Make: Novation Launchpad x Arcade Buttons, first button
Jan/100
In the coming month I’ll be working on replacing the I/O of the new Novation Launchpad for Ableton Live with arcade buttons and LEDs in the same vein as my Monome x Arcade Buttons. This is a commissioned piece for a friend of mine who owns and opperates Moon Tech Studios.
Above is an initial one button test! So far, the most complicated thing seems to be the very tiny surface mounted LEDs that must be removed before adding your own. Fortunately, the PCB has some nice holes for each solder point.
Make: Glowing Breadboard
Dec/090
All credit for this one goes to Solarbotics. See the Instructables tutorial here:
Outside of the super bright LEDs and resistors here are the buy links:
Transparent Breadboard $5.93
Breadboard Voltage Regulator $5.95
Make: Arcade Controller, Wired
Nov/090
I finally found some time to wire the buttons for the arcade controller. The joysticks came with some nice ribbon cable harnesses and I made my own for all the buttons. Each ground is connected through one long chain harness. Notice I put some foundational pieces inside to strengthen the area around the joysticks.
Everything’s working and feeling great!
First game: Space Invaders. Second game: Smash TV
All that’s left is to put a nice back on it with some rubber feet so it doesn’t slide.
Make: Daft Punk Helmet, Halloween
Nov/090
Just some pics of the costume @ Halloween
Harder Better Faster Stronger
Make: Daft Punk Helmet, LED Matrix Preview
Nov/090
Here’s a quick picture of the LED matrix inside the helmet. Code, a quick how-to, pics, and a movie forthcoming!
Make: Daft Punk Helmet, Devastation
Nov/090
After puting on a clear coat late at night, I un-carefully picked up the helmet off its stand. Perhaps it was the one beer in me, cue slow motion, it fell of my balcony’s ledge. About a 12 foot fall. I’m surprised the helmet didn’t explode honestly. Here are the battle scars:
I ended up being able to somewhat repair it. Hard night though, hah. Unfortunately, in repainting the helmet, I didn’t have enough time to get a shiny chrome effect like in the picture.
Make: Daft Punk Helmet, Primed
Oct/091
Quick update on the helmet. I’ve pretty much finished the bondo application and rough sanding. This picture is after two coats of automotive prime. After this, I’ll be filling in some holes with spot putty, priming again, applying a gloss black, a chrome, and then a clear gloss. I’ve already cut and shaped an acrylic visor but it still needs some tinting. I’m trying to get some LEDs working for Halloween… we’ll see if I can come through.
A New Place to Sleep
Oct/094
Some photos of my new place! The lease is signed and I’m moving sometime mid-November.
Some perks:
- <10 minute drive to work, ~4 miles, totally bike/runable
- Huge dog-friendly backyard
- Loft bedroom, high ceilings, bright
- Plenty of outside workspace, no more sawdust in my living room
- Washer and dryer, yes.
- Blocks away from the lake balboa park, epic running
Make: Arcade Controller, Acrylic + Foundation
Oct/091
Just got some more pieces in from the laser cutter. The top is a thin black acrylic (still dusty in the pictures, needs a good windex). There are also two more pieces of wood solidifying the joystick inside.
Make: Daft Punk Helmet, Bondo
Sep/095
I’ve applied an initial coat of bondo on the helmet. Lesson learned, you want to make sure when applying the bondo to get it as tight to the shape you want as possible. Flatten all of your surfaces with a knife and avoid dripping. My first application of the bondo was too quick and not precise enough. This resulted in a ton of sanding to correct the shape and air pockets where it wasn’t smoothed out enough.
The white you see in the photo is automotive bondo (about $10 a can). The red is the bondo brand spot and glaze putty ($6-7). There are a ton of little air holes in the bondo (look around the jaw line, see lesson learned) so I’m going over the entire thing again with the spot putty to fill them all in.