[SOLVED] Could this be done?

l337killa07 · 03-08-2008, 06:19 PM

Hey guys,

This is just a fun little post, luckily I haven't had any computer problems lately :)

Anyways, I recently bought an external USB 2.0 HDD Enclosure. The enclosure has really cool lights on the front, and when lain vertical it looks kinda like a stereo amplifier. From reading the manual, it says the lights increase in height depending on the file of size being written/read, and how much load is on the hard drive.

So what I'm wondering is this....would it be possible for me to somehow hack the enclosure to make the lights move in rhythm to my music? I really only need 1 blinking light to tell me the thing is on and working, but the rest could be really cool if I had it so that it moved in rhythm to my music.

My friend's dad is an electrician and so he can help me out with the physical aspects of the project. What I might do is just buy a small blue LCD light for the top part of the bar, so as to be my status light. The rest of it is green with 1 red at the bottom, and that could be my "amplifier"

So is it possible for this to be done? Preferably software-wise, but if its hardware-wise I think it'd be worth it.

Here's a link to the enclosure, and I also have a movie in case anyones interested, link will be added once approved from YouTube.

Anyways, please let me know if anyone has any ideas! Any/all ideas would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks,
Killa.

**TheMatt** · 03-09-2008, 10:17 AM

Hi,

Unfortunately, these are the kinds of projects that are possible but not practical. You could do this. It would involve unhooking the LEDs and connecting them to a signal processor of some sort and hooking that up to your audio output.

What I would do is search a computer store like Newegg and look for lights that flash along with your music. There are a lot of lights there that will "listen" to the ambient noise and flash along with the music.

I own this controller, and it has a setting where you can set the lights on the controller to flash with music.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811998007

**forcifer** · 03-09-2008, 10:53 AM

actually, ive seen something like that done. what the person did was splice the LEDs into the speaker cable, and as the speakers need power the LEDs got extra power. ill see if i can find it.

l337killa07 · 03-10-2008, 04:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TheMatt

Hi,

Unfortunately, these are the kinds of projects that are possible but not practical. You could do this. It would involve unhooking the LEDs and connecting them to a signal processor of some sort and hooking that up to your audio output.

What I would do is search a computer store like Newegg and look for lights that flash along with your music. There are a lot of lights there that will "listen" to the ambient noise and flash along with the music.

I own this controller, and it has a setting where you can set the lights on the controller to flash with music.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811998007

I will just look for some lights that do that. I'm on a laptop and don't have much spare cash for a speaker system so I wouldn't be able to hook them to anything.

Quote:

Originally Posted by forcifer

actually, ive seen something like that done. what the person did was splice the LEDs into the speaker cable, and as the speakers need power the LEDs got extra power. ill see if i can find it.

Well I don't have any external speakers, for the time being I don't plan on doing all that.

I have a video here of the lights on the enclosure, SORRY FOR THE POOR QUALITY! I used the youtube instant capture feature so having to directly record was terrible. I'll upload my vid from my camera later if anyway wants.

**TheMatt** · 03-10-2008, 07:00 PM

The problem with that forcifer is you need to make sure you don't blow up the LED (believe me, I've done that before and it actually isn't safe because it sends glass shards flying everywhere).

I would just get something online that flashes with the sound. They aren't too difficult to find.

l337killa07 · 03-11-2008, 07:47 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TheMatt

The problem with that forcifer is you need to make sure you don't blow up the LED (believe me, I've done that before and it actually isn't safe because it sends glass shards flying everywhere).

I would just get something online that flashes with the sound. They aren't too difficult to find.

Well I think these lights are plastic, not glass, and the enclosure is aluminum and plastic.

But anywho, thanks everyone for the help, I will just Google around for something that fits what I'm looking for. Admin/mod, feel free to close this thread, I feel the issue is resolved.

