Three more music Spectrum Analysers. All that glitters...

[@wal]

I'm the kinda guy who thinks the visual part is a good percentage of the total experience. I hate the way VU meters and Spectrum Analyzer displays have been removed from most audio equipment. That said, I love these vids showing off what's available. Thanks for the effort put into making these vids!

[@EsotericArctos]

Agree with you, but I can also understand why they are removed when a lot of amplifiers etc are used in Home Theatre setups where you don't really want the VU meters and visualisations taking away from the movie experience.

[@natangurfinkel]

@@EsotericArctos fair enough. Stereo became a niche and vu meters are only found on higher-end amplifier components AFAIK, and probably the manufacturers are assuming you have a dedicated listening room where a TV is irrelevant.

[@Kremithefrog1]

I love the lasers and lights at edc festivals.

[@thomasandrews9355]

I love your channel! You big dummy 🤪

[@davezorc]

Rick Diculous they plain out lyin to ya.

[@kenp14]

You have amazing patience. I laughed out loud during the 2nd one when you dumped all the LED strips out of the acrylic out of frustration.

[@coffeekatk4067]

Duct taped together and file 13!

[@Dark_Ronius]

That second one looks like it would be good if it were about £40 as opposed to over £100. I quite like the industrial look, but at that price really you shouldn't be paying for a factory work experience position.

[@tenow]

Yup, I like the design of the second one

[@Kousaburo]

Fully assembled and with the LEDs in the right place, then yeah.

[@ItsMrAssholeToYou]

£10-20, tops.

[@Mekchanoid]

Totally. Is it just me, but it seems like this cheap Chinese tat has gone up in price a lot in the last few years? Haven't bought on anything on Aliexpress for a while now, doesn't seem to any point.

[@c3pu333]

It would look pretty good, when lined up properly. But it is grossly overpriced.

[@CoolFire666]

The second device was doomed to fail on lining up the LEDs. There's 22 acrylic panels and 20 LEDs on each of the strips. So it's fair to say them not lining up properly is no fault of yours.

[@slother93]

Yep, clearly no tolerance analysis was performed. Nor were any f@cks given at the factory!

[@davelikesthings]

I guess you could use 20 panels and all the spacers, but, yeah it's a very half-assed implementation of an over-complicated design :/

[@jmctoob2]

I assumed the extra panels were to be unspaced at the bottom to hide the chips.

[@midniteoyl8913]

@@jmctoob2 - Thought the same, but it didn't look like the slots were big enough to fit the chips.

[@jonny5alive123]

@@midniteoyl8913 Maybe some of the strips have a larger hole for the chips

[@thenargles]

The “dual channel” one that is actually mono just blows my mind. Why would they do such a stupid thing?! Anyway, you made it entertaining for us as usual!

[@Preske]

money.

[@justanotherviewer4821]

They could have used 2 mono circuits stacked one on top of the other (and use that in their mono version).

[@Sortsylic]

It's China style marketing

[@drakefallentine8351]

They know the "consumers" are easily impressed mit der blinkin lights...but don't know enough to question why? All they need to know is...."it's cool"...(and if it can be mounted on their dashboard.)

[@jonnyreverb]

Agreed. It's not an impressive light show, and you can't tell which channel is clipping to use it as a spectrum analyzer.

[@kaitlyn__L]

Wow, masochistic Mat in this one! I definitely would’ve stopped bothering after the first construction on the second unit - especially because they ended-up in phase by the end and the height matched. I think the manufacture measurements are what’s wrong rather than your method, probably a compounded rounding error! Still, I do appreciate the sacrifice of your time and your patience :)

[@Virolaxion]

When you spend over £100 on it you might as well make a project out of it. Or return it.

