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Circuitmess Synthia Build Manual

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Synthia Build Guide
Introduction
The beginning
Welcome to CircuitMess Synthia build guide!
By following this build guide, you'll learn how to assemble your digital musical
sampler. With Synthia, you'll learn how microcomputers and other electronic
components are used for sound production; you will be able to create unique
music by playing with the pre-loaded sounds samples or recording your own
sound samples with the built-in microphone, and much more. 
Age group
Like it says on the box, Synthia is designed for anyone who's at least 11 years old.
You should approach some of the assembly steps carefully, so make sure to have
an adult jump in if you need some help with soldering or tightening the bolts later

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Summary of Contents for Circuitmess Synthia

  • Page 1 Age group Like it says on the box, Synthia is designed for anyone who's at least 11 years old. You should approach some of the assembly steps carefully, so make sure to have...

  • Page 2: Assembly Time

    So hold on tight, read all the instructions, and get ready to have fun! This is a great opportunity and your first step in your big engineering career. Learning with Synthia As previously mentioned, Synthia will teach you a few useful things in the following few hours. Here's what you'll learn:...
  • Page 3 Let's meet all the components that arrived in the box! Open your Synthia box and check if you have all the components. Make sure to lay it all on a clean surface where you'll inspect if everything is there according to the photo and the list below.

  • Page 4: Mandatory Tools

    In this chapter, we'll explain what tools you'll need to assemble your Synthia. If you have your CircuitMess Tools pack in front of you, you should be all set! In case you got the Synthia kit without the Tools pack, this is a good time to borrow some of the tools or purchase them.

  • Page 5: Soldering Iron

    Soldering iron This is the most important tool in a maker’s arsenal. For Synthia's assembly, any entry-level soldering iron will suffice. If you plan to dive into the world of DIY projects, you should consider getting a more expensive one with more features. Many soldering irons with interchangeable tips can be particularly useful when working with much smaller components.

  • Page 6: Needle-Nose Pliers

    With pliers like these, you’ll be able to trim the legs of soldered components and cut wires! We prefer this type shown in the picture (Plato, model 170), but any other type will Needle-nose pliers You’re going to need pliers like these when assembling the casing or when plugging in some tricky connectors! They’re generally helpful when doing some fine mechanical work.
  • Page 7 Standard cross screwdriver You’ll need this cross (Phillips) screwdriver to assemble the casing. A standard 2.0mm cross screwdriver should do the trick.
  • Page 8 Desoldering vacuum tool (solder sucker) This tool is useful when cleaning up soldering mistakes, but it isn’t necessary for assembly. If you plan on doing some hacking, modding, or hardware repairs in the future, having this is always a good idea. Additional useful tools Helping third hand with magnifier This could make your soldering experience a little more enjoyable, especially when...
  • Page 9 Assembly Soldering introduction The first thing that you'll do as a part of the Synthia assembly process is soldering!  Have you ever done that before? If your answer is no, we suggest you look at the following few links, where you'll find useful tutorials and blogs about soldering. It will only take you 10 minutes to get into the zone and understand how it's done.
  • Page 10 There are several rules of soldering that everybody, regardless of their skill level, should follow at all times. Never inhale the dust and the fumes that can be produced by the soldering iron! These can be hazardous, so please don't inhale them. Never touch the tip of the soldering iron! Even if the soldering iron is turned off or completely disconnected from the power source, there is still a possibility that it’s very hot and, therefore, can cause very uncomfortable pain if...
  • Page 11 Using the soldering iron The soldering iron is very easy to use but only when used properly. If you have purchased the CircuitMess tools pack with your Synthia kit, you have gotten a white soldering iron with a temperature regulator.
  • Page 12 Step 1 Set up your soldering iron so it stands on the stand - as shown in the photo. After that, plug it into a power outlet. Step 2...
  • Page 13 Set the temperature to 350° by turning the regulator. There is a small black arrow next to the regulator wheel, so make sure that it points to the right temperature, like in the photo. Your soldering iron is now ready to use, but give it a minute or two, so it can heat up.

