Muff's Modules & More

synthetic · Posted: Fri Nov 30, 2007 3:54 pm Post subject: Building a cabinet

The first step in my Euro modular will be to build a rack. I'm going to start with the Doepfer DIY System 1, which has four HP84 rails. My idea is to build one wide cabinet to start with, two rails on top and two on the bottom. If (when) I fill this, I would build another slanted cabinet, and the two would fit together like a miniature Moog 55.

My question is, will a system that's one 34" wide (852mm) be simple enough to use? It doesn't seem that wide to me, but most systems I see use 19" rack sided widths.

I looked into the Vector T-struts, but the Doepfer DIY-1 system at Haven seems like a good deal for the whole package.

synthetic · Posted: Fri Nov 30, 2007 4:08 pm Post subject:

Another question, how deep does it need to be in the back? I read elsewhere that the Blacet Miniwave is too deep for some cases (Frac, I know). I don't want to wish I'd made it 3" deeper later on.

felix · Posted: Fri Nov 30, 2007 4:58 pm Post subject:

Cool ideas. I'm starting on a case of my own since I'm about to run out of room with my 2 Doepfer A100P cases and it's too expensive to keep buying more.

I'll measure my A100P case when I get home, but I'm pretty sure it's less than 10" deep.

Personally I kinda dislike the ~19" 84HP Euro "standard" size. 84HP seems to narrow for a larger system and 168HP feels a little wide if you like to sit right in front of it. I think the Vector rails are 150HP which might feel just right. I'm not sure what the HP->inches scale is...anyone know?

Personally, I was going to skip the metal rails all together and just use wood. AFAIK, the only reason metal rails are used is so that all the modules share a common ground and that can be easily remedied in a wood case by using some copper tape along the mounting areas. It does mean that you have to screw in new holes to the wood when adding modules, but that isn't that difficult really.

Plus, the real added benefit is that you can make it any size and shape that you want, the only restriction is a minimum depth as you mentioned as well as the hight of each row. I'd really like to make something resembling the Buchla 200e layout.

I really want to finish my joystick project first, but I might get started on the case this weekend. Finishing the case before the joystick controller means I could sell one of my A100P cases and that means more money for modules! grin

Muff Wiggler · Posted: Fri Nov 30, 2007 5:06 pm Post subject:

Do the Euro modules actually need their rack for common ground?

What about those perspex synthbox cases?

I'm not a euro expert - but a common ground should be on the power connector and not the module panel. If it was you could ground it by touching a panel

I know that blacet modules don't use the rack for ground, they use the power harness. One reason I know this to be true, is that one of the desirable characteristcs of the blacet rack over the Paia one, is that the blacet rack is non-conductive.

sandyb · Posted: Fri Nov 30, 2007 5:06 pm Post subject:

here's a couple of pictures of the case i'm building for my euro system - it's not finished yet -still needs to be painted. i went with 4 x 84hp although i ended up using some alternative rails to the ones that came with the doepfer kit. afaik some Plan B modules are a bit fussy about their faceplate being grounded properly - particularly the model 15 osc.

Kwote · Posted: Fri Nov 30, 2007 5:23 pm Post subject:

nice! and shiny.

felix · Posted: Fri Nov 30, 2007 5:27 pm Post subject:

Very nice!

I like the curved shape...that's kinda what I was thinking of as a buchla like cabinet.

sandyb · Posted: Fri Nov 30, 2007 5:42 pm Post subject:

J.w.M. · Posted: Fri Nov 30, 2007 6:10 pm Post subject:

Wow-- that's a great-looking cabinet. The curved shape rocks.

Maybe (once I get settled down and don't have to worry about moving around something big and heavy), I'll use that as a jumping-off point for designing a case for my system

synthetic · Posted: Fri Nov 30, 2007 6:14 pm Post subject:

Nice cabinet!

felix · Posted: Fri Nov 30, 2007 7:37 pm Post subject:

Rad, thanks for those numbers.

felix · Posted: Fri Nov 30, 2007 7:44 pm Post subject:

synthetic · Posted: Fri Nov 30, 2007 8:05 pm Post subject:

It looks like that case runs a power cable to the mounting rails to ground them. I could just run a wire from the rail to the system ground for the whole case. It's probably a good idea to star ground the whole case anyway.

tragedybysyntax · Posted: Fri Nov 30, 2007 11:25 pm Post subject:

HOlly shit... beautiful case man!!! Astounding!!!

I"m about to start building mine once I get the vector t rails in (diy kit rails dont line up to havestman and some of the livewire stuff)

But I did the DIY 2 kit which is just enough for 1 row of euro. Once I filler up... (eventually) I'll just build a second one and screw it to the first one, lol.