[@kaitlyn__L]

@tie pup any extra spacing would have the acrylic extend above the circuit boards though, and any less spacing would have the circuit boards extend above the acrylic. There was no way with the provided spacers to get better alignment - it goes out of phase so slowly that the differences are sub-millimetre. Which makes me think it could be a case like 2.54 vs 2.5mm spacing for IC legs (not those exact numbers, but that kind of magnitude, tenths or hundredths out between the PCB pad spacing and the acrylic’s thickness - my guess is the acrylic and spacers were measured with digital callipers and that number was used for the CAD for the PCB without accounting for the limited resolution). Building it as you said may have confirmed that with less work than rebuilding it three different ways from scratch, but I’d determined that from just looking at it after the first time.

[@kaitlyn__L]

@@Virolaxion the first build was the project! The other two rebuilds were the masochism ;)

[@JTA1961]

(1) word... comPLEX

[@geraldhenrickson7472]

Rather than speculate, whine or state the obvious, I will just thank you once again for taking us along to see these latest acquisitions. It makes my Sunday morning coffee extra special.

[@Aeduo]

It's saturday.

[@JoeOrber]

@@Aeduo this is clearly a post from the future; don't mess with time travellers, they can come back and kick your butt lol 😆

[@timehunter9467]

The second one probably included the other type of parts by accident. The thinner spacers combined with the longer LED strips were probably a different model. I wasn’t expecting that price either, it looks like something you’d buy from Argos for about £35.

[@discostu1uk]

The only man I would spend the best part of an hour listening to talking about blinking lights

[@claytonius3]

I think you might enjoy James May's The Reassembler series.

[@JTA1961]

valid point

[@TriAmpMyFi]

Crap, I'm doing it too.

[@australianandrew128]

Techmoan's easter story. He suffered for us so we don't have to. Concerning number 2.

[@guyh3403]

He made me suffer by fubarring the assembling.

[@johanneswerner1140]

no.3 was a no. 2 as well...

[@coffeekatk4067]

Yup! Enjoyed whilst stuffing chocolate malt eggs in my face!

[@Slay1337pl]

If you think that's suffering, imagine trying to dust it off.

[@seronymus]

Andrew pls become Orthodox, look up the Holy Fire of Jerusalem

[@LaTigerGenesis]

Please consider offering "It's mono and it's hopeless" tee-shirts!

[@RegebroRepairs]

Just "Mono and hopeless" so it applies to me. :-D

[@LaTigerGenesis]

@@RegebroRepairs Better mono and hopeless than "mini and hipless," I'd reckon!

[@DumahBrazorf]

But is a PROFESSIONAL graphic equalizer!!!

[@aeiouxs]

I want to see a Tshirt representing Mats' polite disappointment at seeing another Tanashi (spelling?) cassette mechanism used inside a new audio product.

[@rvk8991]

Don't forget the fancy bits.

[@vwlssnvwls3262]

Thank you for always doing the music while removing the screen protectors. This is always a favorite treat in the videos it appears in.

[@fhwolthuis]

I think for the second one you should build it bottom to top with the LEDs already placed vertical in the base. Then you can check the alignment of each piece of perspex and decide which washers to use for the next one

[@kenabi]

to be specific, install led strips into base along with the threaded rods, put first acrylic layer on, install thick spacers. from here, try another layer of acrylic, add thin spacers if needed, otherwise move onto next layer. adjust thickness of each set of spacers per layer as needed. doing this process off the assembly, as became obvious, is an exercise in frustration.

[@richardl4556]

Yep, exactly how I would have done it.

[@JaredReabow]

i was screaming at the screen!! how was this not obvious????

[@Ivor_Nastyboil]

A huge thank you for taking one for the team and wasting your money on these, so that I didn't make the mistake of doing it. :)

[@electronicengineer]

Very nice of you Mat/Techmoan to "take the hit" on these three (3) audio spectrum analyzers and advise all of us viewers to "stay clear" of all of them. You're a class act sir. Fred

[@grahamhill8280]

Your methodical approach 'chills' me Sir. I look forward to your videos- a vision of a fair and kind world with tech. taking us there.

[@Kitteh.B]

I live vicariously through this channel, in the hopes that one day Matt will stumble across the ideal spectrum analyzer and that I'll be able to snag one before his video causes the price to soar!

[@K-o-R]

We appreciate your patience and dedication!

