ROKBLOK Follow Up & Tear Down

Answering a few common questions raised by my RokBlok review - • RokBlok Review- The Ne...
UPDATE: Lots of people suggesting the motor wires have been reversed - and if they were the other way around it would run the RokBlok in the other direction - however that isn't is is the way it's designed to work - look at any video of it in action and you'll see the control stick is on the inside of the block as it runs counterclockwise around the record.
I'm finished with this one now - no more experiments - it is what it is. It didn't work out for me (and some others • Video ) - but I take no pleasure from seeing a product fail - I would have been much happier if I could have shown you this working well. Anyway, onwards and upwards.
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[@Cyranek]

I thought it was bad before, but its crazy hearing the comparison and some recognizable music.

[@TheBcoolGuy]

EVerYBodY Wants TO rulE THe wORld!

[@fiftystate1388]

1:49 The ROKBLOK needle at 5g+++ doing donuts on that poor record. _Thanks for taking one for the team big guy, you've earned your fifteen minutes of fame!_

[@reddgmd]

Didn’t expect to see you here, wow

[@gerasimger15]

Cyranek ya IKR!

[@skyorbii]

He is everwhere.....

[@jerrywh3]

My ears are bleeding now... That awful high pitched treble was absolutely intense.

[@markevans2294]

Even when linked to decent speakers via bluetooth :( I could understand from the device itself since it's only physically big enough for a tweeter.

[@jerrywh3]

Mark Evans yep it’s the tinny sound from the Bluetooth speakers that is the most disturbing.

[@markevans2294]

I'm wondering if they forgot to apply the RIAA EQ to the stylus output.

[@kFY514]

That's a ceramic (piezo) cartridge - AFAIK the RIAA curve does not apply to the output of such. Apparently the way they produce electric signal kinda-sorta approximates the RIAA curve by itself. However, they reportedly require appropriate impedance matching, and the lack of it is why most cheapo turntables sound so bad. VWestlife did a video on that very topic: kzbin.info/www/bejne/aZ_WgXp_gd-liNU

[@jerrywh3]

kFY very informative answer. Thanks.

[@ms_enj]

I love the way this device exhibits both wow *and* flutter simultaneously. Truly a masterful feat of engineering.

[@ahh4542]

What's more astonishing than the sound quality? The fact this made into production while I'm having a hard time looking for a decent fully automatic turntable.

[@IanJTaylor]

Tears For Ears!

[@MichaelBerthelsen]

Ian Taylor Fears for Ears...

[@Quackalott]

So funny! B-)

[@deadfreightwest5956]

Brilliant!

[@MrWeAllAreOne]

Ian Taylor Tears of blood.

[@kenoobe]

lmao :D

[@RandomAcronyms]

My idea for the next rokblok is a quadcopter that plays laserdisks.

[@bitrot42]

Jayson Wills Sign me up!

[@banknote501]

If you could pull this off, you would make a lot of money. Not from selling the product, but from the youtube video showing it.

[@TehSmokeyMan]

Build it into a laser pen and make people track the disks themselves :D

[@calvinweeder1067]

Solder a needle to an earring stud then jam a record onto a fidget spinner and hold the contraption up to the side of your head. At least a few hundred Kickstarter dupes will throw hundred dollar bills at you.

[@pseudotasuki]

I'm working on a wood chipper that plays MiniDisc.

[@gyes99]

So, this thing can be used to erase a record.

[@seandejesus116]

Dude real wanted to kill the record industry an he saw gold

[@colinwatt9387]

"it's a Vinyl Killer!" "Wow! even better sounding than vinyl?" "No, it's a vinyl KILLER!"

[@pendulousphallus]

Don't think he has to worry to copyright strikes on that Tears for Fears record with it being completely unrecognizable coming out that unit.

[@MartinKronstrom]

My mom across the room is wondering why I'm watching a block a butter spinning on a vinyl.

[@Frank-bc8gg]

Would have sounded better

[@RobertLeBlancPhoto]

Valid question.

[@Christopher-N]

Because he hasn't got a block of Chiffon margarine to spin on a vinyl yet. It's not nice to fool Mother Nature.

[@Junkotherstuff]

Martin Kronström That's not such a bad idea. Lube up your record before using the Rokblok.

[@jamescollins6085]

It's like a less useful hamster.

[@stevebez2767]

watt zone wheel 'came back'sofa slipper 'dad'two act on'chicago birds'plumage neigh shun 'wigeee kill the lots'lumberjack 'wurlitzer'liz tar liars ak ak 'generation fisco glam'mouse noddys known 'flambouyants'yanks??

What the f***?

[@jamescollins6085]

Michal Štein Indeed.

[@EpicATrain]

Hey Techmoan, your unit isn't detective - the design is defective. Having the motor shaft (metal) resting directly on a rubber wheel that's free moving will always result in inconsistent speeds when a load is presented. I think they were hoping that they could get away with cassette tape designs and get great results but it's a flawed design since cassette tapes are designed with gears and other things that help regulate the speed. I hope this helps.

[@TheApeMachine]

I wonder if replacing the drive with stepper motors will do the trick, as they are way more precise, should be able to handle the RPM needed, and still have plenty of torque left to propel the whole thing forward.

[@EpicATrain]

Interesting idea. However, it still pushes instead of pulls the diamond.

[@TheApeMachine]

It's true of course, and all around this entire build is just seeded from a very bad idea in the first place, but... Put the drive in the front wheels and the stylus at the back, and technically you'd be pulling it? Also, the stylus needs to be able to freely and smoothly move on the Y axis, just like a regular turntable, to compensate for any natural warping in the disc, otherwise you will always have wobbling issues.

[@phantom240]

Why not simply desolder the motor wires from the board and reverse the polarity so it drags the stylus along the grooves rather than plowing it through them? That might solve one of the many issues.

[@EpicATrain]

Tis worth an experimentation. lol

[@ricarleite]

Aaaaand with two videos Techmoan put the RokBlok out of business. Thank you! GOOD JOB! :-D

[@catfish552]

We can only hope so.

