davidm Posted October 30, 2008 Report Share Posted October 30, 2008 A few photo's of my cart built from "ITEM" "MB" extrusion. It was built in late 2006 and features parts from Roadmaster - a local case manufacturer who suppled the aluminium panels, Skyway Tuff wheels, cable hooks, boom holders and cup holder from Rob Stalder and Middle Atlantic UCP connector panels. I must get around to labeling the connector panel.... David Madigan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff Wexler Posted October 30, 2008 Report Share Posted October 30, 2008 That is one beautiful cart! This is the first I have seen where you have essentially built your own case based cart but with the huge functional advantage of having built the case (instead of using standard SKB type rack case). Also, brilliant idea having a LID that house the monitor(s) --- again, I think this is a first. Discovering the company 80/20 from John Paul and now the ITEM company has been a real eye opener for me. I always thought such modular building pieces, the Erector set for the rest of us, existed but I never had found them up until now. Seems like a really smart way to go for those who wish to build their carts themselves. Two quick questions: regarding general construction techniques, do the fasteners that sit in the channel (and mount and connect stuff) have to be "pre-loaded" from the ends or can they be inserted anywhere along the channel, slid and positioned and then utilized? Also, what did you use to build the sliding shelf --- or is there no sliding shelf? Regards, Jeff Wexler Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
graham Posted October 30, 2008 Report Share Posted October 30, 2008 I see a metric halo 2882 The cart looks great and i will look into mimicking this. Thanks so much for posting! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RPSharman Posted October 30, 2008 Report Share Posted October 30, 2008 Wow - NICE! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
old school Posted October 30, 2008 Report Share Posted October 30, 2008 Hey David, very nice looking cart. I am a big fan of the vertical sound cart design. Do you stand when you mix,, or use a high chair? CrewC Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Philip Perkins Posted October 30, 2008 Report Share Posted October 30, 2008 I see Metacorder--what Mac? A mini? Pretty cart. How come such small wheels in front? Philip Perkins Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob Stalder Posted October 30, 2008 Report Share Posted October 30, 2008 David, thanks for your kind words yesterday. Its good to see you posting pictures of the cart you built. Its a great cart. Rob Stalder Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davidm Posted October 31, 2008 Author Report Share Posted October 31, 2008 Two quick questions: regarding general construction techniques, do the fasteners that sit in the channel (and mount and connect stuff) have to be "pre-loaded" from the ends or can they be inserted anywhere along the channel, slid and positioned and then utilized? Also, what did you use to build the sliding shelf --- or is there no sliding shelf Hi Jeff, I use Item extrusions Profile 6 - 30x30mm and 30x60mm. There's a few variants of the Item T-slot insert nut but the basic version that I use (T-Slot Nut 6 St M5) can just be slipped sideways into the slot. You can mount all sorts of attachments anywhere at any time, and the joints are very strong. There is heavy duty connecter variant that has to be "pre loaded" from an open end The 80/20 range has a similar range of joint/connector variants. (I have just trolled through their extensive catalogue). If you are choosing between 80/20 and Item, i'd suggest it would come down to who can do the fabricating. My local Item agent (45 minutes away) has the jig's for cutting, drilling and tapping. I'm just not capable of producing the same quality result. There's no 80/20 agent here in New Zealand so Item it is for me. Another consideration could be dirt. The 80/20 profile has additional cosmetic grooves - I'm often brushing out location debris that accumulates in the slots and the additional grooves may accumulate even more. Both ranges have plastic covers that clip into the T slots. The Sonosax is mounted on a sliding shelf with Velcro. It's a thin timber shelf that is attached to a pair off horizontally mounted low profile aluminium drawer runners with about 20cm or 8" of travel that I found at a marine interior outfitter. These in turn are mounted on a pair of horizontal extrusions running front to back. In the first picture there is a 30x60mm extrusion in front of the mixer. This is attached to the shelf and acts a front protection for the mixer and a scribble strip. Just visible below that section are the front edges of the two runners. The horizontal sections running front to back are directly behind the next lower visible extrusion which is 30x30. They are connected to front and rear extrusions with a blind mounting joint (Automatic-Fastening Set 6) that isn't as strong as the T slot nuts but is more than adequate for the task. The shelf doesn't latch shut. I did try a rear magnetic catch but it wasn't very effective. I'm looking at a couple of button latches which would mount in the front extrusion and latch into the horizontal uprights. Carts are never finished! David