Krystone Posted February 1 Share Posted February 1 800XL REPACKAGED So... I've been sketching and thinking and prototyping a new 800XL-based computer case just for the fun of it (somehow, for the time being, I seem not to prefer 3D prints until the technology gets to at least very close to the quality offered by injection molding). Here's my first prototype made using PMMA with digital print on the inside. The entire red color is printed and intentionally semi-transparent, so that I could have a peek inside, but also so that I would be able to create a colorful top/front. The holes are 30 mm in diameter and are meant for installing arcade style buttons, much like on the XEGS (probably very low profile ones). The keyboard is to be attached using PS2 or USB. I would like to use a newly assembled motherboard supplied by either @reifsnyderb or _______, or create another one. Anyway, I thought I'd share this early prototype. I do have more ideas in mind, but we'll just have to see if I can hold onto the initial enthusiasm 🙂 PS. I might share this if there's any interest. This is purely not for profit and for personal use only. 16 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Overange Posted February 1 Share Posted February 1 That's pretty awesome 😎 Is the front height from top of the pcb to the top lid based on original clearances, or is there additional clearance to accommodate upgrades? When this one is complete, would you consider an XE version? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beeblebrox Posted February 1 Share Posted February 1 (edited) @KrystoneVery interesting product design there. Will watch this one. Edit: As Overage says space would need to be factored in for potential upgrades, (U1MB, Stereo, Sophia 2, VBXE). One of the bonuses of stock 800XL's is there is plenty of room in the casing for these. Taking this potential away in your design would be a pity. Also make sure the casing's cart slot clearance is ok. It would have to accomodate multicarts like Side3 and AVG and any multicart's side ports. eg AVG: Current tollerances are very tight, and if raising the height of the casing to accomodate aforementioned upgrades, you may have issues: Edited February 1 by Beeblebrox 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Krystone Posted February 1 Author Share Posted February 1 (edited) 45 minutes ago, Overange said: Is the front height from top of the pcb to the top lid based on original clearances, or is there additional clearance to accommodate upgrades? This is my first prototype. In fact, hardly anyone believed PMMA could be printed and then bent this way, but I was stubborn. The clearances are not enough for major upgrades as I wanted the front to be as thin as possible, however, I can adjust this in another revision if that's what needs to be done. This is easy. 45 minutes ago, Overange said: When this one is complete, would you consider an XE version? I can do it at the same time. Doesn't matter to me. I work quickly in Illustrator, but making this physically takes someone's effort. This was just proof of concept. I wanted to first see and feel it. Next revision will have some rounded edges, and for sure will be adjusted for height. Other improvements will be made as well. I've also just purchased different buttons (Seimitsu PS-15 Series) to be mounted because the clearances inside are tight and the ones from Sanwa I had didn't fit. https://paradisearcadeshop.com/collections/seimitsu-ps-15-series Edited February 1 by Krystone 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Krystone Posted February 1 Author Share Posted February 1 12 minutes ago, Beeblebrox said: Edit: As Overage says space would need to be factored in for potential upgrades, (U1MB, Stereo, Sophia 2, VBXE). Each case is hand-bent and can have different dimensions. I would make one that is taller for sure. In fact, even the print can be completely different (colors, theme, etc). 12 minutes ago, Beeblebrox said: Also make sure the casing's cart slot clearance is ok. It would have to accomodate multicarts like Side3 and AVG and any multicart side ports. This should be OK, it is like on 800XL + a couple mm more. Better than 1200XL 🙂 I will still test this. AVG and SUB carts work well! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beeblebrox Posted February 1 Share Posted February 1 (edited) 10 minutes ago, Krystone said: I will still test this. AVG and SUB carts work well! sure. They may well do have good clearance at the moment, but might not have clearance if the casing is raised if you see what I mean? The higher the casing's cart hole is up the cart and deeper the cart sits - (if we are accomodating internal upgrades) - the higher the chances of it interfering with AVG's side port are. I like the simplicity of the bent casing design btw EDIT: another really nice feature would be semi- precut holes and mounts for various connectors for the likes of Sophia 2, stereo jacks, spare Din holes for say s Din13 (VBXE), etc. These plugged holes could basically be left in place for most users and for those who wish to install say stereo jacks, you just push the plastic plugs out - they snap out and are discarded, then jacks, etc installled. This way no cutting of any casing needed. Edited February 1 by Beeblebrox 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Krystone Posted February 1 Author Share Posted February 1 (edited) Here are a few more photos. Edited February 1 by Krystone 2 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Overange Posted February 1 Share Posted February 1 For your Panel buttons and to make it easy to hook up to I can easily rework my Keyboard Adapter PCB, to just have connection/breakouts/headers for the Reset/option buttons and an LED hook up point and make it lower profile. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beeblebrox Posted February 1 Share Posted February 1 @Krystone incidentally although I totally agree 3D printing isn't gonna get nearly as nice a product as your prototypes, I am curious to see how it would look. Perhaps it would need to be printed in three parts though as the average 3D printer is 220 x 220 x 250 mm. I'd love to give it a go on my Ender 3 pro in semi transparent pla filament. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Krystone Posted February 1 Author Share Posted February 1 7 minutes ago, Beeblebrox said: I'd love to give it a go on my Ender 3 pro in semi transparent pla filament. This wasn't designed in 3D. It's 2D. PM sent. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Larry Posted February 1 Share Posted February 1 Very nice! But has anyone tackled a 3D case for a XL or XE? Perhaps in sections that would have flanges so as to glue the sections together. Maybe 4 or 6 sections? Just curious. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beeblebrox Posted February 1 Share Posted February 1 14 minutes ago, Larry said: Very nice! But has anyone tackled a 3D case for a XL or XE? Perhaps in sections that would have flanges so as to glue the sections together. Maybe 4 or 6 sections? Just curious. I've not come across a 3d printable design. Had a really good look for one last year. I may try and design none this year. My 3D design skills aren't great, and we would be needing something that was accurate enough. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mathy Posted February 2 Share Posted February 2 Hello Krystone Would it be possible to use a XEGS style keyboard? As in, using the same interface, so you could either use the XEGS keyboard or maybe a newly designed XL style keyboard but with the same connector? Sincerely Mathy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Krystone Posted February 2 Author Share Posted February 2 4 hours ago, Mathy said: Would it be possible to use a XEGS style keyboard? As in, using the same interface, so you could either use the XEGS keyboard or maybe a newly designed XL style keyboard but with the same connector? Theoretically it is possible to design such interface, however, my EE skills are rather basic so this isn't something I'd pursue at the moment, unless someone with background in electronics is willing to take this part. I do have XEGS at home, so testing wouldn't be a problem for me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Krystone Posted February 2 Author Share Posted February 2 I've raised the front by 17 mm (~11/16") and raised the back by 10 mm (~3/8"). I don't want to go much higher because I don't want this to look like a C64 🙂 ...but more importantly, the proportions are getting less elegant. I'm changing the design a little as well, and I will try to mix in different materials. There should be enough room for larger upgrades now. Another option for additional headroom that I might explore is not to use physical buttons but instead installing capacitive touch/proximity switches/sensors. For example based on: PCF8883 as an alternative to Seimitsu buttons. Personally, I like physical buttons better, but I am somewhat curious about PCF8883 or similar. Virtual buttons could be printed like so: 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beeblebrox Posted February 2 Share Posted February 2 Re capacitive buttons. Nice idea. You could also just use memontary micro button switches which, mounted, take up less than say 7-8mm in height. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
_The Doctor__ Posted February 2 Share Posted February 2 (edited) A nice metal mesh screen on the inner case surfaces and a gentle light inside would really show off you PCB as well. Would really be sharp! Edited February 2 by _The Doctor__ 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Overange Posted February 2 Share Posted February 2 10 hours ago, Krystone said: I've raised the front by 17 mm (~11/16") and raised the back by 10 mm (~3/8"). I don't want to go much higher because I don't want this to look like a C64 🙂 ...but more importantly, the proportions are getting less elegant. I'm changing the design a little as well, and I will try to mix in different materials. There should be enough room for larger upgrades now. Another option for additional headroom that I might explore is not to use physical buttons but instead installing capacitive touch/proximity switches/sensors. For example based on: PCF8883 as an alternative to Seimitsu buttons. Personally, I like physical buttons better, but I am somewhat curious about PCF8883 or similar. Virtual buttons could be printed like so: As mentioned in my previous post and to help with ease of connections to your Console Buttons I have redesigned my Mini Keyboard Adapter to just have the Console and LED connections available to connect to. I have also created an XE version as well. An order has been placed. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Overange Posted February 2 Share Posted February 2 10 hours ago, Krystone said: I've raised the front by 17 mm (~11/16") and raised the back by 10 mm (~3/8"). I don't want to go much higher because I don't want this to look like a C64 🙂 ...but more importantly, the proportions are getting less elegant. I'm changing the design a little as well, and I will try to mix in different materials. There should be enough room for larger upgrades now. Another option for additional headroom that I might explore is not to use physical buttons but instead installing capacitive touch/proximity switches/sensors. For example based on: PCF8883 as an alternative to Seimitsu buttons. Personally, I like physical buttons better, but I am somewhat curious about PCF8883 or similar. Virtual buttons could be printed like so: Just another thought on this, could you get a membrane designed and made for this, that would look really cool and you can get them illuminated as well? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Krystone Posted February 3 Author Share Posted February 3 18 hours ago, Overange said: As mentioned in my previous post and to help with ease of connections to your Console Buttons I have redesigned my Mini Keyboard Adapter to just have the Console and LED connections available to connect to. I have also created an XE version as well. An order has been placed. I wish you would have consulted me 🙂 I wanted a particular location for a LED on the PCB. I might need to design my own, which I could have avoided. Oh, well, next time 🙂 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Krystone Posted February 3 Author Share Posted February 3 18 hours ago, Overange said: Just another thought on this, could you get a membrane designed and made for this, that would look really cool and you can get them illuminated as well? "inexpensive" was the keyword, but yeah, perhaps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Overange Posted February 3 Share Posted February 3 6 hours ago, Krystone said: I wish you would have consulted me 🙂 I wanted a particular location for a LED on the PCB. I might need to design my own, which I could have avoided. Oh, well, next time 🙂 Certainly! I apologise for any inconvenience caused. I completely understand your frustration regarding the LED location on the PCB. Please know that I was already engaged in a project requiring a similar adapter, but I'm more than willing to send you a sample to evaluate if it aligns with your requirements. If it doesn't meet your specific needs, I'll gladly work on creating one tailored to your preferences. Your feedback is valuable, Thank you for your understanding. 6 hours ago, Krystone said: "inexpensive" was the keyword, but yeah, perhaps. Acknowledged! Considering the emphasis on cost-effectiveness. Your research will be instrumental in identifying the most suitable solution that aligns with both functionality and budget considerations. Your initiative in this regard is appreciated, and I look forward to your insights. 2 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Krystone Posted February 16 Author Share Posted February 16 Just got a package from UK... And there was this tiny lovely thing. Only somewhat related to my project, yet I still wanted to share my enthusiasm and mention @Overange for creating this cool little toy. It made my day. Thank you! 3 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beeblebrox Posted February 16 Share Posted February 16 They are great. I use mine all the time. Mainly where I am either troubleshooting a new xl/XE which also happens to have a bad keyboard, or for when I am upgrading them and want to test things, navigate u1mb bios, etc, without the need to plug in the stock keyboard and have it balanced precariously on top or to the side. Overange's creations are great and great value for money. 2 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mega_hz Posted February 18 Share Posted February 18 On 2/16/2024 at 12:44 PM, Krystone said: Just got a package from UK... And there was this tiny lovely thing. Only somewhat related to my project, yet I still wanted to share my enthusiasm and mention @Overange for creating this cool little toy. It made my day. Thank you! That is a really nice tool for operating on the open heart 🙂 Where can i buy this and how much is the cost? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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