High voltage fun and games... or is it?

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I've been diving into some exciting high voltage experiments with filaments scavenged from old Philips boards. After tinkering around with a YH11068A voltage generator, I'm now exploring a new version based on the MC34063 IC. Alongside, I've found a super handy voltage/current meter that's been a great help. If you enjoy my nerdy adventures and want to support my quest for more techy gadgets, check out my Patreon or pop by our new shop. Oh, and joining our Discord community or newsletter is a great way to stay in the loop!

Lots of Stuff - And a NEW PCB! It's a rare mailbag video. - In today's episode, I'm unboxing some goodies from PCB way - my super tiny esp32 breakout boards, which I'm planning to use to recreate a mini TV complete with speakers and a display. Also received some convenient adapter boards for easier testing. Excited to explore a new Arduino Nano esp32 based on a different, tinier module, and contrasting it with other products like the Tiny Pico. Also up for testing is a new mini wear electronic load compared to my old one, and an ATX power adapter for more USB ports. I'll be testing power banks, playing with inexpensive yellow displays and nunchucks for fun gaming projects, and testing out an RGB bead curtain with hackable possibilities. Also, under my ongoing experiments is a Raspberry Pi zero, turning into a 'Doom' playing device with added sound and game controllers. Finally, an air quality measuring device for detecting air particles, CO2 levels, humidity, temperature and other parameters is up for exploration as well. A whole array of fun projects queued up, so stay tuned!

Soldering up another ESP32-S3 board and a 3in1 Oscilloscope - So in this video, I had a fun time experimenting with the cool gadgets sent over to me by Fury. I unwrapped this awesome USB soldering iron that looks quite promising and useful. The tiny solder stand, a Galium nitri power supply and a collection of soldering iron bits that they sent over were quite appreciable. The video took a spin when I introduced the novel 3in1 oscilloscope. This tool bundles an oscilloscope, a transistor tester and a signal generator. Well, that's a triple threat! I went on to test the soldering iron and it showed some remarkable results. The video ended with me trying out the oscilloscope and I must say, this little toy packs a punch! All things considered, pretty pleased with my new tech. Can't wait to get down and dirty with all the nitty-gritties these gadgets offer!

Look at My Shiny Crystal Balls - Custom ESP32 PCB With WLED. - Step right up, folks, for the grand unveiling of my shiny new crystal balls – yes, crystal balls. I've transformed ordinary AliExpress pieces into juggernauts of light and color, all powered by the splendid WLED software. Dive deep with me into the nitty-gritty of the underlying electronics and come face-to-face with the true beauty of voltage measurements (I promise, it's more riveting than it sounds). While the original circuit boards from AliExpress might not thrill, my beefed-up version invites gasps of wonder, with microphone-controlled LEDs throwing light in a million dazzling ways. Join me as I chronicle my journey through schematic revisions, components selection, and technological trickery – in short, the wild ride that has led to this epic macOS light show.

Simple Multi USB-C Power Module - With my growing list of USB-C powered devices and just one cable, I found myself underpowered on my bench. My solution? Scouring the depths of AliExpress for USB-C power delivery, QC2, and QC3 step-down converters. After initially purchasing individual boards, I struck gold with an ultra-convenient 4-in-one board. Paired with a Meanwell power supply, I enjoyed pushing my new setup to its limits with the MiniWare electronic load tester. Although managing to pull a decent 65W, I'm dreaming up a 3D printed enclosure and eyeing up MiniWare's display modules for future improvements. I reckon, while I'm battling delayed PCBs and dodgy components, it's certainly a fun way to help power up my bench!

Danger danger high voltage - In this blog post, I explore my experiments with high-voltage circuits, trying to light up LED filaments salvaged from broken light bulbs. Despite some explosive mishaps with capacitors and MOSFETs, I decided to try a proper DC-DC converter. Unfortunately, the one I got turned out to be faulty, highlighting some rough soldering and component failures. I've ordered replacements and hope to successfully light the filaments soon. Follow along on my troubleshooting journey with plenty of learning curves!

