Deep Grooves Mastering - Project Bladerunner

[opcode66]

I've been in the process of moving to LA from Chicago. That has taken much time and effort. I have a three floor condo, lathe room and studio room to move. And I only decided to do this in late February. Quite a lot of logistics.

I found a fantastic distibutor of neodymium magnets. At the moment, I just need to order some other magnets from them and feedback should be at more than an appropriate level. But, that will all have to wait.

I might be able to do one more round of test cuts with 1.C before I move the lathe. I will be fully moved by June. Then, I should be setup to cut again by end of July. Thanks for the inteterest.

Everything seems to be really on course. I don't predict having major issues with feedback. I will however need to tweak Flo's Caruso pre-amp to work with my specific feedback coils. But, it is only a few components to play with.

[dimi751]

Thanks for the updates

[Ben]

Thanks for your update!!
I can't wait for your cutterhead to be finished

Have a great recovery also for your leg
Cheers brother
Ben

[dimi751]

Yeah its been a while since any br update looking forward to it

What ? Did Todd hurt leg oh no hope not too serious get better todd

[opcode66]

I injured my knee. Fell off the back of a truck. Ligament damage. It hurts a lot.

Nearly done with the move!

[dimi751]

Damn knee ! Get well Todd look after your yourself
How was the moove anyway ?
Soon you will be settle down then back normal

Take care
Dimi

[opcode66]

I will be back to working on Bladerunner this week. I am implementing a radically new approach to my transducer design. Very different approach to anything I've ever seen. The overall efficiency if the system should be dramatically increased. The weight of the moving parts will also be decreased. RF will also chang. Finally, I now have proper magnets for feedback. The next build should prove to be very interesting. Check back soon!

[SUNBEARS]

Yess! Would love to get a feedback version for my VR

[opcode66]

My new transducer design is incredible. Unlike any other cutterhead transducer. Innovatively designed using only one magnet weighing 0.68 grams. My entire moving mass is less than one gram. This is revolitionary!!! I can now significantly reduce the size of my cutterhead. Its final dimensions will be nearly identical to the Neumann SX74.

For lack of a better name, I am calling this new transducer configuration a Todducer.

To give you perpective, my previous transducer design used magnets weighing 38 grams to produce similar results. This uses one 0.68 gram magnet.

[Ben]

Wow Todd,
this is freaking awesome brother, keep up the great work.....your passion is very inspiring.
Can't wait to try this baby!!

Ben

[Sillitoe]

Looks great Todd!

[dimi751]

That's fantastic Todd

good to hear your back

keep up the good work

Go go project bladerunner yeah hah

[opcode66]

To give everyone better perspective of the efficiency gain. My old transducer design used 38 grams of neodymium magnets (3 disc and 1 ring). This is a lot of space. That is also a lot of magnet that is heat sensitive (neo's depolarize easily with application of heat).

My new transducer design (which has never been done in a cutterhead before that I am aware of) uses a single neodymium that is 0.68 grams. The reduction in size is incredible given that this new transducer is giving results in line with the old transducer if not better. And, I hand wound a shitty coil. If I wind a flat perfectly aligned coil then this will get even better. Additionally, I have radical new ideas for coil configurations. A standard old single straight coils is child's play in comparison to what I have planned.

Once Bladerunner is completed an in circulation, I plan to start making some related devices. I think the entire industry will be interested in them. Won't say more now.

[analoghifi]

A standard old single straight coils is child's play in comparison to what I have planned.

Once Bladerunner is completed an in circulation, I plan to start making some related devices. I think the entire industry will be interested in them. Won't say more now.

This is excellent news, very excited to see and hear the finished product.

[opcode66]

I'm go to a scientific supply store and purchase a lab stand and holder tomorrow. The stand and holder will be used to mount a dial bore gauge. The gauge will be used to make quantitative measurements of of the efficiency of my two transducer designs (old standard transducer and new Todducer).

