Your ESP32 As A USB Bluetooth DongleUsing Bluetooth on a desktop computer is now such a seamless process; it’s something built-in and just works. Behind that ubiquity is a protocol layer called HCI, or Host Controller Interface, a set of commands allowing a host computer to talk to a Bluetooth interface.  That interface doesn’t have to be special, and [Dakhnod] is here to show us that it can be done with an ESP32 microcontroller through its USB interface.
The linked repository doesn’t tell us which of the ESP32 variants it works with, but since not all of them have a USB peripheral we’re guessing one of the newer variety. It works with Linux computers, and we’re told it should work with Windows too if a HCI driver is present. We might ask ourselves why such a project is necessary given the ubiquity of Bluetooth interfaces, but for us it’s provided the impetus to read up on how it all works.
We can’t find anyone else in our archive who’s made a Bluetooth dongle in this way, but we’ve certainly seen sniffing of HCI commands to reverse engineer a speaker’s communications.

Soundspear Updates Formula and Makes 50+ Audio Effects FREE
Soundspear has updated Formula and made more than 50 audio effects available for free for the audio effects integrated development tool. Formula is a free and open-source plugin for Windows, macOS, and Linux, and it is available in VST3, AU, and standalone formats. Previously Soundspear offered the Formula Cloud paid subscription service, which included access to [...]
View post: Soundspear Updates Formula and Makes 50+ Audio Effects FREE

All The Air Ducting Parts You Could Ever NeedIf you have ever planned an air duct or dust extraction system for your shop, you’ll know just how difficult it can be to accommodate all but the simplest of arrangements. Off the shelf systems are intended for use in home heating or other domestic systems, and offer little flexibility of choice. Of course you could 3D print an adapter or two, but [Fabian] has taken it to the next level with a comprehensive library of 3D-printable pipe system adapters and accessories. We’re not sure we’ve seen such a complete collection.
The pipes are mostly at 125 mm diameter, with the full array of elbows and joints, alongside adapters for fans and smaller pipes, and different splitter options. It becomes particularly interesting in the accessories department though, because he’s also made a set of smart addons, packing ESP32s for sensors, and even valves.
It sometimes shocks us to go into hackerspaces and see nothing in the way of extraction around tools that really need it. Airborne smoke and particulates are a proven hazard, and thus we like this project a lot. If you don’t have adequate ventilation or extraction on your bench, consider printing yourself a solution. Take a look at how one hackerspace did it.

Casio introduce CT-S1-76 keyboard The CT-S1-76 delivers a 76-key version of the popular CT-S1, and uses Casio's AiX Sound Source technology to deliver faithful reproductions of a range of different instruments. 

Forget about Ethereum ETFs — Here's what you can do insteadSpot Ether ETFs were supposed to set the gold standard for ETH investing. Unfortunately, they still aren't allowed to offer staking.

Getting It Done: Last week in D.I.Y. & Indie MusicLast week, our tips and advice for independent, do-it-yourselfers covered how to promote music with Instagram Reels, how often to post on social media, and more.
The post Getting It Done: Last week in D.I.Y. & Indie Music appeared first on Hypebot.

REWIND: New Music Industry’s Last Week in ReviewCatch up on what everyone in the music industry was talking about last week, with MediMusic transforming healthcare; a report revealing songwriter stats, and more…
The post REWIND: New Music Industry’s Last Week in Review appeared first on Hypebot.

