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Show HN: TheKnob – sound volume control knob made of concrete and RGB lights

theknob.co

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Re: Show HN: TheKnob – sound volume control knob made of concrete and RGB lights

#81

Post by teemofeev »

tkzed49 wrote: post #14

Seems like this is inspired by DIYPerks' video from a few years ago, is it not? https://youtu.be/sJ5vhShdVjo

Hey tkzed49,

Right, the concept of the knob made of concrete is fully inspired by DIY Perks. But we've added a lot of sugar:

- Open-source Arduino-compatible firmware so you can add your functionalities and light effects;

- The audio is controlled with the HID library instead of potentiometer;

- There are one audio input and two outputs that can be switched with the hardware switch;

- Bonus option is you can use it as a scrolling knob;

- The audio lines are connected to the microcontroller and you can add light effects relative to the sound;

- It is 3d printed and we also added a 3d printable model of the mold for the concrete part;

Re: Show HN: TheKnob – sound volume control knob made of concrete and RGB lights

#82

Post by teemofeev »

kaushikt wrote: post #52
jbverschoor wrote: post #36

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Or breaking the back button

breaking the back button is an absolute sin. What could be the possible use case for anyone to break the back button this way?

Sorry guys, I didn't expect so much interest from the audience. I've updated the website, hope it's better now :)

Re: Show HN: TheKnob – sound volume control knob made of concrete and RGB lights

#83

Post by teemofeev »

egypturnash wrote: post #16

So it's a PowerMate ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Griffin_PowerMate ) except made from concrete? (Huh, apparently Griffin stopped making them in 2018, so I guess there's room for a replacement. I covet one every time I remember they exist but I never quite covet one enough to actually want to spend the money getting one...)

We're a small team, not a huge company. We've made this product open-source and free to use in our spare time.

The concept of the knob made of concrete is fully inspired by DIY Perks.

I'm not sure, but Griffin does not offer you all the perks I've described below:

- Open-source Arduino-compatible firmware so you can add your functionalities and light effects;

- The audio is controlled with the HID library instead of potentiometer; spare time - There are one audio input and two outputs that can be switched with the hardware switch;

- Bonus option is you can use it as a scrolling knob;

- The audio lines are connected to the microcontroller and you can add light effects relative to the sound;

- It is 3d printed and we also added a 3d printable model of the mold for the concrete part;

Have a nice day ;)

Re: Show HN: TheKnob – sound volume control knob made of concrete and RGB lights

#84

Post by teemofeev »

lukevp wrote: post #31
aspenmayer wrote: post #20

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In all fairness, it looks like user DIY Perks on YouTube already did the work to make the prototype. I’m not sure what’s different about this version; I’m sure it could even be superior. But let’s put credit where it’s due. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sJ5vhShdVjo

Thanks for sharing. They’re obviously inspired by that one from a materials point of view, but the technical implementation is far different. There are some major limitations on the YouTube one. First of all, it’s a potentiometer not a rotary encoder, so it has a start and a stop. Second, it is controlling an audio signal directly, not using a PC, so it is not usable in the same way. Audio would need to be routed thr…

To avoid any confusion:

The concept of the knob made of concrete is fully inspired by DIY Perks. But we are added a lot of perks, like:

- Open-source Arduino-compatible firmware so you can add your functionalities and light effects;

- The audio is controlled with the HID library instead of potentiometer; spare time - There are one audio input and two outputs that can be switched with the hardware switch;

- Bonus option is you can use it as a scrolling knob;

- The audio lines are connected to the microcontroller and you can add light effects relative to the sound;

- It is 3d printed and we also added a 3d printable model of the mold for the concrete part;

Have a nice day ;)

Re: Show HN: TheKnob – sound volume control knob made of concrete and RGB lights

#86

Post by teemofeev »

We are getting a lot of questions about the knob.

Here is some info to avoid any confusion:

The concept of the knob made of concrete is fully inspired by DIY Perks. But we are added a lot of perks, like:

- Open-source Arduino-compatible firmware so you can add your functionalities and light effects;

- The audio is controlled with the HID library instead of potentiometer; spare time - There are one audio input and two outputs that can be switched with the hardware switch;

- Bonus option is you can use it as a scrolling knob;

- The audio lines are connected to the microcontroller and you can add light effects relative to the sound;

- It is 3d printed and we also added a 3d printable model of the mold for the concrete part;

If you are interested in buying one of the samples please email us, we'll try to figure something out. This way you will help us understand how desirable the product is.

Thank you and Have a nice day ;)

Re: Show HN: TheKnob – sound volume control knob made of concrete and RGB lights

#87

Post by teemofeev »

If someone is still reading this:

We're the developers of TheKnob.

Please tell us how would you like us to improve the knob itself?

Would you buy it?

Would you like to see it as a DIY kit or ready-to-use product?

We're using plastic for the bottom frame now, maybe we should consider using aluminum or wood frame?

Re: Show HN: TheKnob – sound volume control knob made of concrete and RGB lights

#88

Post by egypturnash »

rsync wrote: post #49
egypturnash wrote: post #16

So it's a PowerMate ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Griffin_PowerMate ) except made from concrete? (Huh, apparently Griffin stopped making them in 2018, so I guess there's room for a replacement. I covet one every time I remember they exist but I never quite covet one enough to actually want to spend the money getting one...)

"Huh, apparently Griffin stopped making them in 2018, so I guess there's room for a replacement." Teenage Engineering makes one of these: https://teenage.engineering/products/orthoremote It is designed as a remote volume control for one of their synths but it is a generic bluetooth volume control device that can be used with anything. I have one - very nice and very high build quality.

How much of a pain in the ass is it to configure it to control things besides volume with it? Because whenever I think "it'd be nice to have a PowerMate" I'm never thinking about volume control.

Re: Show HN: TheKnob – sound volume control knob made of concrete and RGB lights

#89

Post by chris_st »

jedimastert wrote: post #24
chris_st wrote: post #13

I have... somewhere... a stainless steel knob, designed to control the volume, that was wonderful to feel and turn. Alas, the driver was incredibly flaky, and just wouldn't work consistently. I ought to dig it up and see if I can reverse engineer it.

Is it, by any chance, a Griffin Powermate? " rel="nofollow">https://www.wikiwand.com/en/Griffin_PowerMate>

Yup! I may give their drivers another try... this is a different computer, with a later OS.

Alas, they no longer support it. Ah well...

Re: Show HN: TheKnob – sound volume control knob made of concrete and RGB lights

#90

Post by jbverschoor »

Gibbon1 wrote: post #37
jbverschoor wrote: post #36

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Or breaking the back button

Be nice if there was a DNS that blackholes websites that break the back button.

OH yeah! A DNS that would crawl the website, launch a VM with a couple browsers to see if the backbutton is broken.
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