[@MarcMercier1971]

I don't like showing up to a meeting unprepared, but somewhere there is a known unboxing channel that put a company out of business. Bluetooth earbuds. Wouldn't pair, etc. They were 'shipping' them, but really only had a few pairs of prototypes. Tried paying the guy off to give good reviews on a non-functional product etc. Wish I could find the video.

[@MarcMercier1971]

Thank you. I can find the most obscure info quickly but I was drawing a blank. ;)

[@lizichell2]

I truly hope so

[@adamjimenez]

CokBlok for the RokBlok

[@id104335409]

Do a followup video on Rockblock running on fire!

[@ASilentS]

That would require re-soldering the motor lead... which is way more than this POS deserves.

[@bryede]

Then post a video of it not running and on fire.

[@PinkThorn242]

LiPo battery + fire? Not a good combination.

[@bryede]

This is KZbin where big explosions are a plus.

[@leonkernan]

Give them a few months with that wiring and you'll get your wish somewhere on KZbin.

[@MrButtonpresser]

Re-market it as a cat toy!

[@mikecowen6507]

MrButtonpresser It already sounds like a dying cat!

[@Firepal3D]

Mike, you have my Internet points.

[@ziqfriq]

Package it with a record of some squeaky mouse sounds.

[@stevebez2767]

touch up yer furry dice use beasty lie yawm word 'Insures'win stone dog yap hav'acts of law as living way'watt no can-can 'whot you talken bouts'no word giv,ER?

[@Weird-City]

Cats are awesome :)

[@DavidMarvin]

Please don't do that to Tears for Fears again. That hurt.

[@dan_from_australia]

Big Chair is a great album

[@waqarmawji7471]

Just in; *Techmoan's wife has kicked him out of the house*

[@TheCanThatCantBeOpened]

Mohd Waqar Kassamali if only

[@AndersEngerJensen]

Yeah, I think we can safely say: Keep that old turntable for playing vinyls. ;)

[@astromus]

Condolences on your record ;) I hope Techmoan gives it a hug and asks for forgiveness!

[@djrun4kover]

I could feelnyou cringing as that thing was ruining your record by the way can you get that record?

[@markevans2294]

Or even a new turntable.

[@themadsamplist]

Please don't say vinyls.....

[@AndersEngerJensen]

themadsamplist Because what...it’s not correct plural? Oxford Dictionary begs to differ: en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/vinyl

[@stp22]

This device must have been invented to make a crosley sound like a high end turntable, it's worse than fingernails scratching a blackboard

[@LightTheUnicorn]

Goodness, that thing is awful to a new level. Please don't put any more records through the horror of it. Anders and Tears for Fears do not deserve that. It never ceases to amaze what makes it to production, would be interesting to see if it actually did any better in reverse by dragging the stylus rather than pushing it (!???) though.

[@momatt]

I thought the same, shouldn't be too tricky to reverse the drive motor?

[@TonboTouring]

I'm guessing the stylus wheel would be pulled straight and the whole thing would drive off.. Straight.

[@momatt]

guardian040 Maybe, but it would be much worse!

[@RetroGamingWithEdgarRivera]

I'm same my friend I wouldn't use that little vinyl killer on any vinyl record.

[@unitrader403]

Yeah, Vinyl is not suited for this thing.. but if someone made a Steel record i think it might be a perfect match :D

[@packardcaribien]

4 grilles and they somehow manage to point the speaker towards the only solid piece of wood....

[@360MIX]

They did that to cut down on the treble and gain some bass...

[@christophermiel]

the "speaker"...

[@enzoperruccio]

christophermiel Yeah xd

[@w7777777s]

360MIX It didn’t work. The front is flat against the top ! No air space behind, er... in front of the tiny speaker.

[@youtuuba]

@@w7777777s , it seems that the designer(s) intended physical coupling from the tiny speaker to the case, and use THAT as the sound-radiating surface.

[@aspectcarl]

*All the other turntables in the house* lucky guy :D

[@chartle1]

I think he even has them in the WC or whatever he calls a bathroom across the pond. :)

[@TorutheRedFox]

a bathroom is well, a room with a bath there is also a showerroom which is the same thing but smaller because it has a shower instead of a bathtub and a toilet, which is just a room with a toilet and usually a sink, but some don't have sinks and you have to go to the bathroom next door.

[@CaesarBest]

Where do you lavvy though?

[@ethanoreilly2002]

Cliff Hartle the loo;)

[@simontay4851]

I go to the bog when I need a piss or dump.

[@chuuni6924]

Now I'm not a professional engineer or anything, but that speed control mechanism seems a bit underwhelming.

[@DFX2KX]

what speed control mechanism. :P

[@ggrahame09]

So Mat thought he was making a simple video on a kickstarter novelty, but ended up discovering the Cuban sonic weapon. Nice work!

[@WarrenGarabrandt]

I have some thoughts on that weird play speed issue. A record spins at a constant RPM, and the stylus moves from the outer edge toward the center during playback. The circumference of a circle traced by the stylus changes at the record plays, thus the linear speed of the stylus gradually slows down. This is knows as constant angular velocity. Since this little player is pushing itself along on the record at a constant speed, it is constant linear velocity. This gives the odd playback speed that isn't quite right. I couldn't figure out the oscillation of the speed until you took the mechanism apart. You see that only one wheel is pushing, and the steering mechanism is linked directly to the stylus. This creates a perfect condition for a negative feedback oscillation in the steering. Say when you set down the player is it not perfectly aligned with the direction of travel (nothing is perfect), then when playback begins, the arm will be turned to one direction (in or out). This causes the device to steer to correct the direction of tracking, but it overshoots as the body comes into alignment, so it steers the other way to turn it back. This continues to happen over and over as the device slowly settles on correct tracking angle. Unfortunately, the record grove is in a spiraling circle, so it will never settle on a single angle that keeps it perfectly tracking the groove. It will always be a little under or over shooting the steering, causing an oscillation. This is what we are hearing that is very jarring. As for the terrible sound, well what do you expect out of a 2" speaker aimed directly at a wall? How could this mechanism be improved? Well, if it monitored the tone arm steering, it could use that information, in theory, to calculate a desired linear tracking speed based on the circumference of the circle it is currently at, and use that information to adjust the motor speed for correct playback speed. It could even calculate the oscillation that was induced by the steering mechanism and continually adjust speed to cancel that out as well. The simple motor in use can't really do that as it is. You'd need some sort of feedback mechanism, like a rotary encoder (or an optical tracking mechanism like a computer mouse uses). The speaker is terrible, and there's little that can be done about that. Use the wireless transmitter built in to get better sound quality, I guess. The rubber wheel screwing up the surface of the record is a deal breaker, all other flaws aside, and I'm not sure how that could be fixed. You could mitigate it some by using wider tires maybe, or use a different material, but you're applying force in a repeated pattern on the delicate surface of the record, and it's going to wear it down.