[@aeiouxs]

This video is the truest definition of TechMoan I've seen yet! And in the best way of course, as always, thanks Mat.

[@andymouse]

You "Took One For The Team " there sir and I applaud you...cheers.

[@imnickleonard]

Thank you Techmoan; for buying these so we don’t have to. The first one looks like it has potential after few more iterations however I knew not to expect much when I saw the cheesy labels and the nasty power switch.

[@lobomella]

I cannot think of a single reason why I'd ever want to buy any of the visualizers you've shown. I also cannot think of a single reason why I'd ever want to miss any of your videos. This is some of my very favorite entertainment on KZbin, period. Thanks again for another great video. Cheers from Chile 🇨🇱.

[@richardbanks2669]

Really like the little avatar who explains things, hope your hand gets better soon! Thanks for sharing this, even if something turns out to be rubbish, the video is still entertaining :)

[@trewlove]

I would like to see muppet instead of graphic avatar

[@ironspike171]

I like that „formerly known as old man tonie“ avatar a lot!

[@tentotwo8290]

42 minutes of Techmoan. Brilliant 🤩

[@tarnvedra9952]

Correct way of assembly is probably screw the posts into the base, insert LED strips and then space the acrylics to proper level as you go?

[@pev_]

But you cannot space them properly unless you make your own spacers instead of using the supplied ones.

[@MrJef06]

Perhaps you need to use both the hard and soft spacers as Matt did, but then tighten the top bolts until the space is correct?

[@pev_]

@@MrJef06 I do not think so, the difference of height of the two spacers seems too much. I think it is just manufacturer's error or incompetence.

[@CTCTraining1]

I think I’d trim slots into the thin separators and then try using them to shim up as needed ... but does look like a nightmare.

[@DumahBrazorf]

@@pev_ It may not line perfectly but using one spacer or the other or adding both when needed should make a better result.

[@rx80]

You are still such a kid inside. I love your content.

[@ModernClassic]

I'm extremely familiar with the "I don't know what I was thinking when I ordered this" feeling... it's usually the result of a late night combined with alcohol.

[@ETC_Rohaly_USCG]

As my friends always tell me… “Don’t drink and Prime”… lol

[@kenmore01]

Yeah, I remember a case of magic spoon cereal showing up and me wondering who bought it for me, only to find they were a sponsor of a channel I watch. 😅

[@rustkitty]

The display is decent on the first one because it's an off-the-shelf module. They just snap it into their plastic frame along with some shoddily programmed microcontroller and done.

[@louisreich89]

Strong “James May’s The Reassembler” vibes through the middle but of this video. Honestly I’d you released a real time version of the entire process I’d watch it to go to bed. “Techmoan’s The Assembler and Disassembler and Reassembler and Disassembler and Reassembler.”

[@UnholyTriforceDelenn]

Hey Mat, I just wanted to let you know that I really appreciate the little cartoon Mat that you added in from time to time to point certain things out. It's a really fun addition, and takes me back to when you did your little muppet-esque segments. I realize those probably took a great deal of work, but I did appreciate them too, and I wonder if they'll ever make a comeback on your channel, because I'm sure I'm not the only one who misses them. Also, all those times of taking the analyser apart and putting it back together again, and even at the end they still didn't line up correctly. Honestly, I can't even begin. I'd be very disappointed in these things too. And that last one. No care taken at all in the design, manufacture or delivery of it to you. Wow.

[@kutter_ttl6786]

I recall the reason Mat removed the puppets was because KZbin somehow started labeling his videos as for kids (and all of the restrictions that entails), and it was exceedingly difficult to remove that label. So unfortunately he got rid of his puppets to avoid all of the headache that came with it.

[@UnholyTriforceDelenn]

@@kutter_ttl6786 oh that really sucks! KZbin just doesn't make sense these days.

[@HansenPL]

Thank you for showing those contraptions so we wouldn't be tempted to waste the money on such things. 😂

[@peterjf7723]

Those were some seriously disappointing products. Shoddy build quality/poor instructions and overpriced.

