AS220's Make and Break workshop, teen edition, in Cranston, RI

AS220 Labs is extending its popular Make and Break series of workshops into a special edition just for teens at the Cranston (Rhode Island) Public Library:

When: Tuesday, March 10, 4 – 6 pm

Where: Cranston Public Library, 140 Sockanosset Cross Road

Teens! Do you like to tinker? Come join us at the Cranston Public Library for Make and Break: Build a 555 Noisekit! – a workshop designed to inspire you to further investigate electronics technology and technology-based scientific inquiry. An instructor from AS220 Labs will show you how to use an old reliable integrated circuit – the 555 timer – to produce electrifying noisemusik. You will leave with a completed project that that can be plugged into any amplifier, computer speaker, or home stereo. All soldering tools and materials will be provided free of charge.

This program is funded by a YALSA Teen Tech Week Mini Grant!

To register, call 401 943-9080 x 5

Make and Break at Cranston Public Library: Build a Noisekit! – AS220 Labs

5 Responses to AS220's Make and Break workshop, teen edition, in Cranston, RI

ellisgl.myopenid.com on March 5th, 2009 at 7:55 pm said:

Why not a single 556?

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anachrocomputer on March 6th, 2009 at 4:25 am said:

Maybe two 555 chips are cheaper than a 556? Maybe it’s easier to find a supplier of 555 chips than 556? Maybe having two chips makes the function clearer to the people making the circuit (which is important when you’re trying to get people to understand what they’re making)? Maybe it’s so that a single chip can be replaced if/when it gets damaged? Of course, if this was a commercially-made product, then not only would they use a 556, they’d use a surface-mount part, and they wouldn’t use sockets!

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Shawn Wallace on March 6th, 2009 at 9:51 am said:

1. It *is* cheaper to buy two 555s

2. They’re readily available from Digikey and Mouser
(the 556 is not)

3. This was built for a workshop and the two ICs make the logic more clear…

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ellisgl.myopenid.com on March 6th, 2009 at 4:11 pm said:

Digikey:
1 LM555 – $0.44 http://search.digikey.com/scripts/DkSearch/dksus.dll?Detail&name=LM555CNFS-ND

1 LM556 – $0.55 http://search.digikey.com/scripts/DkSearch/dksus.dll?Detail&name=LM556CNFS-ND

So 2 LM555s would be $0.88 compared to 1 LM556 for $0.55.

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Shawn Wallace on March 7th, 2009 at 8:10 am said:

Hmm…you got me there. However, if you used an LM556, it wouldn’t be a “555 Noisemusick Kit”!

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