[@snesguy9176]

It was a nice idea at least. The design is just total shit.

[@doctorx0079]

So in other words, the designer(s) had no idea what they were doing.

[@nerd1000ify]

I suspect that the variations in speed may also be influenced by the poor design of the drivetrain- firstly, if the drive wheel is even slightly out of round the speed of playback will vary as it turns. Secondly, the motor is a simple brushed design (which has poor speed regulation to begin with, a synchronous brushless motor would have been a much better choice) with no feedback regulation of its speed (playback speed varies with load on the motor) and a transmission that consists purely of its output shaft pressed against a rubber tire. If the tire has something slippery on it or is out of round the motor will slip, altering the speed. I wonder if you could do this 'right' by tracking the groove optically (allowing the stylus to operate normally) and using digital control to keep everything on-track and running at the right speed.

[@370Location]

Perhaps six years too late, but I just discovered RokBlok and didn't see another technical analysis or suggested fix. I don't think there is any active steering mechanism, certainly not visible in the teardown. The reason for pushing the stylus must be related to auto-steering by following the groove relative to the small wheel behind the stylus. You suggest adding a rotary encoder to check the tracking angle. I think that's what the optical element seen on the board does. It only measures the track arm angle relative to the box to regulate the speed. What might have completely solved the design would be to add a speckle sensor like that used in an optical mouse. That would provide not only the direction but correct speed for motor feedback, and allow it to not blindly gouge across the tracks. I agree about the use of wider tires. A motor shaft up against a rubber capstan was very accurate for tape decks. That wear problem with RokBlok is probably that it's spinning its wheel into the record and damaging it. With wider wheels they might also be able to reduce the stylus pressure.

[@paulstaf]

Thinking about it....if you pull a shovel across your driveway, it will pass over any imperfections on the surface without catching, however if you PUSH a shovel across your driveway, it will scrape, catch, and dig in. I bet the same effect is happening with this PUSHER stylus...catching on the grooves in the record as it is being PUSHED through the track ultimately damaging the tracks as evidenced by the darkened track it leaves behind.

[@carguyuk3613]

Sledgehammer required, and I don't mean the song. Please destroy it.

[@stevebez2767]

Destroy=Punk,no orders,aidia?

[@CoTeCiOtm]

Oh no, not the song! Peter Gabriel doesn't deserve to be put through this.

[@MonoChorMe]

Photonicinduction would be like... "Ahhhhh this so iretattin'... ahh am gonna lose it! I aint avin it! Wheres me 'ammer?!" hahahahahahah :D

[@Tom5TomEntertainment]

00:24 GOTTA GO FAST

[@iTomAnks]

Sounds like something from DDR

[@willierants5880]

Chase it with a blow torch yelling "Faster! FASTER!".

[@ccateni28]

Tom5tom Entertainment FASTER FASTER FASTER FASTER FASTER!

[@Jboss2001Gaming]

Sanic

[@SamSquids]

to me, it sounds like Nightcore or as I like to call it, Shitcore.

[@XGamesJ6]

A motor shaft rubbing on a rubber wheel? No wonder it works like garbage. They literally chose the cheapest way to propel that thing. Surprised there isn't a wind up key on it

[@Syncopator]

A wind up key would probably be an improvement...

[@jusb1066]

a clockwork version with a little old fashioned gramaphone funnel on top would sell well

[@EngineeringVignettes]

Syncopator - Agreed. I would say that a clockwork mechanism with a well designed governor would be superior to this... thing.

[@ryancallaghan3888]

Nothing wrong with that per-se, it's how the vast majority of everyday record players were driven back in the day, along with some higher end turntables like Lencos and Garrard 301/401. What they had which this does not is a whole load of mass in the platter, and synchronous AC motors that have stable speed and plenty of torque, to keep wow and flutter down.

[@fixman88]

Deathlok67 The Japanese gramophone kit does have a wind-up drive mechanism and it DOES sound better than that thing.

[@crunchysuperman]

Somewhere, somebody listened to that on the correct combination of drugs for it to sound perfectly normal.

[@thejoojooman6538]

A truly awful product.

[@stevebez2767]

singulization isnt par individualization. you need swing ,not yell sling its

[@JoFreddieRevDr]

Where are the annoying puppets? I can't believe you are making videos without the annoying puppets! Techmoan is meant to come with annoying puppets! Preferably green ones.

[@eldersprig]

Isn't this channel owned by the puppets? And the most is just a meat-puppet. Oh! Never mind.

[@JoFreddieRevDr]

I'm only here for the puppets.

[@Thevrretroshow1]

The puppets are stupid... that's when I stop the video.. sorry Tech

[@greenaum]

I don't care what colour they are, I'm not a puppet racist. I just like Puppet Mat's Dad. And his wife is sexy, rrrrowrr!

[@freezetile8588]

It's not easy being green.

[@adslf874yti3q7u4hf83]

Wait; people didn't recognise the 8-Bit Keys song?! Heresy!

[@TintelFruit]

Right?!

[@daanwilmer]

Do you mean heresy?

[@kbhasi]

I did, but maybe there were some people who don't watch that channel.

[@AndRewUK24]

I did

[@adslf874yti3q7u4hf83]

I don't know what you're talking about ;)

[@parttroll1]

just sounds like a cheap tape player with the batteries running out

[@thesquarerootofnegativei6225]

Craig Orrell : And an ancient, glazed, dimpled pinch roller and gummy lube.

