It's only a few more meters
Hope you've had a good week. After my all-week video editing marathon I feel that my eyes could benefit from a few screen-free days. However before I turn this laptop off for the evening I just wanted to put this video out on Patreon.
A few people might like to know that this one features a comedy outro - which can also be accessed on its own from this link https://youtu.be/-uL9HDQkGvU
Comments (54)
The display in the RTW is a plasma display, i e neon/nixie technology but with little bars instead of digits. Burroughs used to make them. I have a couple from old industrial process control regulators, I hope to make a VU meter out of them some day. You can find information about them online, and I'll bet Mr Carlson or someone has featured them
I loved the SID chip and the SID player back in the day.
Ok, fair enough. Best we allow the magic to continue. I love the puppets! Thx Mat
Could you do a show on how you produce the puppets?
That’s something that has been suggested a couple of times - but honestly you really definitely wouldn’t want to see it - it would completely destroy any ability to just go along with these outros and to momentarily believe in the characters. All you’d see in a behind the scenes clip is a middle aged man kneeling on the floor making silly voices. I’ve seen behind the scenes clips from films that I once loved that then subsequently destroyed all my future enjoyment after I’d seen just how silly and weak everything looked before the effects, colour grading and soundtrack was layered on top. What once seemed like a spaceship about to crash into an asteroid was just someone shaking a car seat in front of a blue screen in a warehouse in Elstree. Next time you see that film, you can only think about the car seat in a warehouse.
I bought the second device (AK7115) in Jan 2019 as a birthday gift to myself. It was £44 from Amazon at the time. I bought it as a clock as i wanted something in my periphery that wasn't too bright/distracting, didn't require a dedicated power socket. The generic remote was disappointing but i did find instructions during my research before buying: <a href="https://i.imgur.com/ejl5Gln.jpg." rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://i.imgur.com/ejl5Gln.jpg.</a> Glad it got a good review for its Spectrum display. Great work!
The outro reminds me of the years when I worked on CAD/CAM systems in the early 90's that used unusual (And expensive) 19 inch CRT displays. About one customer in 10 would complain about the whistle from the coil windings and I would be forced to try and "adjust" them to fix it. I would quite often do no more than poke around in a vaguely technical fashion then ask them to see how it was, which in many cases magically solved the problem.
That does remind me - in my old office that had hundreds of CRTs there was always the occasional loud one - a good smack normally ‘fixed’ it for a few hours.
When you do Part 2, please remember to include the La Metric (if you can). The bar meter it shows in Radio mode seems as accurate as a Lottery Draw and as equally hypnotic!
I’d forgotten about that one - I’ll see if I can shoehorn it in somehow.
I must compliment you on the elegant fabric-covered patch cord / USB cord affixed to the first meter. They're reminiscent of 12ga and 14ga electrical wire circa 1950. Where did you find those - especially the USB lead, as it cannot be a vintage item?
I bought a selection of branded USBs through Amazon - I just searched through my old orders and it turns out I got them back in 2014 and they’re no longer available - although there are alternatives. It was these <a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00GS0O5RU" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00GS0O5RU</a>
RTW seems to have made a similar model but with a different number; here's a link to a German seller on that famous auction site: <a href="https://www.ebay.com/itm/RTW-1115E-Analoges-Peakmeter/272780843597?hash=item3f83015a4d:g:jXAAAOSwGshZexTP" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://www.ebay.com/itm/RTW-1115E-Analoges-Peakmeter/272780843597?hash=item3f83015a4d:g:jXAAAOSwGshZexTP</a>
haha Nice Zoolander reference at the end!
If there was one - it was purely unintentional. The only things I remember from Zoolander are “it’s in the computer” - and the brilliant petrol station scene.
I confess that the Muppet outros baffled me when I first discovered the channel, but now I am sure to check for them with every new update video.
They still baffle me - it’s a manifestation of some kind of mild insanity.
