Docking for home use

hi, i am thinking to start a project to build a aluminum home docking and i would like to know if there is any interest or ideas.

Hi,

I've also given this idea some thought. I've seen some of the wooden docking station projects and well, they look like something from the 70's .

I'd dig a sleek, modern looking docking station. Perhaps aluminium mixed with glass. I don't think it should be much bigger than the empeg itself. Maybe all aluminium with a glass face to allow the empeg to sink in flush with the glass?

I think it'd also be cool if one could devise a means of having the ethernet socket dock cleanly. I had an idea of making a connector block with a power connector, usb plug, and ethernet jack fixed to one side which attaches to the back of the empeg and essentially just extends the jacks to metal contact pads on the opposite side of the block. This should dock much more cleanly.

Or better yet, maybe it'd be possible to wire in some kind of switching circuit on the inside of the player that allows one to convert the existing sled connector's pinouts so that they incorporate all connections relevant for home use? Does anyone know if this switching could be done from software (with the right hardware attachment of course) ?


Regards,
Aragon

I think it'd also be cool if one could devise a means of having the ethernet socket dock cleanly.

The method I use, which was first demonstrated by Jim Hogan and pictured here in the FAQ, has worked flawlessly since I implemented it.

Does that not require a lot of fiddling as the empeg is slid in to get the plugs aligned right?

The wooden support board is carefully cut to be the same height as the inside of the sled, and mounted solidly so that it does not move. Then the keeper tab is removed from the ethernet plug and it's inserted into the player. Then the player is inserted into the sled with the ethernet plug still in it. Then the glue is applied to the plug to glue it to the support board with the player in place. The glue is allowed to dry/harden with the player in place. After the glue is dry, the player is pulled out, leaving the plug mounted in the perfect position. Additional glue can be applied to further support the plug at this point.

I went a little further and beveled the vertices of the plug with 45-degree trims so that it would dock even easier (just in case it was a fraction of a millimeter off center).

After all is said and done, the player should slide in and out of the sled and the ethernet should dock perfectly every time.

Neat.

in a more or less similar way i did the ethernet connection in my car for the AirPort base station, but my way of thinking is to make a dockingstation without the original sled and have all the outputs (rca, serial, usb and ethernet)

but my way of thinking is to make a dockingstation without the original sled and have all the outputs (rca, serial, usb and ethernet)

I have said it before, but one concern I have is that the existing back panel connectors, especially the RCAs, are not made for repeated docking/undocking. I might have some concern about using them as a docking connector over the long haul given the amount of friction in RCAs. The "true" docking connector, though, is built for repeated insertion/removal.

My experience is the same as Tony's. I now have 3 home-brew ethernet adapters (2 with power also) and they all work flawlessly. OTOH, I would think that the more connectors you add to that type of fabrication, the harder it would be to make them all align all the time (whereas those little pointy pins on the big docking connector take care of alignment making it much easier to implement an add-on ethernet adapter).

Anyhow, I can not think of a reason that I would not use a standard sled/connector if I had one available (I am actually hoping to get a custom-pinned docking connector for use with my new, not-yet-installed coax digital output)

Also, I will say that using clear material as mentioned in this thread made the ethernet adapter building process as easy as possible. It really helped to be able to see through the plate as I worked on it.

(edit: Also, with respect to your original query, I am building a new rack-mount box -- my hoped-for Loren-beater!! -- using a CH-2 box. It is not very heavy on aluminum, but it may have some ideas for features. One thing I am trying to work in is this . )

=]

I was this close to buyin a rack at fry's the other day so i could actually rackmount the thing... but the damn video card stole the money first. =]

What's up with that power socket?

What's up with that power socket?

It's a dual-fused IEC inlet with a push on-off switch. In an effort to not exacerbate the energy crisis, I figured it would be good to depower the AC-DC power supply when the Empeg was not at home. By breaking a little tab doohickey off that switch, I have succeeded in turning it into a momentary switch. I *think* that with a hacked bicycle spoke and a little drilling I can fix it such that the AC switch is turned on when I insert the Empeg...and powers off when I remove it. There were other momentary panel switches that would do the job, but when I saw this puppy at a surplus shop, I had to figure out a way to use it!

Keep an eye on craigslist, rack's come up from time to time that are pretty darn cheap or free... I've been tempted, but don't have the closet space to dedicate...

Matthew

You know what I think would be grand - to fabricate a 'boom box' straight outa the 80's, but with a sled for the Rio to slide into.. I'm talking bout an XL box, with quality speakers, perhaps first encased in fibreglass, then inside a metal cabinet, with removable speakers for good separation.. inside would be a smallish amp, a battery (perhaps a marine one?) and of course the obligatory external usb, rj45, serial, power, etc - just think of the parties by the lake, camping, beach, etc - with your Rio slid into a purpose-built boom box!

Check out the latet meet pictures from the Ohio meet. This one specificaly.

Matthew

That's cool, not quite what I had in mind however - I was thinking a bit more classic looking boom box, all self contained, with perhaps 6" round speakers, with separate tweeters - crossover and amp inside, with a marine battery for extended play.. I'm going to start work on this - I have a dream!

That one was really nice, I saw it.

303,

Is it possible to cut a faceplate that extends down over the handle area (if the handle were removed). This would look really nice in a home docking station (I would have the intention of leaving the empeg in the docking station most of the time)

i don´t think thats a problem. but how will you get tha player out?

Unfortunately, when Meatballman and I built the one earlier mentioned we didn't take pictures or I'd share them. Just a few thoughts on the complexities at hand...
1. Battery life... a motorcycle battery will last about 3-4 hours, so anything smaller would be less. This was the major contributer to size, besides the sub.
2. Battery recharging... the battery charger is on board with ours so you could cut that for size issues, but then you've got to be able to get to the posts to recharge which we didn't.
3. The speakers will of course need to be amped, which is the reason we chose computer speakers, if you're running normal speakers with a cross you'll need an amp which adds more size and probably more power than the computer speakers were pulling.
4. Weight... all that stuff is heavy... that's why we chose the rolling option....

Your concept is cool, but unless your talking 1980's Fat Boys style boom boxes I think it will be hard to fit everything you need inside, and even if you could I wouldn't trust the handle.

It wouldn't need to be removed that often, but when required I would use thin right angle "tools" to grab behind the face. I think the look of an empeg with no handle and an oversized face would be worth the slight inconvenience.