[@smittywerbenjagermanjensen4896]

It sounds like when people upload movie clips to KZbin that are filmed using their phone and then sped up so it doesn’t get flagged.

[@38911bytefree]

Even worse, sound like the first cheapass R2R with rimdrive. You can get this solved using a speed control circuit which can me made with two transistors ... but probably is too complicated and you need to design it, you cant copy it unless you have schematics from old tape players from the 60s.

[@simontay4851]

No, this is worse.

[@keithbrown7685]

No. They sound better.

[@AnythingButTh1s]

I’m i the only one who finds the Rockblock adorable and hilarious in just how much of a trainwreck it is? I can’t stop smirking anytime he shows it playing

[@Mrcento]

In short, it's definitely a piece of tat. Glad we've cleared that up!

[@stevebez2767]

your programmed loudly art item 'out', look watt yell sofa fall off,next please,dog tars'get away wiv that light'no this or thats,neg sick yells room horse big red tex 'lumberjack spread erms'dead parrpt,no revivals,teds??

[@John_B_Gage]

That was a £100? I would not even pay a fiver for that.

[@kevinschrage9447]

Whats even worse is for the same money you can get a Pioneer PL-990. The 990 might not be the best turntable ever, but it works and won't mess up your vinyl.

[@John_B_Gage]

Any turntable has to sound much better than this piece of crap.

[@remilafleur540]

Kevin Schrage Pioneer PL-300 is best turntable 🖕

[@TheRealCaptainFreedom]

John Gage Yeah you would lol

[@oibruv]

Technics SL-1200 *cough*

[@Junkotherstuff]

Mr. Techmoan, tear down this Rokblok.

[@mattsmith9024]

Junk & other stuff I think he just did.

[@LarryKapp1]

ha ha - I think he is making a fun on Ronald Reagan saying "Mr Gorbachev - tear down this wall "

[@LoganHunter82]

Please. Don't play any records with Rokblok anymore. It's not worth it. Instead, burn it.

[@stevebez2767]

Chew rocks for show ape beast known gets 'engine generate non dole tea kit'bandstand unabled offers too 'act non system routine spam sardine'living creep 'record effects unknown'TV 'psyco zombie shot aways yelling shit happens'no this as 'brush shows'not wiv trump ten daddy law man wavey sack non burn killy can on pet troll 'motion record recalled re accord'parly neigh V Garad 'guards'hitlaa 'eel looked sun'delusion 'hypnotic'bad lingo key 'invites'gateways hen cross road st.'eter mortis dance peels all fake woodchip 'into fish noose have press gang plank tea stain party picnic d.i.y'made of crap out unsound 'rocker roll'wig ted skin ed mod earn tea dance 'fish an chips'it 'eoght it'uk prison work camp post of living generation poke thru r.k.a hole for skool eddy erased roumd line queue size age me as you owned possesion chart anotomies dust non proof unsound unhearing 'order ver de geezer'red robe curtains o.a.p dough boots?

[@johncollie337]

Don't worry. If I find it, I plan to send it back to Hell and put it on YT. XD

[@throningermine8]

Steve Bez What did this word salad have to do with LoganHunter82’s comment?

[@johncollie337]

throningermine8 He probably dropped in some Death Grips lyrics for the Hell of it

[@throningermine8]

John Iowa Never listened to Death Grips. Are their lyrics really that incoherent?

[@taurolyon]

5:50 (As stated in the video description) You can see M+ is attached to the black lead on the motor, and M- is attached to red. This suggests reversed polarity. Edit: Thank you for the better picture at 6:46! Keep up the great work!

[@HughesEnterprises]

This is something you should find in a dollar store or as you Brits call it "pound land".

[@dfc99nyc]

If I ever see it in the dollar store I'll buy one and use it as a doorstop.

[@drooplug]

Pound land sounds like a brothel.

[@freezetile8588]

Speaking of which, when's Ashens going to review this?

[@monkeyjuju7441]

that's what I'm saying. Yesterday I was thinking I'd maybe pay $5 for it if I saw it at Five Below to use the internals to play audio from my Raspberry Pi through Bluetooth or something, but after seeing inside, I wouldn't even pay that. I'd maybe pay a dollar just to reverse engineer the electronics so I could maybe help people that got ripped off on it modify it and make them semi usable at least, but I'm sure I could find one in the trash if I cared enough.

[@robindp]

+Andrew Kelsey - Yup, I visited London in September 2017 and had a good chuckle at the name. I briefly considered opening a competing store and calling it "Pound Town". :)

[@MayaPosch]

I'd love to see Big Clive take a gander at this device, get his take on the drive mechanism and the controls for it :)

[@cb1671]

I was thinking the same thing, I'd be curious to hear his analysis.

[@glencoe1266]

This thing encapsulates the whole 2010s and Kickstarter to a tee.

[@Yohtur]

Am I the only one who likes the distortion made by RokBlok? It just fits well into chiptune music.

[@junglejamesie]

The ceramic cartridge is the el cheapo Pfanstiehl P-188D. This thing was ubiquitous on cheap "hifi" systems from the mid-1980s onward, and lo & behold, it's on every Crosley record player today. It was often wired with a common ground wire, rather than separate ground wires for the left & right channels. The design of this RokBlok is horrific, pushing the cartridge instead of pulling it is farcical, and the wow & flutter is tumour-inducing. Imagine paying $500,000 for this....

[@krollpeter]

I'd even say the pushing cartridge is the main problem with regards to the lousy sound. It's pushed from corner to corner instead of freely following the groves. Who did that has no clue. Who did that?

[@akraut]

I'm actually curious if reversing the motor wires and letting it run in reverse would improve things? Worst case, it doesn't track well, I suppose.

[@krollpeter]

It does not track well because it's being pushed.

[@zorktxandnand3774]

Yea they should have called it the "wow & flutter 2000" they did everything to maximize that. From using a crappy cheap toy motor and using a shit friction drive to pushing the stylus in to the record like a chisel. It's a wonder it does not fly of the record all the time. If you want to ruin your records, use a hammer. It is faster and cheaper.