The coils for each transducer to be tested will be wound to precisely the same DC Resistance. Applying precisely the same DC Voltage to each of the two transducers will cause the transducer push rod to move in one direction a fixed distance and remain stationary. I will apply DC Voltage with polarity such that the push rod moves out of the transducer (what I call up). The dial bore gauge will be used to measure the displacement of the push rod from resting (zero voltage applied). This measurement represents the overall efficiency of the transducer design.

If I can achieve the same or better displacement with the new Todducer, then I will move forward modifying the cutterhead body to remove the magnet stacks as they will no longer be needed. This allows me to add more weights and trim down the overall size. The new transducer configuration is a lot easier to make and repair. Additionally, I'll be able to recycle parts from blown transducers fairly easily. That will make supplying replacement transducers easier and Green.

I will post a video of the results.

Finally, I've been researching desktop CNC and desktop metal lathes. I am close to purchasing a CNC first. Then, I will get the metal lathe once I'm proficient with the CNC. I'll be able to work with Aluminum and Steel (and many other materials). I will be making all metal parts for Project Bladerunner myself!

[dimi751]

That's great Todd thanks for update.

I think there's a lot if users here on this forum including myself with patience awaiting the results for the bladerunner project. It's had a huge amount of views which indicated to me it's popularity.

There's some questions I have though is

why are smaller transducer better?
Why can't you just leave the design you have now ?
Will the finish product work with any inverse riaa filter meaning software or hardware?


Thanks
Dimi

[opcode66]

I really appreciate your ongoing interest in the work. You've been a great supporter so far. Thanks dimi751.

why are smaller transducer better?
Well, the reduction of size was actually not the intent. That is a very nice consequence of my new design. I'm not complaining... The reduction of size is mostly in the space that was required for the magnets. I was using three 3/4" Neodymium Magnet Discs plus one 3/4" Neodymium Magnet Ring. Total weigh 38 grams. And, a lot of space to account for. I'm now using 0.68 grams of Neodymium magnet. That is quite a bit smaller.

Why can't you just leave the design you have now ?
The new design is a complete departure from standard transducers. The reason why is that I got as far as I could with the current design. I want things to be modular. That forced me to make some concessions with the transducer design. I was giving up a lot of efficiency and loosing a lot of power in the high frequency range. The system worked. But, it was not working to the standards I want. And, to make it work better, I would have to create an ugly modular design. So, while I had some down time moving and then healing from a serious knee injury, I planned my next move. I came up with the new transducer concept and worked out how to modify my current simple modular design to implement the new transducer system. So, really the end goal is to get better high frequency representation and to increase the efficiency of the simple modular card based transducer configuration. In short, I am now using both the em field as well as the magnet in most efficient way possible given my self imposed modular requirements. The results should be better high end representation than would have been possible in the prior configuration.

Will the finish product work with any inverse riaa filter meaning software or hardware?
Yes. As well as any standard amplifier. The coils will be 8 Ohms DC Resistance. This is compliant with any off the shelf amplifier. However, You will likely want to purchase pre-processing and adjustmens (including riaa) from me as well. I will sell two styles of pre-amp for cutting. One for dynamic heads and one for feedback. This will be plug and play. I will be machining the interface panels myself with a desktop cnc. Totally professional.

[Ben]

Hey Todd,
Thanks a lot for all the infos, it's clear that most of us are really excited by your amazing project.

I have a small question for you, would the bladerunner be able to be mounted on a VR?
If yes, since it's gonna be super light, will it cause problem with the massive counter weight on Souri's machine?

Thanks again, I'm super thrilled about this!
Ben

[opcode66]

Yes, my cutterhead will be mountable on a VR. The head is actually heavier than you may expect. I add quite a lot of stainless steel dowel rods to the body. They are hidden withing the plastic. They add considerable weight to the plastic frame.

[Ben]

Oh wow,
Thanks a lot for answering ... Can't wait for you to announce that it's available
It's cool to see people like you and others on this forum achieving amazing things like that and bringing our art to another level.
If It was not for this forum, I would have never been able to cut anything.

Will your dynamic cutterhead be better than Souri's one, less distortion? sorry for all the newbie questions. haha
Thanks brother
Ben