[@ralphalder14]

I would have hurled it across the room in frustration ! Congratulations on your patience!

[@DJNeiloSF]

thank you for the clear and honest assessment!

[@OldSonyMan]

Thank you for the review, years ago I used to have a plug-in sound to light unit which I used with a six foot florescent tube ! Happy memories of strong strobing lights in my white painted bedroom. It didn't last very long but was pretty awesome after a session in the pub ! I wish I'd kept it and now maybe I could repair it, but as they say "Life is too short" !

[@KroltanMG]

When you ran the frequency sweep on the first two devices, it seems like they only do a few buckets and interpolate the values between each. You can see the line segments rising up and down individually, instead of having a smooth curve with a single peak. So it's really just like 8 bars spread out into 32 or 20. At least the third device seems to actually use one bucket per bar, for all its other faults.

[@adimifus]

Yep I noticed that, too. It looks like 7 evenly spaced tent poles going up and down.

[@KroltanMG]

​@@minoreye9984 "Bucket" is a common term in mathematics/statistics/computing, it means a group of similar values. In this case, we're talking about "groups of frequencies". In a properly made frequency analyzer, each column being displayed should correspond to a single bucket, but the first two devices share buckets per column, and just interpolate between them. Using adimifus' analogy above, there are 7 tent poles (buckets), and the columns between each just get some proportion of the value of the two nearest poles, hence it looks like a stretched tarp. The column half way between two tent poles is higher by half the difference of the poles, and so on.

[@rsaxvc]

Perhaps a rectangle windowed FFT.

[@compzac]

Uhh the third one was better because it was not interpolating the graphs down to 7... did you miss the beginning and the end when it just went nuts and shoved 7 bars in the air on the low end then all the bars went off on the high end? yea sure maybe its trying to have more resolution but it screws up so bad that it produces even worse garbage data than the first 2, yes sure those might only have 7 data points but they looked ok doing it smoothly transitioning, plus they dont try to act like they are better than they are... that third one tried to act like it was stereo and professional with things like the frequency numbers at the bottom and it failed so hard id rather have the first two.

[@KroltanMG]

@@compzac I did not say it was objectively a better product, not sure where you got that idea from. Regarding the terrible low/high response on the sweep, it might be they used a small FFT window, and/or there is some sort of "auto gain control" that amplifies noise when given a single frequency. It's probably built for blinkenlight entertainment (despite its claims) and so is only really designed to analyze music. Can't really argue about the "stereo and professional" point, it really is shitty business. But as I said, it has other flaws, it's just decent in this specific respect. Overall, if I was forced to choose one of them at gunpoint, I'd still pick it because the user interface is not entirely insane and unhinged, designed by someone not in Chaotic Neutral D&D alignment.

[@ramen6236]

YES! My favourite format is back!

[@halloweenengineer6283]

Personally, I think the ultra simple Laser FX is still the best music visualizer that you've shown.

[@billschlafly4107]

I knew someone who bought one, I guess sometime around 1990. It was a hot pile of useless garbage. We were both very excited to get it going and it was a complete disappointment.

[@halloweenengineer6283]

@@billschlafly4107 Did your experience differ from Techmoan's video about it? Once he got it working I liked how it looked. If I ever actually listened to music through speakers rather than ear buds, I would definitely get one.

[@nickwallette6201]

I had one as a kid. I really liked it. 🤷‍♂️

[@MrDuncl]

The best visualizer I have ever seen was the Cthugha computer program. The problem was it actually looked better when my computer was a 486SX25 than after an upgrade to a 486DX2-66

[@kevreeduk222]

@@MrDuncl You went with Cthulhu and didn't offer the requisite sacrifices and are surprised when your experience didn't meet expectations? I'd suggest that you count yourself lucky that you survived with your sanity (mostly) intact, and don't make the same mistake again! /s :)

[@starbase218]

Congratulations! You passed the test and we hereby offer you a position at the assembly line of our electronics manufacturing plant in Wuhan, China. You showed a lot of perseverance and willingness to do good, honest work, despite setbacks. We have faith that you will be able to sort out the problem in the factory. ;)

[@10p6]

The last spectrum analyzer display looks like it is using the SP107e RGB controller that is sold on Amazon for like $20. It claims to be stereo when it is only mono, and a poor one at that.

