NLC - Is Carp Lust Wrong? - Build notes

These are my build notes for the nonlinear circuits "Is Carp Lust Wrong?" module.

It's a eurorack module. 

What exactly is it? 

It's a module loosely based on the Karplus Strong algorithm.

Karplus Strong is a pretty obscure synthesis method developed in the 1980s and used in physical modelling mainly of plucked strings

It was named after its principal inventors, Kevin Karplus and Alex Strong.

Think about how a acoustic string instrument works. 

When you first pluck the string it vibrates like mad. It has waveforms which are rich 

in harmonics. These initial waveforms are determined by  the mass and tension of the string. 

After being plucked, the string looses energy over time and becomes less complex, resulting in a "purer" tone with fewer harmonics. Eventually, the vibration stops, when all the energy is gone.

Basically the module works by exciting the delay with a burst of noise and running the feedback up...& changing the delay time to change the pitch and tone.

Links

+ Wiki

+ BOM..

Some of the parts aren't super common so I'll probably need to do a order from mouser 

(or your fav supplier) I think.

LM78L05 - +5V voltage regulator

LM13700M... yes

555 timer .... its a NE555 (yes)

BC857 x5 , BC847 x4

S1JL rectifier (the dot is the cathode)

                                                                                                                                Diodes = LL4148

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Waiting for parts....

V3207 or V3205 BBD chip ... order  ... you only need one of these !!!!

The V3207 is a cool audio replacement for the 1024-stage BBD analog delay Panasonic MN 3207 chip.

I ended up buying a DIP 8  coolaudio V3205 chip on ebay.

5v1 zener...on order ... tayda

I ended up using a 5V6 zener

J309 FET 

CD 40106

..

.

Aussie Wigglers Shoegaze Challenge - Ed vs Jono

The result of nights jam using a Alesis A6 and and a Zool multistomp pedal..

Edward Kuschel · Aussie Wigglers Shoegaze Challenge Ed vs. Jono

so lush ... i could have been fooled into thinking I have a CS 80

ELK Elektroniks - KOLOR Module - update

 Some updates for the new LED KOLOR module.

This is a eurorack module designed to control LED strips, squares, etc.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Music Tech, Synth, Keyboard Repairs (@elk_elektronik)

....

The module will be released as a kickstarter project.

More info can be found at Ed's official website

https://www.elkelektronik.com.au/kolor

Londinium profile

Londinium is a brand of coffee machine that hail from the UK.

They primarily focus on lever machines.

These machines have become famous for their unique style of shots

to the point that many baristas have tried to emulate the 

"Londinium shot" on other machines.

My moddified Gaggia Classic has a "Londinium Profile".

The Decent also has something similar.

So what is it?

It's a spring lever machine that uses pressurised pre-infusion at the beginning..

The technique it uses is something like a GS3 puck slam.

It really slams the puck with something like 25mls of water.

This very fast and early saturation of the puck compresses it much faster than is usual leading to a denser & thicker starting pour.

It's sometimes called a "water hammer".

The adapted "Londinium profile" for a standard lever machine involves

quickly hitting the puck with pressure (about 3-4 bar) and holding it there.

3 Bar appears to be the perfect pressure to balance capillary preinfusion with pressure preinfusion.

(3 Bar is also common in "Blooming profiles").

This gets the water through the puck evenly & quickly will minimal channeling.

The initial flow rate will be really low ... about 8ml/s (0.3 to 0.5g/s) range.

This will give you a beautiful thick top to your espresso.

After this, ramp up to 9 bar, then gradually drop back to zero

as the puck degrades.

Try to keep the flow rate constant during this second stage.

This second stage has much less body.

When you drink a shot like this it feels super creamy due to the thick top of the preinfusion.

In summary:

1. Pre-infuse:  8 ml/s, low pressure & hold at 3 bar.

                   (About 13 secs)

2. Post infusion: raise pressure and hold at 9 bar.

3. Final stage: decline to 3 bar.

You need to monitor the flow in these last stages.

Your aim is to keep the flow at about 2g/sec (2ml/sec).

This profile works really well on dark to medium roasts.

Usually, I aim for a 1:2 ratio

One important think to note is that although I use the measurement of pressure alot, what is also important is flow.

Pressure = flow x resistance

This type of shot is really tasty with milk based coffee like Latte

Rao Allonge / Sprover profile - coffee shots

 Scott Rao's Allonge shot or a Coffee Shot

Sometimes called the Sprover = espresso + pour over

Very controversial because it's super long.

It's kind of like an Americano or a Australian long black, but the difference

is that you don't just add water to an espresso.

Basically you are trying to make filter style coffee using an espresso machine.

