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Cobalt

@cobaltmusic.fi

35 followers 17 following 74 posts

I swear a lot. Musician and DJ from Lahti, Finland. The SFW alt of @tommyswanson.fi Other interests include: linguistics, shitposting, amateur radio, electronics, photography, radioactivity, gaming, networking, technology, etc.

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Cobalt @cobaltmusic.fi · 26d

Hi! I'm Tommy. I'm a musician, producer, DJ, and a photographer, among some other hobbies!

If you like what I do, please consider supporting me by buying my music or getting me something from my Throne wishlist!

#introduction

Cobalt @cobaltmusic.fi · 1h

that's all ~700 knobs cleaned! I went through each and every one individually checking for any residue and grime, took me around 4 hours lol

I got around 99.9% of the dirt off, there were 5 or so knobs that had some like white paint or something on them that I had to scrape off with my fingernail

eight plastic containers filled with knobs of various colors

Cobalt @cobaltmusic.fi · 2h

TIL food colouring is NOT IPA soluble lol

also: did I just combine two chemicals that I don't know what they do to each other? yes. should I have? absolutely not, for all I know I could've made mustard gas lmao

a somewhat cloudy liquid in a large soda bottle. there are black chunks floating around inside it

Cobalt @cobaltmusic.fi · 20h

had to go to the hardware store for the second time today because 2L was not enough for all of the knobs. everything else except the one I just poured has been sitting for ~9 hours now, and I'll clean them tonight. the bottle I just poured I'll clean tomorrow morning after letting it sit overnight

eight containers: two large soda bottles and six generic plastic containers. they all have knobs and IPA inside them, some are see-through while some are not

Cobalt @cobaltmusic.fi · 20h

wow it's even more apparent when you put a recently poured one next to the bottle that's been left for a while

I kind of want to put all the used IPA not back into the original bottles they came from but rather into regular soda bottles so I can see how murky it all is compared to normal water lol

two bottles next to each other with knobs and IPA in them. the left one has clear liquid in it, and the right one is considerably murkier

Cobalt @cobaltmusic.fi · 22h

since the experiment was a success, I went ahead and filled the containers with IPA. just enough to cover the knobs and then some

these have been sitting for 8 hours now and the normally clear and refreshing looking IPA has been turned into a cloudy gray solution with particles floating around lmao

a photograph, a soda bottle has been filled with knobs and IPA. the IPA, usually clear, has turned cloudy. there is a phone flashlight illuminating the bottle from behind

Cobalt @cobaltmusic.fi · 22h

did a small experiment;

left the leftmost ones in IPA and the middle ones in dish soap water for 14 hours, the rightmost ones are the uncleaned controls.

conclusion: dish soap is definitely better than nothing but I think I can see a tiny bit less grime on the ones that were left in IPA

three slider knobs on paper: the leftmost one is spotless, the middle one is about the same as the leftmost one but with maybe just a smidge more grime, and the rightmost one is definitely dirty

same as before, but this time with another type of knob. again, the leftmost one is the cleanest with the middle being just a slight bit worse while the rightmost one is definitely the dirtiest

Cobalt @cobaltmusic.fi · 1d

like ehhh I COULD start figuring out the 3D models of the knobs but I don't really want to touch them any more than I absolutely have to before they're cleaned

just gonna have to hope that it's not gonna be completely overcast and on the verge of raining soon lol

Cobalt @cobaltmusic.fi · 2d

dangit, I want to work on the mixers but the only thing I could do right now is clean the contacts using contact cleaner and clean all the surfaces using isopropyl alcohol but both of them require taking them outside and I don't want to take the chance that it starts raining while I'm working

Cobalt @cobaltmusic.fi · 2d

there's SOME difference but it didn't get all of it? at least the knob isn't sticky and gross anymore, but there's still some gunk looking stuff on it. I'll try repeating the experiment on another knob with the alcohol

the same knob as previously, the top of the knob is slightly less dirty looking

Cobalt @cobaltmusic.fi · 2d

I'm thinking I'm gonna design 3D printable replacement knobs and sliders for the ones that are missing. I've never had 3D modeling experience so wish me luck lol

coincidentally, any tips any of y'all would like to give me? I'm armed with a caliper and I'm not afraid to use it

1 1

Cobalt @cobaltmusic.fi · 2d

I'll test it on one of the gray topped white knobs since they seem to be the most abundant. I'm gonna leave it in very dilute dish soap water over night, see how that works out. no big deal if it destroys it, there are enough of these between the two mixers to make one complete one

the side of the knob. there is a clear gradient of dirt going up the knob, the less dirty part being at the bottom

the bottom looks fine too, but since I'm doing a comparison might as well get all sides documented