03-08-2008, 06:19 PM	#1 (permalink)
l337killa07 Registered User Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Woodbridge Posts: 39 OS: Windows XP SP2	[SOLVED] Could this be done? Hey guys, This is just a fun little post, luckily I haven't had any computer problems lately :) Anyways, I recently bought an external USB 2.0 HDD Enclosure. The enclosure has really cool lights on the front, and when lain vertical it looks kinda like a stereo amplifier. From reading the manual, it says the lights increase in height depending on the file of size being written/read, and how much load is on the hard drive. So what I'm wondering is this....would it be possible for me to somehow hack the enclosure to make the lights move in rhythm to my music? I really only need 1 blinking light to tell me the thing is on and working, but the rest could be really cool if I had it so that it moved in rhythm to my music. My friend's dad is an electrician and so he can help me out with the physical aspects of the project. What I might do is just buy a small blue LCD light for the top part of the bar, so as to be my status light. The rest of it is green with 1 red at the bottom, and that could be my "amplifier" So is it possible for this to be done? Preferably software-wise, but if its hardware-wise I think it'd be worth it. Here's a link to the enclosure, and I also have a movie in case anyones interested, link will be added once approved from YouTube. Anyways, please let me know if anyone has any ideas! Any/all ideas would be greatly appreciated! Thanks, Killa.

03-09-2008, 10:17 AM	#2 (permalink)
TheMatt Moderator, Hardware Team Join Date: May 2006 Location: Boston Posts: 13,693 OS: Win 3.1, 98, NT 4.0, XP Debian 4.0, Kubuntu 6.06 My System Blog Entries: 3	Re: Could this be done? Hi, Unfortunately, these are the kinds of projects that are possible but not practical. You could do this. It would involve unhooking the LEDs and connecting them to a signal processor of some sort and hooking that up to your audio output. What I would do is search a computer store like Newegg and look for lights that flash along with your music. There are a lot of lights there that will "listen" to the ambient noise and flash along with the music. I own this controller, and it has a setting where you can set the lights on the controller to flash with music. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811998007 __________________ - Matt M - KB1OSC - Folding@Home 85015 If TSF has helped you, please consider donating. If I have stopped responding to a thread, feel free to send me a PM with a link to the thread. It is advisable to subscribe to threads so you will receive updates when replies are posted. You can subscribe to threads from the "Thread Tools" Menu. »Memtest86 »Prime95 »UBCD »SpeedFan »NHC Personal »Everest »Sandra »PC Wizard »RivaTuner »ATi Tool Click here for Useful Articles and Guides

03-09-2008, 10:53 AM	#3 (permalink)
forcifer good bye and good luck Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: Kansas City kansas Posts: 3,486 OS: Vista Premium 32 My System Blog Entries: 1	Re: Could this be done? actually, ive seen something like that done. what the person did was splice the LEDs into the speaker cable, and as the speakers need power the LEDs got extra power. ill see if i can find it. __________________ im back...i guess...

03-10-2008, 07:00 PM	#5 (permalink)
TheMatt Moderator, Hardware Team Join Date: May 2006 Location: Boston Posts: 13,693 OS: Win 3.1, 98, NT 4.0, XP Debian 4.0, Kubuntu 6.06 My System Blog Entries: 3	Re: Could this be done? The problem with that forcifer is you need to make sure you don't blow up the LED (believe me, I've done that before and it actually isn't safe because it sends glass shards flying everywhere). I would just get something online that flashes with the sound. They aren't too difficult to find. __________________ - Matt M - KB1OSC - Folding@Home 85015 If TSF has helped you, please consider donating. If I have stopped responding to a thread, feel free to send me a PM with a link to the thread. It is advisable to subscribe to threads so you will receive updates when replies are posted. You can subscribe to threads from the "Thread Tools" Menu. »Memtest86 »Prime95 »UBCD »SpeedFan »NHC Personal »Everest »Sandra »PC Wizard »RivaTuner »ATi Tool Click here for Useful Articles and Guides