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Re: My summer project: A colour Stacy

Posted: 11 May 2021 23:55
by derkom
stephen_usher wrote: 11 May 2021 23:51 Do a google search on speakers used by model railway enthusiasts for DCC loco sound. You may find an iPhone speaker will fit and give decent sound.
That's actually an interesting thought. Don't tempt me to open this thing up again... :lol:

Re: My summer project: A colour Stacy

Posted: 12 May 2021 04:47
by Darklord
derkom wrote: 11 May 2021 23:49 Aaaaaand, I can't really believe I'm saying this, but... I think I'm done? For now at least.

The finished product...

Good night! :cheer:
Beautiful...simply beautiful. :!:

Re: My summer project: A colour Stacy

Posted: 12 May 2021 08:53
by troed
Incredibly impressive. Many congratulations on finishing something that all will envy! :D

/Troed

Re: My summer project: A colour Stacy

Posted: 12 May 2021 09:18
by rubber_jonnie
Absolutely fantastic!!

:girldance: :girldance: :girldance:

Re: My summer project: A colour Stacy

Posted: 12 May 2021 09:44
by derkom
Thanks for the kind words of congratulations, which I will gladly accept, because this was not an easy project, and certainly ended up taking a lot longer than I expected! :D

BTW, @PhilC, final weight is 5.5 kg. According to specs, the original Stacy was 7 kg, so this is practically a featherweight now. :lol:

Another entertaining fact... I knew the vertical clearance for the stack of upgrades inside was going to be very close, and indeed it was very close. When I had the top half of the main body closed-but-not-snapped-into-place, the system ran just fine, and then as soon as I popped it fully closed, I got constant crashing. Turns out the metal bracket in the top half of the case was touching the top of the TF536 and shorting it.

This was fixed with a bit of cardboard, but really goes to show that there's not one millimetre to spare in there. Given that my upgrade stack is sitting flat on top of a motherboard PLCC socket on the bottom, and touching the upper case on top, and the whole thing is soldered, no sockets, this project really just barely worked. :lol:

One part that is not entirely done done is the battery compartment...

IMG_20210512_113234.jpg

I still want to make another 3D printed bracket for the right hand side, which will contain a SATA connector (at the correct angle to make the drive slide into), two Lightning USB ports, and the JTAG connector for the TF536. But that will wait for another time, because I've got some real life work coming up now that will keep me away from hardware projects for a while.

Re: My summer project: A colour Stacy

Posted: 12 May 2021 19:30
by sporniket
great work !

Re: My summer project: A colour Stacy

Posted: 12 May 2021 19:32
by PhilC
@derkom not a bad weight loss considering exactly how much you've managed to fit back into the case as well.

I'm toying with the idea of pimping out my 9.5kg worth of 286 luggable laptop. I'm sure the case and screen weigh at least 2kg.

Re: My summer project: A colour Stacy

Posted: 19 May 2021 12:20
by Atarian Computing
Oh wow. You really got it done! I've been busy with other things so my STacy hasn't received any love recently.

I now am a happy owner of a Colour Classic with SCSI2SD, LC575 board (33Mhz 040) and 128MB RAM. Also did the 640x480 hack. It's beautiful and runs MacigMac 6.2 really nicely.

Re: My summer project: A colour Stacy

Posted: 30 Dec 2021 19:29
by Gitbizy
@derkom

Please clarify this for me:

Inside the lid of the Stacy:
1) new color LCD panel
2) controller board with HDMI input

snaking through the stacy "hole" pivot:
1) speaker/indicator wires (factory wires)
2) HDMI cable
3) wires from LCD controller board to LCD daughter board
4) power for the LCD (new wires needed)

on the Stacy case bottom:
1) buttons for the LCD daughter board


Am I correct so far?

Re: My summer project: A colour Stacy

Posted: 30 Dec 2021 19:55
by derkom
Gitbizy wrote: 30 Dec 2021 19:29 snaking through the stacy "hole" pivot:
1) speaker/indicator wires (factory wires)
2) HDMI cable
3) wires from LCD controller board to LCD daughter board
4) power for the LCD (new wires needed)
Not quite. The LCD panel is a LVDS panel, and the HDMI-to-LVDS board is inside the top case with the panel, so there is no #3 from your list. The lid hinge hole has the factory indicator/dial/speakers wires (factory video wires removed), HDMI FFC cable, and power for the LVDS controller board, which in turn powers the panel.

Edit: I totally forgot that the LVDS board does have a daughterboard for its own controls, so you're correct that #3 exists. I've placed this daugherboard behind the RAM access door in the bottom of the Stacy.