[@trickybrkn]

down with this sort of thing.... careful now.

[@d2factotum]

That sounds so God-awful I bet even KZbin's content matching algorithms don't recognise it as Tears for Fears...

[@elliotbuckingham674]

for an added bonus would it play the 8ban mini singles or the playable record book

[@oleo007]

Rokblock record destroyer player,this is the correct name for this thing!

[@CatsMeowPaw]

There is no chance of receiving a copyright hit from KZbin by playing any record: the music is so badly distorted that no algorithm would never match it to the original.

[@JohnnyX50]

It would probably fall under fair use for educational purposes any way, much the same (but with non profit) way Amazon lets you hear 30 second snippets of a song before you buy it :) ?? Although they probably have a licence for that lol. Not sure how that works tbh.

[@SteveJones172pilot]

Yeah.. tears for fear would be embarrassed to claim that as their own.. :-)

[@IanThatMetalBassist]

The RokBlok sounds like a dying R2-D2

[@GroundHawkX]

Thank you for this post. I will never allow this monstrosity near my precious collection

[@codenamemati]

For me this is the best video of your channel.

[@playmad99]

The Rokblok is a torture device .My ears are in pain.

[@negirno]

It tortures your ears and your records at the same time.

[@JHMBB2]

Interesting that they reached out to you. I'd say good on you for not taking them up on their offer.

[@DONK8008]

I searched YT after this one and found a couple vids and they sounded the same so I bet they wanted to reach out to the bigger KZbinrs and send them a cherry picked unit that worked correctly in hopes for an updated video which praised the unit.

[@volvo09]

I'm not too surprised... Every time or just about every time I've seen a review of a straight up horrible product there is always a manufacturer offering a replacement or "troubleshooting" at some point after the review. Even though the replacement will function the same, I think they do it to keep up their appearance.

[@KanalFrump]

It would be interesting to do a comparative teardown of one of those units. Maybe there exist a "fixed" version and they are still shipping the busted one for the schmucks, substituting it only for the complainers...

[@ionstorm66]

All this thing needs is some type of speed feedback on the motor. A normal turntable counts on a constant amount of drag on the record, but this thing is always going to be changing.

[@espurious]

px712uf The original version that was on Shark Tank worked well. The sound was good, through the item itself and bluetooth speakers.

[@fkthewhat]

look at those solder joints! Mr. Blobby would be so proud!

[@DarrenD777]

This thing is GREAT comedy relief! LOL My laughter is bringing TEARS to my eyes! Is it the Doppler Effect alone? Or is there wow and flutter too? No, I think it's Doppler Effect alone. The wheel is probably turning at a fairly constant rate. Thanks again!

[@Henchman1977]

It somehow plays too fast and too slow at the same time......

[@junglejamesie]

In vinyl replay, that's called wow (too slow) & flutter (too fast). I've never heard an actual turntable display W&F anywhere near as badly as this thing.

[@38911bytefree]

Because the motor has no speed control. A simple two transistor circuit used for 20 years in most Philips and Grundig cass players. nothing special But they are just copying, cutting and pasting things ... You would have the same result in a tape player if the motor wasnt servo controlled. I repeat, only two transistors and some resistors. thats all.

[@MrOpenGL]

The problem is more likely to be in the "transmission" (if you can even call it that way) than in the driver circuit. There's no way the motor shaft won't slip with such an arrangement.

[@xpusostomos]

How did it know if it's on the inner or outer track? Outer track need to drive faster because circle is bigger. This idea had no hope of ever working.

[@diegov.miranda7182]

The speed always remains the same. Regular turntables don't increase speed when they get close to the label, they keep it constant. In spirit is a GREAT idea, but having the motor shaft going straight into that rubber wheel is a bad idea... of course it's going to slip like crazy.

[@izzieb]

They should Blok the sale of this, it's about as useful as a Rok.

[@jerrywh3]

Izzie all those puns lol!

[@siouxmoux3]

Is Rokblok really sold out. They must saw the review and pulled it from their website. One would hope so. This thing is pure rubbish.

[@ricarleite]

Buyer beware. They made their money and scammed people.

[@ChimeranMonstrosity]

Hey now, rocks are plenty useful! They can smash RokBloks, for one thing.

[@tuff_lover]

Instant vaporware machine!

[@coltoncrawfordjazz]

spot on

[@RadioactiveMoth]

More like Nightcore.

[@ArgoIo]

Better buy this piece of vaporware with a FLORAL SHOPPE album. (On vinyl of course.)

[@calvinweeder1067]

I've seen other people describe this product as 'vaporware'. Has the definition of the word changed?? Vaporware refers to products that are advertised but don't exist. This product exists.

[@ChristopherWoods]

it's spelled V A P O R W A V E

[@Ian-of9oi]

Wow, you put this follow up out fast. Great work.

[@Fluteboy]

Come back Crosley, all is forgiven!

[@richardhedderly]

It sounds like a drunk mouse.

[@espurious]

Your experiments are going well then I take it?

[@junglejamesie]

I'd rather let a drunk mouse run around on my records than this thing.

[@alexdam8218]

I watch the outtro all the way through each time because it's so relaxing, keep up the good work

[@hhy3202]

I found you while I was watching retro techs! You explain things so viewer friendly! Great Videos!

[@Space_Reptile]

well content id wont catch that mess 3:30

[@thegardenofeatin5965]

lol I had the same thought.

[@FerintoshFarmsPhotography]

I thought one of my animals were dying outside when it started again

[@DieFischbude]

Maybe it is a stupid question but how does this thing "know" where it is on the record. When I play a record on a normal turntable, it spins with constant 33,3rpm. So the stylus passes more material on the first track than on the last, because of the different radius. That means that the rock block would have to slow down, coming closer to the center in order to keep the pitch. Otherwise the pitch would go up, when the block comes closer to the center... Does it do that?

[@DFX2KX]

it doesn't. and that's but one of it's.... innumerable problems.

