So I have this Korg DW8000 synthesizer in my room downstairs that is gathering some dust. I was thinking that I might want to augment its functionality with a Raspberry Pi. This would allow me to get back into music, and midi, and related programming efforts. Right now the biggest need is for a Midi Patch Editor. I have sorta one on my iPad, but to do the same thing on an RPi2 would be neat.
So what would such an augmenting tool do? It depends on what I have access to within the synthesizer itself. If I can interface to the inside, I would have better capabilities, maybe even adding things that the DW8000 synthesizer cannot do in its present form. Let's list the possibilities:
1. A Midi Patch editor that has a user interface that will allow custom changes to the voices
2. SysEx capabilities, including loading patches during live performance; grabbing individual voices from multiple patches to form a different patch
3. A midi recorder/player
4. A midi translator (assumes internal connections); translation of key signature up/down, voice/channel mix, etc.
-- Midi event processor
-- Midi patchbay/merger/router/filter
5. Keyboard shift, multiple voices across keyboard sections (assumes internal connections)
6. Midi foot controller "brain"
More thoughts later.
This is a blog mostly about techie things, what I am doing to my apartment network on the cheap, IOT, 3D Printing, Raspberry Pis, Arduinos, ESP32, ESP8266, Home Automation, Personal Weather Stations, Things That Go Bump in the Night, and some side issues that need discussing. Remember, sometimes the journey to an end is as much fun as the goal achieved!
Wednesday, August 26, 2015
Setting Up a WiFi bridge for work
I have an interesting issue with a laptop at work. The wireless has been disabled so that I have to use an Ethernet connection (don't ask). The nature of the laptop prevents me from being able to connect to my work network and I have to tie into the work guest network which is wireless based. Right now, what I have is a D-Link DIR-505L which connects to the work guest network and acts as a wireless router with one of my home SSIDs, NAT, and it's own subnet. I have a wireless bridge, an 802.11g device, which connects to the D-Link and provides an Ethernet connection to the laptop in question. I would like to not have to tie up 2 of my own devices to get things done.
What I want to do is setup a WiFi bridge on an RPi, using an 802.11n USB adapter, to connect to the work guest network and plug into the Ethernet port for data. This is just the opposite of what most setups show you. I could also probably setup an additional VM on my work laptop to provide the same service, but I would rather setup the RPi2 to do this as a matter of course.
My biggest bugaboo will be the capture page on the Guest network. There doesn't seem to be any easy way to use CURL to setup access to the page.
What I want to do is setup a WiFi bridge on an RPi, using an 802.11n USB adapter, to connect to the work guest network and plug into the Ethernet port for data. This is just the opposite of what most setups show you. I could also probably setup an additional VM on my work laptop to provide the same service, but I would rather setup the RPi2 to do this as a matter of course.
My biggest bugaboo will be the capture page on the Guest network. There doesn't seem to be any easy way to use CURL to setup access to the page.
Monday, August 24, 2015
CC #6 - Disappointed with SlingTV
I was in hopes that SlingTV would work out as a start towards cord cutting. I have been spending over $2400 per year on Verizon FIOS (TV - no movie channels, one STB, one DVR; land line; internet 25/25) and need to find a cheaper alternative.
The wife was very displeased with the results on SlingTV. First, there was the buffering on a couple of her favorite channels (I don't have the same buffering from Netflix on the same Roku 3) which was very disconcerting. Next, the lower volume levels on other channels like Food Network and TCM. The volume levels on ESPN and Disney were loud - but I don't watch ESPN or Disney, that is not what I wanted SlingTV for. Lastly, the user interface was abysmal and not that responsive even on a Roku 3. I was hoping the experience would have been better so I have cancelled the trial run, and will wait until Dish gets the bugs out.
There was a thread on Reddit about this topic.
The wife was very displeased with the results on SlingTV. First, there was the buffering on a couple of her favorite channels (I don't have the same buffering from Netflix on the same Roku 3) which was very disconcerting. Next, the lower volume levels on other channels like Food Network and TCM. The volume levels on ESPN and Disney were loud - but I don't watch ESPN or Disney, that is not what I wanted SlingTV for. Lastly, the user interface was abysmal and not that responsive even on a Roku 3. I was hoping the experience would have been better so I have cancelled the trial run, and will wait until Dish gets the bugs out.
There was a thread on Reddit about this topic.
Friday, August 21, 2015
Have a new toy - RPI-Console
I have a new toy in my arsenal, this is the RPI-Console from land-boards that I received when making a contribution to Kickstarter. I was looking for a device to use at work (or home) to update software on a Raspberry Pi without having to have a connection to a monitor or keyboard/mouse. Then the RPI-Console showed up on Kickstarter and met most of my needs. I can now use my laptop keyboard/screen to interface with the console on the RPi, including powering the RPi from the USB port on my laptop. This the smaller version and I have a 40 pin version which I also received as part of the Kickstarter promotion.
As you can see from the next picture, I have been using this at the office to work on an RPi2 during lunch. I just take the cover off of the RPi2 case and plug the RPI-Console into it, plug the USB cable and fire up a copy of Putty on my laptop; instant console! I have been able to run raspi-config from the console to get the microSD card setup, and further setup things so that I can update the RPi2 software through a wireless bridge (not shown in the picture).
I have been impressed with the quality of the board and with the "open kimono" approach that Land-Boards have with their products. They even have a wiki page which details the testing that they put each board through; a quality job throughout! I like the fact that the design has a couple of LEDs to indicate serial traffic, receive and transmit, and the fact that you can choose to power from the USB cable or not by a jumper. The extended pins are a nice touch and allow you to get at the GPIO as needed.
For me this is an ideal interface and reduces the amount of things that I bring into work to be able to do a lunchtime activity. Should the power requirements be more than the USB cable can handle, you can always set the jumper to bring power via the microUSB interface.
Update: I was also successfully able to put a PiTFT onto the RPi2, run a ribbon cable from the additional connector, and plug the RPI-Console into it. It was also able to power the whole thing including two Netgear wifi adapters. I think that I am going to be very happy with this purchase.
As you can see from the next picture, I have been using this at the office to work on an RPi2 during lunch. I just take the cover off of the RPi2 case and plug the RPI-Console into it, plug the USB cable and fire up a copy of Putty on my laptop; instant console! I have been able to run raspi-config from the console to get the microSD card setup, and further setup things so that I can update the RPi2 software through a wireless bridge (not shown in the picture).
I have been impressed with the quality of the board and with the "open kimono" approach that Land-Boards have with their products. They even have a wiki page which details the testing that they put each board through; a quality job throughout! I like the fact that the design has a couple of LEDs to indicate serial traffic, receive and transmit, and the fact that you can choose to power from the USB cable or not by a jumper. The extended pins are a nice touch and allow you to get at the GPIO as needed.
For me this is an ideal interface and reduces the amount of things that I bring into work to be able to do a lunchtime activity. Should the power requirements be more than the USB cable can handle, you can always set the jumper to bring power via the microUSB interface.
Update: I was also successfully able to put a PiTFT onto the RPi2, run a ribbon cable from the additional connector, and plug the RPI-Console into it. It was also able to power the whole thing including two Netgear wifi adapters. I think that I am going to be very happy with this purchase.
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