Just getting Started - Need help please

[Jem]

Well, I've gone and done it !!

I've just ordered a set of DT40Pro Scanners from Jian

So, I now have the laser and will soon have the scanners, I have (most of) the optics & mounts from my holography bits and pieces. All I need now (I think) is a DAC and some software. I'm going to try and be patient and see what the new Pangolin 'hobbyist' setup is like. Does anyone know anything else about this yet?

Is there anything else i'm likely to need? If anyone has any schematics for the optical part of the setup i'd really appreciate some guidance, bearing in mind that my projector will probably undergo expansion to RGB once I get the hang of everything.

Thanks to you all for your continue help.

Cheers

Jem

[fluff]

I'm not exactly sure what all can be done with the FB3 card. I know that it will function as a stand-alone player, so long as the whole show has already been loaded onto the compact-flash memory card. You can send show start and stop commands to the card either via DMX signals or via the USB port.

Based on what Fluff wrote, it does sound like you can "slave" a FB3 unit to an LD2000 board and use the DMX output on the LD2000 board to run the FB3 board as well. I guess you'd need to pre-load the files onto the card though, just as in the case above.

But I don't think you can send images to it on-the-fly, so to speak. I believe that anything you want to display on the FB3 board has to be first loaded onto the compact flash memory card.

Hayden Hale was talking about producing an entire show on an LD2000 board and then saving it to the FB3 unit. Evidently, so long as the whole show will fit on the memory card, once you've programmed the show it will play on the FB3 card *without* having the LD2000 card hooked up... (You could run the show either from a DMX lighting board or from the software that comes with the FB3 board and talks to it via USB.)

I'm wondering if this setup would only work for simple images though, or if it would work for any show. The abstract generator would seem to present a huge stumbling block, considering that the abstract generator is done in hardware on the LD2000 board and that abstract hardware doesn't exist on the FB3 board... Perhaps the LD2000 software will render the abstract frames as ilda and that's what you save to the FB3 card? I dunno. Lots of questions.

Adam

The fb3 can be controlled by the ( Cypher ) software remotely. It triggers the images stored in the card.

You can also control size colour position speed scanrate fade zoom rotate etc , like any other control system. From a user standpoint its no different functionally from other systems , in real time.

Firmware updates can be done from the laptop.

The software also has a basic editing function to create your own stuff. Short sequences to full shows can be uploaded to the memory card. It has 9 pages with a possible 48 sequences/cues per page. File size is the main constraint on what content it will play

Have a look here http://www.neo-laser.com.cn/product_detail.asp?pid=952

and here http://www.neo-laser.com.cn/product_detail.asp?pid=953

I'm not sure if the new Pangolin system will be the same as the Cypher version, or of what it will sell for, but if any UK guys want to see a sytem working , just pm me

Fluff

[steve-o]

Jem, the gallery http://photonlexicon.com/gallery/ has lots of good pics of some of our setups (1 pic is worth 1000 words)..ya know...
Steve

[JimBo]

I might be wrong but IIRC Bill said that the FB3 was modular and was designed so that it could have the DMX and Flash reader removed, I think I also recall him saying that the hobbyist version would be without the DMX.

Jim

[fluff]

Yes, the fb3 is modular.

It has a motherboard and several plugins. The motherboard has a mini usb port and staus leds on a small plate , for flush mounting on the back of a case

For the Neo units there is a dmx board, a beam table board, the GUI interface, an input switcher. Sorry if I've missed anything, but I have a soggy brain today !

In Semi Pro units the DMX is set from a dip package. The pro units are set from the included GUI interface.

To interface with LD2000 you would need trigger the memory cards from the LD2000 dmx out.

Hope this helps

Fluff

[Jem]

My DT40Pro Galvos arrived yesterday (12th March) from Jian725 - Thanks jian.

So, I now have the Galvos, a nice 532nm green 250mw(ish) analogue laser, a few optical bits and pieces and some optical mounts. I'm getting an aluminium baseplate (500mm x 400mm x 8mm) from the Metal Warehouse in Leeds later this week to mount everything on.

I now need some software and a DAC ...

Any further news on this Pangolin 'Hobbyist' system yet ???, if I have to wait for this it could be weeks or months before I can get started. I don't mind waiting if I know that there is a definate release date, however, with nothing specific announced I guess it could be quite some time being released.

Is the general concensus of opinion that it will be worth waiting for? or would I be better off getting started and going for say, the Mamba Black and an Easylase USB DAC?

Also, I didn't receive any instructions at all with the Galvos. Basically I haven't a clue as to what to wire where and i'm cautious in case I make a mistake. I don't want to blow anything up before I even get going! Any help in this direction would be greatly appreciated.