[@volvo09]

Yeah that one is poor. Mono, and frequency handling / identification / whatever you want to call it is really really bad.

[@AdamF1972]

I just love your style in these. Ideas. Every detail is considered and I love your northern dry humour.

[@mbarr691]

I love these spectrum analyzer videos. If I may, just a suggestion when assembling something like that second analyzer, try building in place. Start by inserting the LED strips then the metal rods and then stack the plastic pieces and spacers as needed as you go. Rather than constructing the whole thing at once just to disassemble it each time.

[@TheTruthKiwi]

Exactly what I was going to say. :)

[@8bitwiz_]

Then you'd not only be doing the job of a Chinese factory worker, but the job of a Chinese design engineer as well!

[@mericet39]

You, sir, have the patience of a saint. ALso, I like at the very end when all 3 are going, that the top 2 are doing roughly the same thing, and the bottom one is in a world of its own.

[@NLind]

That first one with the 128 x 32 could be used in a pinball machine since the majority of DMD (Dot Matrix Display) games used that resolution.

[@compzac]

I think your right, but a little backwards, im guessing that is a display for a pinball machine that is being repurposed for this use case

[@rares3968]

@@compzac Nope, it's not. It's actually two 64 x 32 RGB panels that you can get for cheap. They are easily controllable with Arduino / ESP / Raspberry pi.

[@mattminceylegs]

Absolutely insane how difficult the assembly was in that second one. Well done for persisting!

[@davelordy]

On the last analyser . . . the 63Hz band is duplicated to the 6 bands below it, so basically it's faking the lower bands, also 80Hz and 100Hz are duplicates of each other . . . it's all a bit scamy !

[@compzac]

*spits tea at monitor* a bit! that thing reeks of scamy the button being upside down that display falling off the wobbly knobs what i dont get is how lazy they were with it, the stereo display instantly fell over because before he even called it out that the displays were duplicating i was looking at it going wait hold on why are the right and lefts exactly parallel even a song set like that would have had little moments of difference they didnt even try to attempt to pretend it was possible someone would notice.

[@jovencioanastacio2161]

Where to buy sir

[@FRETW1ZARD]

Ah well. The quest continues! Btw I really appreciate these videos, I’m also constantly looking for a decent one of these and it’s amazing to watch someone sort the wheat from the chaff. Mostly chaff.

[@gummboote]

These devices fall into three categories: meh, nightmarish and you-must-be-joking.

[@genius1a]

That's an excellent summary...

[@Lively_1185]

I honestly think the meh one is half decent, the price is within range just for the screen being used. But I hate it because graphic design is not their passion! Oh well.

[@MazeFrame]

Finding a good analyzer is a long journey. Thanks for helping to the best of your ability!

[@j0hnf_uk]

I liked the, 'look', of the first one, but out of them all, I wouldn't want to have to pay as much for any of what are all sub-standard products. How that third one had the gall to call itself, 'professional', is anyone's guess. It's all academical, as I wouldn't have wanted to pay any more than about £30-£40 for any of them anyway.

[@JoeOrber]

Yeah, sadly these days we should stay away from any electronics that have the "professional" word in the name or description lol 😆 The real professional equipment is well-known and they don't need to brag about it

[@GizzyDillespee]

It's like "pleasant tasting cherry" flavored cough syrup. That was the actual flavor name. I drank the whole bottle, to see if I would get accustomed to the flavor, but nope. The flavor just got weirder as the night went on.

[@JoeOrber]

@@GizzyDillespee LOL don't try this at home (or anywhere to that extent, maybe in the parking lot of the ER?)

[@JoeOrber]

@@MadScientist267 hahaha indeed, but then again, anyone using all the new medications advertised on TV that mention tons of possible, even fatal side effects would qualify for a nomination, right? "Talk to your doctor about Suicyda and ask if it's right for you" 😃

[@scottyTy]

I like it when you buy all of this stuff to review. Dodgy is so polite, in the US I call it crap. Your channel is the best!.

