Tindie

In my travels I have some seen some truly amazing projects that use RGB LEDs to create incredible effects. Some are big, some small, but they always make an impression.

The EspRing is a new 12-bit neopixel ring that uses ws2812b RGB LEDs, but here’s the big news: it also includes an ESP8266 12E module built right into the design. The result is a neopixel ring with an onboard microcontroller, which removes an extra step towards your own personal light show.

The LEDs are individually addressable, so you only need one data pin from the microcontroller, along with VCC and GND to run a bunch of them. You can even control the color and brightness of each pixel.

Combine this with WiFi support from the ESP module, and you can even change effects or reprogram it remotely.

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Video game controllers started out simple, but they’ve become wide and varied over the years (Microsoft’s Kinect, anyone?). This is due to technology’s progress, of course, but it’s also a product of new and interesting ideas from the engineers who design them.

The Crazy Circuits Kit lets you bridge the gap between these two ideas by building your own NES controller that uses materials completely different from the original design.

The kit comes with everything you need to build a controller. The circuit parts are ready to use out-of-the-box, so there’s no soldering or preparation needed. The laser-cut components are a good place to start, but you can go beyond the design and turn any conductive object into a button, thanks to the included Touch Board.

When I say any conductive material, I mean it. The kit mentions many strange choices like dough, ink, or even cups of water. To make things even more interesting, the parts are compatible with LEGO and similar brick-based building blocks.

For those who want to explore circuitry, design, or even just the world of gaming controllers, this kit is a perfect fit.

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In this image are the store names of sellers who are attending, and some who couldn’t come, but still contributed to the #TindieSurprise!

Last year was my first Hackaday Superconference, and it was an absolutely amazing experience. For those who were in attendance, you may recall the Tindie meetup we had that featured both sellers and members of the community, along with their hardware and projects.

This year, Tindarians are coming to Supercon in an even bigger way. Our meetup makes its triumphant return, multiple sellers and friends of the community are doing some awesome talks, and we even have a surprise in store for those who are coming.

Tindie Meetup at Supercon 2019

First and foremost, be sure to set a reminder for our Tindie meetup this year. Join us at 4:10PM on Saturday in the workshop area between the Supplyframe DesignLab and LACM.

Bring your demos, hardware you want to swap, or whatever project you’re currently trying to make time for. Who knows, you may find the inspiration you need to get it done.

Talks and Demos From Fellow Tindarians and Friends

When you’re not attending workshops or hacking this year’s badge, keep in mind that several prominent Tindarians and members of the community are hosting talks and demos throughout Supercon:

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Sequencing a synth is integral to getting a classic electronic sound, and with the two of them married together in one box, you can achieve instant New Order or Rex The Dog – just add drums! The Sismo Iter Analog Synth is a mini tabletop analog synth with two 8-step sequencers to create noodling melodies, sparse bleeps and deep bass undulations. It has square and triangle waveforms, similar to the classic Roland TB-303, for hard edged sounds or softer harmonic waves depending on what you need.

The sequencers send CV and gate data to the analog oscillators for serious monophonic playback – with controls for each note step, tempo, speed and LFO depth, with outputs for audio and CV. The Iter is able to conjure and control sounds from rhythmic elements to ambient noises and chunky synth stabs. It’s beautifully designed and housed in a wooden case with high quality components used throughout, finished off with a sleek looking front panel.

The synth comes fully constructed and is available in two colours, powered by a 9-12 V DC center positive supply (not included). It’s in the featherweight category weighing in at 350g and measuring 11.5cm x 10cm x 8cm.

Check out more products from Sismo Synths here who are shipping it from Portugal.

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Most IoT projects require some sort of display. It could be for tracking scores, monitoring the price of bitcoin, or any other type of real-time data. While some projects require a complex display, sometimes you just need something simple and elegant to get the job done.

In the spirit of this, the Tickertape Retro Display offers a fully built solution that plays well with just about every platform. The fully assembled module is compatible with Arduino, ESP32, Raspberry Pi, and others.

The vibrant 12-segment LED display is easy to hookup to all kinds of microcontrollers with an I2C interface and libraries for all the devices listed above. Those extra segments offer a lot more flexibility than 7-segment displays which are limited to traditional HEX characters. It works with 3.3v and 5v projects and includes multiple brightness settings as well. The display comes fully assembled, so the only thing you need to provide is a microcontroller to get started.

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The trend in electronics for the last few decades has always been to make things smaller. Sometimes, though, it’s nice to turn the trend on its head and make something bigger. A lot bigger.

Robert Fizsimons brought a Giant Arduino Starter kit to commemorate his first Maker Faire as an exhibitor back in 2012. Everything about it was scaled upward in size by ten times. Since the LEDs themselves were portable, he started bringing them to other Faires and people always asked when they could buy one.

LED for scale

The massive LEDs even made an appearance at Maker Faire Rome in October of 2019. Hackaday’s Editor in Chief, Mike Szczys, even hinted at the idea that Robert could bring these novelty LEDs to his Tindie store.

The wait is finally over. Those who are interested can purchase their own Giant LED on Robert’s store, but don’t be surprised if they’re sold out. The first batch was 40% off as part of a Beta Testing Sale, and they were sold out before you could say “Light Emitting Diode.”