  • Page 14: Chapter One - Soldering The Components

    Chapter One - Soldering the components Now you know how to solder, let's put it to the test. Ready? Part one - The headphone jack Before soldering, please check our video tutorial again to ensure you're doing everything right. The first components we'll use are PCB and headphone jack. ...
  • Page 15 Make sure that the round part of the headphone jack is facing up. That way, you'll be able to connect your headphone jack to your headphones.  While placing it on the board, check if everything is well-adjusted before soldering.  Your Synthia should look like this by now: ...
  • Page 16 Now is the time to take your soldering iron and get down to business.  Turn the PCB around, find the pins that belong to the headphone jack, and solder them.  Solder all of the pins from the headphone jack and that this component is vertical to the board.
  • Page 17 Great job! You successfully soldered your first component! We have many more things to solder ahead of us, so we better hop to the next component.  Part two - the speaker connector The next thing we'll solder is the speaker connector. That is the little white thingy you got in one of the plastic bags. ...
  • Page 18 However, we'll leave the caps aside for now and focus on soldering the mechanical button parts.   The five buttons will go on five white-marked squares at the bottom of the PCB.  You can check the exact place to put them on the photo below:...
  • Page 19 The first thing you'll have to do is place every single one of the pushbuttons onto the board. They should be placed vertically on the board. Before soldering the pushbuttons, make sure they are perpendicular (vertical) to the board. This is very important as you'll have trouble putting the protective casing on the device if the buttons are tilted.
  • Page 20 If everything seems alright, start soldering! Part five - sliders It's time to solder the sliding potentiometers. They are crucial components that will later be used for playing with sounds.  There are two sliders, and each slider has three pins that need to be soldered to the board.
  • Page 21 Place it on the right spot, and start soldering! As previously mentioned, there are three pins on each slider. Fit the slider so that the two pins on one side go into the two holes on the PCB board, and one pin goes into the single hole on the other side of the PCB.
  • Page 22 And the back:  Congrats! You successfully soldered all of the components!  The hard part is done. The only thing left to do before connecting Synthia to the PC to check if everything is soldered properly is to connect the speaker! We hope you had a great time soldering the components.

  • Page 23: Chapter Two - First Check

    Take the white part of the speaker and push it into the connector. If the speaker is connected properly, you should feel click! This is what Synthia should look like right now:  In the next chapter, we'll guide you through the hardware test. ...
  • Page 24 LEDs.  Step #2 The first time you connect your Synthia to the PC, you'll hear Spencer's voice (if you are new here and don't know who Spencer is, that is our DIY voice assistant!). Spencer will congrats you on your success and guide you through the first check so you won't be able to miss anything. ...

  • Page 25: Chapter Three - Casing Up

    Spencer saying "Spencer out!".  Now you are sure everything is soldered properly, you are ready to assemble the Synthia's casing.   Chapter three - Casing up If you came here, your device successfully passed the hardware test!
  • Page 26 The important thing is to put the screw from the outside of the acrylic casing and the standoff from the inner side. You'll have to fasten it with your fingers. No tools are needed yet! Now, do the same thing for all six of them! This is what you should have at the end! Put this casing on the front side of the PCB. ...
  • Page 27 Take one screw and one standoff, and fasten it. The screws have to go to the outside of the casing and the standoffs to the inner side.  You'll recognize the sides by the six circles! On the outside, you'll be able to touch the edges of the circle! Repeat this for all of the six screws and standoffs: Now, take the PCB and this acrylic casing, and let's connect everything!
  • Page 28 As for the encoder caps, push them on the button until they click.  Make sure everything works smoothly before going to the next step.  This is what Synthia should look like right now:  The next thing to do is put caps on sliders. ...

  • Page 29: What's Next

    As you can see, there are white stickers under each of the rubber feet. You'll have to remove the sticker before putting them on the casing.  Stick the sticky side of the rubber feet to the bottom of the device.  This is what Synthia should look like after sticking the rubber feet! What's next? What's next? Congratulations! You successfully assembled a DIY digital music sampler, Synthia. ...
  • Page 30 In the meantime, we invite you to join our Discord channel Facebook group where you'll be able to share ideas, photos, and feedback with fellow makers and get exclusive news from CircuitMess.

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