[@stewartcampbell7794]

Very Interesting.I like the way U think! I Wonder ???

[@calvinweeder1067]

Modorfush: no it does not, and I don't even think the stability gyros in a hoverboard would be enough tech to get it working to a usable level. I think the tech in a driverless car would be required.

[@DieFischbude]

Okay... but if it isn't adjusting it's speed depending on it's position, it would even be more unusable than I thought... Doing some rough calculations I find that the stylus "passes" about 20ips at the outer rim of a 12" record at 33,3rpm. When it reaches a point at a radius of about 6", it's down to around 10ips. If that son of a brick wouldn't adjust speed, it would be twice as fast... Maybe there is some rudimentary adjustment determined by the angle of the cartridge? If so, this would explaint the constant flutter :D

[@ziqfriq]

Actually, an electronic compass sensor would be a fairly cheap way. Just adjust the linear velocity for constant change in direction. Gyros might work, if they could get one small enough. More likely, the assumption is start with a 6" radius and no one will be able to tolerate it for long enough for it to matter.

[@GhenWare275]

"I decided not to take them up on that offer" Techmoan is ICE COLD!!!

[@RailVentures]

Not only does it not work well, it's ugly as hell looking too! At least the "van" one looks cool!!

[@stewartcampbell7794]

Yeah.Van Haul'in LPs! Keep on Truck'in!!!

[@calvinweeder1067]

Exactly, BigBoy. The makers (and buyers) of RokBlok should have realized that the only way Soundwagon was able to sell any of these things was to house it in a VW shell and flog it to VW fanatics. And even then it failed in the marketplace, and that was back when the vinyl market didn't consist entirely of the .0001% of the population who are dorky hipsters.

[@sjsuismylife]

I don't think you are in danger of setting off KZbin copyright protection, as the song is pretty unrecognizable.

[@gato38]

This is a poorly designed piece of equipment, the solder joints at 6:50 are horrendous. The friction drive for the movement is awful as well I cant believe this is 100 quid.

[@zebde]

gato38 Made in China no doubt.

[@VolcanoEarth]

Next up..a CD Rokblok that runs across your compact discs on little serrated steel wheels.

[@geraldhenrickson7472]

You sir, have gone above and beyond on this product. Nuff said. Moving on.

[@Moonwalker917]

I just watched some videos of the original VW "vinyl killer"and it sounds waaaaay better than this thing. It's crazy to think that half a century later with all the experience, electronics and computers they managed to make an inferior product. Truly a disgrace!

[@wilkes85]

Not only that, but the VW "vinyl killer" actually looks cool; a little VW bus driving on a record and playing music. This "ROKBLOK" looks like a cheap, plain block of wood with holes in it. Whoever donated to THIS on Gofundme deserves to be scammed for a far inferior version of an existing product.

[@mgkleym]

On the plus side you probably don't have to worry about content id when using the rokblock given how badly it mangles the music.

[@rgilles42]

Best record player for avoiding Content ID

[@InflatablePlane]

Please send that to 8 Bit Guy for immediate road roller dispatching.

[@jhuger]

It doesn't have to be a good idea, or well executed. It just has to appeal to people with a credit card and poor impulse control. Actually, it only has to appeal to venture capitalists who think it will appeal to people with a credit card and poor impulse control.

[@twoshadesuk]

They will regret backing it, a product that this was based upon already failed when vinyl was king so it stands no chance now.

[@Yeen125]

I think it could've work on that regard...if it was priced around $30 and marketed as a novelty item at Target, Kohl's or TJ-Maxx/Marshalls. There's no way that thing is worth $100.

[@simontay4851]

Priced around 30p or 30¢ more like.

[@GiddeonFox]

Playing that Tears for Fears album through it elicited a visceral reaction from me that the other record wasn't able to, like i had just seen an old friend's mutilated corpse. Thanks!

[@edwarde5452]

If you were drunk at a party, and hated vinyl records, this little block car would be a lot of fun to watch.

[@Jeffmorgan1991]

Honestly one of the most genuine people to watch on youtube, a real pleasure!

[@gubr]

It's not easy (impossible) to get this right! A turntable rotates with a fixed speed, i.e. CAV, which means that the inner grooves are worse than the outer grooves because there is less vinyl available per rotation. Still, easy to do in a turntable, because the motor drives the vinyl in a constant speed and the head is "fixed". With rokblok, the box actually has to adjust the speed to its distance from the center accordingly. Drive fast on the outside and then slow down when nearing the inner grooves. Would be easy if it knew when one rotation is over, but alas it has no way to do this. So I guess (hope) they probably measure the angle of (or force applied to) the "tone arm" or something. If I see the video correctly, you have that LED "magic eye" and if I look closely it seems the blocking piece of plastic is slanted so the amount of light passing the the receiver changes depending on the arm's position? Can't imagine that this will ever work perfectly. + the downforce and all = it will ruin your records = big sham

[@gubr]

Wrong. Changing the perspective from the disc rotating to the tone head rotating also kinda inverts how CAV and CLV work (that why you flipped them). If a car pushes the needle around a record at a constant speed, then you have a Constant Linear Velocity = CLV, i.e. the head has always the same speed in relation to the record. This way the car will take less time per round as it goes towards the center. This is true for CD drives that slow down but not records that rotate at a constant speed. If a car slows down towards the inner grooves, then it is CAV, because it will use the same time for each round it does. This is true for a record player, it rotates the disc at a fixed speed (constant angular velocity) and the head is fixed. The speed of the head in relation to the disc is not constant! If you were to mount a wheel on the tone head and count its revolutions you would see a clear difference between outer and inner groove for one revolution of the record - this is actually the wheel of RokBlok). l = 2r * pi, i.e. for twice the radius it travels twice the distance in the same time. It's kinda a shame, CLV would be so much better for RokBlok, but since records are CAV, it is hopelessly lost because records have no synchronization mark it can synchronize it's speed against And has to rely on guesstimates from the angle of its tone arm.