As much flex as is in that first VU meter, you most assuredly have cracked joints. Your best bet is to hit all the pins with a soldering iron and use kid gloves when handling it. As long as it can flex that much you'll likely always have a cracked joint issue somewhere. Maybe a single bar instead of a column, etc.
It’s ok, I didn’t have any use for it other than to show it in this video, so it’s served its purpose now.
I do like the amount of research that went into the RTW unit. Considering how fast their PR team got back to you, maybe you should ask about the lighting array.
I did think about it - but I didn’t want to pester them any more.
Great Video Mat. I bought one of the RTW units for home display myself. Out of interest one of the reasons I could guess for RTW to move towards multifunction displays for modern units would be that broadcasters now require Loudness meters in addition to PPM meters. In case anyone is interested in looking up more information loudness is measured according to an EBU specification called R128. I liked the fun Puppet outro. The only sad thing is that for me the 15 kHz from CRTs has been replaced with tinnitus that is somewhat similar.
Funnily enough I’ve got tinnitus today - it’s not something I normally experience, I just hope it’s going to subside.
I just know that this outro sketch was a direct result of my comment on your prior video - for context to others, I pointed out a section of the end of the last video when that whine was audible. But I can put up with it after a while, with a real CRT in the room; it's only when it shows up unexpectedly when I'm wearing headphones that I tend to get irked. (Also, it was The 8-Bit Guy who encouraged his viewers to comment in case a CRT noise leaked through in one of his videos; I thought you'd appreciate the same comment for the same reason)
It's not as a direct result of that - there were however a few over hysterical comments on that video that seemed to indicate that the 6 seconds of the audio of a CRT was unbearable. That was a sound that I experienced for countless hours a day in work at my VDU and at home watching TV - probably for well over thirty years. The idea amused me - how would these sensitive viewers cope if they were born in the 1970s - would they have refused to watch any TV? That's how the sketch evolved. If I don't get my ideas from life - there's nowhere left to get them from.
I can smell the future! Ha ha. I've had synesthesia myself. I could taste sounds, smell colours, etc. Don't get many migraines now, nice but boring.
Collectively between us we’ve got quite the collection of unusual afflictions - we’re collecting them like fridge magnets.
My father could never hear the TV being on when I was a child... Funny enough, I'm now approaching 40, and I can still hear the 15 kHz whine very well, but cannot tell clearly enough anymore when it stopped, apparently the brain gets used to it, and then "misses" it when it disappears... But yes, it was very clearly audible in the video!
I think I'm gradually transforming from the younger moan to the older one. I've been trying to explain to my kids that not only were 'glass' tvs not nearly so wide as modern flats screens, but how DEEP they were. One of the unintended consequence was that entire buildings were made much larger than they later needed to be. I was involved in designing a small office block and we started by working out how much space each desk-sitting worker needed, and this was largely dictated by the physical depth of the VDUs required at each workstation - which in turn drove the footprint of the building. Interesting video as always, Mat. Thank you! PS I just stumped up an extra $10 to expedite dispatch of my Glixie clock. Should get it any month now. I wonder if there's such a thing as a Glixie Calendar....
I sometimes reluctantly side with the older chap - but sometimes I can see where the younger one is coming from. I think I’m neither of them - but of course they’re both me. It’s a psychiatrists nightmare. That Glixie clock is positively on time compared to my Spectrum Next.
Hi Mat, thanks again for a very interesting video! I'm wondering for a while what the 'noises' are in the very last seconds of every video. It sounds like some encoded ... things made audible. I would really like to know what it is!
That’s the sound effect that Universal Studios played in the background when they showed a computer in film or TV. It’s most famous for its appearance in the Six Million Dollar Man - but it appeared unironically in films all the way up to Beverly Hills Cop 3 here’s the full thing <a href="https://youtu.be/5M3-ZV5-QDM" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://youtu.be/5M3-ZV5-QDM</a>
That was a interesting rabbit hole 🐇 you went down with the RTW meter. I enjoyed the diversion into history and recording studios. I also used to be able to hear the line whistle on a CRT. 15,625Hz if I remember correctly. Curiously, it's almost exactly the same frequency on both the British 625 line 25 FPS PAL system and the American 525 line 30 FPS NTSC. Bit of useless trivia for you. :)
There’s an extra layer of irony with this outro - I deliberately layered a recording of just the monitor whine captured by a microphone over the whole thing and I’ve absolutely no idea if it’s audible or not.