Warren Buffet’s Berkshire Hathaway sells half its Apple stockWarren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway cut its Apple holding by around half, to $84.2 billion, according to an SEC filing. While Apple remains the firm’s largest stock holding by far, Buffett had already reduced its stake by 13 percent earlier this year, hinting that he didn’t mind selling “a little Apple” for tax reasons. Berkshire Hathaway […]
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Steam Deck, Or Single Board Computer?With a number of repair-friendly companies entering the scene, we have gained motivation to dig deeper into devices they build, repurpose them in ways yet unseen, and uncover their secrets. One such secret was recently discovered by [Ayeitsyaboii] on Reddit – turns out, you can use the Steam Deck mainboard as a standalone CPU board for your device, no other parts required aside from cooling.
All you need is a USB-C dock with charging input and USB/video outputs, and you’re set – it doesn’t even need a battery plugged in. In essence, a Steam Deck motherboard is a small computer module with a Ryzen CPU and a hefty GPU! Add a battery if you want it to work in UPS mode, put an SSD or even an external GPU into the M.2 port, attach WiFi antennas for wireless connectivity – there’s a wide range of projects you can build.
Each such finding brings us closer to the future of purple neon lights, where hackers spend their evenings rearranging off-the-shelf devices into gadgets yet unseen. Of course, there’s companies that explicitly want us to hack their devices in such a manner – it’s a bet that Framework made to gain a strong foothold in the hacker community, for instance. This degree of openness is becoming a welcome trend, and it feels like we’re only starting to explore everything we can build – for now, if your Framework’s or SteamDeck’s screen breaks, you always have the option to build something cool with it.
[Via Dexerto]

Homebrew Relay Computer Features Motorized ClockBefore today, we probably would have said that scratch-built relay computers were the sole domain of only the most wizardly of graybeards. But this impressive build sent in by [Will Dana] shows that not only are there young hardware hackers out there that are still bold enough to leave the transistor behind, but that they can help communicate how core computing concepts can be implemented with a bungle of wires and switches.
Created for his YouTube channel WillsBuilds, every component of this computer was built by [Will] himself. Each of the nine relay-packed protoboards inside the machine took hours to solder, and when that was done, he went out to the garage to start cutting the wood that would become the cabinet they all get mounted in.
The entire build process is documented in the video, and is interwoven with short segments that go deeper into the various concepts at play. If you’ve never been able to figure out how a box full of relays can add numbers together, this might be the video that finally makes it click for you (no pun intended).
We were particularly impressed with [Will]’s determination to not let any modern technology sneak into his build. When researching other relay builds, he found that some of them relied on anachronistic components like the 555 timer or quartz crystals to generate the clock signal. That simply wouldn’t do, so he initially tried to put together a variation of the clock circuit that [Paul Law] used in his gorgeous relay computer. In the end he couldn’t quite get it working the way he wanted, so he went really old school and came up with a clock module that uses a motorized cam and microswitch to generate the necessary pulses.
In the era of the 10 cent microcontroller, when it’s often easier to write a few lines of code to get something working than figuring out how to do it with discrete components, this project is certainly refreshing. Especially when it’s coming from a younger maker. [Will] definitely came away from this build with several new skills under his belt and a new appreciation for concepts that many of us take for granted these days, and we’re looking forward to seeing what he comes up with next.

Zoom announce MS-80IR+ MultiStomp  Zoom have announced the release of the MS-80IR+ MultiStomp, the latest addition to their acclaimed series of multi-effects and modelling pedals.

Neural DSP Technologies Introduces 'TINA' Robotic Amp ModelingAs part of its enduring commitment to pioneering industry-leading amplifier modeling technology, Neural DSP announced the arrival of TINA, the company’s proprietary data-collection robot which takes authentically and faithfully modeling the sonic nuances of a guitar amplifier to an unprecedented level. TINA – a Telemetric Inductive Nodal Actuator – marries mechanical robotics with machine learning to digitally replicate analog devices, such as guitar amplifiers, like never before.

Leveraging the advanced capabilities of TINA, Neural DSP also launched CorOS 3.0.0 and the arrival of Quad Cortex Plugin Compatibility (PCOM), giving creators the ability to access the virtual devices in their Neural DSP plugins on their Quad Cortex. This initial release includes compatibility for two plugins: Archetype: Plini X and Archetype: Gojira X, with additional QC-compatible plugins set to launch in subsequent CorOS updates.

"TINA represents a groundbreaking integration of robotics and state-of-the-art machine learning for audio processing, furthering Neural DSP's commitment to redefining the standards in guitar amplifier modeling accuracy,” says Douglas Castro, CEO at Neural DSP Technologies. “This feat is the result of collaboration between our respective plugin and Quad Cortex teams, who have worked tirelessly to significantly improve the architecture of both platforms to ensure plugins can run on Quad Cortex. We’ve successfully removed all human intervention within the amplifier modeling process – ensuring an unparalleled level of precision in every model by capturing every subtle detail in the amplifier's controls.”

