Hardware, Electronics, Technical Stuff

This is a showcase of various technical things I've done. The most ‘famous’ are probably my electric guitars, but there is other stuff like electronics, speaker cabinets and casemods. Many of these pages don't just describe what I did, but also how I did it, and tips for trying it yourself are included.

Additionally, there are some opinion articles and reviews of (mostly Chinese) gadget-like things I bought. As you'll see, I usually don't just use these things but also see if I can hack them to fix some of their flaws. I might add more reviews of specific hardware if it either impresses me, or makes me want to spit my bile.

GeneralMusic and AudioElectronicsPC and Other HardwareProduct Reviews

General

Music and Audio

  • GuitarsHand-Made Electric Guitars
    Between 1995 and 1998, I have built two electric guitars. This page doesn't only describe the process but contains a lot of advice if you want to build, repair or ‘mod’ your own guitar.
  • SpeakersSpeaker Cabinets
    This explains how I evolved from a cardboard speaker in a cardboard shoebox to hi-fi speakers and experimental things like a well-performing small boombox with built-in miniature subwoofer, and the miniature surround system below.
  • Mini-subwooferA Subwoofer That Fits in a Backpack
    This describes how I managed to cram a miniature subwoofer, a 5.1 decoder and a stereo amplifier into an enclosure the size of a small shoebox, for a truly portable surround system.

Electronics

  • Toner TransferCreating PCBs with the toner transfer method
    Instructions for making your own Printed Circuit Boards with a laser printer instead of a photoresist layer.
  • Bike LEDVariable Input Voltage LED driver bike light
    I have been interested in LED-based illumination as soon as LEDs started becoming powerful enough to serve as a practical light source. After a few iterations, I constructed an efficient 1W switching power supply LED driver that fits inside the enclosure of my bicycle's headlight, powered by the bicycle's dynamo.
  • Li-ion PP3What's Inside the Conrad Energy ‘9V’ PP3 Li-ion Battery?
    How is it constructed? Is it a good idea to scavenge bare LiPo cells from this alternative for the classic 9V block form factor battery?
  • Fake solar panelConverting a USB Power Bank with a Fake Solar Panel into Something Decent
    If you buy a solar power bank these days, it is actually possible that the solar part is a lie. A piece of plastic with a light sensor is cheaper than a real solar panel… This page shows an example of such a scam, and how it can be converted into a true solar power bank after all.
  • Phone hacksHacking Chinese (Watch) Phones
    This page explains how to hack the firmware of MT6225 and MT6253-based phones. Mind that this is very technical, do not expect to be able to customise your phone through a few easy modifications.

PC and Other Hardware

  • Black Box“Black Box” Case Mod
    This is a report on how I created a custom PC case from scratch.
  • Arctic SilencerInstalling an Arctic Cooling NV Silencer 5 on a GeForce 6600GT AGP
    Kind of a ‘sequel’ on the above. A report with pictures on how I made the impossible possible, so maybe an interesting read if you want to try a similar hack.
  • Silly HacksSilly Hacks
    A collection of small ‘hacks’, often more for fun than practical use. E.g. creating a mutant ‘optical USB Apple ADB II mouse’ and a miniature PS/2 keyboard, and overclocking a G3 iBook.

Product Reviews

Until now, all these products are cheap to reasonably priced Chinese gadgets — I am a sucker for those things. Next to the actual reviews, most of these articles also contain a short section on how the product can be hacked to circumvent some of its flaws.