Initallly it started with using a standard espresso machine (with 9 bars) and

a coarse grind.

The method was to pass water through the puck at 9 bars for 30 secs ... aiming to get

a ratio of 1: 10 etc 

According to Decent/John Buckman,

a 1:5 ratio (can do 1:4-7 or so) is good.

But with a sprover  1:11 or 1:13 is common

It's hard to do this on many "standard espresso machines" as they don't usually hold enough water

Remember to use a coarser grind than usual.... like on a Aeropress or V60

and Pull for around 30-60 seconds

Matt Perger recommended using the EK-47 grinder

https://hex.coffee/blogs/journal/why-we-coffee-shot-how-we-coffee-shot

These really long shots give amazing clarity ... esp for lighter roasts.

Ideally try to get a low flow rate -- maybe 3ml/sec

or 4.5ml/second flow rate the whole way

- peak at 8-9 bar, and ideally finish around 6ish on a lever. 

Pressure shouldn't go below 4bar on a lever , but with a e61, it can finish at 1-1.5 bar

... just experiment

----------------

Not all coffee machines can do this type of shot.

You need a machine with a large reservoir , and the ability to control flow rate.

If you have a entry level single boiler, you will probably not have enough water.

Machine that can do these types of shots:

Most flow profile e61 machines

Breville dual boiler

Nomad manual lever

Decent

MUN - build notes 2

 This is part 2 of my build notes for the nonlinear circuits Mun module.

The eurorack 22HP module is a 10 channel vocoder based on the Syntovox 222

The word Vocoder is a combination of two words.

Voice + Code = Vocoder

Vocoded signals were essentially a form of data compression for voice.

Links

+ Wiki

+ BOM

+ A bit about vocoders

Part 1 is here:

https://djjondent.blogspot.com/2024/02/mun-build-notes-nlc-vocoder.html

on order:

150nF = 0.15uF

To be continued....

Audacity 3.6 Out Now! New Effects & New Master Channel!

Adaptive profile --- pressure vs flow

This is one of the settings on my Gaggiuino.

There is a lot of debate about pressure vs flow profiles.

Pressure = flow x puck resistance.

They are linked.

The early (analog) lever machines naturally understood this relationship.

You pulled on a spring (loaded at 9 bar). 

As the lever went up the pressure slowly decreased from 9 bar.

During this time, the flow naturally would also decrease.

And this would compensate for the degradation of the puck over time.

The end result was a great cuppa.

Today, pumped machines keep the pressure at 9 bar even though the puck is degrading.

The result is a increase in flow rate towards the end of the shot with a much more diluted finish.

I think lever machines had it right from the beginning. When you pulled the lever down (in the case of a spring lever) the puck was saturated instantly

(at boiler pressure) reducing the chance of puck unseating, and then a pressure to flow relationship was maintained during the shot pull.

With my E61 machine I'm getting about 7g/sec flow.

It will continue to deliver water to the coffee puck at that rate until it hits 9 bar.

At that point, the OPV will kick in.

Usually the 9 bar level is reached pretty early .. usually at the end of pre-infusion.

The flow rate is probably not 7g/sec. Instead, it will be whatever it needs to be to stay at 9 bar.

Is flow more important than pressure?

Flow is very hard to control.

Resistance is related to the type of grinder, the grind size, roast level, puck integrity, grind solubility, tamp force, distribution, etc

I think that above 10bar, coffee doesn't taste great, so if your focus is on flow

and you accidently touch 10 bar, you risk the coffee failing.

The adaptive setting  is very interesting.

Its designed to prioritize the flow rate .... moving it up or down

& adapt it to the chosen grind and dose size..... keeping everything below the peak pressure.

Note that preinfusion is mostly about flow (as there is usually very low pressure).

When discussing flow we usually are focused on the post infusion stage.

Blooming espresso profile

 This profile has a very long initial pre infusion stage before a flow controlled pressured stage.

Blooming was inspired by pour over drip coffee brewers... releasing CO2 and allowing the grounds to be fully saturated.

It's a great profile for extracting sweetness, esp from lighter roast coffee that is really acidic.

It's a very forgiving profile.

Don't use a dark roast with this profile unless you like your coffee bitter.

You can replicate this on a lever machine.... or any machine that allows you to control pressure.

Firstly, make sure you grind slightly finer than usual.

Method:

1. Ramp the pressure up 

    to 4 to 6 bar over 10 

    secs.

    Once you hit about 5 

    bar stop pushing on 

    your lever (if you're 

    using a lever machine).

2. You should have let go 

     of the lever.

    This is the blooming 

    stage where the flow 

    drops to zero.

    

The pressure will also drop to zero as water is absorbed into the puck.

If you're using a lever you may see some drops of coffee falling into the cup. 

