Greetings from Portland, video friends. January (and now most of February) have delivered some frustrating setbacks for both work and personal life. We had our furnace in the home/workshop go out for 10 days in January, followed by me getting sick for a couple of weeks. This kept me off the Chromagnon workbench, but I used the time to make more progress with the firmware.
Currently in the workshop we're scrambling to build the last few module restocks required to put a few Double Vision systems on the shelf. If you want one, they will be available soon!
The Chromagnon Core RevH board has been reviewed, and I'm now making a few changes for RevI. Since I'm aiming for this to be the production version, I'm being careful to review every line item on the BOM against current supply chain availability, and find alternates for a few components that are more costly than they need to be.
During my firmware sprint in January, I wrote a desktop app which communicates over USB with our hardware, allowing remote settings editing and monitoring. This is a big feature boost for Chromagnon, as it means I can enable user control over many advanced settings that aren't accessible via the frontpanel or Chromagnon's rear 16-position DIP switch. I have been integrating the communications library into other projects as well, and the plan is to release the desktop application as a general purpose utility for interacting with all of the LZX embedded hardware in greater detail.
Jonah and I have also been wrapping up the details on a few new modules that have been in development, and trying to "close all our open tabs" in this regard. Here's a list of modular projects we've finalizing.
Analog Computing Operators
- PGO, Programmable Gain & Offset (4HP) - available now!
- PRM, Precision Rectifier & Multiplier (4HP)
- PAB, Programmable Active Buffers (4HP)
Passive Utilities
- MLT, Passive Multiples (8HP)
- LNK, Passive Links (4HP)
- P, Passive Potentiomter (2HP)
Other Projects
- New video encoder designs, including digital outputs
- A slim new audio envelope/low frequency event generator module
- Expedition Mk2 releases such as a new War of the Ants and Sensory Translator
- EuroRack +/-12V power supply expanders for the Vessel 168/Vessel 84 cases.
- The Vessel 208 case, which will feature a high quality latching lid for travel
Also in the past few weeks I have been working with graphic designer Ramin Rahni, who has been developing illustrations for the Gen3 modules for our documentation website we launched with PGO back in October. I'd also like to shout out Gary MacLeod, a community member who has helped immensely with solving issues with our website -- which now loads much faster, and has better product galleries. We have Aaron Ross, a beloved community member and instructional designer, lined up to help with content editing and development too. I'm very grateful for the opportunity to work with these pros in a bartered exchange for modules -- as our budgets are quite slim going into Chromagnon season.
In parting, I received a note recently that expressed frustration over having not received an apology for the run-on-sentence that has been the Chromagon project timeline. To be clear and quite frank: I am deeply sorry for the wait, and I take full and unequivocal responsibility for it. I feel the sorriness of it deep in my bones each night as I'm trying fall asleep. I feel it deep in my gut every time I pause to think about the number of artists who made a purchase with their budget for creative equipment they do not yet have in their hands. This project has been the exact opposite of the scenario I wanted with LZX, and the biggest project planning/timing blunder I've ever made in my life. I also feel quite guilty I can't just lock myself in a room 24/7 until it's done -- the business has to be run, kids have to eat, rent has to be paid, so products still have to be developed alongside. I'm continuously rotating through projects, and moving Chromagnon forward with as many resources as I can give it. I'm really looking forward to delivering on the promise of this device, and ending this chapter in our shared story. Despite it all, thank you for believing in the dream of Chromagnon. You have all been very understanding and I owe you my gratitude. I can't speak for all of you, but I know for some it will have been more than worth the wait.
Love and light, I look forward to writing again soon,
Lars