Full tutorial of how to wire a ultimate fx Qui-Gon soundcard into an ultrasaber

[Master Bluespike74]

It can be.  I have not worked with one yet so I am not sure how to use the color change option. 

[Sandtracker]

Xevarin used one in a pos on the previous page, Blue.

[Master Bluespike74]

Could you link that post here?  It might be helpful to others to get there from here since it is stickied.

[Sandtracker]

This was the actual post I intended to make.  Incoming wall of text.



First: Thanks for the videos.  They were extremely useful.

Second: Some notes on changes/modifications I wanted (and in some cases) needed to make due to some differences.

1) The story.  I got a grab bag saber while I was deciding on which US pimped out saber style I wanted.  I received a Liberator v3.  I chose the Adegan Silver option with some colour discs for variety.  After getting a Scorpion with Emerald colour and Obsidian sound and finding this thread I decided to budget upgrade the Liberator v3 and gift it to my son for his 4th birthday.  My wife has a background in electronics and had most of the gear, this thread had the videos, away I went.

2) Couldn't find the Qui-Gon saber at my local shop.  All they had was an Anakin/Darth Vader saber which alternates red or blue.  I made it work with the following modifications.
a)  The switch wires were really short, needed to extend them.
b)  The switch in normal usage mode alternates.  Press the button once, get a blue LED and a slow hum. Turn it off, it is... off   Turn it on again, get a red LED and a fast hum (fast is apparently evil).  From a sound perspective this is a non-issue, technically speaking, as there is bugger all you can do about it.  From an LED perspective though see the next bullet.
c)  The switch activates two separate positive LED nodes at the end of the board (one for red the other for blue in the original toy) but uses the same negative node.  I soldered two wires, one off each node, and then spliced them together.  No matter which hum turns on (slow or fast), the LED lights up.  Incidentally (read "unplanned but happy with") I also have flicker on clash.

3)  I didn't want to burn through a bunch of AAA batteries and I like the idea of Li-Ion setups.  I also wanted to this saber to have a bit more colour options in the long run.  Yes, Adegan Silver + colour discs is fine but let's add some quick disconnects so we have the option to swap out LEDs properly for the future.
a)  I figured on using 2 Li-Ion Battery Holder/Speaker Combo to allow for more room in the hilt.  I also figured on using the 1000mA Wired Buckpuck so I could swap any old LED in there.  I may not know much about LEDs and required current by colour but the bits I read on this forum made me believe that this was the smartest option for swapping things in and out.
b)  Problem 1 occurred here.  I wired up my battery pack, put in the 2 Li-Ion batteries and then went to test which speaker wire went where as per the video.  I got nothing.  Nothing.  After much troubleshooting and searching the forums I found I fried the board.  I missed Ninja-Jedi's (very important) post which, truncated, says:c)  First important bit: If you use the 2 Li-Ion Battery Holder/Speaker Combo with Li-Ion batteries (7.4V) you need to do one of two things. Either wire in a 5V voltage regulator before the board or use a Dummy Cell and one Li-Ion battery (3.7V).  The board can't take more than 5V.
d)  Second important bit: If you are doing simple single colour LED swaps with quick disconnects you won’t need the 1000mA Wired Buckpuck.  I have yet to verify this but I'll take his word for it he seems to have done loads with this board.
e)  Result:  Since the 1000mA Wired Buckpuck requires a minimum forward voltage of 5V, if you want to use it you will need 2 Li-Ion batteries (to be above the minimum for the Buckpuck) and the 5V voltage regulator before the board (to not fry the board).  However, for this simple setup used a single Li-Ion battery and a Dummy Cell.

4)  I followed Jhaka's splicing suggestion to get rid of the demo switch.This freed up some more space and made things a bit cleaner.  With the Li-Ion Battery pack the board can fit nicely in the back-space.

5)  Wiring the quick-disconnects was a non-issue.  Finding the quick-disconnects, however, required me to go outside of US.

6)  I wrapped the sound board with electrical tape for basic protection.  I tried to do it gently but I think it is a bit tight and as such has affected the swing motion sensor in a negative way.  The board, unless completely still, will make the swing sounds.  Now this is for my 4 year old’s (birthday tomorrow) and he won’t care, but it is something I want to address when he isn't looking.

7)  When installing the press-to-fit Momentary Switch, I suggest doing it with the wiring extended out either end of the hilt.  I didn't and now I can only get the battery pack/speaker/board out enough to replace the battery.  This is fine for now, but I am unable to re-wrap the board at this time and could have potentially impeded the replacement of the battery.  I will need to remove the switch or at least lift it a bit to correct this issue.