This is OK.

This blooming stage will all take about 10-40 secs.

3. After the blooming stage is finished, ramp the pressure up (8-9 bar).

    Try to maintain flow at 2ml/sec.

I like to aim for a 1: 3 ratio.

Or go even longer.

Pull 1:4 or even 1:5

The Slayer shot profile.

 This is another famous espresso style which many baristas try to emulate on their coffee machines.

It was made famous by the "slayer machine"

The Slayer is one of those holy grail machines.

This pic is of a single group version with a saturated group head.

 What truly sets Slayer coffee machines apart from the rest is its patented Espresso two stage Needle Valve. 

This was created to control the flow rate,.

This technology gives you the ability to adjust the water flow during the pre-infusion stage.

A slayer shot puts water slowly onto the puck (2mls/sec) for typically 25 - 40 secs.

(Its very different to a Londinium shot).

You can do this with any machine which allows you to control flow & pressure.

https://slayerespresso.com/dialing-in-the-slayer-espresso/

It uses very low initial pressure & flow during pre-infusion.

At the end of this time, the puck is fully saturated and the pressure will rise.

You only end the pre-infusion when you see the first drops of coffee at the bottom.

The nice thing about this is that it addresses solubility, esp for coffees like light roasts (where you need more contact time). The puck releases CO2 & gently expands in the basket. ... less chance of channeling.

Because prefusion takes so long, there will be a difference in water/coffee contact between the coffee at the top and the coffee at the bottom of the puck.

The coffee at the top might have ben in contact for  40 secs, while the coffee at the bottom only 1 sec.

This gradient between the top and bottom results on an uneven pre-infusion.

(The top might be over extracted, while the bottom is under extracted.)

This pre-infusion is followed with a full pressure extraction.

In summary:

2-bar pre-infusion (for 20-40 seconds) and then move to full pressure extraction for another 12-13 seconds

New Deluge Community Firmware 1.1 Features! Mutable Reverb, Performance ...

....\......

oooo

mmm

bbbbbbb

Gaggiuino - boiler & pump removal & first tests - part 6

These are my personal build notes for building the Gaggiuino espresso machine.

I'm not a part of the Gaggiuino team.

The project is not for profit. 

This is really fun if you're interested in learning how microcontrollers such as the Arduino 

can be applied to solving a daily problem of mine ..... how to consistently make a great cup of coffee.

The Gaggiuino team have come up with a solution for modifying a relatively inexpensive coffee machine into something amazing.

This particular modification uses a STM32F411CEU6 (BlackPill) microcontroller.

Part 1,2,3,4 & 5 are here:

   Part 1 Gaggiuino Build Log with Workflow intro

   Part 2 Gaggiuino V3 - Build Log Notes - switches, PCB

   Part 3 Gaggiunio mod - The original Classic Pro - How it works

   Part 4 Gaggiuino - boot first time 

   Part 5 Gaggiuino - wiring

The build might change as I work through the various issues which will obviously happen.

I'll update as I go along.

Gaggiuino Project Page

https://gaggiuino.github.io/

Discord;

https://gaggiuino.github.io/#/community/community-media

facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/groups/5362374853865845/

I've decided to do a custom rewiring.

So I think I'll need to remove the boiler.

Removal of the boiler & pump will make things easier

 to get to the connectors.

You can also remove the 20 min timer PCB while you're at it.

First number all the connections before you disconnect anything.

The single boiler has two heating elements. 

They are connected to 1,2,3,4.

5 & 6 are connected to the steam thermostat.

Pop out the switches . label them of course. 

Power, Brew, steam

I'll need to remove the switch housings later.

I'll also need to remove the thermal fuse (thermafuse) from  the top of the boiler.

The fuse cuts power off to the machine.

Dm1040

Next remove the steam wand.

The screw in the container belongs to the therma fuse bracket. It holds the fuse against the boiler.

The machine is looking a lot less cluttered and easier to get into

The boiler is just held in place with 4 Allen head screws

Making the T-junction hose

These hose clamps are the best .... They only need a screwdriver to tighten.

The other end of this hose connects to the Pressure Transducer. (0-1.2 Mpa, 5V, G1/4)

You need to cut the orange hose and inset the T-junction

Remove the pump first to make this easier (see below)

As I got deeper into this project, I started to remove more and more cables.

In the end, I removed everything,....  even the boiler and pump. 

It really wasn't so hard.

------------

The pump

To remove the pump

I first removed the power socket.

The pump wiring circuit.

This is the longest (and most confusing) section of cabling.

I left the original Gaggia cable that was attached to the pump (at the pump fuse), and extended one end

to AC on the PCB & the other to the neutral Power Socket. This cable already had the LAMPS attached. I had to extend it further and add extra cabling for the boiler & SSRs.