[@Blaulicht1120]

The second constructor when not switched on looks like Duga locator station at Chernobyl-2.

[@anew742]

Love these visualizer vids! ...and, well, all the other ones too honestly

[@AndersEngerJensen]

Thanks for buying all the crap, so we don't have to!

[@utubeb14]

This series is very interesting. I enjoy seeing the assembly and multiple units each video.

[@synthmage00]

It's really wonderful how much poorly designed, useless plastic junk like this is being manufactured. I actually love to think about how much labor and raw materials are essentially being funneled directly into landfills so someone can sell this e-waste on questionable websites for a minor profit, and it doesn't upset me at all.

[@kavyman1066]

Underated comment, exactly this! Matt does not care he has spent the best part of half a grand on this rubbish because he will get it back and then some in in youtube ad revenue and then just dump them at the tip. But this sort of fruadulent crap is helping in killing the planet.

[@nickloss2377]

well there's always rich people in the West that will buy them then toss em. Case in point- this video

[@xoxoxo5286]

@@nickloss2377 yeah let's blame the west, that dirty region thinks it's so good, buying things and shit.

[@Stettafire]

@@nickloss2377 "Rich people" 👀🙄

[@EmeraldLavigne]

Thank Christ we've oriented our entire economy, society, and planet around THAT, and not something like making life better for humans, eh???

[@Kellanium]

I’m headed to bed but I just got the notification and I’m gonna watch it first thing. I love these videos.

[@001REQ]

thanks for giving us a real 'tech moan'!

[@RetroTinkerer]

Bloody hell... That second one, I was chuckling all along, thanks for that one!

[@thes764]

Regarding the chinese puzzle: maybe the flexible washers should be in there and forced down by the nuts to line up? Still not worth the time. Thanks for pointing out that, even if I was in the market for one of those, I should avoid them... As I see the Clive supercomputer in the background: you might just send them all over for some destructive circuit analysis?

[@dougkinne1192]

I cracked up at "fingerprint central" Good stuff boss! Appreciate your work

[@peterjf7723]

Thanks for the warnings about the disappointingly inferior and over priced products.

[@richardburnett8595]

I do enjoy your hard work making content . all the very best . Happy Easter

[@dominik.jokiel]

You could have build the second one on the device 1st Screw the bolts in 2nd Stick the LED stripes in 3rd Put the acrylics on one at a time and you have the LEDs in and can look where to put the spacers.... Would have been easy, but they didn't made a manual for it...

[@_Frozen_mamba_]

i was just watching some of your annual spectrum analysers videos last night so this is pretty cool

[@davelordy]

The Alesis DEQ230D still reigns supreme ! (with the DEQ830 as a second place alternative) The BDS PP31 is also pretty decent.

[@mickeythompson9537]

I still use DOD RTA Series II Real Time Audio Analyzer.

[@michaellundsrensen2292]

Thanks! Sorry about your loss.

[@kevreeduk222]

With the "dual channel" one: You showed how the device is able to modify the audio in-device (attenuation and Graphic Equaliser). I'm wondering if the one display is showing the unmodified input (with the two channels merged into a mono display), and the other is showing the modified output (again, with the two channels merged into a mono display)? Alternatively, another commenter noticed reference to selectable single / dual band in the settings when you briefly showed the instructions (my screen is too small for me to confirm, so I'm taking their word for it).

[@BabyMissions]

Techmoan Clippy is my new favorite addition to any video ever.

[@SierraLimaOscar]

I found the peak leds floating up incredibly annoying. It really triggered me! 😂 I'm so thankful you bought these so I don't have to.

[@The4ndres]

If you wished for a 42 minute video about a chap being totally miserable, you came to the right place... You're the man, Mat.

[@randomnickify]

This simulation games become insanely realistic. This China Assembly Plant Simulator looks rad!