Beyond the novelty of a massive LED, the process by which they are made and still manage to function like a traditional LED is truly fascinating. You can read all about Robert’s journey to selling them on Tindie on the store page, and he also did a video series on YouTube showcasing how they were made, the first of which is below:

While they are still sold out as I write this, those who are interested can sign up for a waitlist on the store’s page to be notified when they’re back in stock.

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Portable equipment and projects rely entirely on the stability of their batteries to remain active and functional. With that much pressure on one aspect of the hardware, wouldn’t it make sense to have something watching the battery’s back?

The Battery Saver Breakout (BSB) features the MAXIM MAX1614 high-side NMOSFET switch driver, which provides battery power-switching functions in portable equipment.

It also features a 1.5%-accurate low-battery comparator which is able to identify low-battery conditions and provide an early warning to the system’s microprocessor or even disconnect the battery from the load. This prevents deep discharge or damage to the battery. All of this, and it even implements reverse current protection as well.

It’s also possible to use this device for projects powered by DC power supplies and regulators. With power being the common denominator in practically every project, a little extra protection could go a long way.

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Drums are the beating heart of electronic music, from classic subby 808 tones to metallic FM percussion, every track needs rhythmn! The MIDI Gates Kit is a modular interface which takes incoming MIDI notes and emits them to one of sixteen dedicated outputs – for trigger control over your beats! Used in combination with a DAW, it’s a powerful drum controller bringing hexidecimal MIDI data into the real world of modular voltages!

Functioning in 16 Channel and 1 Channel modes, it takes MIDI inputs and converts them to output +/- 5V gates to the corresponding dedicated outputs, making it ideal for triggering samplers, envelope generators, synths as well as drum modules. It features a MIDI clock which outputs 16 pulses per beat, a handy reset button and MIDI passthrough for latency free `daisy-chaining` of multiple MIDI devices.

The MIDI Gates comes in kit form and measures 16 HP wide and 25 mm deep, with a skiff friendly design. All elements are included in the kit: PCB, front panel, sockets and board components. Get ready to bring the beat back with full control over your rhythm section, and the ability to trigger numerous other modular elements!.

It ships from the UK, sold by Blinkenlights who have a Tindie store packed with modular goodies!

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If there’s one thing I envy about skilled makers, it’s their ability to look at something and then make it themselves for a fraction of the cost, or with better features than the original design.

This breakout board mounts a SH1106 1.3inch OLED module and offers convenient header pins for power, ground, and the I2C bus. Not only that, it comes fully assembled.

The inspiration for this design came about after a similar display board went out of stock, leading the creator to simply make their own. The goal was to create a board with the same outline size as the glass itself, which minimizes the amount of wasted space around the display.

Thanks to this design, you’ll be able to mount buttons or controls closer to the active display area.

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As someone who covers a wide range of products on the Tindie Blog each week, I see Tindarians as celebrities in the maker community. It’s always exciting to put a face to the name, or rather, hardware in this case.

That’s why I was incredibly excited when I heard that both Brian Lough and Spencer Owen had made appearances in November’s issue of HackSpace Magazine. Let’s find out where they appeared in this month’s issue!

Brian Lough Takes us Down His Path Towards Becoming a Successful Seller

Every Tindie story is different, but more often than not, they all share a similar beginning.

In the article Meet The Maker: Brian Lough (Which can be found on page 18 of the November issue), the introduction reminds us that, while most businesses start by thinking about what people want to buy, Makers instead start with a problem they want to solve and go from there.

Brian put it this way in the interview:

“If I’m solving a problem I have, I understand what the crux of the issue is and how to make it better.”

He goes on to share the challenges of scaling his products, and making sure they were shipped in an efficient and timely manner. He also shared some information on his latest products, and even offered a few shout-outs to other people in the community.

The entire article is a great read, and you can check it out for free online using the link in the beginning of this article. In the meantime, let’s see what other familiar face showed up in this month’s issue!

Spencer Owen, The RC2014, and Wuthering Bytes

Over on page 32 of the November issue, you’ll find another great piece on Wuthering Bytes, an event that takes place each year at the Hebden Bridge in Yorkshire.

The event features talks and workshops galore. On Page 33, you can spot this excellent photo of our own fellow Tindarian Spencer Owen, posing with his homebrew Z80 computer Kit, the RC2014.

Spencer was actually a sponsor of this year’s OSHCamp at the festival, where each attendee received a free RC2014. And now I’m insanely jealous I wasn’t there.

Luckily, I have another upcoming opportunity to hang out with the maker community; the Hackaday Superconference 2019. If you’re attending this year, be sure to check out the Tindie Panel on Saturday, November 16th in the Supplyframe DesignLab at 3:45 pm.

You’ll also have a chance to hang out with the Tindie team and fellow Tindarians at our official Tindie Meetup, which is happening in the demo area of LACM that same day at 4:10 pm.

I’ll be there this year, and I’m looking forward to catching up with everyone! In the meantime, be sure to check out this month’s issue of HackSpace Magazine for the articles mentioned above, and plenty more.

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