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Chamber of Commerce 32041148
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info@compuphase.com
CompuPhase

Programmable MP3 Player

 

Our flagship product is the programmable MP3 player for exhibition centres, scale models, game consoles and kiosk applications. This sturdy and high-quality player is programmable by the end user (or site owner) through a scripting language. As a result, the MP3 player can fit into almost any design for which you need high-quality audio.

logo MP3 Programmable MP3-player, detailed information
This solid state audio player plays MP3 fragments from a CompactFlash card and monitors switches and external signals, under control of a user script. The player is programmable and it can easily be extended with (vandal resistant) switches and indicators, such as LEDs or an LCD. Interfaces for an Ethernet network (Internet access via an embedded TCP/IP protocol stack), IR-receivers (infrared) for remote controls and (barcode) scanners are also available.
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Firmware setup Firmware update version 1.6, Build 3950 (March 2008)
The most recent firmware update for the H0420 programmable MP3 controller/player is version 1.6, build 3950. You may wish to install this update if you purchased your H0420 MP3 player before 1 March 2008. Devices purchased after that date already contain this latest firmware release.
The most recent version of the pawn development environment is also present in this download.
History of changes History of changes and firmware updates
Product documentation Documentation
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Programmable MP3 player - application notes
Programming the MP3 controller/player: getting started
2007-08-14
This article steps through the creation of a very simple program, from the installation and configuration of the tools to the evaluation of the result.
Playing tracks sequentially
2008-03-14
A sequel to the above tutorial, in which we develop a script that plays MP3 tracks one after another (and in a random order).
    Most recent update: This update of the article makes switching from one track to the next track even faster, by creating "resource ids". The discussion on track separation has been moved, with many enhacements, to a separate application note.
Track and artist separation
2008-03-17
When selecting the tracks to play at random, you will often want a form of track separation or, better yet, artist separation, so that the same track (or one of the same artist) does not play too quickly again. This article discusses how to implement track separation and artist separation.
Synchronizing activities with music
2006-08-14
An ID3 tag in an MP3 track may optionally contain text or commands with time stamps. These time stamps allow the text or the commands to be synchronized with the music. The H0420 MP3 controller supports this extension, and the article gives a complete example implementation.
Gapless looping MP3 tracks
2008-01-22
Due to the file format and the algorithm of MP3 tracks, creating a loop without a gap or click is a little involved, especially when using a hardware player. The H0420 MP3 controller can play gapless MP3 audio loops, provided that special software has processed the MP3 track.
    Example tracks & processing software are available from this site, as well as a detailed presentation of how it works.
    Most recent update: The article is updated with coverage of Adobe/Macromedia Flash. The demonstration software no longer has the "8 second of audio" limit (or any other limit).
A remote-controlled MP3 player
2007-06-25
Adding functionality to manipulate the H0420 MP3 controller with a common remote control only takes the IR-receiver chip and a pull-up resistor, plus a script that interprets the codes sent by the remote control. This article goes into details and provides a general purpose script for RC5 codes (other infrared protocols are supported by modifying the script).
Connecting a bar-code wand to the MP3 controller/player
2006-08-14
The H0420 MP3 controller supports a low-cost bar-code wand directly on its I/O pins (only a pull-up resistors sometimes needs to be added). This article descibes the connections and presents a script that decodes the "interleaved 2 of 5" bar-code symbology.
Synchronizing time with DCF77
2008-01-29
This article describes how to synchronize the internal real-time clock of the H0420 MP3 controller on the time signal emitted by the atom clock on the DCF77 transmitter.
    Most recent update: The article also discusses the MSF60 transmitter (in Great Britain) and protocol.
Encrypted MP3 tracks
2006-09-05
The H0420 MP3 controller is able to play encrypted MP3 tracks directly (without needing an intermediate decryption phase, and so without start-up delay). This article discusses the software and the operations necessary to create MP3 tracks with strong encryption (and how to play them back).
A MIDI to RS232 converter
2006-08-14
The MIDI protocol is a serial data communications protocol using on a "current loop" physical layer, and using a Baud rate of 31250 bps. This article shows the electronics needed to convert between current loop and the RS232 signal levels. The circuit can be connected directly to the RS232 port of the H0420 MP3 player. In the second part, the article covers the "software protocol" of MIDI and develops a simple script to send and receive MIDI commands.
Power-outputs for the H0420 programmable MP3 controller/player
2007-08-23
The programmable MP3 player has digital I/O pins with TTL-level output. This note describes how you can get more power (and/or a higher output voltage) from the I/O pins.
A voltage inverter circuit
2006-08-14
The programmable MP3 player directly supports LCDs with a HD44780 controller and a positive LC-driving voltage. With the voltage inverter described here, you can also attach LCDs that need a negative LC-driving voltage.
H0420 Internals
2008-01-04
The internals of the H0420 are briefly touched upon in this on-line article. The notes cover both the hardware and the software ("firmware").
The STA013 MP3 decoder
2008-04-16
This paper is a collection of hardware notes on the use of the STA013 MP3 decoder from STMicroelectronics. The paper also contains some notes on the MP3 file format.