ISD 2560 series sound board

**Jakim Fett** · 11-08-2006, 03:28 PM

If anyone has info on the ISD 2560 sound board, I would appreciate it if they would post it here...

Specifically:
I was wondering whether the ISD25xx series can play several different sounds, as in "power up" "idle hum" "clash1" "clash2" "lock" "power down", or if the chip can store/play only one continuous sound.

**Ari-Jaq Xulden** · 11-08-2006, 08:40 PM

heres a link http://www.scary-terry.com/dsr/dsr2.htm
that should tell you. there's also a link on the page where he has a more advanced version that plays multiple messages or sounds but I dont think it would fit in a hilt. besides by the time you buy all the parts needed as the eprom is almost 15 dollars you couldve spent 20 got a hasbro with sounds and clash sensors.

**Ari-Jaq Xulden** · 11-08-2006, 08:41 PM

Originally Posted by ari-jaq xulden

heres a link http://www.scary-terry.com/dsr/dsr2.htm
that should tell you. there's also a link on the page where he has a more advanced version that plays multiple messages or sounds but I dont think it would fit in a hilt. besides by the time you buy all the parts needed as the eprom is almost 15 dollars you couldve spent 20 got a hasbro with sounds and clash sensors.

Thats no moon, Its a space station! Ihave a really Bad feeling about this.

**xwingband** · 11-08-2006, 09:08 PM

Don't post crap like that^^^

**Firebird21** · 11-09-2006, 05:21 AM

Originally Posted by xwingband

Don't post crap like that^^^

I'm thining that's supposed to be his sig or something...

ari, if that is you have to put it in your profile.

**erv** · 11-10-2006, 09:44 AM

Hi !
I think I'm not the best suited person to discuss about sound board technologies in the way that I've designed my own : please take the point of view I'll give here as strictly technical, this is not a way to lower the idea discussed in this thread, nor to highlight my product.
About using an ISD chip, I've seen a thread about it in a french forum and also on TNF. This chip is like magic since it can record and play sound. None of the ISD chip based projects have really started nor got to a sucess point, from what I've seen.
problems/drawback of this chip :
- sound quality. While spec says it's fairly good, it sounds like a christmas card.
- recording method : analog based. Sequencing must be done manually. Almost impossible to properly record a loop sound with zero crossing.
Sound edition would be done on a computer, then output by a sound card (will all the quality loss it can generate) then resampled by a crapy ADC.
I know that a "programming machine" exist, but I think it's just an interface that takes a CF card with wav files, and does all the synch for recording in sequence. I don't think it means programming digitally the samples inside the chip. The machine costs $400
- cannot loop sound by itself (at least on the version of the chip I've worked on). You might however loop the sound "manually" by retrigering it when it has finished to play. Can be done with a bunch of logic chips or a microcontroller
[EDIT] : this chip model can loop one sound, placed at the beginning of the memory
- adressing sounds : I think the adress bus is designed for this purpose. I would have been wonderfull if the adress bus would have been accessible for programming the internal memory with digital samples.
- size : when you have all the parts you need, ISD + uC + amp + extra stuff, you get a HUGE pcb.
- triggering method : maybe the clash sound can be triggered with a clash spring sensor, emulating a key or a momentary switch, but you'll have a lot of double triggering if you don't filter
- for the swing sensor : using a ball bearing activity sensor requieres either some analog conditionning then a uC and ADC to analyse the behavior, or some counters with external input on the uC to analyse the on-off patterns of the sensor to finally trigger the sound chip.

when I started getting involved in saber sound technology in dec 2005, I went thru a lot of solutions, but finally to do it properly :
- you need a microcontroller / processor
- RAM
- storage for sound. A high end uC might have enough of flash to store the samples. Or an external flash or EEPROM might do the job
- clever way of storing sound. If you have room, then storing the file as sound samples is the easiest. If you're limited, you must compress sound.
- a way to change / upload sounds. If you wish so, then you need a simple communication way with a computer, and a host program to send the sound. Possible solutions : serial port thru USB => uC => EEPROM or flash or simply removing the EEPROM from the sound board, and program it with a specific programmer (requires the user to have one).
- small size.

hope this analysis will help to clarify a bit this project.
Erv'

**Jakim Fett** · 11-10-2006, 07:36 PM

Erv,
Thank you very much for the information, it really helped.

Just to verify one thing...

You are saying that it can record/playback more than one separate sound, right?

Sorry if you already told me, sometimes at night I am a bit slow...[/i]

**erv** · 11-11-2006, 12:09 AM

yes, for sure : you can record several messages and access them in different ways. Sequence, or individual. Access mode is mainly using the adress bus. It can be as simple as connecting a button on an adress bit and pressing it will play a sound. This thing has been design to be an aswering machine, basically. Can also be a vocal memo gizmo. The datasheet presents at least one basic schematic to use it more or less this way.

**Jakim Fett** · 11-20-2006, 06:11 PM

uummm, where to start...

Ok. so I bought the sound chip from Jameco, with all the right hardware...
I got it to work using the record/playback circuit off of http://www.scary-terry.com/dsr/dsr2.htm

Then I had problems. I went to the "Advanced" version page (http://www.scary-terry.com/dsr/2560recadv.htm), and built the circuit that is there. I could not figure out the "Addressing" stuff.

I then had two questions:

Is this how you record multipal different sounds? If so, sombody please explain it in Simple terms so I can understand it!

If this is not it, What is?

**erv** · 11-21-2006, 01:19 AM

Adressing uses the Axx pin to set up an adress : it means that you will record (and afterwards playback) a sound at this memory location inside the chip.
I don't think this adress is 10 bit wide, it's just 10 position made with the dipswitches, so you might have only 10 sounds that can record (10 bits should allow to adress 1024 slots)
Move the dipswitches in the desired position to select a sound slot, record, move the record/play switch back to play position, and play, that's all

(hope this is in clear terms, if it's still greek, let me (us) know)
Erv'