[@moebius2k103]

I imagine it would have the speed varied in the electronics, so it plays at the right speed for the outside track and the inside track and everywhere in between. Timing would be set by the time it has been running. But for that to work it would require that you start it moving at the start of the recording. Dumping it in the middle of the record means it would be going faster than it should be, because it assumes it is playing the outer edge. Not gonna help the warbling in the drive wheel mechanism though. Maybe I'm wrong, conventional turn tables don't vary the speed from start to finish. This might be different since it drives around the record though.

[@Graham_Langley]

+gubr78 I too was wondering how they were dealing with the need for CAV then, like you, I spotted what looks like an angled shutter between TX1 & RX1. There's no obvious motor speed sensing so, unless they're using motor back-EMF, it's being done open-loop. Unbelievably crude.

[@mikecowen6507]

Instead of trying to finagle the speed from a variable shutter, they probably could have been dead on just by using an optical mouse chip with the internal optics. Now, driving the wheel with the bare motor shaft? That is beyond hope, not to mention running that cheap shit cartridge backwards with 12lbs of downforce... Might as well play your records with the back edge of a utility knife. This thing sounds like a kazoo played through an AM radio.

[@gubr]

Yeah, thought about an optical solution as well, if you have an exact translation of measured movement to real world dimensions you could easily do a quite accurate speed control. Mouse optics should be enough. Or have a scan line over the whole length of the blok so you can scan the groove and calculate the radius :) but mouse optics sounds easier. Or have a camera looking outside and use matching to sense a round completed. :P Optical ftw!

[@Meow_YT]

The still images make me think there's some cleaning being done of the vinyl. And there is, it's just cleaning the music out of the grooves.

[@thesquarerootofnegativei6225]

james chatterton: Removing that pesky top layer of vinyl.

[@Meow_YT]

Along with the high frequencies?

[@apexmike849]

Most people only want bass (which this doesn't have either).

[@tehboj]

I love when follow up vids address all my questions, haha. Thanks for indulging us!

[@AureliusR]

Just wanted to chime in here... as someone who does embedded engineering related stuff for a living, it would have been TRIVIAL to implement a system to maintain a constant surface speed for the cartridge. It also would have been trivial to design this to have the proper downforce on the records so that you aren't permanently damaging them. Curious for technical details? Here's a simple method. Cut a bunch of slots into the drive wheel. Use something similar to what Techmoan called a "Magic Eye" (IR LED and detector) on either side of the slot. Have the output from this go into a pin on the microcontroller to trigger a timer interrupt. Measure the time it takes for each slot to pass, and if you notice speed changes, compensate by changing the current to the motor. A more advanced system could integrate the changes to speed over time to work out if the record was not on a level surface and automatically compensate by changing the current in tandem with the "uphill" and "downhill" sections to get consistent surface speed. Cut some holes in the box as a grille for the speaker, maybe spend more than 15 seconds tweaking the audio and you'd ALMOST have a product. Not a product worth Robert Herjavec spending $500k on, but still.

[@N4w4k]

So they do not care at all changing the linear velocity when getting closer to the center? That means that even with a perfect drive, it could never play a record correctly!

[@Sine1040]

Exactly, this can't work, and explains why the speed sounds off. It can only be correct at one position.

[@N4w4k]

TC Fenstermaker -> But to keep constant angular velocity, the car would have to know the distance to the center, and adjust its linear speed accordingly, but it has no mean of knowing this...

[@VochoTalacha]

N4w4k remember the needle has some pivoting to it. Maybe this helps up, i don't know. Now, on the other hand, turntables do not change their speed when the needle is on the centermost tracks, why would rokblok have any issues with these tracks?

[@N4w4k]

VochoTalacha and TC Fenstermaker -> The turntable do not change their speed when the needle gets closer to the center but that means the linear velocity of the needle changes. Think about it: the disc spins at 33 rpm, that is about 1 turn each 2 seconds. When the needle is at the outer part of a 12 inch disc, it travels 3.14 * 12 = 36 inches each revolution, that is about 18 inches a second. When the needle is halfway between the outer diameter and the center, it travels 3.14 * 6 = 18 inches each revolution, meaning about 9 inches each second (remember that the rpm stays constant). So to play correctly a record the car MUST vary its speed according to its distance to the center of the disc, which it has no way knowing, as we have witnessed during the tear-down (the needle arm has nothing to report its angle).

[@N4w4k]

Another way to look at it is that the car must travel around the disc at 33 rpm, meaning that it has to go faster the farther it is from the center! (Think about how it would be easy to run a stadium lap if you were allowed to run around a picket in the center of the stadium instead of on the tracks that are at the outer of it!)

[@mikerenfro4608]

Here is the Shark Tank episode. kzbin.info/www/bejne/rpW3nH-VndaHrdk&ab_channel=LarryHernandez He demoed a drum beat. No music. Sucker Tank.

[@Syncopator]

Even at that, he could have EQ'ed the hell out of the received bluetooth to try to make it sound a little less tinny...

[@PurpleTT99]

Yep Mike I thought that, short sharp drum sounds don't suffer so audibly from wow & flutter. Smart move by the guy selling, naive and impulsive actions by the Dragons Den type guys. They should have queried the music chosen for the demo if they new anything about the audio business that they were about to invest in. Thanks for posting the link.

[@volundrfrey896]

The shark isn't the only sucker. You have an other 3615 suckers who pledged to their kickstarter. www.kickstarter.com/projects/pinkdonut/rokblok-a-new-spin-on-vinyl

[@MichaelGerrard]

The sharks are pretty lame. I can't imagine Dragons doing that. But then again, I just don't get this product anyway, even if it worked.

[@SteveJones172pilot]

And.. in the video, it was pushing, not pulling, so that aspect of whether these tests are correct is settled..

[@1973retrorabbit]

On the plus side, because of this product, I checked out the original music from the link in your description for comparison and really quite enjoyed it.

[@FranklySean]

Wow, what a difference in quality when produced through my amplifier and speakers!

[@David-xo8ci]

Can you try reversing the polarity of the motor? If it drives the other way around, dragging the stylus, it might work like it should.

[@bjh1971]

@Techmoan Looking at the motor wiring soldered to the pcb they have the black going to M+ and the red going to M-. Looks like they have the polarity reversed.

