another thread...so here is a quicker link to the latest firmware: viewtopic.php?f=13&t=33914&p=592644#p593735
and a slightly older link to the MarosOs cheatsheet PDF: download/file.php?id=47523
for Maros OS with midi sync bug fixes). Not sure yet where the latest full manual is... but haven't had a chance to look too much yet... might actually be in with the latest version ZIP file. The cheatsheet looks very cool though.

(Disclaimer: I haven't run Maros OS firmware myself, but it looks pretty cool, so I think I might give it a try soon...Sounds like many Xoxbox firmware versions have some timing issues... I just need to review the Maros feature set vs. the latest Sokkos version first...

ALSO, Maros OS seems to be VERY actively updated (which is a good thing IMHO), so there seems to be alot of tweaks (hence all the links)...so if you dont see this post right away, you may want to see if there is a link to an even newer Maros OS version than the one I posted above...assuming, of course, you want to give it a try).

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paulson
 
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Re: Willzyx x0xb0x - maker wanted

Post by paulson »

Thanks a lot for this reply Tray.
I love your ideas and I will definitely give that new OS a try out to fix the midi timing issue. I'm very grateful for that tip.
Nice up your status!

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