Another motor controller

[kffern]

There is another controller out of Germany.
The final version isn't out as yet which will be diy.
It will have a speed monitor with real time correction to the controller. An Arduino version also has speed monitoring but the sine wave isnt great. He has just released another version using arduino which has a good sinewave and speed motoring and feedback.
Wish I had the time to try it out.

I have exchanged a few emails with him and he seems really keen and helpful.

http://mate-labs.de/the-10-bucks-arduino-magicquartz-with-high-quality-sine-wave/
http://mate-labs.de/magicquartz/

No shortage of controllers these days!

Kevan

[arched]

Great! Very interesting.

Looks like something which will fit my budget.

[GHK]

It's funny to get the information about a German developed controller from the other side of the world
I will follow this project with interest, it might be a veritable alternative to Nigel's controller and/or the (expensive) Phoenix Eagle...

[mosin]

It's funny to get the information about a German developed controller from the other side of the world
I will follow this project with interest, it might be a veritable alternative to Nigel's controller and/or the (expensive) Phoenix Eagle...

How is the Phoenix Eagle expensive? If anything, it seems to be underpriced for what it does.

[GHK]

Maybe it's underpriced for what it does and how it is finished, but it's not a bargain for Europeans.
The price for it together with the Road Runner tacho are 760USD, that are about 670 Euros PLUS 19% VAT (in Germany -still-, even more in other European countries) =798 Eur PLUS custom fees (no idea) PLUS not specified shipping costs to Germany, that will be about 850 EUS complete - minimum.
That's not what me as an European would call "cheap". But I understand that the view of anybody living in the U.S. is different.

[reinderspeter]

Maybe it's underpriced for what it does and how it is finished, but it's not a bargain for Europeans.
The price for it together with the Road Runner tacho are 760USD, that are about 670 Euros PLUS 19% VAT (in Germany -still-, even more in other European countries) =798 Eur PLUS custom fees (no idea) PLUS not specified shipping costs to Germany, that will be about 850 EUS complete - minimum.
That's not what me as an European would call "cheap". But I understand that the view of anybody living in the U.S. is different.

As far as I know there is only a 110V version, so not suitable for Europe anyway. But I agree with Mosin, for a non-DIY product it is not expensive at all.

[kffern]

How is the Phoenix Eagle expensive? If anything, it seems to be underpriced for what it does.

Its all relative I guess. Us is poor folk with many mouths to feed and varying priorities.

kevan

[Chris65]

As far as I know there is only a 110V version, so not suitable for Europe anyway.

From the Phoenix Engineering website:
All of the products have universal input (100-260VAC 50/60Hz) wall adpaters that power them. The output of the Falcon PSU is 115VAC only so it would require a low power step up transformer (travel converter) to drive a 220VAC motor. The Eagle is jumper selectable for 115VAC/230VAC output and can drive a 220VAC motor without a converter

[ZigZag]

Great! Very interesting.

Looks like something which will fit my budget.

That does look interesting.  I couldn't find a price though;  did I miss it?

Specs would also be helpful;  from the size of the heat sink, I'm wondering if this is going to be able to power a Lenco motor? 

I wonder what the power source is?  Do you have to provide your own DC supply?

[kffern]

That does look interesting.  I couldn't find a price though;  did I miss it?

Specs would also be helpful;  from the size of the heat sink, I'm wondering if this is going to be able to power a Lenco motor?  

I wonder what the power source is?  Do you have to provide your own DC supply?

Its still being developed. He hopes to have a basic kit for under 100 euros.
It requires an 18v 1amp dc source.
Kevan

[SteffenD]

The world is a village.
The developer has been a long time member in the German Dual Forum and had started a thread regarding his Controller early this year.
Now, that he has his own internet presence, the thread is somehow lacking fuel.....
Well, Dual guys generally show a lack of interest in building things. Even a replinthing is seen as a kind of sacrilege sometimes. And speed controllers are definitely not en vogue there.
cheers
Steffen

[ZigZag]

Maybe it's underpriced for what it does and how it is finished, but it's not a bargain for Europeans.
The price for it together with the Road Runner tacho are 760USD, that are about 670 Euros PLUS 19% VAT (in Germany -still-, even more in other European countries) =798 Eur PLUS custom fees (no idea) PLUS not specified shipping costs to Germany, that will be about 850 EUS complete - minimum.
That's not what me as an European would call "cheap". But I understand that the view of anybody living in the U.S. is different.

Well, high tariffs are designed to make imported products too expensive to purchase, that is why some countries impose them: To protect the local mfrs from competition.  It's really not the fault of the exporter.

[CyberSeb]

Hi,

I'm the "inventor" of MagicQuartz and one of your forum members invited me to join this thread. Feel free to ask me any questions.

I'm impressed about the Lenco community. I was not aware that there is such a big community around these. I'm rather a Dual guy.   And yes, modding a Dual is a no no no-go!  

I do not think the Falcon devices are expensive at all. Keep in mind that these are not mass products and FINISHED devices. With all the regulations in the EU and in Germany, I believe I will never be able to sell finished electronic devices. And to be honest, I can't solder these units in my appartement without going nuts. Just doing my regular job would earn me more money. So my idea is to make MagicQuartz cheap and affordable for DIYers. The hardware will be sold near or at its prime costs, I only will ask for some money for the full firmware (this was truely a tough work). And for the tinkerers, there are the free Arduino versions.

I really like the Falcon units (beautiful hardware design), but I am wondering how they did the speed correction in the firmware. I do not have one of these, but appearently, there is nothing you can configure yourself. How can you fine-tune these to work properly with your turntable? If they managed to do this, hats of, really. The only thing I don't like is the magnet that has to be attached to the platter. It should not be of practical relevance, but a magnet bypassing the pickup is (theoretically) not so great.

The MagicQuartz requires a 24V DC powersupply with at least 1A (better 1.5 or 2A). It can deliver about 20-30 Watts. I do not have any experiences with Lenco turntables yet.

The heatsink is sufficient for a Dual 1219. It might even work without the heatsink. MagicQuartz uses PWM switching, so it is pretty power-efficient. It's similar to a class D amplifier. You can't compare it to "analog" amplifier circuits. The Arduino version (which I announced here: http://mate-labs.de/the-10-bucks-arduino-magicquartz-with-high-quality-sine-wave/) runs too hot without a heatsink and the power amplifier switches into protection mode from time to time.  

Cheers, Sebastian

[Andr039]

The only thing I don't like is the magnet that has to be attached to the platter. It should not be of practical relevance, but a magnet bypassing the pickup is (theoretically) not so great.
Cheers, Sebastian

Hi, Sebastian

what about optopair and a thin stripe of foil glued under the disk? i saw the same design and even thought that it can be adapted to count the rpm on tt 
best,

[CyberSeb]

Hi Andrey,

this is exactly how MagicQuartz works. It uses an optocoupler. Yes, you can also mount this sensor below the platter, but I recommend to attach a small paper sticker to the side of the platter. The optical sensor attaches to the back of turntable's chassis with a magnet (not moving, and far away from the pickup). No need to modify your turntable.

You can see this in this video: http://mate-labs.de/magicquartz-early-preview-video/

The optical sensor is, however, much harder to process in software compared to a magnetic relay. However, MagicQuartz does the optical sensor calibration automatically and guides the user if the optical sensor is not postioned perfectly. If you're interested, you can read about this in detail in the software documentation: http://mate-labs.de/download/

Sebastian