Jekyll2026-06-17T22:45:18+00:00http://www.banjowise.com/feed.xmlBanjowiseA collection of projects, experiments and noodlings.MarkSega and Sonic the Hedgehog2025-06-18T01:02:01+00:002025-06-18T01:02:01+00:00http://www.banjowise.com/post/sega-and-sonic-the-hedgehogMy journey into the world of Sonic the Hedgehog.

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It started in a hotel in Turkey, they had a Sega All-Stars Racing arcade machine featuring Sonic the Hedgehog. I didn’t play it, but it looked interesting — I used to love Sonic on my Game Gear.

A month later, while walking along the seafront in Great Yarmouth, I headed into Williamson’s Victorian Penny Arcade. A member of staff pointed out a fruit machine: a 1950s Sega Bell made by the same Sega that produced the Sonic games I played as a child.

Back home, I read up on Sega and the fruit machine, and discovered I lived only a short distance from Sega’s European office in Brentford. I had to see it and the giant Sonic the Hedgehog mural on the side for myself. (Sadly that is gone now since they moved offices to Chiswick)

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The Sonic bug bit me. It led to me playing as many 2D Sonic platform games as I could find on iOS and Nintendo Switch. But I wanted more. I regretted not playing Sega All-Stars in Turkey, and I started wondering what other Sonic arcade machines are in existence. Before long, I had a list of machines I need to try:

SegaSonic The Hedgehog

Status: Played

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Released exclusively in Japan as an arcade-only title around the time of Sonic 2. It is a 3D game, and because it uses a trackball control it has never been re-released for home systems.

I assumed I’d never get to play this. There are a few known cabinets in the USA, but thankfully as of June 2025, The Heart Of Gaming in Croydon has the only publicly available machine in the UK. I went there as soon as I could. The quirky 3D trackball gameplay is really fun. As it is on free play I managed to reach the final stage before the timer beat me.

Rad Mobile

Status: Played

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This is Sonic’s first appearance in a computer game; a cameo role as a hanging car ornament. It was released eight months before Sonic 1.

I read a social media post saying that Pixel Bunker in Milton Keynes doesn’t have any Sonic games, so I was ecstatic to find this one there while visiting in May 2026 along with Brickz and the Sci-Fi Museum.

Segasonic Popcorn Shop

Status: Unplayed

How brilliant is this? A Sonic mini-game where you get real popcorn. The only confirmed location I can find is from this YouTube video in Tokyo’s German Village.

Sonic the Fighters / Championship

Status: Unplayed

Although available on consoles, this was originally an arcade game so remains on my list. So far I haven’t been able to locate one in the UK.

New UFO Catcher

Status: Unplayed

Not a Sonic game, but these machines use the same audio chip as the Mega Drive / Genesis and play a selection of songs from the first Sonic games. ClawMachineWiki lists a few locations, but none in the UK.

Sonic All-Stars Racing

Status: Unplayed

I’m kicking myself for not trying this out when I first saw it in Turkey, so it’s now firmly on the list. This page says there is one in Bournemouth and Rotherham, and Zenius I Vanisher suggests a few more locations. I visited Bournemouth in 2026 and the machine wasn’t there, although I was happy to find this Sonic ride-on from the All-Stars era.

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If you do know the locations of any of the unplayed games, ideally in the South of Englad please get in touch - my hunt is far from over.

]]>MarkThe London Underground Philips Hue Light Switch2020-02-12T23:56:01+00:002020-02-12T23:56:01+00:00http://www.banjowise.com/post/london-underground-philips-hue-buttonA decommissioned Jubilee Line door button turned in to a Philips Hue light switch, complete with Sonos integration for a little bit of disco.

I picked up a decommissioned Jubilee line door button after a trip to the London Transport museum. Given my addiction to Hue lights, a switch was the obvious thing to do with it.

There wasn’t much information on repurposing the door button, so I created an Instructable “Hacking a London Underground Jubilee Line Door Button”.

I had a few options to control the lights: an ESP8266 / ESP32 Arduino to talk to the Hue API, a DIY Zigbee light link device such as described on PeeVeeOne, or taking apart a Hue Switch and modifying it to work with one button by the use of a microcontroller (although Philips have since released this).

I went down the ESP32 route as it would also let me integrate with the Sonos API to create a secret disco mode. If I get around to putting the ESP32 into sleep mode then the battery should last a decent amount of time, although for some reason my ESP32 refuses to be powered by my 3.7V lipo battery so I am currently running it off of USB.

