ok, a friend of mine who is a musician: http://www.ablethought.com... asked me if i could do something for him since he saw me tinkering with my arduino mega 2560. He would like to have a limited amount of the following as a promotional thing for his next cd release party in July. so, i need to learn all this by is deadline - listed in the facts part of this topic.
i would like to make an audio visualizer that is compact and portable.. here's what i'm thinking it needs off the top of my head:
(1) - max7219, simply because you can control 64 single color leds with it and that being said - you only need 1 chip
(1) - 24 pin DIP IC Sockets Adaptor.. for the max7219
(25/50) - clear blue leds
(1) - power jack
(1) - Supply US AC 100-240V Converter Adapter DC 12V 1A Power
(1) - jack for music source
the following i don't anything about:
1.) do i need a 10uF/25/25V capacitor to go with the power jack? i would think so..
2.) a jack of some sort to pluck in a device so the leds move to music - (ie: cellphone, mp3 player, etc..)
3.) stand alone - thinking atmega chip?
4.) everything that has to do with making the leds move to music
5.) everything needed to make it a stand alone
6.) it should be 5 rows, will 5 leds per row do it or will 10 per row be best??? almost positive it's 10 but i'm not an expert..
7.) don't know which size board will be exactly enough.. 15x9cm????
facts about this project:
1.) stand alone - no arduino
2.) power source = wall outlet
3.) i plan to have this in a finished enclosure
4.) deadline: 7/1/13
i'll add more as needed/answered, please refer back to this post for any updates...
best visual reference i can give:
very similar to that, but without all that mess in the background..
i will use the arduino to build it - it just won't be powered or connected to one in the end... not everything you build/program with the arduino - has to be powered or connected to it in the end. show me the law that says it must..
so i am in the right place thank you.. shame on you for saying that.. you should know better!
facts about this project:
1.) stand alone - no arduino
What do you mean by this?
Do you mean that there will be an ATmega processor running in, but it will not be a physical arduino board like those sold in shops or do you mean there will be a different processor running it or do you mean no processor at all?
thinking an atmega chip or something.. basically your not going to have a physical arduino (like my arduino mega 2560), or a duo/leonardo attached/connected to it..
It sounds as if you're planning to make a graphical spectrum analyzer, and you're far from the first to do that. I suggest you use Google to locate other people who have created similar things. I expect you'll find the software side is easy, but you seem to be heading towards custom boards and smart enclosures which I suspect is where you'll find the most trouble. I remember that a forum contributor named Crossroads makes various custom boards and Arduino clones including some that include shift registers, and maybe you'll find something there that can reduce your hardware development time.
I suggest the best route to follow is to get a prototype working, source the enclosures, and then design the electronic hardware to fit the enclosures.
i am working with CrossRoads on a couple of projects, i can't keep asking him for help with everything - i feel bad as it is.. that's why i posted on the forum..
I think designing your minimal Arduino compatible circuit.. and working a basic MAX7221/19 chip into the mix is the first step..
Getting a minimal Arduino compatible circuit should be the first step to getting a decent understanding of things.. (its also a nice key piece of info to have for future projects you can rely on)
There are tons of links/tutorials and videos out there to start you off..
you already have it sorta broken up into smaller pieces of the project.. work towards completing each one..then integrating them.
I think these topics of very popular beginner topics (minimal Arduino and MAX chips).. and things that have been outlined before..
(Im an noob.. and have worked my way through both of these areas...links in my footer my be of some help to you. Read all my dumb mistakes and questions.. and see the answers I was given)
Start by ordering/having the few components needed:
should be all you need to get started driving up to 64 LEDS!..
I would also start reading up on MATRIX, MULTIPLEXING & how to wire up all 64 leds in a 'matrix' style layout.. (I posted some links to using matrix wiring but in led strip physical layout)
by nature the MATIRX lends itself nicely to the 8x8 layout... (8 columns.. 8-leds in each column)
if you can use this for your 'display' you'll be in even better shape..
