Laser Harp kits - Batch 2 - Finished

Re: Laser Harp kits - Batch 2 coming soon!

Yeah!!!!! That is great news!!!

I can finally start planning my concert tours.

Re: Laser Harp kits - Batch 2 coming soon!

@ Camvo ,did send you à pm

Re: Laser Harp kits - Batch 2 out now!

15 of these left, probably the last batch ever!! Everyone else, orders have gone out

Cheers,
Dan

Re: Laser Harp kits - Batch 2 - 14 left!

Would anyone be interested in more note storage banks? Or is 3 enough? Could technically cram another 3 colours on that LED, though it might make changing back and forth between banks a bit annoying. I dunno.

Only 14 of these left in this batch, most likely the last run too

Also, to the previous buyers, don't forget to email me with your username for the 2.45 code update!

Re: Laser Harp kits - Batch 2 - 14 left!

Hi csshih and Things.

The laser harp kit arrived last week and all is great, Thanks for your hard work!

Now I just have to find the time to put everything together.....

Okay, I am a complete novice at this and have tried to piece together the best way to build the completed harp from several posts on this thread.

The big questions:

When i buy a laser does the power matter (of course it does, but does it matter to the sound or visibility or the reception)?

Do I need to buy a branded expensive laser? Or does one of those cheaper Chinese ones on eBay do the same job?

Galvanometers I can find on eBay as well but, again, which ones to get?

A case? Did I see Hammond cases mentioned? Tried to find the exact one on eBay but was not there. Perhaps an alternative?

Software. I got the printout instructions to build but how to programme it?

Interface. Any recommendations for producing the best sound? Can I plug it straight into an amp and speakers? Or must I introduce a laptop in between?

Okay, you get the picture. I'm really at sixes and sevens here so anyone who has a great idea that works and is willing to share I'm listening!

Re: Laser Harp kits - Batch 2 - 14 left!

1. When buying a laser, the power can be whatever you can afford. However, as you'd already know, lower power beams won't be as visible. It also means you'd need to operate the harp in complete darkness in order to get a distinct reflection into the sensors. I'd recommend at least 50mW green, which is cheap and plentiful from China these days. Higher power is better of course, though keep safety in mind too.

2. Any laser with TTL or analog modulation input will work.

3. Whatever you can afford. Even the cheapest of cheap crap galvo's will work fine for this (Although I wouldn't recommend open loop for stability reasons).

4. Case can be whatever you want. Keep in mind that your galvo amp will probably require heatsinking, so a metal case may be more convenient. If you look back in the thread though, you can see some very create case ideas!

5. The only programming you'll ever need to do is to change settings like the note banks, however the kit will work right out of the box because we have programmed in some default values. How to program the harp is included with the instruction csshih emails to everyone.

6. The laser harp outputs MIDI data. This isn't actually sound, it's a form of serial data. You can connect it to any MIDI compatible device, for example synthesizers/keyboards/drum machines, whatever. You can get MIDI to USB adapters for your computer on eBay for under $5.

Re: Laser Harp kits - Batch 2 - 14 left!

Wow, thanks again for your quick reply. I'll certainly check all of those things out and make a shopping list. I had another look at the instructions sent with the harp and saw the photos of your case. Might be worth a go converting an old computer box to do the trick.

I'll let you know how I get on!

Re: Laser Harp kits - Batch 2 - 14 left!

Hi.

My assembled kit arrived last week.

Many thanks to Things (Dan) for all his hard work; and to CSSHIH (Craig) also for all his hard work as well. Great stuff guys. Very much appreciated.

Are there instructions to receive via email or something? And a copy of the program used for flashing new firmware?

My case is 80% built; needs finished off soon. User panel etc.

Im building a chassis to sit inside it.. so ive just got the parts to mount to the chassis and some wiring for all the connectors to do.

Once again chaps; thanks for all your hard work in getting these kits oput there. Also; a big thank you to all the thread contributors for posting their teething troubles; explanations; findings; investigations etc.. and for some neat harp case designs also.

Thanks all!!!

Cheers,

Paul.

Re: Laser Harp kits - Batch 2 - 12 left!

Hi.

Once again.. many thanks to Dan for the instructions you recently sent me... and many thanks to Craig for sending on that lcd screen (got it today). Once again chaps... great stuff!!!!

:beer:

Cheers,

Cy'

Re: Laser Harp kits - Batch 2 - 14 left!

Things said:

Would anyone be interested in more note storage banks? Or is 3 enough? Could technically cram another 3 colours on that LED, though it might make changing back and forth between banks a bit annoying. I dunno.

Click to expand...

Those other 3 banks would be welcomed!

Regards

Joe

Re: Laser Harp kits - Batch 2 - 12 left!

cyborgTR808 said:

Hi.

Once again.. many thanks to Dan for the instructions you recently sent me... and many thanks to Craig for sending on that lcd screen (got it today). Once again chaps... great stuff!!!!

:beer:

Cheers,

Cy'

Click to expand...

that was fast! glad mail's moving along a bit faster now, sorry for my mistake!

Craig

Re: Laser Harp kits - Batch 2 - 12 left!

Also is there any way yo make it dual color?
Like blue for normal beams then when you stick your hand in a beam it turns it green just for that beam?
I thought that would be kinda a cool effect.
I know it might mean a new board or an extension board to be added with some programming but i think that would be a super cool feature.

Re: Laser Harp kits - Batch 2 - 12 left!

kiyoukan said:

Also is there any way yo make it dual color?
Like blue for normal beams then when you stick your hand in a beam it turns it green just for that beam?
I thought that would be kinda a cool effect.
I know it might mean a new board or an extension board to be added with some programming but i think that would be a super cool feature.

Click to expand...

This may be possible. I would have to check whether the microcontroller has a spare pin we could use for it.

I've just moved house, so I'm kind of stuck on my little eeepc, which doesn't have any of the design files on it. I'll check it out once I have my desktop set up.

Re: Laser Harp kits - Batch 2 - 12 left!

yea because if it had a spare pin that i could break out that would be awesome.
Make the harp effect much more interesting.
Hell if it has 2 spare pins we could be talking rgb harps.
Now that i would like to see.

Re: Laser Harp kits - Batch 2 - 12 left!

Only issue I could see arising from this is false triggering as the beams switch colours. You'd need to make sure that your lowest visibility laser (ex. 445) matches the same apparent brightness as your other lasers, so the sensor still picks up a trigger.

I don't have my harp or anything on me at the moment, so might be a while before I can actually try anything out, BUT it does appear we have 2 spare pins on the microcontroller to play with. Stay tuned.

Re: Laser Harp kits - Batch 2 - 12 left!

oh that would be so nice yeah that would not be to much of a problem i was thinking of using a 445 diode and a 635 diode plus a 350mw green.
So they would all have a power of over 350mw.
Think about having a white laser harp. now that is cool.
I had the idea to build an extension driver onto the harp.
So that the beams would randomly change colors and just use the 1 pin to control the blanking.