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thanks man! I love hearing I had a part in someone enjoying/being inspired by electronics and technology! (and don't worry, I'm not stopping any time soon!)

Sorry about the miscommunication but you can't get the Arduino IDE to recognize one board as another (or if you could it wouldn't work, different boards have different storage sizes and different processors that mean they have to be communicated with in different ways). I'm guessing that for some of the recordings where I needed to show uploading from the Arduino IDE to a board I used a Nano, as that's what I had lying around. I do recommend using a Nano, as the ATTiny boards are very troublesome, especially for beginners. Also they don't have enough storage space for a full-sized lightsaber. If you do use an ATTiny board, you have to install a package that will let you talk to an extended catalog of ATTiny boards and then you can select the ATTiny88. Basically you add this url drazzy.com/package_drazzy.com_index.json to the Arduino IDE Preferences where it says Additional Boards Manager URLs. Then you go to the boards manager (on the left, second tab from the top) and search for ATTinyCore by Spence Konde. Install that and you'll be able to select various ATTiny boards, including the ATTiny88 BUT I DON'T RECOMMEND DOING THAT because as I mentioned above, they don't have enough storage space to be able to handle a full 100+ LED-per-side lightsaber, as they can only handle like 50 LEDs. And again, they are very finicky, not at all as polished as an Arduino Nano (even an Arduino Nano clone, which you can get for like $6, not too much more than an ATTiny88).

@danovation okay that makes a lot of sense, I appreciate the quick reply and ill get the other board otw, guess i can keep the others around for future projects, thanks again.

@@caseydeckers9394 no problem!

I've never heard of PBC but PVC doesn't let nearly enough light out unfortunately (structure-wise it would be almost as good as polycarbonate, it's a bit softer so honestly it would hurt less but it would break more easily - that polycarbonate is STRONG).

@@danovation okay, thank you for explaining that

@birdinback of course!

Most of the time an Arduino, but if you're doing something with a lot of processing (image processing, video streaming, ML, etc.) or networking (more complex Wi-Fi and Bluetooth scenarios) you might need a Raspberry Pi.

The one I was using there has around 20 'spots' that it can detect around the circle, eg it can detect rotations in increments of 18 degrees

Not for this as the PIR sensor is built to output a signal for a certain length of time after motion is detected

lol yeah I’ve never heard anyone say that no idea why I said that lol

yeah learning about tech like this is really fun I definitely recommend it!

I watched the whole series, im an electrical apprentice so this stuff is interesting ,if u find interest in doing this videos ill give them a watch, i bought an arudino kit, i plan to buy some of these programmable leds and try to make custom led arrays and use different patterns.

lol thanks for watching!

yeah good point I've never done anything with RGBW (it's pretty similar but I know for beginners even the smaller differences are important to know)

@@danovationyeah id love to see a video anyways thanks.

ahah yeah this was one of my first videos I did not know how to edit at all lol

In this case I think the outlet was painted and the paint is what’s cracked, but yeah paint could definitely be a fire hazard on an outlet I don’t know what they were thinking 😂

I mean to be fair it does still win on price and there are a lot of projects where you don’t need those features so you should go with the cheaper option

Oof

yeah that's 2^14 this is 2^15

It definitely can, in this case I didn't have any issues but I haven't used it that much (compared to the typical lifespan of an LED like that) so this is probably a case where it reduces the lifespan of the strip rather than instantly destroying it. I would recommend using a different power source, whether it be a 5V power bank off amazon or a 3.7v lithium ion battery with a boost board to get to 5v as those would be better for longer term use.

@@danovation Thanks for the info. I used a 9v battery and my strip didn't turn on. Maybe it's amperage, how many amps did you use?

@@MarcosPaulo-pm8ut like it didn't turn on at all or it just couldn't power the LEDs? (if the lights on the Arduino turned on then yeah it probably just didn't have enough current to power the LEDs, but if the Arduino didn't even turn on, it could be a wiring issue or a dead battery) I never measured how much current the battery was supplying so I don't know exactly...

