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Author Topic: Party-Box...Countertop cab w/ laptop & flat screen  (Read 73646 times)

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theCoder

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Re: Party-Box...Countertop cab w/ laptop & flat screen
« Reply #40 on: June 03, 2006, 01:39:42 am »
I simply used the existing cable/LCD panel and placed the panel on the back of the notebook.
Cool approach.  If you do this however, how do you get to the CD drive?  I was planning on having mine "point" up, putting a door in the top.  Doing so however would really complicate the back contour.  I decided to mount it so that the CD points down, and I'll cut a slot out the bottom.

2) Thanks for posting your progress with these. I've tried to mickey mouse something like those before, I didn't know things were made specifically for that purpose!
When my friend pulled them out, I knew immediately what they were for and though they were so cool.  Before he could set the box down I had my camera in hand taking shots.

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Re: Party-Box...Countertop cab w/ laptop & flat screen
« Reply #41 on: June 03, 2006, 10:23:16 am »
Skin - After Glue
I took a few hours of vacation time yesterday to work on the project.  The skin is now glued on!  No breakage!  I guess I could have wiped up after myself a little better.



The skin truly followed the profile of the ribs.  It went pretty much from one rib to another in a straight line, causing a 1/16" gap..  I want the skin to be flush with the edge of the side.  It looks like some patchwork is in order.  I've used wood putty in the past, but I'm looking for an excuse to try Bondo.  Apparently cab enthusiasts with a lot more experience that me use it a lot.  I'll let you know how it turns out.  If I were to do it again, I'd go with more ribs, say one every inch and a half or so.



I/O plates
I made two mounting plates for the IO.  They are made from the 1/8" plywood I originally tried to use as the skin.  The switches and ports will be mounted on these plates, then they will be screwed down to the inside.  I'll probably paint them black because the pockets on the other side are deep.





Fan
The CPU gets very hot after about an hour of use.  I'm glad we've had all the kids we're planning on having because after having that thing on my lap I'm not so sure...  I'm going to mount a fan directly behind the CPU.  Yesterday I was in a local computer shop looking at fans.  They had 2, one for $10 and another for $15.  Then I noticed a box of surplus stuff lying in the corner containing a bunch of Intel CPU fans for $6.  Sold.



I needed a way to cover the fan.  Many ideas came to mind.  My friend Jim recommended making it out of 1/4" hardwood.  "Just get me an AutoCAD file and I'll cut it out on my CNC machine."  I haven't used AutoCAD since college.  I've had lots of experience drawing the sweeping lines of the cab profile so I decided to go with this look.  I basically freehanded the drawing then cut it out with the scroll saw.  I smoothed the edges with a power sander, then put on a 1/8" chamfer with a router.  Lots of hand sanding later and its done.  The pictures really don't show it but the sides are very rounded and it has a nice 3D contour effect.  I'm going to take Jim up on his offer on the CNC but this time to drill the hundreds of holes in a cool sweeping pattern. 



Speakers
The speakers are hacked from an amplified PC speaker set I picked up at a garage sale for $2.  I didn't have room to make a hollow pocket in the top surface (where the marquee & speakers typically go), so I had to look elsewhere to place the speakers.  I thought about putting them in the back and also in the bottom.  There is just barely enough room (1/16" to spare) to mount them beside the monitor facing front.  Now the issue was how to cover them up.  I went with the same material and basic shape of the fan cover.  Hopefully it will sound OK.



And finally a picture showing the speaker plates in their approximate location along with the fan plate that will be mounted on the back.  I'm not sure how I'm going to finish the plates.  I'm leaning toward a high gloss paint of roughly the same color as the box (light gray.)   I don't want them to scream out like in this picture. I'd rather have a subtle contrast in either color or texture.



I'm starting to get a little nervous about the weight.  My original intent was to make it light enough for my wife to easily carry.  My goal was 25 pounds or less.  The CPU and monitor weigh about 11 pounds.  The box (minus the CP & bezel) weighs in at around 8.  I've still got the controls, wire, transformers, various cords, and who knows what else yet to go.  It is definitely going to be a very light cab, but I'm not sure if it will weigh in at less than 25 pounds when it is finished.

