TashRecorder: a Farallon MacRecorder compatible clone

[demik]

Now your old Mac can hear you scream!

Introducing... TashRecorder!

Elevator Pitch

This a compatible clone of the Farallon MacRecorder , but as far as the software is concerned, it's the real deal!

Both @Tashtari and myself (since 2021!) had this project on our own, one of us having a working digital part and the other one some sort of analog part. Project merging happened and TashRecorder was born

The digital part is made as a PIC12F1501 firmware, the rest is made as a 4 layer PCB and, as usual, panels to make it fit neatly into the same case as Quack, TashPad and TashTwenty

Project Status
Project is stable. As the real MacRecorder, Mac compatibility is host dependant. Development was done on a Quadra 650, but we will test it on other Macs to double check compatibility

Code and PCB

GitHub - lampmerchant/tashrecorder: Clone of the Farallon MacRecorder and Apple MIDI Interface.

Clone of the Farallon MacRecorder and Apple MIDI Interface. - lampmerchant/tashrecorder

github.com

As usual, it's OpenSource. PIC firmware is already there, we will upload everything else later after a little bit of cleaning

Technical details
This clone, like the other ones, includes an internal microphone and mono line input. We tried to simplify the design as much as possible, to allow it to be built more easily. The design is all through hole components, using only available components

While the PIC is acting as a serial transceiver, ADC and clock generator, it also oversample audio and watch input levels, driving a LED if the input levels are too high (or you are screaming too much)

The analog part is built around a much more modern CMOS Burr-Brown amp, which act as a microphone amplifier, band pass (microphone) or low pass filter (line in), and is optimised for battery and low power devices.

Kind reminder that the MacRecorder was powered by the serial port, no external power is needed! TashRecorder includes its own power regulator circuit

Happy building!

 

[bakkus]

Oh! Oh my! Now _that_ brings up some memories!

I don't know where my dad got a hold of one, but one day we had what we referred to as the "computer recording cassette" for the SE(or was it an SE/30 by then?).
I remember recording my little brother saying a phrase into an app and being able to play it back. Pure magic.
And then I took a look at the graphical representation of the sound, and started to realize what I was seeing. I didn't know it was called waveform, but I 'understood' it and started hacking away at the sounds.
I created a small sound file for each word, and was able to hack together a new sentence. It was truly the future, as I could make the computer say things that were never said in real life.

Edit:
And I clicked on the link and was instantly transported back! Yes, that dog! SoundEdit!