Next... Red DPSS Analogue Lasers. Can anyone suggest what are decent makes? I'm sure I read somewhere that someone on this forum makes and sells them (was it Marconi?). Anyway, a nice shade of red to go with the green would be good, I guess 650nm would be decent as it's further into the visible spectrum. This will eventually form part of my proposed RGB projector so I need something that will balance up nicely with the green laser, how many mw should I be aiming for to balance up with 250wm of 532nm?

As always, I really appreciate everyones help and I thank you for taking the time to help me get started :-)

Cheers

Jem

[cruch]

I got LDS software for sale. SOFTWARE ONLY.
New price at LDS is 787usd + shipping.
I will let it go for 450 usd incl shipping. This includes about 70+ complete shows.

More info at: http://www.laserdesignstudio.de

[buffo]

Hi Jem;

Congrats on the purchase of the DT-40's. I know you'll enjoy them! As far as wiring them up: there are a few threads here in the forums that will help you. However, until you have a DAC there's nothing to wire them up to, so don't be too stressed over it just yet.

As for your question about the Pangolin hobbyist system - that's a tough one. My best guess is that you will need to wait a while for it to be released. By "a while", I mean anywhere from 4 weeks out to several months. Sorry, but there just isn't a lot of information available right now.

On the other hand, since you were thinking about using this projector for commercial use, you might not want the Pangolin hobbyist product anyway. Remember that will be licensed for non-commercial use only. So if you want to get started right away, *and* you eventually plan on trying to use the system commercialy, then I'd have to say that you'd be better off buying Mamba Black and the Easylase USB DAC.

As far as color balance goes: the "perfect" ratio is 4.6 of red to 2.6 of blue to 1 of green. However, very few projectors achieve this balance. As a general rule of thumb, you want *lots* of red, as much blue as you can afford, and it's OK to have excess green to give you a little more omph when you do beams.

Since you've got 250 mw of green, ideally you'd want over a watt of red. But that's going to be really expensive! Since everything will be analog, you can probably get away with 500 mw of red and just dial your green back by half when you need perfect color balance.

Likewise, you will need 650 mw of blue for "perfect" color balance, but you can make do with a lot less - especially for graphics. If it were me, I'd want at least 200 mw of blue, but I don't know what your budget is. (200 mw of DPSS blue is going to be *expensive*.)

Marconi does indeed sell some very nice red diode lasers that last at 650-658 nm. (Note: they are direct injection diodes, not DPSS units.) They are rated at 200 mw each, and you can combine two of them using a polarizing beam-splitting cube to get nearly 400 mw total. (Contact Marconi for details on custom sets that have been tweaked for max power; I think you can get a total of 500 mw out of a set, but you'll pay a surcharge for the tweaks and the lifetime of the lasers might be shortened.) The beam quality is very good and the price is quite competitive.

Alternatives would be a 500 mw direct injection diode at 635 nm, which is more expensive but would appear brighter, or a DPSS red laser at 671 nm. I wouldn't recommend the 671 nm unit though, because of the higher cost and lower apparent brightness. On the other hand, the 635 nm diodes I've seen typically have really wide beams, which isn't ideal for laser graphics. (It's hard to get much more than 400-500 mw of red in a solid state package without spending 4 figures.)

Adam

[Jem]

Thanks Adam

I love your replies, always full of information with plenty to think about! There never seems to be an 'easy' option with anything to do with lasers :-(

From a purely visual point of view I guess the 635nm would seem the best option, but as you point out the beam divergence is probably more than is desirable. 670 DPSS is getting towards the limits of visual perception so I guess that's out unless you're planning on throwing loads of (wasted?) power out. That leaves the 650nm diodes... What is everyone else using for their red output, is there what's considered a 'best option' ? < he says hopefully :-) >

Regarding the software... To be honest I can't see me ever doing commercial shows (The mind's willing but the body isn't :-) besides, I like to be tucked up in bed too early on a night !). So, I guess i'll stick with the 'Hobbyist' label for a while. I've emailed Jian regarding an Easylase USB DAC and I have also sent for prices on the medialas USB DAC.

I'm still looking at software options but the Mamba seems to look o.k. - again i'm waiting for prices as i've no idea what it costs.

I keep asking myself 'why lasers'? Surely I could have found a much cheaper hobby. There's just something about that coherent light and those vivid colours, note UK spelling ;-)

I still love making holograms and get a real buzz out of seeing those 3d images. It's all about having fun and at 49 I can still be as excited as a kid in a sweet shop, or should that say candy store.

Cheers

Jem

[steve-o]

Oh good! Another old-timer (I'm 51)
I bought one of Marconi's 660 (658)nm >200mw module, and I'm happy with it. They have a good reliability record which is worth ALOT.
Steve