You can tell that EQU47s are getting closer to their launch date when the screws and baggies start flying!
We spent the day building hardware packs and inspecting headbaskets.

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The September Equinox happened at 9:04 UTC today. This is a special day for us at Equinox Systems, as you can imagine. An equinox happens twice a year at two specific points in time when the Earth’s equator is coincident with the plane that bisects the sun. Typically on the day of an equinox, the length of day and night are approximately equivalent.
 
This concept of balance, symmetry, and harmony are key elements of our design philosophy which helps shape our company. So, to us, an equinox is a special day, and we like to use this time to reflect on how these elements apply to the world around us.
 
Happy equinox!
 

 
Francois was the first to guess our new product…a condenser microphone capsule. As the winner of our contest, Francois gets $25-off his next Equinox Systems purchase. Congrats!
 
This is the new Q47-D Capsule System—a K47-inspired capsule with a patent-pending elastomeric mount.
 
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some photos of finished EQU47 headbaskets from batch #2

photos: Billie Hall

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What have we been cooking up since the initial EQU47 production?
Well, here’s the packaging. The product itself is being subjected to our lengthy test/QA process and will be announced soon.
On to business…
 
The first person to guess our secret product (hint: it fits in these small boxes) will get $25 off of any order placed in our store (when it opens in a few weeks)!
 
To enter, just leave a comment below with your guess.
Don’t worry if your comment doesn’t show up immediately—your submission time is still recorded, which is what we’re using to determine the winner in case multiple people guess correctly.
 
Ready…FIGHT!
 
UPDATE: There has been a correct guess, and the winner is being emailed now.
We will announce the winner in a couple days!
Thanks for playing.

One of my favorite quick snacks is Annie’s Organic Mac & Chee. I’ve eaten at least 50 bowls of this stuff over the past few years.
 
It’s great.
 
And you’re probably familiar with its “instant” form-factor and preparation method:
You get a packet which is divided into two compartments—one with the noodles, the other with the powdered cheese sauce. The prep instructions are right there on the package:

The funny thing is that every time I make this (even if I’ve only just made it the day before), I can never remember how much water to add or how long to cook it.
The strange thing is that when I search the package for this information, I always look in the wrong place first.
 
So, in this scenario, why do I always look in the same (wrong) place for water amount and cooking time?
The answer to this has to do with natural mappings.
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If you are interested in building your own DIY pro audio equipment, being able to effectively troubleshoot circuits is critical to building usable equipment in a timely manner.  Key among the skills necessary to troubleshoot circuits is a thorough understanding of Ohm’s Law.

V = IR

Simple, yet profound.  Let’s use an analogy to explain the flow of electricity through your circuit by comparing it to the flow of water through a hose.

 
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It’s shaping up to be one of the hottest summers in Oklahoma history, though apparently there are worse places to live. Nevertheless, I don’t recommend visiting Oklahoma unless you have a penchant for calf fries and Garth Brooks.

Nowthen, let’s try to fry an egg on the driveway. Read the rest of this entry »

United States Customary System…
I’m talking to you!

Not only can the metric system’s dad beat up your dad—the metric system can beat up you.
America hates the metric system, and I have a big problem with that. When will America learn?

Okay, so I’m just mad because I can’t get metric fasteners locally; I have to order them online.
Sorry, America.

Here’s an 1176 I built a long time ago. It’s awesome. The PCB was designed by mnats (Mako Natsume). He’s awesome.
When I built this sucker, I realized that the wiring part was going to be full of suck. Wiring is not fun, kids. After studying the various schematics (purple, UREI), I put together this wiring guide to use while building my unit, given the parts that I chose. So it’s very specific to what I used back in 2007—some of these parts are no longer available!

Again, I did this in 2007. Things have changed since then…parts, PCB labeling, wire colors, etc. So don’t expect this to be 100% accurate for your build today. Also, I live in the United States. If you live in a place where there’s >120VAC squirting out of your walls, don’t use my power wiring—you will blow something up.

I post this wiring guide because people are always asking me for it, and it might be helpful in some way to somebody somewhere.
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