This is of course will be sitting ontop of my monster cabinet which holds 4 frac racks, a mobius, sherman filterbank 2 and a roland re-201 tape echo.

sandyb · Posted: Sat Dec 01, 2007 12:34 pm Post subject:

i'm no expert on grounding. the doepfer power supply that comes with the diy kit has a connector for ground that the manual says you should use to the case if it's metal. i'm intending to connect it to one rail and then just run a wire through the back of the others. i figure it can't do any harm and i do remember there being a post from Peter on the Plan B list stating the importance of rail grounding for some of the modules, particularly if they are in a wooden case. i'll have a look in the archives and post what he said if i can find it.

sandy

edit: here's a posting by Peter on AH - not exactly the one i was thinking of but useful anyway:

"There are three types of grounds which need managing:

Earth Ground (primary side - comes from the wall socket)
System Analog Ground (secondary side - from the output of the PSU that's powering your analog modules)
System Digital Ground (secondary side from the PSU that's powering
any computer systems in the synth)

All should be connected together AT THE POWER SUPPLIES - meaning
separate lines to a central hub, not daisy chained from one to
another. This can make for a very noisy ground line. This hub
should be attached to the chassis if it's made from low resistance
conductive material (metal for instance) and to the faceplates as well.

Connecting to the faceplates is a safety consideration. If you just
happen to be touching your faceplates when your studio gets hit by
lightning, if the faceplates have a discharge path to Earth you'll be
able to tell people about the experience later. If you don't...then
they may be talking about it later without you (if you get my
drift). The lightning is going to find it's way to ground through
the path of least resistance - the ground line you provide, the
chassis, or you. Either way it's gonna get down there. One of those methods can be fatal.

Sometimes there's a problem with grounding faceplates as people make
cabinets in which the modules mount to a high resistance surface -
such as wood. You need to come up with a way to assure your
faceplates are grounded if you go this route. Your shielded
patchcords may indirectly do the job, but it's not the best bet. A
direct ground line is.

The faceplate and chassis grounds can be daisy-chained together to
the hub. All PSU's secondary system grounds should be routed
directly from each PSU to the same hub - each supply to it's own
path. This keep system noise to a minimum. Then that hub should also
connect to Earth Ground.

Hope this helps.

- P"

and there's this from Peter on the Plan B yahoo group - a couple of parts from a thread about tracking problems with some Model 15 oscs:

"Who's rack are you using?

Is it home built?

If so....does it have metal rails in which to mount the modules?

If not, have you provided a means to GROUND the faceplates when they are mounted in the system?

Make sure the ground wire from the PSU on the case is still bolted to it's side. The Model 15 needs a grounded faceplate or everything will be screwey."

felix · Posted: Sat Dec 01, 2007 9:07 pm Post subject:

Sweet. Thanks for digging all that info up!

felix · Posted: Tue Jan 29, 2008 7:04 pm Post subject: More Vector Rails drama

FYI, I've found out that the standard eurorack screws (the ones that come with all Doepfer/Plan B/etc modules) do not fit in the special Vector nuts that slide in the Vector T-Strut rails. The Vector nuts are 4-40 thread, which means the standard eurorack ones are not.

I'm thinking at this point the easiest route is to source a bunch of 4-40 screws; but I'm also looking out for nuts that would work in the Vector rails and are the same thread as the eurorack screws (I emailed Shawn @ AH to see if he knew what size they are).

Chuck E. Jesus · Posted: Tue Jan 29, 2008 7:14 pm Post subject:

i just went to the local Ace Hardware and bought a bunch of bolts that fit...the only drag about the Vector rails is you have to put the screws in from one side, so you can't simply pop a mod in between two existing mods...

felix · Posted: Tue Jan 29, 2008 8:24 pm Post subject:

Muff Wiggler · Posted: Tue Jan 29, 2008 8:30 pm Post subject:

http://www.microfasteners.com

They are great

felix · Posted: Tue Jan 29, 2008 8:57 pm Post subject:

Holy god, it's screw heaven!!!

grin

Muff Wiggler · Posted: Tue Jan 29, 2008 9:02 pm Post subject:

yep, that's where i buy all my screws

the black ones for mounting frac modules are the best 8)

Kwote · Posted: Wed Jan 30, 2008 1:31 am Post subject:

don't get screwed. oops

tragedybysyntax · Posted: Thu Feb 07, 2008 12:16 pm Post subject:

I get to build my cabinet this weekend.... FUCKING FINALLY! I bought the DIY Doepfer kit #2 and it turned out to be the biggest piece of shit I've EVER touched. I bought Vector Trails and my order coming in is a PSU2, and BUS board.

I'm just trieng to decide on to make my cabinet a boring old 90 degree square cabinet like my main one or... to give it some slantyness to it. Also... I guess I'll build it with room to expand as this year I plan on owning LOTS of euro to go with my frac. Prolly 2 spaces tall and whatever the width is on the Vector T's.