No Power? No Problem! A Wireless Pi Doom Machine - In my latest wireless charging experiments, I got my hands on a set of wireless charging PCBs and dove into testing different voltage inputs and their efficiency levels. It was interesting to realise that the 5V input managed to provide a decent efficiency of 73%, while 12V input struggled and heated the receiver board excessively. With the perks and limits of this setup explored, I took a whirl at creating a wireless Pi Doom machine. It worked like a charm! However, I quickly noticed the need to split charging and boost board into two different modules - a project to look forward to. Half the fun is getting there! Check out the video [here](https://youtu.be/glCIuOoFm7U) for more detail on the project.

The PCBs are in production - what have I messed up? - After some stress and trepidation, I finally took the plunge and sent my PCB design off for manufacturing. My design centers around building a large seven-segment clock with LED filaments. Jumping hurdles such as voltages, pin usage, and limiting the load on my power supply, I've settled on the ESP32 as the system's heart and come up with a final circuit design. While doing this, I've quickly realized I could improve my layout and fixed a small mistake. Also, I've prepared for either types of LED filaments - the high-voltage ones or the larger, 3v ones. However, I did bungle up a couple of things on the enable line of the shift registers and board layout. But hey, this is a learning curve, right? Can't wait to get the boards and see what other exciting errors surface!

Dave come see - it's beautiful man - Hey folks, I revisited my flame lamp project from 2020 and gave it a serious upgrade - we're talking a leap from 300 to a whopping 1024 LEDs thanks to these nifty flexible WS2812 panels. I've kitted it out with a versatile PCB from my Crystal Balls project, tackled power injection challenges and kept things cool with a current-limiting power supply. I had to wrestle with 3D printing and getting the panels to behave inside the lamp's tube, but the end result? A mesmerizing blaze of colors with gorgeous fire effect, all orchestrated by the WLED software. It's like my very own Phoenix rising from the 2020 ashes. Curious to see this electronic inferno come to life? Check out my videos for the full, fiery scoop!

I broke it and then i fixed it - Started off on a techie adventure with an RP2040 DVI board from Adafruit, aiming to get the pico-zxspectrum going. Things started acting haywire once the USB hub got involved, ending in a complete shutdown, intuitive diagnosis showed the power pin was a ghost town! After pin-pointing (and removing) the dead IC, I performed a delicate soldering operation to bless it with a new 3V3 regulator. Working the kinks out with the resolution led to a thrilling revival and, voila, we were back in business with DVI output and SD Card support!

Thanks to https://www.PCBWay.com/?from=atomic for sponsoring the channel.

I’ve been playing around some more with these high voltage filaments that I got out of some dead Philips boards.

Previously - I’ve been playing with this voltage generator: YH11068A - https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_oDMUJrV

I’ve got a new one based around the MC34063 IC - you can find quite a few on AliExpress - e.g. https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_oC8zi6e

And the voltage/current meter is this one - quite handy: https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_ol0trxx

If you’d like to help support the channel and help me buy more nonsense - I have a Patreon page: https://www.patreon.com/atomic14

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HELP SUPPORT MY WORK: If you're feeling flush then please stop by Patreon Or you can make a one off donation via ko-fi

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· · · · · Posts · Videos · Tags · Support

High voltage fun and games... or is it?

Written by

Chris Greening

Supported by

atomic14

A collection of slightly mad projects, instructive/educational videos, and generally interesting stuff. Building projects around the Arduino and ESP32 platforms - we'll be exploring AI, Computer Vision, Audio, 3D Printing - it may get a bit eclectic...

High voltage fun and games... or is it?

Related Videos

Related Posts

Written by

Chris Greening

Supported by

atomic14

A collection of slightly mad projects, instructive/educational videos, and generally interesting stuff. Building projects around the Arduino and ESP32 platforms - we'll be exploring AI, Computer Vision, Audio, 3D Printing - it may get a bit eclectic...