Laser Projector (Red, Green, Purple) "Laser 3D Party Light" from Spencer's

[narghile]

Thanks @DogP for the finding the part, that looks like a compatible one. Ya, I tried the save the old one but it was too fragile to handle the repair. I usually don't have a problem soldering but my tip was worn out and when tried to solder those 3 close pins it and clean up the mess, it just got the plastic too hot and it self destructed. The pins started falling out and the thin plastic side started cracking from just handling it. So be careful around that connector!

When I order the replacement, I'll post my results to this thread for future reference.

[DogP]

Ah... that sucks. Good luck with the replacement. You might also consider grabbing a breakout or extender, and wiring it by hand (like: https://www.sparkfun.com/products/11403 or http://www.ebay.com/itm/New-10-flex-...item257a0710a7 ) Then you could mount it somewhere that you can easily access it without opening the case. I'm considering using one of those extensions to bring the socket outside the case on mine.

DogP

[adventurevision]

Awesome! Just ordered one of those 10" extension cables. I always worry I'm going to mess something up when I want to quickly check how something looks.

-Jeff

[tribble]

FYI: I was able to repartition my 4GB SD card under Win7 with "diskpart" from the command prompt to a 2GB partition. It then formatted with 512-byte allocation blocks just fine and reads fine in the projector. Whew!

I made a super-slow spirograph show that held one motor steady at 1000rpm and ramped the other from -1000 to 1000 RPM and just sat for an hour watching it. Awesome.

[DogP]

FYI: I was able to repartition my 4GB SD card under Win7 with "diskpart" from the command prompt to a 2GB partition. It then formatted with 512-byte allocation blocks just fine and reads fine in the projector. Whew!

Cool... did you notice a difference?

DogP

[james]

Hey DogP! Where is that sound card DAC?

[tribble]

Cool... did you notice a difference?

Yes, I can use much higher speeds than before without artifacting! I think I have the same "extended range" as you documented earlier. 31 was sparkly, but 27 is not. I have not tried all the intermediate speeds yet. I will try re-tuning at 8 degrees at some point, but right now I am having way too much fun with my spirograph generator, and I owe James a rewrite of the spencer effect as well. :-\ And there's overtime to do right now, and then taxes to file... ah, well.

You know, I discovered that this unit happily sits upside down on its base; lets all the heat rise straight off the "base" plate into the air, not that there's much heat to be had.

[tribble]

DogP, I meant to ask you... how is your alignment holding up? Mine keeps shifting.

[DogP]

Hey DogP! Where is that sound card DAC?

Heh, still in my PCB CAD program. I have it mostly drawn up, but I've got about 72.5 projects going on right now, plus real work. :P

I owe James a rewrite of the spencer effect as well.

I keep meaning to look into that more... I tested your spencerizer on one file, and it looked better, but I'm not sure that it's 100%. I need to try the one in LaserBoy to compare, and look at the signals of both on the scope to make sure it's doing what is expected.

DogP, I meant to ask you... how is your alignment holding up? Mine keeps shifting.

Mine is holding steady... is your heatsink physically moving, or is the laser diode itself doing something weird? I didn't detach the heatsink/glue from the base... is it possibly just a little bit of play from that? I don't think there's much temperature change of the whole plate, but I guess that could be expanding/contracting too.

DogP

[tribble]

I tested your spencerizer on one file, and it looked better, but I'm not sure that it's 100%. I need to try the one in LaserBoy to compare, and look at the signals of both on the scope to make sure it's doing what is expected.

I am pretty sure there is at least one artifact to hunt down yet, at the beginning of frames. It may not be possible to eliminate artifacts when the frame "cycles" or if the same frame is repeated in the file. While doing some spirograph work I tried not setting the "last" bit on the last vertex in the frame to see if I could convince the projector to not turn the laser off, ever, but it still turns it off between frames, so I get these brief blanks in the figures no matter what.

I re-tested the unit with type 1 header/vertex sequences and no palette information; definitely no-go.

I haven't pulled the optic sled out of the case to examine the mounts again; I think it may be just that I leave the control board hanging off the back so much it pulls the blue and red out of alignment. I try not to put tension on the wires, but it's inevitable.