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Re: Party-Box...Countertop cab w/ laptop & flat screen
« Reply #42 on: June 06, 2006, 11:10:22 am »
Bondo Work
I wish I'd tried bondo earlier.  This stuff rocks.  I had a number of gaps and uneven spots along the contour of the box.  I used a straight edged piece of plyable plastic to spread the bondo.  Prior to application, I put some tape down on the t-molding slots (thanks to someone on the forum for this recommendation).

This shot shows a 1/4" gap at the bottom where the skin meets with the bottom rib.  The bondo covered it up great.  I also put on small strips of t-molding on the bottom to keep the edges from getting messed up while I'm working with it.


This shot shows what happens when you try to overwork bondo.  The mixture I made up was only workable for about 3 minutes.  Any attempts to re-touch after that was a disaster.  Your best bet is to smear it into the cracks, then cross your fingers and try to get one smooth stroke.  Retouching really doesn't work that well.  You really need it to be one continuous stroke. 


I got better at it by the 3rd application.  The good news is that when you mess up, it just sands off. 


I forgot to take pictures of the bondo after sanding.  It is pretty smooth with no visible lines or uneven flats.  I'm painting now, more pictures to come.

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Re: Party-Box...Countertop cab w/ laptop & flat screen
« Reply #43 on: June 06, 2006, 11:57:50 am »
From left to right I would put joystick, buttons, then trackball. Centipede and Missile Command had the buttons to the left of the trackball.

Wonderful workmanship on the cabinet!
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Re: Party-Box...Countertop cab w/ laptop & flat screen
« Reply #44 on: June 07, 2006, 10:15:33 am »
From left to right I would put joystick, buttons, then trackball. Centipede and Missile Command had the buttons to the left of the trackball.

Wonderful workmanship on the cabinet!
Thanks for the compliment. 

Good catch on the trackball.  On my last cab I just put it in the center because that's where it made sense.  I also put the buttons to the right because that also made sense.  I didn't give it much thought.  Given that layout, I've grown accustom to using my left hand for the trackball and right hand for buttons.  It seams a little strange to use my right hand for buttons with joystick game, and my left hand for buttons with trackball games.  I understand the concern about matching the original layout of the the CP for Missile Command and Centipede.  I think (??) it is better to be consistant with which hand you use for guidance (joystick & trackball) and which hand you use for buttons.

I'm right handed but prefer to use a trackball with my left hand.  Do more people use their right hand for trackballing or their left?  Comments?

Crafty

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Re: Party-Box...Countertop cab w/ laptop & flat screen
« Reply #45 on: June 07, 2006, 11:54:24 pm »
Joystick in my left hand (keep your thoughts clean), leaving my right hand free for trackball/button action
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Re: Party-Box...Countertop cab w/ laptop & flat screen
« Reply #46 on: June 08, 2006, 08:33:54 am »
Joystick on the left and trackball on the right.

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Re: Party-Box...Countertop cab w/ laptop & flat screen
« Reply #47 on: June 09, 2006, 07:27:56 pm »
I think (??) it is better to be consistant with which hand you use for guidance (joystick & trackball) and which hand you use for buttons.

I'm right handed but prefer to use a trackball with my left hand.  Do more people use their right hand for trackballing or their left?  Comments?

The way I look at it is which is going to be more complex? Most trackball games only use one or two buttons and rely much more on the trackball dexterity. So for this, I will use my right hand. The same goes for older games that use a joystick and one or two buttons. When you start getting into fighters and things of that nature, differentiating the multitude of buttons requires more dexterity and I will use my left hand for the joystick and right hand for the buttons.

Does that make sense? It's kind of like playing a guitar. A right handed guitar has you strumming and picking with the right hand and holding notes with the left. There are more times where precise control is needed and more work is done with the right hand in this situation.
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Re: Party-Box...Countertop cab w/ laptop & flat screen
« Reply #48 on: June 10, 2006, 09:17:33 pm »
Thanks for the input.  I think I'll go with buddabing's recommendation (as backed up by Crafty, Nineten-doh, and johnperkins21).  I've played paperdoll with Visio, now it's off to Photoshop.  Another image to be posted soon.

