Xiwi Electronics

Xiwi is a small fabrication and design studio located in Brooklyn, NY

[xiwielectronics-blog]

MFOS Noise Toaster Synthesizer

This week, I spent a few hours getting back to my analog synthesizer roots and built three Noise Toaster kits from the brilliant synth DIY website Music from Outer Space. As you can probably tell, I spent a significant amount of time designing the enclosure and selecting the perfect hardware. The case is composed of walnut with laser etched acrylic front and back panels.  The synths are currently for sale through the Etsy shop. https://www.etsy.com/shop/Xiwi Audio samples - http://tiny.cc/33dzuw More photos - http://tiny.cc/n4dzuw

[xiwielectronics-blog]

Arduinoboy Batch

I finished the first batch of Arduinoboys last night using the PCBs I received from OSH Park. I used a nifty white stompbox enclosure from Mammoth to house the electronics. All of these have owner's already and will be shipped out tomorrow morning.

Now that I have confirmed that the PCB layout works and created a workflow for manufacturing them, I'll be adding the Arduinoboy as a permanent item available through my Etsy shop. There will be options available for LED color, layout, and enclosure color. 

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Panoramical Controller

A few weeks ago at the Playthings Symposium at Parsons I had the absolute pleasure of experiencing Panoramical, an interactive visual and musical environment by Fernando Ramallo (visuals) and David Kanaga (sound). I was even more excited to discover that Fernando was at the event. 

I was so affected by the beauty and playfulness of the game that I offered to build Fernando a controller that would without a doubt add to the experience of Panoramical. When he mentioned that he would be exhibiting it at a few parties and events surrounding the Game Developer's Conference in San Francisco, I set to work immediately drafting designs and ordering parts.

The controller is now finished and in San Franciso where Fernando has confirmed it working. I am elated and the thought of hundreds of people using it gives me chills! I hope everyone at GDC (and in NYC) has a chance to see it at one of the following events...

Ahhhcade: A Pop-up Experimental Games Arcade San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, March 28

All Other Parties Are Trite and Dull Public Works, San Francisco, March 27 Zen Arcade: A Party Celebrating Zenful Game Experiences 285 Kent, Brooklyn, March 

Photos of the build process as well as promotional shots of the controller are available on my Flickr page.

[xiwielectronics-blog]

Data Toys Project

I recently had the pleasure of working with Parsons MFA Design and Technology professors, Colleen Macklin and John Sharp, on their Data Toys research initiative. I was tasked with creating a modular toy which would load different sets of data on an iPad depending on which head was attached to the main body

I documented my build process on the following Flickr set... http://www.flickr.com/photos/52082118@N05/sets/72157632976117691/detail/

From PETLab Website Employable? is an early prototype for the "Making it in America" project based on the project API. The toy models the relationships between 25 cities in the US and the potential an immigrant has for finding employment in order to reflect on how likely immigrants of different education levels are to find employment.

A set of toy characters represent immigrants with three different education levels—no high school diploma, up to an associate’s degree, and a bachelor’s degree or better. By placing a toy on the iPad, the player selects a city, then one of the three years for which we have data. The player can then see the employment pool within which the immigrant would compete. The competition conveys the percentage of potential applicant pool broken down by level of employment and employment status.

More information on this project... petlab.parsons.edu/datatoys/projects/employable/

[xiwielectronics-blog]

Arduinoboy PCBs

I received my Arduinoboy PCBs from OSH Park in the mail today. It was a thrilling experience to hold the little 1.5" x 1.5" boards in my hand after spending several hours of drafting in Eagle. It only took three weeks to get them printed and at an incredibly reasonable price considering the distance they traveled.

I will post the Eagle file soon for any enthusiasts who want to create their own. With the exception of two traces, the board is entirely single-sided, making it a perfect candidate for any at home PCB etching process. I am also uploading a simple protoboard layout. This would make an excellent introductory project for anyone looking to make a dirt cheap Gameboy MIDI interface.