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-   -   Dollhouse aquarium project - 1920x480? (https://www.feldoncentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=26066)

drfish 01-25-2021 09:32 AM

Dollhouse aquarium project - 1920x480?
 
I'm considering making a dollhouse aquarium using this screen and an x86 Raspberry Pi equivalent.

I've never run the aquarium at 4:1 before, though. I know the background is 32:9. Will it letterbox the sides or stretch weirdly if I try to make it jump through this specific hoop? :confused:

Jim Sachs 01-25-2021 12:20 PM

It's designed to letterbox (not stretch) after reaching its max aspect ratio.

drfish 01-25-2021 12:42 PM

Awesome, thanks for confirming, Jim. I'll be sure to post the results if I build/print it. :TU:

drfish 02-12-2021 06:38 AM

1 Attachment(s)
It's going to be a little large for a dollhouse at about 10" wide, but everything should come together next week for this project. :TU:

patscarr 02-17-2021 07:28 AM

Fun! I want to see the finished product!

drfish 02-17-2021 09:47 AM

1 Attachment(s)
It's getting close, no spoiler photos yet, but here's another render.

Ralph 02-18-2021 08:52 AM

Interesting project, being as it has width, how are you going to display the ends?

drfish 02-18-2021 09:32 AM

I debated about that a lot and decided there's was no way I could satisfactorily hide things and have them look any better than just embracing the idea of showing off the internals instead. I'm quite happy with the "hybrid" look so far. :TU:

Ralph 02-19-2021 08:01 AM

Being as the SS will display on multiple monitors.. you could get really fancy by putting a monitor on each end. It would shorten your overall aquarium though so probably wouldn't give you the effect you are after.
Putting the screen as far back as possible and blocking the working parts you see from the ends would "perhaps"allow a view from the ends.

drfish 02-19-2021 10:06 AM

2 Attachment(s)
Getting closer, can't help but share these...

Ralph 02-20-2021 07:52 AM

Looking good:TU:

drfish 02-20-2021 12:25 PM

1 Attachment(s)
It's finished! It stretches the aquarium instead of letterboxing the sides, but it's such a minor stretch from 32:9 to 4:1 that I don't even mind. It looks great! :TU:

Ralph 02-21-2021 07:36 AM

Thanks for including the vernier caliper, it's a lot smaller than I first thought it would be. When you mentioned 10" wide, I took that to be the depth. Looks good though, nice job. :TU:

drfish 02-21-2021 07:46 AM

Heh, the caliper deserved its time in the spotlight, it was critical to the project. I keep it next to me at all times these days. :)

drfish 02-21-2021 09:46 AM

Strange... It appears that in full screen mode the aquarium gets ~20fps at 1920x480, but if I go into windowed mode it hits ~70fps at 1940x500.

The poor little chip and the passive heatsink actually can't quite keep up with the wattage running that fast though, so it starts to throttle and slow down to ~45fps after a while.

I don't understand why full screen is so slow to begin with though, the CPU and GPU only hit about 20% utilization... :loco:

Jim Sachs 02-22-2021 12:23 AM

Looks fantastic!

patscarr 02-22-2021 07:12 AM

I love it! Now we need a picture of it in the dollhouse.

drfish 02-22-2021 07:29 AM

We're going to need a bigger dollhouse. ;)

Jav400 02-22-2021 07:46 AM

Looks good Doc,


So where are the little bottles of food sitting around the aquarium? ;)

drfish 02-22-2021 08:35 AM

Aww man, you're right, even digital aquariums need accessories if they are toys. :nag:

drfish 02-25-2021 10:26 AM

Long story short, I figured out the performance and stability problems. I'm running in windowed mode now with the title bar hidden and black along with the background so it's nearly indistinguishable from full screen and running at 60fps solid. Not bad for a 2-watt chip. Since the aquarium was always ahead of it's time, it still looks killer even though it's super lightweight. :D

Here's a video.

If anyone's curious, even though it's literally a completely functional Win10 PC, this entire thing could be duplicated for about $250. :TU:

Jav400 02-25-2021 12:22 PM

Looks awesome Doc !!!


I'm still looking for some accessories, needs a few bottles of fish food and maybe a dip net. ;) :D


Oooooh, maybe a little rocking chair to sit in and watch the fish :)

drfish 02-25-2021 02:15 PM

:nag::lol:

Bob 02-25-2021 02:26 PM

That's incredible. Thank you for sharing.

Wizwad 02-26-2021 11:22 AM

Excellent work, Doc. It looks great!

Jim Sachs 02-26-2021 11:55 AM

Doc - can we have permission to put your video on the SereneScreen website?

drfish 02-26-2021 12:09 PM

Of course! However, if you don't mind waiting a bit, I may have something better to offer (I might write up a piece about the build for Hot Hardware, but I'm waiting to hear back from Dan over there).

At the very least, I can redo that video with a turntable and better lighting. That little clip was pretty spontaneous, heh.

Jim Sachs 02-26-2021 12:20 PM

Sounds great.

patscarr 02-27-2021 08:31 AM

Awesome!

ESHIREY 03-06-2021 03:02 PM

That is soooooooooooooooo awesome my friend. I just now saw it.

drfish 03-06-2021 06:54 PM

Thanks guys. I should have a writeup about it online soon. I've already got the files posted on thingiverse, but I'm not publishing them until the piece is up. :D

drfish 03-11-2021 09:39 AM

It's up! https://hothardware.com/reviews/rock...uarium-project

Jav400 03-11-2021 10:06 AM

A very interesting read Doc, and just absolutely AWESOME !!! :TU:

drfish 03-11-2021 10:37 AM

Thanks man. :)

I just realized I should have talked to you about making a custom-fit acrylic case for this instead of using a napkin holder, lol. There's no way anything I built from acrylic would have come out as clean as the off-the-shelf option though.

Jav400 03-11-2021 11:17 AM

Sure, I would have done it and sent it to you.


If it comes down to it and you want a different size or something that would work better let me know.

drfish 03-11-2021 11:30 AM

It's a little bit tempting, but this way is probably better for other people that can just buy something on Amazon instead of needing to have their own acrylic guy. ;)

That said, it might not be a bad idea for you double check the dimensions and have a design ready, maybe you could sell some, heh.

Jav400 03-11-2021 11:45 AM

Right now I am already dealing with supply problems with several manufacturers declaring Force Majeure, and price increases right and left.


I had one last week went up 25% in 3 days, and with the caveat that they weren't sure when more material would be available or at what price.


I'm thinking its getting time to retire and mostly go fishing or play golf.

drfish 03-11-2021 11:57 AM

Ouch. I'd hoped it would be getting better by now. Maybe I should be glad that something as superfluous as my little napkin holder was even still in stock for less than $20.

Bob 03-11-2021 02:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by drfish (Post 158875)

Great article. Some of us old diehard fans are still here, but just don't post much.

Ralph 03-12-2021 07:48 AM

Nice write up, my only criticism, you should have added casually something to scale it with, like your vernier caliper. That is what blew my mind:TU:


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