Tapping into the volume pot
The amp I'm using has a very small, thin volume adjustment pot soldered on the PCB.  I considered mounting the board so that the knob stuck though the case, but mounting was going to be a big hassle.  I also did not like the wimpy feel of the thin plastic dial. 



Rather than unsolder the thing out, I decided to just bypass the existing one, soldering in my own.   The trickiest part was determining where to solder.  There were 5 leads directly behind the pot.  Of these, there were two distinct pairs.  One pair coming from what appeared to be a high(er) voltage cable plug (colored red in the picture), and the other pair going off to a few resistors (colored blue).  I never did determine what the other lead was.  I picked up a "audio" variable resistor (0-100 k ohm) from Radio Shack.  It is made specifically for stereo applications and has two sets of contacts, one for each channel.  I soldered one set of leads in and tested it out.  I could tell that it was doing something, but I couldn't get the volume completely off.  Thinking about what I'd done, I had the on-board resistor in parallel with mine. 




I decided to cut the on-board one out of the circuit.  I had to hack & slice the leads on the PCB with a pocket knife to the point where you could barely recognize it.  The leads cut were those I've colored yellow in the picture.  Those leads must have been very thick or something.  It works like a champ.  Now I can mount the amp anywhere I want (probably on the back wall) and can bring the pot to one of the back lower I/O panels designed for this purpose. 




If you are going to be doing this kind of work, the magnifying glass with roach clips soldering tool from Radio Shack makes it much easier to handle and see.

theCoder

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Re: Party-Box...Countertop cab w/ laptop & flat screen
« Reply #49 on: June 12, 2006, 01:01:04 am »
I forgot to include this shot showing the pot.  This was before I cut the "yellow" lines.  The finished version has the two wires on the right soldered to the "blue" spots.

While I had the soldering iron out, I soldered in the CPU on/off wires.  These will be routed to a pushbutton in one of the two lower I/O ports.  I had problems getting the solder to take.  I think I should have gone with smaller gauge wire.  To keep things in tact, I epoxied the wires to the side of the CPU.

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Re: Party-Box...Countertop cab w/ laptop & flat screen
« Reply #50 on: June 14, 2006, 02:33:23 am »
Paint
I decided to go with a dark silver textured paint.  I'm using Rust-oleum "Hammered" spray paint.  I really like the texture it leaves.  I first tried the light silver stuff, but it looked to much like metal.  This shade looks like a smokey gray plastic.  It is a semi-gloss and really looks good.

I started with two coats of white primer.  Then on to the paint.  The first couple of coats turned out terrible.  I did not do a good job of sanding.  I though the imperfections would be covered up by the paint.  My father would be so ashamed.  I wet down some wood putty to the consistency of drywall mud and smeared it over the entire surface.  I then did as I was taught, coarse grit, followed by medium grit, followed by fine grit.  When I finished, all the small scratches were filled in and the surface was much smoother.   



Man what a difference a little patience makes.  It's not perfect, but much better.  Hey Dad, take a look.




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Re: Party-Box...Countertop cab w/ laptop & flat screen
« Reply #51 on: June 14, 2006, 07:47:43 am »
Nice Paint Job

It must be so hard not to rush.....
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Re: Party-Box...Countertop cab w/ laptop & flat screen
« Reply #52 on: June 14, 2006, 09:15:33 am »
Looks good.  Have you thought about laminating the sides?  A nice black laminate would give you contrasting colors and it would hide any imperfections in the paint and the finish.
Its probably too late now since the t-molding slot is cut.

-D
« Last Edit: June 14, 2006, 09:17:18 am by dweebs0r »

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Re: Party-Box...Countertop cab w/ laptop & flat screen
« Reply #53 on: June 14, 2006, 07:30:48 pm »
Have you thought about laminating the sides? 
How do you compensate for the additional thickness of the laminate relative to the t-molding?

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Re: Party-Box...Countertop cab w/ laptop & flat screen
« Reply #54 on: June 14, 2006, 07:34:01 pm »
How do you compensate for the additional thickness of the laminate relative to the t-molding?