Third: Here are the parts I used for this budget upgrade.
- Ultimate FX Anakin/Darth Vader toy lightsaber
- Guarded Momentary Switch
- Li-Ion Battery Pack/Speaker Combo
- One 14500 Lithium Ion Cell
- One Dummy Cell
- Quick Disconnects
- Extra Wire
- Shrink Tube
- Solder
- Soldering Iron/Gun

Here it is, Blue

[Assassino37]

Thanks Blue. It actually would be more for personal enjoyment and less for actual use but still, the note about it being DC instead of AC worries me either way since I don't want to risk it dropping on the floor or something and having a problem. I did see that other thread with all your videos which was also worth the watch. Guess I'll add a soldering iron to the list. Luckily some don't seem to be too much.

I would not suggest using electrical tape.  I have done what you are talking about with ceiling fans but you have a good deal more room than you do in some of these setups.  The main reason you should solder and use heatshrink is the fact you are dealing with DC and not AC.  DC will short on these hilts quicker than you can imagine.  I have seen plenty of soundboards other than Obsidian do just that. 

Last year, I had a guy argue with me about using electrical tape over soldering.  He bought $200 worth of equipment and then fried the soundboard.  Now he just runs around Facebook and other forums complaining that Obsidian and another soundboard are complete crap. 

Even if it is a soundless model, you still should use the heatshrink and solder the joints.  The only time I would imagine someone could get around this is if they made a model to just sit on their shelf but what fun is that. 

You can check out some of my tutorials over at www.youtube.com/bluespike1974.  I can walk you through just about any install you want to do.  Big Andy's video challenged me to find a way to get around that pesky on/off/try me switch and I have finally found a way to do it.  It will be included in an upcoming video soon.

[Master Bluespike74]

Point awarded to Sandtracker for that super awesome update to this. 

Assassino, Walmart is where I purchased mine for a remote car starter install in 2006.  Still working today. 

[HalfCracked]

Great info here! Thanks to this and a dying UFX Vader saber my stunt Sentinel LE saber now has sound.
Just finished the mod. The boards on the Vader are almost the same as the one demoed. Removed the demo switch and added a plug from an old computer fan as a quick release for the switch. I reused the Vader speaker by hot gluing it to the bottom of the standard 4 AAA battery pack. It fit perfectly.

A little cram-fu and I'm good to go.

On a side note, the Vader emitter shroud fits almost perfectly on the Sentinel I may just keep it there.

[Zren Tobas]

Is this easy to do? Next time I get a V2 I might wire my Qui-gon board into it. Not sure how exactly this would work though. Can you still use the stock latching switch? Are there any other resistors needed or anything?

[HalfCracked]

If you can solder, it's not too hard. You just need to be meticulous and take it step by step.
Keep the wires straight in your head. Be sure not to cut wires too short. You might need some additional wire beyond what's in the Sabers already.
Getting a quick disconnect for the led and switch wouldn't hurt.

I found my stock switch works fine, I just don't press the button far enough for it to click. It makes contact before the latch engages. If it does latch it just takes two clicks to get it to turn off.

Oh and I'm sure it goes without saying,  you need an open pommel so the sound can get out.

[Flaekingr]

Great tutorial! Given me the inspiration I needed to give diy a crack

[ChillyAleman]

I followed these instructions, but I am having a problem. I did wrap the soundboard in tape, but if I leave it on for more than 5 or 10 minutes or if I actually use it to hit things, it starts making a scratchy sound that quickly deteriorates into pure static. Leaving it off for an half hour resets it. Any ideas what I could have done wrong?

[Master Bluespike74]

I followed these instructions, but I am having a problem. I did wrap the soundboard in tape, but if I leave it on for more than 5 or 10 minutes or if I actually use it to hit things, it starts making a scratchy sound that quickly deteriorates into pure static. Leaving it off for an half hour resets it. Any ideas what I could have done wrong?

It might be overheating. I have found that the plastic tubes used to protect fluorescent lights come in quite handy for these types of builds. The end cap of those things makes a really nice speaker holder also.

[Ratchet_Raff]

Can anyone help with putting a soundboard into a stunt blade? Can't find anywhere with help, especially with parts, taking things apart and rebuilding??
Thanks.

[Timanator]

Can someone link which UFX saber to purchase? There are alot of options ranging from $10 to a few hundred.

Thanks.

[Kal-El_Kenobi1138]

ok, I may be missing something here, but what resistor is he using for this and is it possible to use a buck buck in this. I am not electronically inclined in any way and I need a diagram or something.