The code for the ESP32 is on github, with the code for the Sonos integration in its own branch.

One of the tricky parts of the project was the Sonos integration, I’ve created a small app to ease the generation of Sonos auth tokens for Microcontroller projects.

Lit up button

Purple button

As purchased

Back of button

]]>MarkMidi Drum Sequencer2020-01-03T01:02:01+00:002020-01-03T01:02:01+00:00http://www.banjowise.com/post/arduino-midi-drum-sequencerMy analogue style MIDI step sequencer.

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It has 48 switches to control 6 drums over 8 beats, a tempo control, LED indicator and start/stop switch all connected to an Arduino Nano.

As the nano has 22 I/O pins, I used a keyboard matrix to connect the 48 toggle switches to 14 pins. This post at the bald engineer was invaluable.

The diodes ares 1N4148, the box was from the The Works. The source code and more circuit details are on github

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]]>MarkAutomaBeat2019-02-02T22:46:01+00:002019-02-02T22:46:01+00:00http://www.banjowise.com/post/automabeatA Raspberry Pi powered mechanical drum machine.

The electronics consist of 8 12v solenoids connected to a Raspberry Pi via a relay. It can be controlled by the web based drum sequencer which I have called PiBeat, or drum patterns can be scripted.

The drums are mostly made from things found around the house. The hammers to hit the can and beer bottle are taken from a chopped up piano found in a skip.

An instructable how to create your own is here, a script to program patterns is here, and the script for the demo sequence is here.

]]>MarkPiBeat2019-02-01T22:46:01+00:002019-02-01T22:46:01+00:00http://www.banjowise.com/post/pibeatThis is the web based drum sequencer created for AutomaBeat - my Raspberry Pi powered mechanical drum machine. It works across devices (tablets, mobile phones, desktops etc), using web sockets to trigger the GPIO pins through a Python server. A preview of the sequencer can be seen at pibeat.banjowise.com.

I have open sourced the code at GitHub, and an Instructable on how to create your own drum machine is here.

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PiBeat Drum Sequencer on an iPhone

]]>MarkCigar Box Guitars2019-01-23T22:46:01+00:002019-01-23T22:46:01+00:00http://www.banjowise.com/post/cigar-box-guitarsI am certainly no luthier, but after a few failed attempts, a lot of trial and error and a lot of fun, I now have a couple of very playable Cigar Box Guitars.

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There are so many resources out there to get up and running, Glenn Watt’s youtube channel is really inspirational.

Here is how I built #2 (or #5 counting the failures):

The main ingredients:

  • A cigar box
  • 33 x 200mm oak cut to about 800mm for the neck
  • 33 x 200mm oak cut to 400mm for the heel
  • 33 x 15mm oak cut to around 200mm oak for the headstock
  • 6mm x 500m mahogony for the fretboard cut a little bit wider than the neck.
Timber ready for cutting
Timber ready for cutting
Round-over bit set on the router.
Round-over bit set on the router.
Routing the complete length of the back of the heel, and about 400mm of the back of the neck for a nice rounded profile.
Routing the complete length of the back of the heel, and about 400mm of the back of the neck for a nice rounded profile.
Cutting the scarf join on the table saw. After much experimentation I ended up making a sled for this cut.
Cutting the scarf join on the table saw. After much experimentation I ended up making a sled for this cut.
The back of the sled - the glued on metal bar fits nicely into the table slot to guide the sled.
The back of the sled - the glued on metal bar fits nicely into the table slot to guide the sled.
And that is most of the cuts and routing done. The cut on the heel was done with the tilt on the table saw.
And that is most of the cuts and routing done. The cut on the heel was done with the tilt on the table saw.
A little tidying up of the heel before gluing.
A little tidying up of the heel before gluing.
Ready for gluing.
Ready for gluing.
Gluing the scarf joint. I find this one of the hardest parts of the process as the timber never wants to lay flat.
Gluing the scarf joint. I find this one of the hardest parts of the process as the timber never wants to lay flat.
Gluing the heel to the neck.
Gluing the heel to the neck.
Holes cut for the tuning pegs. A 9.5mm is the perfect size. I've positioned the holes so the string do not overlap.
Holes cut for the tuning pegs. A 9.5mm is the perfect size. I've positioned the holes so the string do not overlap.
Cutting the slots for the frets with a Stanley Fat Max saw, using the [fret position calculator at Stewmac](https://www.stewmac.com/FretCalculator) to do the maths.
Cutting the slots for the frets with a Stanley Fat Max saw, using the [fret position calculator at Stewmac](https://www.stewmac.com/FretCalculator) to do the maths.
Gluing the fretboard to the neck.
Gluing the fretboard to the neck.
Notching the Cigar box lid to fit the neck. Sometimes the wood pops out really easily, but not this time. I'll cut the base of the box when I am happy with the angle of the neck.
Notching the Cigar box lid to fit the neck. Sometimes the wood pops out really easily, but not this time. I'll cut the base of the box when I am happy with the angle of the neck.
Notching the neck is nice and easy with the table saw, the remainder flies out with a hammer and chisel. The angle of the neck is just a guess for now, I'll cut it more precisely when the strings are on.
Notching the neck is nice and easy with the table saw, the remainder flies out with a hammer and chisel. The angle of the neck is just a guess for now, I'll cut it more precisely when the strings are on.
Sanding the fretboard as its easier to do so before fretting.
Sanding the fretboard as its easier to do so before fretting.
Hammering in the frets with a soft faced hammer.
Hammering in the frets with a soft faced hammer.
Fret edges sanded with the belt sander.
Fret edges sanded with the belt sander.
Hole for the audio jack drilled with a 13mm bit (11-12mm would be better if I had one), volume pot hole drilled with a 7mm bit.
Hole for the audio jack drilled with a 13mm bit (11-12mm would be better if I had one), volume pot hole drilled with a 7mm bit.
Sanding the neck. I thought this would be tedious but it turns out to be one of the most satisfying parts of the build.
Sanding the neck. I thought this would be tedious but it turns out to be one of the most satisfying parts of the build.
Applying 4 coats of Danish Oil to the neck.
Applying 4 coats of Danish Oil to the neck.
Things were looking good, then this happens while fixing the tailpiece.
Things were looking good, then this happens while fixing the tailpiece.
Fixing the mistake
Fixing the mistake
I think I got away with it.
I think I got away with it.
After much wedging, filing and sanding, here is the final neck.
After much wedging, filing and sanding, here is the final neck.
Hinge tailpiece fixed into position
Hinge tailpiece fixed into position
Making the bridge from a spare bit of fretboard and a bolt.
Making the bridge from a spare bit of fretboard and a bolt.
Final cuts to the box
Final cuts to the box
Nut cut down to size then filed down. I find this another tricky part and took a few attempts to get it right.
Nut cut down to size then filed down. I find this another tricky part and took a few attempts to get it right.
Nut lightly glued into place with a dab of UHU.
Nut lightly glued into place with a dab of UHU.
Leveling the frets with the fret file.
Leveling the frets with the fret file.
Polishing the frets with wire wool.
Polishing the frets with wire wool.
2 piezo pickups glued under the bridge
2 piezo pickups glued under the bridge
2 piezo's wired in parallel with one volume, thanks to [this article](https://www.cigarboxguitar.com/knowledge-base/cigar-box-guitar-piezo-wiring-diagrams/)
2 piezo's wired in parallel with one volume, thanks to [this article](https://www.cigarboxguitar.com/knowledge-base/cigar-box-guitar-piezo-wiring-diagrams/)
And the finished item
And the finished item
]]>Mark2018 Recordings2018-03-24T00:03:28+00:002018-03-24T00:03:28+00:00http://www.banjowise.com/post/recordingsA collection of badly recorded traditional tunes, rough ideas, experiments and noodlings.

Mazomenos / Sally In The Garden

A Greek tune I heard through Turkish Saz playing, paired with the old time classic. Also my first attempt at using Garageband.

Mississippi Sawyer

Laid back version of the old time favourite.

March

Chillouty tune evolved from holding down too many notes on the melodeon.

Second Chance

A short little riff I’ve been playing about with in a slightly odd time signature.

Wine and Gin

A very catchy little tune.

June

A couple of modal clawhammer banjo breaks.

Bang Bang

The Nancy Sinatra song converted to Banjo..

]]>MarkDescaler2018-03-23T23:29:30+00:002018-03-23T23:29:30+00:00http://www.banjowise.com/post/descalerA utility to view scales on any stringed instrument (guitars, banjos, mandolins, cigar box guitars etc). The number of strings and tuning is completely customisable.

descaler.banjowise.com

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]]>MarkTempo Tap2018-01-01T23:29:30+00:002018-01-01T23:29:30+00:00http://www.banjowise.com/post/tempo-tapA little web app to figure out the BPM of a piece of music (created as an excuse play around with nice fonts)

Go try it out at tempo.banjowise.com

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