[@MarkTheMorose]

I wonder if in China, they have a Techmoan Simulator.

[@hovermotion]

Superb, I still have my old Technics computer touch screen graphic equaliser from decades ago...I never sold it it, I still have it in storage, it looked so good when working all those years ago...

[@vincei4252]

Buyers remorse is a thing. There's something for getting a device and it looking pristine when you take it out the package; the fingerprints were off putting, the germaphobe in me wanted to spray disinfectant all over the second one before touching it

[@ItsMrAssholeToYou]

Just curious, does it cause you any dissonance, knowing you'd suffer a hideous, agonizing death without the symbiotic microbes that infest every square millimeter of your body 24/7?

[@awesomestuff9715]

@@ItsMrAssholeToYou i'm a slight germaphobe, but i honestly don't mind my own germs at all but the thought of other germs from other people make me want to disinfect everything lol

[@CTCTraining1]

Thx Mat, I really appreciate your well made videos especially when they recommend not wasting my money 👍😀

[@rusland.r.9044]

honestly to line them up what you should have done was insert the threaded rod into the chassis first, then line it all up by stacking individually overtop of them, slight pain in the ass but then you know exactly how much distance you need each time.

[@oroville12345]

I love this channel and his determination 👏 best ever.

[@josefbuckland]

DISAPPOINTMENT CENTRAL! 3rd one started with so much promise but I guess I’m stuck with the Alesis and dorrough meters until you find a true winner. The hunt will continue. I got a new one last week it’s a bit cheesy but after watching this it’s $50 well spent that runs rings around this lol. Stay safe and keep on monaing

[@RockwellAIM65]

You put so much work into these videos I really feel for you on this one.... you must have finished this video and tho't why the heck did I bother. That FunGeneration RTA-31 was awesome I really enjoy it tho' so I cannot fault you at all!! Love it and am glad to see any further spectrum analyzers you have to show in the future. I will watch the videos... promise!

[@ronniepirtlejr2606]

It is insane that they sell these things for this amount! Apparently nowadays, all we can get is rubbish that flashes colors! I know that a true stereo spectrum analyzer can be built with quality & at a fair price. Why doesn't anyone build it?

[@jpdemer5]

Nobody wants to pay the fair price, is why.

[@Lively_1185]

Also the market for a decent led, vu meter, spectrum analyzer, or visualizer, is very very small. The manufacturers can't generate enough profit to actually make something good worthwhile and sustain it for a group so niche. Sony and Magnavox are prime examples, especially all their overpriced HDMI cables.

[@lsim001]

This is great consumer electronics reporting. I have been thinking about getting one of these spectrum meter things from AliExpress for some bling. Thanks for doing all the hard work for me.

[@john_thorpe]

For the second one, the way I would have put the panels on there is to screw the screw rods onto the base with the LED's installed on it. Then panel by panel slide them over the screw rods and LED bars and adjust the lining as needed for each section, rather than building it all and then sliding it on the LED bars and base. Doing it this way should make lining up the acrylic pieces easier as well as when you get about 1/2 the way up, sliding the panels over the screw rods and LED bars should be easier as it should become stiffer. But this is my opinion though. Also I don't think it was worth what they asked for it.

[@JoeOrber]

I agree, that would make it align perfectly since it seemed to be an issue with the same rows of all the columns, but what a pain in the a*s 😆

[@Hurricanelive]

This exactly. It has to be assembled with the components in place then the plastic built up layer by layer so you can eyeball where the lifts have to be doubled up. Really was making the job 4x harder then it should be.

[@hugheyball9905]

The patience and determination are beyond legendary :D

[@cgourin]

Repurpose an old laptop, tablet or DIY raspberry Pi to make an LCD screen based one for cheaper, easier and more versatile, you can even find virtual vintage needle vu meter.

[@john_michael_white]

This is a great idea!

[@Lively_1185]

The problem is not everyone knows how to code on a computer, or do any work outside of their skills. These products are more for people who don't want to take part of any of the hassle of building their own unit.