@@danovation At first it just doesn't turn on, but the Arduino LED lights up. Then I tested it with a 3.7v and 30a battery. It seems to have turned on, thanks for the tips! I'll try to assemble it again.

@@MarcosPaulo-pm8ut awesome, I hope that works out!

Yeah, that’s a great idea!

Hmm, maybe I’ll do another one on PNP transistors

Glad I could help! And technically in most outlets that could work, as the bottom and top are not actually separate units, but are connected behind the plate (so as long as you did the top right and bottom left it would be fine) But doing the same one will always work, so there’s no need to mess around with that, it’s just a fun fact!

Glad I could help! And thank you!

Sorry about the late response, this is the first chance I've had to fire up KiCad and check this out. As it turns out, KiCad will complain when you use power symbols (like GND or VCC) without saying where the power is coming from, so you have to tell the ERC that power will be there using the special PWR_FLAG. Hit P to add a power symbol and search for PWR_FLAG, then add that at the same point as VCC and another one to GND. These aren't components that will be transferred to the PCB editor, they are literally just a note to KiCad that you will have power there, so the ERC doesn't need to worry about it.

I don’t really have any experience with microbit, but I imagine you can do it just the same way I did, with the microbit pin signal being the control line and an exterior 5V source to power whatever it is you are trying to power

@SaberCPP Thanks but I tired. Only when a transistor is connected to 6v batteries it works. I am trying to make a rc car with a kinda new approach of ai for microcontrollers and trying to connect the motors of the car. Not expected to waste much time on those tho since I am not an electronic student...

Maybe the transistor drops ~1v so you have to have 6v going in to have 5V coming out?

Glad I could help!

😆 unfortunately I used an active buzzer, so it only has one tone, but if you swapped in a passive/piezo buzzer that would be pretty easy and very funny

Thank you!

Thanks! I do have it beep continuously so you have to deal with it eventually! It would definitely be cool to do one with a passive buzzer though so the alarms could have more variety, this one was just with an active one

@@danovation Glad to know the timer wont go unnoticed once at the end (pun intended). From the looks of how the board was wired up it shouldnt be too much of a change if you eventually decide to change to a passive buzzer. Would open up countless possibilities. :3

@@wildslothman1776 yeah it would be an easy swap out for sure!

Hmm yeah I’m not an expert either, I think it could go to each tube, but presumably if you set off one stick then it would blow up and trigger the others, right?

@@danovation :-D That's true, but what if the single detonator will be faulty, then no kaboom :-D Multiple detonators must be better :-D

Yeah better to have more to be safe 😂

I’m really glad it helped, and if I helped you get started with electronics, I consider it a job well done!

Thank you so much!

😮

Thank you! I definitely hope to once I come up with (or someone gives me) more ideas!

@SaberCPP try to make better version pomodoro clock that can be pick time by rotating any side .like commercial one.🥰

Ooh good idea I could definitely use help with my productivity ngl 😆

Yeah I think if I were an evil mastermind in an action movie I’d just make a super flashy fake ‘boom object’ and then have a totally not suspicious real one to do the actual damage.

sorry about that, I accidentally left the repo as private. should be fixed now! and thanks for letting me know!

Hmm I believe they’ve already done something where you can command Bittle with your voice

😂 if I did I don’t think TH-cam would let me post it

I suppose you’d need blasting caps, nitroglycerin and an strong electrical pulse then you would be there

Yeah and I’m no chemist but I think you have to put the nitroglycerin in something much less volatile so it doesn’t go boom until the pulse

Thank you so much! I try to put a lot of effort in and I really appreciate you noticing!

What?! Actually… if I could find a small laser I do already wear glasses (and so does Clark Kent) so I might be able to figure something out there!