Madigan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davidm Posted October 31, 2008 Author Report Share Posted October 31, 2008 Hey David, very nice looking cart. I am a big fan of the vertical sound cart design. Do you stand when you mix,, or use a high chair? CrewC Hi Crew, I prefer to mix standing up but I also have a tall directors chair in which to while away the day..... I see Metacorder--what Mac? A mini? Pretty cart. How come such small wheels in front? Philip Perkins Hi Philip, Don't ever do this. There are far more interesting things to do with ones life. That 1U silver rack case underneath the 744T contains a firewire DVD drive, a Carnetix P2140 power supply, a firewire hub and an Intel Mac Mini. As for the smallish front castor wheels, these are stock Item products. There's no doubt that large castor wheels travel over cables and rough ground better but I'd have to totally change the cart base and rear wheel mounts to accommodate significantly larger castors. In practice, I tilt the cart back and bump over cables and rough ground with the rear wheels only. This cart has been to all sorts of difficult places but in reality, I built it for the pavement and studio. David M Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pshap Posted October 31, 2008 Report Share Posted October 31, 2008 Are those Spanish tiles that your cart is resting on? Oh my gosh..... Just kidding..... This is one of the finest looking carts I have seen... I am not sure about standing up to mix though, maybe because I am lazy as heck and some shoots seem to last forever..... Nice Job. Thank you for posting the pictures of your baby!!! - pshap Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bcopenhagen Posted October 31, 2008 Report Share Posted October 31, 2008 Fantastic! Your "lid" is very nicely done... I installed a hinged lid to my cart, with the computer and video monitor built in, but it doesn't look nearly so elegant. It was a necessity to having the 788T reside safely on the top shelf. How does the monitor fit into the lid? Brian Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davidm Posted November 1, 2008 Author Report Share Posted November 1, 2008 How does the monitor fit into the lid? Brian Hi Brian, I used the 30x60 extrusion on the rear sides of lid. These provided an extra slot that I mounted the screen surround into. There's a gap above and below the screen surround for ventilation. The pictures below should explain how it works. The screen is a 15" widescreen, 12 volt Xenarc. It's powered via a Traco 9-18V to 12 volt DC/DC converter. It's sort of daylight readable and I can put some black card into the slot above the monitor for some extra shade. I also have an Elgato Eye TV250 mounted inside the cart which takes one camera video feed and floats the picture over lower left quarter of Metacorder . Here's also a photo of the Mark I and Mark II carts, the Mark II with it's lid closed. David Madigan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
itemmidwest Posted November 25, 2008 Report Share Posted November 25, 2008 Hello Everyone, We are the item distributor in the midwest, located outside of Milwaukee. I'd like to say the cart is an excellent design, great job! For anyone who may need our services please let us know. We are a full service distributor, we can design build, or process things as a kit. Tom Dachowski President Itemmidwest www.item-midwest.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nicole Hankerson Posted September 21, 2009 Report Share Posted September 21, 2009 Wow that is nice. I love it. Nicole Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Edwardo Santiago Posted November 13, 2009 Report Share Posted November 13, 2009 This is the most beautiful design I've seen. I'm in love. Thank you for letting us all drool. E. Santiago Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt McGowin Posted November 13, 2009 Report Share Posted November 13, 2009 That is a great looking cart,Thanks for sharing. It would seem to be a stretch to bend down to reach the 744. How do you handle this? I see that you have a monitor screen.I guess this monitor is for computer stuff, so where do you put the monitor feed from camera? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davidm Posted November 17, 2009 Author Report Share Posted November 17, 2009 Hi Matthew, The 744T is operated by a CL1 remote mounted to the lower right of the screen. As it's a backup recorder, I rarely have to touch it. I just power up in the 744T in the morning and set the timecode. I did run an EyeTV 250 USB interface for a year or so. This enabled a video feed to float over Metacorder on the screen but the picture was never great. I tend to either sit directly behind the director and script supervisor and watch their monitor or watch the larger monitors provided by video assist. However, I'm going to buy a pair of monitors next year and will probably mount them vertically on a Magic or Noga arm attached to the right hand side of the cart. My cart is stripped down for cleaning and rewiring at the moment. I'm looking at shifting the 744T, Comtek transmitter, computer and drawer further into the cart as my knees bump into everything if I do sit on a directors chair rather than stand. The plan is to build a frame from 20mm Item section and have someone fabricate some lightweight sliding shelves and a drawer. I'll be putting