[@cgourin]

@@Lively_1185 Software already exist and even so there is probably more interest in learning a new skill like basic use of Linux than that tedious expensive joke of a product.

[@ChromeDestiny]

Hook it up to back of a large flat screen TV too, might as well make the display huge.

[@calebwright6151]

I suppose you'll put them with all of those mini disc players that did not work.... Thanks for another great video more! more! more!

[@M1LAD81]

I think, Matt what you needed to do with the second analyser is stick with the hard plastic spacers until the point the acrylic doesn't line up then add the soft plastic spacer with the hard. They probably gave you more of them because the cost is negligible and it's easier to just give you a set of the soft ones than to get someone to count out the number required. Money saving as usual.

[@majorgreen190]

Hi Matt, I think with the 2nd device you are sopposed to use both plastic and rubber spacers and then tighten bolts til the LED,s meet up with the plastic strips. Keep the fantastic videos coming dear fellow!

[@tararenemartin]

Thanks for all your trouble with this one, Matt!

[@I_am_Allan]

Illuminating.

[@Dark_Ronius]

This comment is switched on

[@tonycleal3225]

Flashy

[@lidbass]

Illuminating? You’re too easily LED…

[@I_am_Allan]

@@lidbass ooooof. 🤣🤣

[@Aaron48219]

I miss my Audiosource and Kenwood spectrum analyzers back in the 90s. I'm sad now.

[@seanet1310]

I want to know who the target market for these spectrum analysers are aimed at. It is a lot of money to effectively risk on a random item of questionable quality and functionality from overseas Even if I was in the market for one, I would want to spend at most 1/3 on a sight unseen analyser.

[@Spookieham]

I've had proper ones years ago that were full analogue with fewer channels that were much, much better.

[@kenmore01]

Remember color organs?

[@erwintimmerman6466]

I would put the big one somewhere on a party just for fun. It wouldn't need to be very accurate for that. The brightness would be more important than the finish, and brightness it seems to have plenty of. Most music has so many frequencies going on at the same time that you wouldn't notice the difference anyway, unless the spreading would result in all bars lighting up simultaneously without any distinction anymore.

[@MrButtonpresser]

That second one. Flippin' eck' indeed! It would have been in the bin in my house.

[@jack_2000]

I'm stunned by that bent plug, how does that even happen?

[@michalveselenyi3801]

Me too, I wonder :0

[@hughbarton5743]

Thank you for your astonishing patience and good humor! However, I'm puzzled.... I thought everything on the interwebs was automatically true. It would seem I will have to reevaluate a number of things I have viewed on various shopping sites. Perhaps this explains why the packets of instant water I ordered have been delayed. But it seemed so straightforward: "open packet, put contents in a container, just add water". Glad it was only $19.95 (plus s+h, of course)..... Thanks as always for a fun video, sir!

[@ghostwheel2000]

Great work as always. But it’s “All that glisters is not gold” The pedantic inner me coming out😉

[@EdwinPurmerend]

Thank you so much for another very informative video. It will save a lot of money for a lot of people.

[@shelby3822]

SUN headline: Swindon chap driven mad by quest for perfect spectrum analyzer

[@stockicide]

I wasn't expecting this to be such a saga!

[@lShishkaBerryl]

If I ever become a millionaire I'd want a full wall of these, and a projector with winamp visualizers playing on the opposite wall haha.

[@TheTruthKiwi]

Yes! Or Winamp visualizer on all 4 walls and the roof, some Pink Floyd playing in quadraphonic and experiment with some hallucinogens :p

[@fouroakfarm]

That setup would really whip the llamas ass

[@jconradh]

As always a great video! I believe to build the second one properly, you need to plug the led strips in then slide the clear plastic over them, lining up each plastic row by adding or removing spacers as needed. Some may have only 1 spacer, other rows needing 2 or more. Makes it more difficult, but I bet you would have been more pleased. Way too much work for the price. The crack, and the crappy stereo on the third one really just ruined it. Bugger. :(

[@plebugen9659]

the first one at least looks nice. It wouldnt be such a bad deal if it was 100e cheaper