In the end, the only dock with a serial number was #002.

I still have #001 in use here, and the others didn't get labelled simply because there was already too much time/labour going into them.

But you are welcome to add your own numbers..

Cheers

Okay I was just curious if I got one or two resitors, just for trivia purposes.

Okay, seven lucky people will be receiving their docking stations over the next week or two.

There's nothing in the box other than the dock, some bubble wrap, two crumpled newspaper pages, and FOUR BLACK STICK-ON RUBBER FEET.

VERY IMPORTANT SAFETY TIPS:

1. Try not to lose the rubber feet in the excitement of unpacking it all!

2. Do not tip the dock forward or upside down with your Empeg/RioCar unit inserted.. it may slide out and hit something hard.

3. There are two small black screws underneath the lid, just inside the front opening. By adjusting these, you can loosen/tighten the fit for your specific player -- making it easier/harder to slide in and out (on purpose or by accident..). The best way to adjust these screws is with a bent right-angle philips screwdriver. The Borg (Home Depot) sells these handy items. The other way to adjust them involves removing the four silver screws from the underside, which allows the underside to be removed for access to the internals.

4. Do NOT play with the wiring at the back. I am using whatever random hookup wires I have on hand here (lots of different kinds), and some of them do not take to repeated flexing as well as others, and may break off if the wiring area is overly disturbed. Easy enough for you to fix with a soldering iron, but better to avoid the need for fixing.

5. On all units after #002 there is a tiny adjustable resistor for the fan speed. I have already set this optimally for the lowest possible fan speed. If set any lower, the fan may not spin up every time, which could allow things to get overly hot. If you really want to screw around with it, use a small flat bladed jewellers screwdriver to turn the small white centre disc on the resistor. But be very careful -- it is soldered onto the back of the power jack, and might come loose if played with too much (it can take a little tweaking, but be very gentle with it). It is not necessary or even a good idea to remove the rear panel to access it.

6. Paint the exterior BEFORE sticking on the rubber feet! And use masking tape to keep paint out of the interior and off of the rear panel connectors.

7. Put on some nice tunes and veg out.

-ml

WOohooo! I can't wait. Thanks Mark... I've gotta go pick up some black paint!

How do we know what numbers to add?

Personally, I'd start with zero and zero, and then work my way up from there. Yes, I know this is a radical break from historical precedent, but ..

For dock units #003 through #007, tracking numbers are now available from the queue status page.

-ml

Let's try again.

Ok, how do we know what number we're adding those zeroes to?

Enter your email address onto the queue status page. It now assigns serial numbers to docks which have been shipped.

So I guess I got the one with 2 resistors? Wow, I'm special.

Based on the first few docks shipped, here is what I am charging to recover packaging and shipping (Postal Service) costs for the docking stations.

1. within Canada: ?? dunno yet
2. to USA: US$12
3. rest of the planet US$15

Within the USA, this gives a tracking number for www.canadapost.ca; for the rest of the world, I don't know about tracking/tracing yet.

Cheers

I got the one right after it, apparently. Did someone get 002?

Well, to be honest, I don't know which box that particular unit ended up in.. so it may no longer be "dock #003" that has the two resistors instead of one.

Cheers!

#002 went out last week, to the new owner of my original 18GB Empeg Mk2 player.

Cheers

Oh, the excitement of it all!!! We're all kept in the dark until it shows up on our doors and we find out who's got the "special" dock!

If somebody can figure out a URL to go directly to the canadapost tracking window WITH number inserted, then I'll happily update the script with that convenience!

A "POST"
http://204.104.133.7/scripts/dc/DCWeb.dll to
with the following variables set:
MfcIsApiCommand to "Trace"
ItemNumber to the tracking number

No can do, it's a POST form and the target doesn't accept GET requests. Maybe they have an alternate URL but it's not immediately obvious that they do.

Also:
Referrer=CPCPopup
AppLanguage=En

This works:

<form action="http://204.104.133.7/scripts/dc/DCWeb.dll" method="post" TARGET="_blank">

<input type="hidden" name="MfcIsApiCommand" value="Trace">

<input type="hidden" name="Referrer" value="CPCPopup">

<input type="hidden" name="AppLanguage" value="En">

<input type="hidden" name="ItemNumber" value="***TRACKING NUMBER***">

<input type="submit" value="***TRACKING NUMBER***">

</form>

Yeah, but I thought he wanted a *URL* that does it. No such monkey.

That looks close to what I've done (which works).

Thanks, all!

Yeah, but if he can insert a URL automatically, then he can insert that block of HTML automatically, too. Too bad there isn't a friendly site out there that will take a GET form request and rewrite it into POST form and redirect you to it.

i got lucky number 7. It's like empeg christmas! Tuners, Docks, Fascias Oh My!

Got mine today.. All 75 pieces assembled to perfection.

Now for some black paint. Great job Mark.

Your unit (#002) is one of the few that predate my bulk purchase of variable resistors for the fan speed. Instead, yours has a single 120 OHM (1/4watt) resistor. If you find the fan too loud, it can probably tolerate changing that resistor to as much as 250 OHMs.

The resistor can be accessed by removing the bottom panel, and then peering into the wiring section --> it has a tie-wrap around it. Just snip the tie-wrap, undo the tape underneath, and there it is.

Best done only if necessary, and WITHOUT removing the back connector panel (which might disturb the other connections unduly).

If you're happy with the fan level as is (seemed quiet enough to me), then leave it alone. I might mail you an extra 120 OHM resistor if you think you'd like it quieter -- just wire it in series with the one that's already there.
------

Background: I trialed several different fan types for this project, and it came down to two models in the end. Somehow I got confused as to the resistance values for the two kinds. Dock #001 has the OTHER fan kind, for which 120 OHM is nearly perfect. Dock #002 onward have a better model of fan, with lower current draw, permitting larger resistors. Since I wired #001 and #002 at the same time, I used the same resistors in each, forgetting about the two different fan types. Both docks are pretty quiet, but.. being a perfectionist at times, I eventually decided the added expense of a variable resistor (potentiometer) might be less fuss for me in the end. there ya go.

Cheers

Thanks for all your hard work and thought that went in to puting these together,I no the money you are charging for these does not cover all the hard work you have done on them.

Waiting Impatiently For Dock #6. I'm curious as to the best way to paint these buggers. I want to go a gloss black but have never painted a thing in my life!

I recommend black spray paint. Spray enamel will give the best finish, but has more fumes than spray acrylic paint. Use masking tape to mask (cover) the things that must remain paint-free, like the docking connectors, and the entire rear panel (holes and all). Suspend the dock in the air, by a wire or string looped through the two side vents. Then keep the spray can horizontal, and move your elbow/body and NOT your wrist as you coat the dock on all sides with a VERY THIN coat -- just enough to make it look shadowy. Wait a while (read the can label for how long) and then spray again.. repeat until the dock is evenly covered. Should take 2-3 spray coats for a very nice job. After each coat, CLEAN THE NOZZLE of the spray can, by simply holding it upside down and pressing the button for two seconds.

Cheers

won't you have marks where the string was then?