There is a Allen screw you need to loosen

which sits right under the socket terminals.

If you have a long necked Allen screwdriver it 

will be a breeze.

The other screw has a Phillips head.

You don't have to remove the other Allen screw to remove the pump.

BTW, this also removes the 20min timer circuit which is housed in the black box next to the pump.

The Gaggiuino doesn't use this board.

You can now easily access the pump connections.

The old fuse

...

.....

The new resettable fuse. 185 degrees C. 16A, M4

Oh dear....the time of reckoning is approaching.

The white hose hanging over the edge of the Gaggia in the pic below, is connected to that "T-junction"  inside the machine. It's other end connects to the pressure transducer which "talks" to the Blackpill microcontroller, relaying info about the pump pressure.

In the end, I did a full custom wire installation. This wasn't my intention in the beginning.

I ended up using most of the cables that came with the Gaggia and just a few that came with my Peak kit.

I've never done anything like this before, but its pretty straightforward if you study the circuit diagram carefully. Always double check the connections.

Nothing has blown up so far :-)

The Gaggiuino is now stabilising boiler temp. Aim is 93 degrees C

This shot is using the default setting

I'm really impressed.

Tastes great. !!!!!!

15g in, 34.9g out, in 33 secs

The weight out is estimated.

I haven't attached scales yet.

Steam test

Wow ... this is a huge improvement on the original Gaggia Classic.

I've ordered some printed parts .

https://gaggiuino.espressio.nl/

(official supplier)

Can't wait till they arrive so I can install the screen and PCB properly.

What a satisfying build. I can't recommend this enough.

+ Gaggia Classic Evo Pro - Modding with arduino - Gaggiuino

   Part 1 Gaggiuino Build Log with Workflow intro

   Part 2 Gaggiuino V3 - Build Log Notes - switches, PCB

   Part 3 Gaggiunio mod - The original Classic Pro - How it works

   Part 4 Gaggiuino - boot first time 

   Part 5 Gaggiuino - wiring

   Part 6 Gaggiuino boiler & pump removal & first tests

KOLOR - Combining multiple LED tiles

 Some videos showing examples of how to combine mutiple LED tiles

Here is what the rear of the tiles looks like.

There are 3 connections ... 5V, Gnd and either DIN or DOUT

I'm just playing with the random settings on the KOLOR module.

It's Eurorack, from Elk Elektronik's in Australia.

Ed has been working on this for ages, and is releasing it on Kickstarter.

Ed describes it as a WS2812 LED Pixel Strip Controller for Eurorack.

It's compatible with multiple LED strips.

Control can be either manual (via the knobs) or CV patched into 6 jack inputs.

The controls are:

1. Red /hue

2. Green/saturation

3. Blue/value

4. width

5. pixel number

6. preset pattern

For more info visit:

https://www.elkelektronik.com.au/kolor

NLC - More (cowbell drum module) - Build notes

These are my build notes for the nonlinear circuits "more" module.

It's a eurorack module.

This module contains three individual cowbell circuits based on those in the Roland TR-808.

Links

+ Wiki

+ BOM

As far as parts go there isn't anything rare or hard to find.

CD 40106 

& three Opamps - TL072

CD40106 (CMOS IC with 6 Schmitt trigger inverters)

The really cool thing about this circuit is that it uses a logic chip to make metallic noise

Each bell uses 2 of the 6 oscillators.

I think in the 808, similar circuits provide the basis for the cymbal & hi hat sounds

The original 808 used band pass filters to remove the upper and lower partials.

Andrew's description is as follows:

"The filters are fixed as per the original design. This means the output

is loudest when the oscillators are set close to the operating frequency

range of the filters and softer when the oscillators are at much higher

or lower settings. For me, this seems fine, but mess with the filter

values if you like. I have seen some mods of the 2k2 to ground resistor

varied to change the filter range. In proto-typing, this was

experimented with but I didn’t feel it was much improvement."

resistors next

Diodes: LL4148

These are the power protection voltage rectifiers... or just use a 10 ohm resistor and dont plug the module in backwards.

You'll need a through hole +5V 100mA voltage regulator : 78L05. 

power header

Transistors : BC857, 847

Six 1M pots.

12 sockets

The accent input is tied to the trigger input via the switch tab,

probably best to use a gate rather than a trigger to get the sound going,

but that depends on what you want to do. Otherwise patch whatever you

like to make things happen.

This is a dense but easy build.

More links

+ Hackaday

+ Roland TR-808 cowbell rebuild

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You can find more NLC builds here.

http://djjondent.blogspot.com.au/2015/03/non-linear-circuits-ncl-index.html

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