Yea, I guess its too late.  You would have to cut the t-molding slot off center and since its already cut...

I dunno.  Someone here probably knows a trick on how you might be able to do it.

I didnt realize you had t-molding slots when I first posted the laminate suggestion.

-D

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Re: Party-Box...Countertop cab w/ laptop & flat screen
« Reply #55 on: June 14, 2006, 10:04:21 pm »
Yea, its definitely too late for this project.  I was just interested for the next one.  How thick is a typical laminate?  Do you split the difference and center the t-molding?

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Re: Party-Box...Countertop cab w/ laptop & flat screen
« Reply #56 on: June 14, 2006, 11:15:31 pm »
Its probably a hair less than 1/16".

Put it this way, if you are building your cab out of 5/8" material and you laminate both sides, 3/4" t-molding will cover it perfectly.

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Re: Party-Box...Countertop cab w/ laptop & flat screen
« Reply #57 on: June 16, 2006, 01:22:11 am »
Busy night last night.  I made a laundry list of small wood shop related projects then hit Jims place.  It was very productive:

1)   Mounted bottom ribs
2)   Cut and mounted bottom skin
3)   Drilled air holes in bottom
4)   Routed pocket for trackball clearance
5)   Made 1/16

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Re: Party-Box...Countertop cab w/ laptop & flat screen
« Reply #58 on: June 22, 2006, 03:48:30 am »
I/O Mounting
When I was around 13 years old I helped my father rebuild a boat.  He constructed most all of his electrical, pulley, gas, and other sub-systems on custom fit pieces of wood, then mounted them into place.  This allows you to do the detailed work on a workbench or other more comfortable setting, instead of deep inside some potentially difficult place.  I used this technique for the power plate, the I/O plate as well as the sound amp.

The plates are mounted to the inside of the box with switches and plugs facing outward.  They are attached to the cab

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Re: Party-Box...Countertop cab w/ laptop & flat screen
« Reply #59 on: June 23, 2006, 03:13:58 am »
Power
There are 5 different devices in this project that require DC power.  They include the CPU (18.5v), display (12v), sound amp (9v), fan (12v), and LED

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Re: Party-Box...Countertop cab w/ laptop & flat screen
« Reply #60 on: June 23, 2006, 11:05:53 am »
I forgot to mention that it took me four tries to get the circuit right.  The first time one of the solder joints was bad.  In trying to debug the problem, I re-examined the schematic and determined that I had the leads on the LM317 reversed.  From there, each time I'd power it up, it would get hot, then cold.  The output voltage of the LM317 was always the same as the input.  A friend of mine said it sounds like I'm frying the regulator.  Taking another look at the schematic I noticed a note saying the pinouts are from the "top view".  I had the pinouts right the first time!  A couple of new regulators put in the correct way fixed the problem.  When at first you don't succeed....

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Re: Party-Box...Countertop cab w/ laptop & flat screen
« Reply #61 on: June 24, 2006, 10:42:48 pm »
Major score today at a garage sale, I've just got to tell someone.  I picked up a relatively new (6 year old) 27" Sharp TV for $10.  Works great.  The guy recently upgraded and didn't have room for the old one.  He also reduced the price because he "couldn't find the remote". 

I've been checking the price of 24" TVs every time I hit the big box stores.  Nothing there anywhere near 10 bucks!  This will work out perfect for my next project.  My wife is starting to get suspicious.

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Re: Party-Box...Countertop cab w/ laptop & flat screen
« Reply #62 on: June 25, 2006, 02:21:30 am »
It has been a very fruitful couple of days.

Modified Power Board
I was done with the power board and ready to test the components.  Man, you want to talk about second guessing yourself.  My concern was that if something were to blow, it would let too much current through and fry something.  My primary concern is was the monitor.  Everything else would be easy to replace.  A friend of mine recommended putting in fuses for extra piece of mind.  I wired in a couple of fuse holders and put in 1.5 amp fuses.  Here is the finished power board.