Haha yeah That’s why I gave it to a friend 😂

yeah I recently I got a 3D printer that can print ABS, which I think will be strong enough to make a sturdy 3D printed lightsaber hilt! (the most common material, PLA, is pretty weak) Once I get down a really good hilt design (looks + strength) and figure out some more stuff with the electronics (how to get movement detection and sound without it costing a fortune) I plan to make another video with an even better build than this that's still pretty cheap!

thanks!

thank you so much!

it will work but with 2 caveats (due to limitations on current and capacity): - the saber will be less bright (actually you will have to limit the brightness on the LEDs in order to be able to successfully run the speaker at the same time) - the saber won't last that long, with sound and lights running, it will likely only run for about 15 minutes, because the power we're drawing from the battery is a lot so it can't last that long.

if you mean just re-use the plastic of the blade then definitely! (NOTE: as long as the LEDs and foam will fit in that blade and of course that blade might not be as strong as the ones I was using depending on how cheap it was) also I'm glad you enjoyed the video, thanks! and yeah the saber shops definitely have a high profit margin, but also they do have to pay for labor, while I took the labor on myself here, so that definitely reduces the cost!

Although the video was cool anyways, the idea of LED display didn't seem so simple until now. Final things: 1. Video: You clearly put some good effort into video quality. You nailed the front lightning for your face, but missed the rear lightning that elevates the scene from a home video to a polished youtube video. Wouldn't be saying it unless I noticed you have a lamp facing the wall that is turned off for no reason. (If you want it to look amazing I recommend this video: th-cam.com/video/jXoPcFsb1ro/w-d-xo.html), and later looking into 3 point lighting 2. Audio: You have such a nice mic but it's being ruined by the cable connecting directly to whatever you are connecting to. It can usually be troubleshooted by connecting it to the right spot, but if it doesn't work then you might have to get a soundboard or a mixer (they're cheap used). But overall I'm really happy to see small youtubers making quality stuff I hope they get the recognition they deserve at some point.

Hey man! Thank you so much for diving into this, it’s very interesting stuff and I am always looking to improve, so I really appreciate it. First about the project cost, yeah I hadn’t thought of just using a smart bulb in that lamp + an echo, I agree would’ve been cheaper (the Arduino board I used was a cheaper one, so about $6 and the other stuff probly like $10-20, and of course I understand most people don’t have a soldering iron, which is pretty cheap, or a 3D printer, and they are VERY expensive). But even so, I think making projects like this is fun and helps you grow valuable skills, so I personally would do it again. But if someone is looking for the absolute cheapest option, then yeah, I think you nailed it. About the setup (notes on this are very important to me as I’m thinking of making a few upgrades and making a video about that) I have tried putting a light in the background to be that third point, but I always get nasty glare on the camera, so maybe it’s just a matter of more experimentation or a different light is needed, I’m not sure… For the mic, I would love it it that’s the case (and maybe I’m misunderstanding) but it’s a $30 usb mic that sounds decent but it’s USB, so even if I had money for an XLR audio interface, that wouldn’t be an option. Definitely let me know if there’s something Im missing here, because currently the only affordable option in seeing is to make my own (with some inspiration from DIYPerks video on making a mic, perhaps) All in all thank you for these thoughts, and doubly thank you if you’re able to clarify any of these questions!