TINA: Leveraging Robotics for Authentic Sound Replication

In the spaces between the markings on an amplifier’s controls — gain, bass, mid, treble, presence, master — there is an entire universe of complex interactions and sonic distinctions. Guitarists will naturally play with these controls in a subjective manner, dialing in changes instinctively. But in trying to digitally emulate that process, even snapshot models of different configurations of those controls cannot translate all of the possible fine-tuned interactive combinations, and managing those million or more combinations would be impossible.

What Neural DSP does with TINA is robotically access the entire spectrum of every control’s range by physically connecting with those controls via actuator arms. Every control is systematically turned with its output recorded. With enough recorded examples (typically thousands of control positions), a neural network is trained to replicate the behavior of the device for each one of these settings. Through this training process, the finished model will also generalize and precisely infer the sound of the device in any unseen control setting and input signal.

TINA does the tedious part, deducing what control positions need to be recorded, plans the sequence to turn the knobs while minimizing wear-and-tear, and finally returns a collection of recordings with all of the related control positions carefully and precisely annotated.

By combining robotic data collection with machine learning, Neural DSP can distill the full range of an amp’s continuous control into a single neural network model with unparalleled precision. It also removes the need for painstaking and often biased human analysis and design. The collected data is always a complete representation of the device and its history; every tube, every transformer, every pot, every ding, and every scratch; anything you can hear and feel will be a part of the data the models are trained on.

“TINA is the backbone of our robust and automated modeling pipeline, pushing the boundaries of model fidelity,” says Aleksi Peussa, Machine Learning Team Lead and Researcher at Neural DSP Technologies. “The collected data provides the ground-truth for the sound and feel of the device. No assumptions, no preferences, no limitations. Purely data. The vast amount of data along with advanced machine learning approaches can systematically push model accuracy to unparalleled levels of realism. Our goal is always to create models that are indistinguishable from the real thing, even by experts.”

To learn more about PCOM and how to update to CorOS 3.0.0, click here and here.The post Neural DSP Technologies Introduces 'TINA' Robotic Amp Modeling first appeared on Music Connection Magazine.

Ethereum futures open interest hits 19-month high, yet ETH price weakness intensifiesEthereum derivatives metrics show increased activity, indicating higher interest but not necessarily a bullish trend.

FTC and Justice Department sue TikTok over alleged child privacy violationsThe U.S. Federal Trade Commission and the Justice Department are suing TikTok and ByteDance, TikTok’s parent company, with violating the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA). The law requires digital platforms to notify and obtain parents’ consent before collecting and using personal data from children under the age of 13. In a press release issued […]
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Custom Hat Gives Vintage Mitutoyo Calipers a New Lease on LifeMetrology fans are usually at least a little bit in love with Mitutoyo, and rightfully so. The Japanese company has been making precision measuring instruments for the better part of 100 years, and users appreciate their precision almost as much as the silky smooth feel of their tools. If you can afford it, a Mitutoyo caliper is quite an addition to your toolbox.
As good as they are, though, they’re not perfect, which is what led to this clever Mitutoyo digital caliper hack by [turbanedengineer]. The calipers in question, a digital set from the early 1980s, happen to have a unique history with a tangential Hackaday angle — they belonged to [Dhaval], mechanical engineer and avid motorcyclist who happens to be the late elder brother of our own [Anool Mahidharia].
The tool, in need of a little TLC, made its way to [turbanedengineer] who first restored the broken battery contacts. Once powered up again, it became apparent that while the caliper’s native metric measurements were spot on, the internal conversion to inches was considerably off. This led [turbanedengineer] to the data port on the tool, which is intended to send serial data to an external computer for logging measurements. After a little experimentation to nail down the data format, he prototyped a tiny circuit using an ATtiny85 and an OLED display that reads the caliper data, converts metric to inches, and displays both measurements on the screen. The prototype led to a more permanent version, which cleverly sits over the original display and taps into the data port without any free wires. The video below shows the very slick results.
Our hearts go out to [Anool] and his family for their loss, and we tip our hats to [turbanedengineer] for his thoughtful and respectful hack of a storied tool. We know that anthropomorphizing tools makes no rational sense, but we think it’s safe to say that a tool like this has a soul, and it’s probably happy to be back in the game.