Speaker and Fan Covers
Next step...drill the hundreds (at least it felt like it) of holes in the speaker covers and fan cover.  Jim offered to do it on his CNC machine, but it was going to be a major hassle getting him a cad file in the format he needed to drive the machine.  I just printed the patterns on paper, stuck them to the wood, then started drilling.  It took about 15 minutes per piece to drill all the holes. 


Blue cover plates will be a nice accent to the blue t-molding.  I'll glue them on just before I clear coat the box and bezel.

Ports
A back shot of the cab with the I/O in place.  I managed to find an 8 foot light gray power cable.  The standard is 6 feet.  That seemed a bit too short.  I want the freedom to strategically place the PartyBox between the drinks and appetizers.  I still need to track down a knob for the volume control.  The fan hole will eventually be covered by the blue fan plate.


Smoke Test
After several hours of shortening wires, various soldering, hot gluing, etc. all the major components are in place to test my handywork.  My primary concerns were whether or not I somehow killed the sound amp, and whether or not the monitor would drive from the LM317 circuit.  No problem with the first.  Sound works great.  The monitor though, that's another story. 

When I first hit the power switch, I was very pleased to see all components come to life, including the monitor.  I put my finger on the voltage regulator and is was just a little warm.  Not bad I thought.  After about 30 seconds however, the monitor started to flicker.  I went back to check the regulator and just about lost the finger print off my finger.  The thing was blazing hot.  Lets see, flickering monitor and extremely hot components (not to mention the smell of burnt flesh and melting hot glue)....I quickly hit the switch.  What a bummer.  Rather than screw around with the power regulator any more, I made a command decision to just use the transformer that came with the monitor.  Ouch, there's another 1/2 pound or so.  Oh well.  After installing the additional transformer, it was time to try again.  This time I was concerned that I fried the 12v regulator.  After all, it still needs to drive the fan.  I was very pleased when everything came up the second time.

Notice the clutter in this shot.  I'm doing this phase of the project on the dining room table.  My wife put up with a lot.


Attached Components
I used a lot of hot glue to hold everything down and to secure the wires.  In this shot, the loose wires on the right connect to the other removable parts including the CPU, monitor, and speakers.


It's just about time to get serious about the control panel.

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Re: Party-Box...Countertop cab w/ laptop & flat screen
« Reply #63 on: June 25, 2006, 02:54:14 am »
Coming together nicely...

Amazing job so far... :cheers:
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Re: Party-Box...Countertop cab w/ laptop & flat screen
« Reply #64 on: June 25, 2006, 11:36:10 pm »
Awesome work so far! You're quite the electronics expert.

By the way, I'm insanely jealous of you having a friend who has a CNC machine. Oh the fun I'd have with that.

Keep up the great work!

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Re: Party-Box...Countertop cab w/ laptop & flat screen
« Reply #65 on: June 26, 2006, 01:07:31 am »
Awesome work so far! You're quite the electronics expert.

By the way, I'm insanely jealous of you having a friend who has a CNC machine. Oh the fun I'd have with that.

Keep up the great work!
Thanks for the compliments guys.  I got the general pointer for the voltage regulator circuit from a post I made in the Main forum.  I'm more of an electronics hack than expert.  I rarely get anything right the first time.  I slept through my 7:40 am electronics class in college.  You just need to be careful with the big stuff (live 220 or 110 voltage), the big red wire on the back of TVs, and things you've got a lot of money into.  The rest can generally be handled with a little Googling, and yet another trip to RadioShack.

Regarding the CNC...I took a year and a half of classes on programming CNC machines.  I was very pleased when my friend told me he was getting it.  I just need to get my hands on some CAD/CAM software.  No manual G code programming for me anymore.  I then need to prove myself and get the "keys to the ignition".  It has lots of potential.

The speaker plates are dry after three coats.  I'll paint the spaces behind the non-functional holes black to blend in with the speakers.

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Re: Party-Box...Countertop cab w/ laptop & flat screen
« Reply #66 on: June 26, 2006, 09:52:28 am »
This thing is looking great! I can't wait to see the final shots.

The 27" tv is a great find! You turn it on? I probably would've bought it for $10 also(and I have nowhere to go with it either). We just had a neighborhood yard sale here. I could barely give stuff away. I guess I'm used to the craigslist people who just want a good deal, and not necessarily a give away.