Cobalt @cobaltmusic.fi · 2d

recommendations on what to do with the knobs? let sit in IPA or dish soap for a while? idk how either reacts with this kind of plastic, they're all covered in that weird sticky oily gunk

eight plastic containers all full of knobs of different colours

Cobalt @cobaltmusic.fi · 2d

oh derp I have no idea why I skipped over the speaker outputs at the back. that's fixed now. so 266 out of 272 connectors tested and working!

also forgor there are two headphone jacks at the front, both work perfectly so 270 out of 278 connectors (+2 for talkback mic inputs, I have no mic for them)

Cobalt @cobaltmusic.fi · 2d

I lucked out, this is basically no work at all for ~1500€ profits. an "excellent" graded one went for 1200€ on reverb and a mint one went for 1650€. even the cut down 16-channel Venice 160 went for 900€

I think I can get 1600€ for mine since they're thoroughly tested and I've just serviced them

Cobalt @cobaltmusic.fi · 2d

it really does seem like all these mixers need is some isopropyl alcohol to get rid of all the dirt, grime, and tape residue and some contact cleaner in the pots. that's the only fault I could find with both of them is that the pots and buttons are oxidized. some more so, some less so

Cobalt @cobaltmusic.fi · 2d

it seems like these things are pretty rare, but not ONE THOUSAND US DOLLARS rare haha idk what kind of scam they're running here

last one sold in august for 240€ plus shipping

Cobalt @cobaltmusic.fi · 2d

the drama in the Midas EPS 1200 ebay seller community situation is crazy

the same listing as before, but this time the watermark from the original seller has been written over with the new seller's watermark, leaving the old one still visible. the overlaid watermark reads "automation-xncy". the seller has 29 reviews from customers on their account, 81.8% of which are positive

the same listing as before, but again, the watermark from the original seller has been written over with the new seller's watermark, leaving the old one still visible. the new watermark reads "autodevice-01", the seller has 20 reviews by customers on their account, 100% of which are positive

the same listing as before, but this time the watermark has been completely erased and replaced with a new one. however, the other images for the listing are of something completely unrelated with the first one being the only one that features the item being sold. the seller has 529 reviews from customers on their account, 100% of which are positive

Cobalt @cobaltmusic.fi · 2d

of course, I don't know if the external power supply connector works because I don't have one and they're expensive - several hundred euros expensive. there's no reason it shouldn't work though, it seems to be just taking the power from the PSU and putting it where the internal PSU would put it too

Cobalt @cobaltmusic.fi · 2d

I was able to test 262 connectors (plus all 48V phantoms) out of 272, and they all work perfectly on both mixers! for the rest I'll need a balanced 6.35mm cable which I wasn't able to buy today because all the music stores are closed. I highly doubt the rest are gonna pose any problems though

Cobalt @cobaltmusic.fi · 2d

I have NO idea how someone managed this, but the stalk on the channel 7 pot on one of the mixers was bent. no damage anywhere around it, it was just the stalk that was bent, and ONLY that. it's such precise damage that I wonder if someone hit it? gently bent it back with some pliers, good as new :)

a close-up of channel 7 of one of the mixers, the stalk (the part that the actual knob attaches to on the potentiometer) is bent to the left

the stalk has been bent back and now looks exactly like the others

Cobalt @cobaltmusic.fi · 2d

the power of the humble toothbrush and a can of compressed air lmao

I think the black schmutz is the same stuff that's on the pots, it's some kind of grease or oil or something. it's sticky and the toothbrush just kind of spreads it around. I can get rid of it tomorrow when I get some IPA

a picture of the mixer, there is black looking stuff everywhere around the pots

the very same angle as the previous picture, everything is noticeably better but still not perfect

Cobalt @cobaltmusic.fi · 3d

I just counted all the removable knobs, there are a total of 353 of them. combine that with the 144 connectors on the back (and multiply the total by two because there are two of them!), I REALLY hope I'm not gonna have to take these apart lmao

Cobalt @cobaltmusic.fi · 3d

there are two 4-pin sockets for 12V lamps at a maximum of 5 watts. wattage definitely isn't going to be a problem with modern LED lamps, but I'm pondering whether to get them in the first place. about 50USD per lamp. would they raise the resale value of the consoles by that much or more?

two connectors which look suspiciously like XLR but are actually 4 pins instead of 3. it reads "lamp" above them and "12V/5W" below them

Cobalt @cobaltmusic.fi · 3d

nope, even though I scrubbed with the toothbrush, the pots are still disgustingly sticky haha

I'll need to get some IPA tomorrow to really get at it. at least I can get the biggest crap off with the brush

tried out all the mic inputs and phantom power, both of which seem to be fully functional

Cobalt @cobaltmusic.fi · 3d

I swang an extremely soft toothbrush around and blasted it with compressed air. it's not quite perfect yet but holy shit the difference is already night and day. gonna give it a more proper clean with isopropyl alcohol later, but this is definitely good enough for testing the condition

an extreme close-up of some of the knobs, there is clearly visible grime around them

the same picture, but this time the knobs are looking almost squeaky clean