[@01thiefraccoon]

I wonder if they would've sent you a special unit with better components.

[@EzeeLinux]

Wow... That thing will just kill any record you put it on. What a piece of...

[@humbucker0076]

the rockblok sounds like someone's beating up stray cats in a back yard at midnight...

[@WaybackTECH]

Ohhhhh the horror of the WOW and the FLUTTER that screeches out of this thing.

[@--Lam]

I don't understand this product. Unlike the Soundwagon, this is XXI Century electronics, you can buy a high-cpi mouse sensor for like 50 cents (cheap ones have higher lift-off distance which is good for this product), put it in there and measure the actual speed you go over the surface. Since you're already digitizing the signal AND buffering to push it over Bluetooth, you already have everything else on board to: - read the analog data and encode it digitally - resample based on actual speed (read from the sensor that's not there atm) - buffer half a second so speed fluctuations don't produce any breaks - enjoy your music without the wah-wah effect! Since the existing mechanism is safe but unreliable (based on friction between wheel and motor's tiny shaft), even if the motor had an encoder, its readings can't be trusted for getting the actual speed. But add an optical sensor and you're done. You still have an issue of linear vs angular speed and need a method of detection where on the disc you are. But if you always start from the beginning (outer edge) of the disc, that simple optical sensor can also tell you how much left/right you're going (sensors are super precise but for this you need one with no angle snapping, can be more expensive, like $2? ;)) so you would be able to solve this problem as well without added hardware. Starting from the middle of the disc is worse though :/

[@gubr]

When you use such a mouse sensor to measure the distance you moved and the sensor is in line with the tone arm and the tone arm has the right angle (tangential to groove), don't you only need to make sure that it's always the same distance in each time interval (i.e. results in constant angular speed)? It wouldn't matter where on the record you are, doesn't it?

[@cornoc]

i wonder if it might just be better to use an optical sensor to scan the depth and shape of the grooves as it passes over and reconstruct the audio without touching it at all

[@--Lam]

1. That would require an actual microscope - surely more expensive than a stylus + in the current design, the stylus also guides the device over the groove mechanically (which is the reason why it needs so much force and destroys records). 2. Let me tell you upfront: vinyl lovers wouldn't want that. After all, they actively seek inferior quality to get the "warm analog sound" (while rejecting analog tapes which have awesome fidelity) So you'd get a product that's more expensive but has smaller potential market.

[@cornoc]

i don't think any vinyl loving audiophiles are buying this, it's more of a novelty. more expensive sure, but i'm just imagining a product that actually works without damaging the record :-). it wouldn't need mechanical guidance to follow the grooves if it had a good line following algorithm and could supply differential speed to left and right wheels. it wouldn't even have to follow the grooves perfectly since the optical sensor can be engineered with a slightly oversized field of view.

[@kFY514]

Fun fact: playing vinyl without a stylus physically getting in the groove is, even quality-wise - for most users - a horrible idea. The stylus physically sweeps away a lot of the dirt that naturally gathers in the grooves, while a contactless sensor would just pick that up as sound. Proof: kzbin.info/www/bejne/iWjUlIeEi9Oanck Don't get me wrong - the laser turntable that ELP makes is a wonderful device for its niche. It's (obviously) very easy on the discs, and is exceptionally well at handling media that has been already damaged (scratches, warps, things like that). For this reason, it's perfect for archiving and restoring historical recordings. But for the average home user it makes no sense. A conventional turntable with a decent cartridge will probably serve you better if you store and handle your vinyl in anything less than medical-grade sterile conditions.

[@enzo3440]

Re solder the motor wires in reverse so it runs in reverse and we can see if it’s any better that way please!!!!

[@SteveJones172pilot]

unfortunately, I think the way it was designed, it loses it's ability to steer that way, and it would just run right off the side of the record.. At least then the music would stop, so that would be a plus.. :-)

[@ziqfriq]

Just don't try it on someone's vintage White Album "Revolution #9".

[@gman76utube]

ziqfriq “Turn me on, dead man. Turn me on, dead man”

[@BarneyBarnett]

The reason it’s called rock block is because it does the same to your record is in what rubbing of rock or a block against it would do, sounds like it too

[@andrewburleson9314]

It looks like it's made pretty well, I've watched both videos and can't seem to understand how this thing would ever keep a constant speed around the record. I admire that you were willing to do a couple extra tests to prove that it's just not very good. It would be a cool novelty if it didn't damage your vinyl.

[@jonathan_60503]

4 years too late an answer -- it appears to have the same mechanism as seen in Techmoan's later video on The RECORD RUNNER; and you can just catch a glimpse of it in this video at 6:03. The magic eye isn't a simple on/off mechanism like he said here; the tone arm is connected to an angled ramp that slides across between the transmitter and receivers of the magic eye as the tone arm angle changes from straight to fully angled; and that progressive closing of the eye's aperture regulates the motor speed. On the outer rim of the record, where the box need to move faster to get the same RPM, the tone arm is pretty straight and the eye's aperture is wide open (driving the motor at full speed), as the box works its way inwards the spiral tightens, the tone arm angle steadily increases, causing the ramp connected to it to steadily close the eye's aperture (driving the motor proportionately slower)

[@gibran53]

Constant linear velocity vs. Constant angular velocity. 😬😬😬

[@DFX2KX]

sometimes, folks just don't do engineering all that well.

[@Setsuna_Kyoura]

Haha, shit you're right. This thing runns at the same speed on any place on the reccord. Thats why everybody thought the device was playing with 45rpm in the 8Bit Keys Remix form the first video...

[@damntech]

I bet pushing the stylus instead of pulling may help square off that engineering mess.

[@ziqfriq]

Pulling versus pushing the stylus shouldn't matter that much. Until it hits a bump, like the scratch it made skating across the record the first time.

[@microbuilder]

Seems like it would need a motor with something like a hall effect sensor so it could know how fast it was going to maintain a consistent speed, and probably something better than just the motor axle riding on the wheel.

[@richcolour]

Gotta say, no matter how you play it, I really love this tune! :)