@@danovation Project: Oh no doubt I agree, it's not about the efficiency of time or money it's to learn. I just blew the dust out of my old raspberry pi 3 and I'm planning on replicating your LED display it was a great idea. Setup: - Lights For me the best results I've gotten are a soft side light, Colored lights in the background (I put them usually in the floor aiming up) and if you want to be real fancy then a back light hitting you in the back of the head looks good if you get it out of the camera. Tips to make them DIY for cheap: - You don't need a soft box, any light can be a soft light if you have a white blanket. Semi-soft: put the blanket on the light and aim it at you. Very-soft: Aim the light at the blanket and have it reflect. - Back lights: The reason i use color is because making you be lit differently as everythin behind you draws a lot more attention and looks great. great news is you built an extremely bright color adjustable light panel in this video. Without even taking it out of the alarm case it could be turned into a light. - How to set up lights (and other things) very cheaply and modularly: Add 1/4-20 screws to everything. You can find old camera tripods everywhere for free and they all use standard sized screws, making any light, mic, camera, or anything else compatible with absolutely any old tripod you find for free in facebook marketplace or ebay. For recording: - I don't know what camera you are using, but the added blurred background looks really weird. If you are not doing it yourself in editing software, then it's doing it automatically I'd really try to turn that feature off. The best case for recording is of course a camera (DSLR or mirrorless) with an actual lens so you can get that natural background blur you want. - But since that is not always available, my recommendation is ALWAYS a phone. It works great in low light, audio is amazing, and camera is 4k, slomo, timelapse, anything you want. Yes, it won't look like a movie but even MKBHD uses only phones in his car channel and the videos look great, which transitions me into: Microphone: - I think microphones are really hard. It is the most important thing, I'd rather have 480p video with good audio than 4k video with a humming mic. I love the DIY perks mic, and that would be a great option but for now, the phone is unbeatable. If you want to record with a camera that isn't your phone, simply start recording, then start recording a voice memo with your phone and clap at the begging so when you are editing the video you can visually match the audio and the video extremely easily.

Extra stuff: My setup: If you're curious, my most succesful setup has been a Canon T7i connected to my pc using EOS webcam utility which simulates a webcam. I then use the h1n mic (but honestly it has been almost indistinguishable from my phone) and lining up the audio has become really simple. Y use OBS to record since it has a lot of amazing features like live green screen, video overlay and other things to save you time on editing (its free). And then I use a..... let's call it borrowed.. version of Adobe premiere to do the final edits. But when I used to do a lot lot of videos I just sticked with my phone, plugged it into pc with wire and imported all videos. Glare on the camera: The camera can never directly "see" the light source. If the light behind you is aiming at you, then put it fully behind you. And if it's in the background, aim it fully at the wall. Basically you should not be able to draw a direct line from the camera sensor to what is emitting light. And if it's too much glare from the reflection, then your front light is probably not strong enough because that is reflecting off of your face. Good thing about cameras is that they love light, so if something is too bright, instead of dimming those lights, make all the other ones brighter and the camera will adjust with ISO. And the lower the ISO (the more it has to "dim" the scene) the better it looks.

@@raulvanhoorde1215 thank you so much! I definitely either already do or will do most of this! As far as a camera, for now I'll keep it low budget and stick with my laptops built-in webcam/my phone as I think they get the job done fine. I do have some plans for a new backdrop so I can stop doing the blur thing which yeah, looks pretty cheap (I only do it as I feel it's less distracting than if all the junk in the background was fully visible). I think you made a good point about the lights in the background being interesting colors or features, because then it doesn't matter if the camera picks them up (as long as they're not so bright they cause glare) As for the mic, I think after fixing lighting and the backdrop, that will be the next most important step to take, hopefully I'll design something similar to DIYPerks' mic but that can be nicely connected to a boom arm as I think that's a lot more convenient! For now the mic I have does sound better than my phone (though not by as much as I might expect), so I'll keep to that. Or maybe test out a lapel mic I think I have lying around, thought it will probably pick up way too much off axis sound...

Ok I agree that the title is a little crazy, but once it popped into my head I couldn’t think of anything else lol. As for why I think this alarm clock is really valuable vs using your phone, maybe you’re built different, but I know if I wake up and my phones right there, I’m gonna pick it up and start reading emails, checking for TH-cam comments, and all that not so good stuff. I like to wake up using something else so I can start the day with what’s actually valuable to me, and not any of that stuff.

@@danovation fair enough, I wonder if there's a smart digital alarm like that already selling. Not saying you shouldn't build one yourself.

Yeah I’m sure there is somewhere. Probably more reliable than a diy like this too! But not as fun 😆