Keep up the good work.

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Re: Party-Box...Countertop cab w/ laptop & flat screen
« Reply #67 on: June 27, 2006, 04:25:59 am »
Based on a lot of input, head scratching, and prototyping, my CP layout is taking shape.  The 4/8 way joystick is on the left.  I swapped the primary buttons to the left of the trackball.  With the trackball on the right side I had to move the admin buttons.  I didn't want them in the top center so I moved them down the right side.  I'm using low profile 1/2" buttons from RadioShack for the admin buttons.  Hopefully they won't interfere with the trackball.  The shifted values of the buttons are labeled in a light blue so I can still read them without them being too dominate.  They include (Y)es, (N)o, 3, 4, (P)ause, and Tab.  The first and second (left and center) play buttons will be wired to the left and right mouse button inputs.

The artwork follows the flowing bell bottom, tear drop lines of the cab profile.  The colors match the blue t-molding & gray paint of the cab.  Any concerns / comments / recommendations will be appreciated.

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Re: Party-Box...Countertop cab w/ laptop & flat screen
« Reply #68 on: June 27, 2006, 10:06:53 am »

The artwork follows the flowing bell bottom, tear drop lines of the cab profile.  The colors match the blue t-molding & gray paint of the cab.  Any concerns / comments / recommendations will be appreciated.

You've got feedback! (On the art forum)
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vrf

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Re: Party-Box...Countertop cab w/ laptop & flat screen
« Reply #69 on: June 27, 2006, 11:11:59 am »
I like the curves on the artwork, but I have to confess that the drop shadows and mosiac filter effect really turn me off. They just look cheesy in my opinion, and not up to the level of craftsmanship on the cab itself. Maybe you'd be better off with solid colors and dark outlines?

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Re: Party-Box...Countertop cab w/ laptop & flat screen
« Reply #70 on: June 27, 2006, 06:04:44 pm »
I still think you should change "$$" to "25

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Re: Party-Box...Countertop cab w/ laptop & flat screen
« Reply #71 on: June 27, 2006, 06:11:08 pm »
I still think you should change "$$" to "25

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Re: Party-Box...Countertop cab w/ laptop & flat screen
« Reply #72 on: June 27, 2006, 10:28:04 pm »
better yet, change it to a picture of a coin.

I personally like the second idea best.  A coin would look better.

-D

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Re: Party-Box...Countertop cab w/ laptop & flat screen
« Reply #73 on: June 28, 2006, 01:19:32 am »
I still think you should change "$$" to "25

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Re: Party-Box...Countertop cab w/ laptop & flat screen
« Reply #74 on: June 28, 2006, 06:18:46 am »
I like the first one - the swirl version.

-D

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Re: Party-Box...Countertop cab w/ laptop & flat screen
« Reply #75 on: June 28, 2006, 09:44:41 am »
Not exactly what I was thinking, but it does the job. Now the elements aren't floating on their own and the trackball (in the first image) becomes the anchor that visually ties everything together. Good job!
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Re: Party-Box...Countertop cab w/ laptop & flat screen
« Reply #76 on: June 28, 2006, 12:41:11 pm »
It looks like your drop-shadows may be too dark. The "pads" are semi-translucent, which would mean that the shadows are lighter. Now, where the buttons are, that would be dark and you couldn't see the swirl through them, but the rest of the drop-shadow should have a little less opacity.

Does that make sense?
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Re: Party-Box...Countertop cab w/ laptop & flat screen
« Reply #77 on: June 28, 2006, 04:12:05 pm »
This project is nothing short of amazing.  It might be the most unique design I've seen yet.  Keep up the great work!

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Re: Party-Box...Countertop cab w/ laptop & flat screen
« Reply #78 on: June 28, 2006, 09:50:40 pm »
I like the first one - the swirl version.

-D

I Agree the first version is far better..

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Re: Party-Box...Countertop cab w/ laptop & flat screen
« Reply #79 on: June 29, 2006, 01:16:35 am »
This project is really shaping up to be something great.  I love the design.   :applaud:

Keep up the good work.

 :cheers: ,
Ian