MDF wood i guess.

felix · Posted: Thu Feb 07, 2008 2:29 pm Post subject:

I'm been puttering along with my case unfortunately...Row 1 is finally racked in though.

http://felixinferious.blogspot.com/2008/02/modular-case-row-1-complete .html

felix · Posted: Sat May 31, 2008 8:19 pm Post subject:

Still haven't finished the case...yet. I got the modules are all racked in though.

The big open space on the left is for the AFGs!!! Big space toward the bottom is for Plan B M14 and Livewire Chaos computer. Rest of the space is for Harvestman and modules yet to be acquired.

Muff Wiggler · Posted: Sat May 31, 2008 9:04 pm Post subject:

holy crap that's rad w00t

super nice mounting job, i LOVE how the modules are flush with the top of the desk

awesome

J.w.M. · Posted: Sat May 31, 2008 10:27 pm Post subject:

Wow that looks great. Can't wait to see pictures of the whole thing.

Kwote · Posted: Sat May 31, 2008 10:28 pm Post subject:

yup. gonna be a nice Euro monster once it's all filled up.

synthetic · Posted: Sun Jun 01, 2008 1:25 pm Post subject:

Nice work. I'm hoping to finish my cabinet this week. (Though I switched formats since I started this thread.)

futuresoundsystems · Posted: Sun Jun 01, 2008 1:27 pm Post subject:

Haha nice cabinet. I built a 16U MOTM cabinet from an Ikea box. Nice wood. Nice nice wood. 8) I believe it's probably the only thing I've ever had from Ikea that I've ever really praised after it was chopped up and refit. I'll have to post some pics of it once I've got it out of storage (yes you read that right, it's been in storage for a few weeks. oh and yes, you thought that right too, I do have withdrawal symptoms help

)

ehdyn · Posted: Mon Jun 02, 2008 7:01 pm Post subject:

felix · Posted: Mon Jun 02, 2008 11:45 pm Post subject:

futuresoundsystems · Posted: Tue Jun 03, 2008 1:20 am Post subject:

It sounds really stupid, but have a look at their "boxes". Buy some metal rails, cut the wood down a little and it's perfect, at least for what I wanted.

synthetic · Posted: Tue Jun 17, 2008 12:19 am Post subject:

Finally finished my cabinet:

http://www.jefflaity.com/gallery/motmcabinet

flts · Posted: Tue Jun 17, 2008 9:55 am Post subject:

felix · Posted: Wed Jun 18, 2008 12:24 am Post subject:

Whoa! That is wicked! we're not worthy

synthetic · Posted: Wed Jun 18, 2008 12:35 am Post subject:

Thanks. I purposefully made it on the small side so I don't go too nuts. We'll see how that works for me. smile

krisp14u · Posted: Wed Jun 18, 2008 5:33 pm Post subject:

Kwote · Posted: Wed Jun 18, 2008 5:51 pm Post subject:

felix · Posted: Sun Jun 22, 2008 7:55 pm Post subject:

My DIY cabinet is an epic failure. sad banana

I've officially given up...something I really should have done a long time ago. Doepfer Monster Case will be obtained in the very near future.

If you feel like reading the gory details of this afternoon:
http://felixinferious.blogspot.com/2008/06/modular-cabinet-update-epic -fail.html

I've got DIY case stuff for sale if anyone wants it; Vector rails, PSU:
http://www.muffwiggler.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=9719#9719

futuresoundsystems · Posted: Mon Jun 23, 2008 4:05 am Post subject:

:( Shame that, sounds like you had nice wood too. My cabinet's rails aren't totally level (one end of each row is either a little shorter or taller than the other) but I can live with them.

spbaker · Posted: Mon Jun 23, 2008 8:57 am Post subject:

Muff Wiggler · Posted: Wed Jun 25, 2008 2:18 am Post subject:

consumed · Posted: Wed Jun 25, 2008 9:11 am Post subject:

congrats jeff! looks like you did a real nice job on that!
i like how you have the modules recessed pretty far back too, that looks classy.
i just noticed the original post was from november, and you finally made it happen.
now you know you'll be building a matching cabinet in about 9 months, right? lol

i did a "moog style" cabinet too, a 1u, after looking at .com cabinets.
but i routed the edge of the wood back 1/4" (1/8" for stooge rail and 1/8" for the panel thickness) so the panels would lay flush with the edges. i wish now that i had added another 1/8" so they would be slightly recessed under the lip. i had other problems with the cabinet, mostly warped wood which prevents anything from sitting flat on the top. Dead Banana

and some of my modules dont sit quite flush, like the thicker fpe panels.

synthetic · Posted: Wed Jun 25, 2008 5:11 pm Post subject:

Thanks. Yeah, I'll probably end up building another cabinet one day. But first I want a PCM96, and I'll need to save up quite a bit for that. hyper

So I might not fill the 24u right away. (Plus MOTM can get expensive, almost as bad as Serge...)