Some great content here all around. Dissapointing to see that rainbow strip one was pretty bad, but the story behind the 1206. I did not expect that from a second VU meter episode. The Title puns are going to ruin me at some point aswell.
The puppets were very funny.
Well now I am psyched for the next four you have to show👍
I think as a whole they’re a better bunch than these ones - with the exception of the RTW.
Good old RTW1206. I liked that. Not sure if yours is in original shape but I like the modifications / version. The ones I saw had the audio cables and the power cord directly attached to it. No chinchconnectors or power jacks. Maybe these were options.
Enjoyed the video as usual. I especially enjoyed your RTW investigation. I had a great laugh from the outro. Initially, I thought "oh no, Mat can't hear the CRT noise, people are going to go mad in the comments". I am embarrassed that I identify with the plight of Moan Jr., and was appropriately schooled by Moan Sr. This reminds me quite a bit of HiFi setup conversations I have had with my father who was in the radio biz for 30+ years and can hardly hear over 10 kHz. Great work, this made my day.
Since you’ve got the younger ears, can you confirm if the whine is suitably annoying throughout this section - I really do want to know as I can’t hear it.
Excellent vid as always!! I love the VU meters too! I tested the AK2515 a few months ago - <a href="https://youtu.be/uR6kbk0Pgns" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://youtu.be/uR6kbk0Pgns</a>
It’s funny how these things suddenly pop up on eBay. It’s like someone found a container full of old components.
I got so excited when I saw the subject of this video. I too share your love of meters! Thanks so much for this update. Have a great weekend!
Thanks - great video as always! The older puppet seems like your impression of Jim Bowen. Ah - you can't beat a bit of Bully!
Yayyyy thanks!
Thanks Mat. I do like VU meters too. I was tempted to get a 1206D a few years ago, it was out of my price range. I like the vacuum fluorescent displays. I can hear the old TVs - the really old 405 line sets at a museum I visit are worse than the 625 line sets. Best wishes.
Great Video :) I agree that VU meters and spectrum analyzers just have something that makes them so appealing to look at. One of the few remaining companies here in Germany that sells DIY kits recently release a controller for LED stripes with a serial data input ("WS2812" type) that can control up to 1000 LEDs in different modes, some of them being a VU meter and spectrum analyzers. Maybe this is something you might be interested in? <a href="https://www.elv.de/elv-lichtorgel-led-ws2812-bausatz.html" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://www.elv.de/elv-lichtorgel-led-ws2812-bausatz.html</a>
I come across a few of these controller kits for led strips when I’m looking for the VU displays - but I always pass them by as it’s too complicated a setup for me - I’m really just looking for something ready-made and in a box if possible.
The first meter looks like a predecessor to this one: <a href="https://www.aliexpress.com/item/AK2515-VFD-Music-Audio-Spectrum-15-Level-Indicator-VU-Meter-Screen-For-Amplifier/32834103609.html" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://www.aliexpress.com/item/AK2515-VFD-Music-Audio-Spectrum-15-Level-Indicator-VU-Meter-Screen-For-Amplifier/32834103609.html</a> which also features a clock, though a bit more readable, and easy to set, with ability to change the falling rate of the levels and peak indicators... also, strange that they put the connections at the bottom! How on earth can it be made to sit flush on a tabletop or hifi component?
That’s one of the three or four to be featured in the next installment. Due in a month or so.
I originally thought this was about the unit of measurement... still exciting! Can’t wait to watch later
Ah, that would be metres ;-)
Fantastic! I was excited to see this one : )