in a new Mac Mini, a slightly larger screen and a 788T will be my backup machine. David M Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard Lightstone, CAS Posted November 17, 2009 Report Share Posted November 17, 2009 David, I use the EyeTV tuner as well, as a third monitor when needed. You can attach a better antennae to the unit to get improved reception. I also split my screen into a quad, using Mac's "Spaces". The TV image is in the lower right quad in the photo. RL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davidm Posted November 18, 2009 Author Report Share Posted November 18, 2009 Hi Richard, I used a direct video cable from the video assist setup. There was always interference when running on mains, even when using a video ground lift transformer in the video cable and sending transformer isolated, ground lifted audio to the video assist. A few months ago, the mini USB connector on the EyeTV box broke off an I couldn't get it going again. My current video screen has appalling colour which made the video worse than it probably was. As I'm going to fit a newer screen I may have another look at the EyeTV as a new screen with although I'm keen to have a couple of low latency SDI monitors. I wonder if it's possible to get two EyeTV interfaces running on the same computer? That might be quite elegant solution with the quad screen. David M Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard Lightstone, CAS Posted November 18, 2009 Report Share Posted November 18, 2009 David, I use the Eye TV Hybrid, it has a USB extension cable so it doesn't have to be plugged directly into the Mac. They make a version called EyeTV Diversity - it has two tuners. http://www.elgato.com/elgato/int/mainmenu/products/tuner/diversity08/product2.en.html In regards to a hardline feed, most of us have switched over to baluns and run cat-5 cable to video. There are many threads on this topic all over jwsound. RL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael Lonsdale Posted November 18, 2009 Report Share Posted November 18, 2009 Mathew I too have used an USB XTRAVIEW device to import video onto the screen and float the image over Metacorder. Recently I have had to stop this as it was creating a "static pop" every once and awhile on the record. I use BTV Pro to float the image. I have tried additional USB devices but not the Eye TV device. Just wondering if you have had any problems with this device. I find the quality of the system I use to be better than most small monitors. I must say having the image on the laptop is sorely missed... Thanks Michael Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
berniebeaudry Posted November 19, 2009 Report Share Posted November 19, 2009 The link to ITEM isn't working for me. Anyone else have this issue? Great looking cart! Bernie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davidm Posted November 19, 2009 Author Report Share Posted November 19, 2009 Hi Bernie, Item extrusion is from Germany. Here's the distributor page from their international web site: http://www.item.info/en/contact/distributors.html David M Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davidm Posted November 19, 2009 Author Report Share Posted November 19, 2009 Mathew I too have used an USB XTRAVIEW device to import video onto the screen and float the image over Metacorder. Recently I have had to stop this as it was creating a "static pop" every once and awhile on the record. I use BTV Pro to float the image. I have tried additional USB devices but not the Eye TV device. Just wondering if you have had any problems with this device. I find the quality of the system I use to be better than most small monitors. I think the image quality of USB XTRAVIEW and the EyeTV are about the same. EyeTv will resolve 720×480 and BTV-Pro goes up to 720×576 in NTSC. The one problem I have with EyETV 2.0 software is that the floating image does not stay on it's assigned window when using "SPACES". Richard Lightstone is obviously having success with this but I floated the image over the lower left part of the Metacorder window and it remained in the same position when switching to other windows. BTV-Pro does stay on it's assigned window (at least on Leopard) which is great considering it's an OS 9 port. The other problem with Eye-Tv is that it aspect ratio is not correct when fed with 16x9 in PAL. I think the image quality of these devices compared to a low cost 7" monitor is great. The actual image quality on my system is not good as the screen does not work well with my Mac Mini and the overall colour rendition is poor. On a Mac laptop, my EyeTV looked great with a direct video input. I have tried CAT5 for video and audio and it didn't work well for me. For a couple of SD video feeds it would be great but with my EyeTV setup, it was only one video signal and so not worth it. I can't send my audio to video assist down Cat 5 with a video signal as it creates a common earth between the computer / video input and the audio output. I have independent power supplies for my audio systems and my computer to ensure the lowest possible noise floor. The only two common earth points are at the mains side of the float chargers and the shield of the firewire cable between the Mac Mini and the MH2882. David M Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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