Greetings Chromagnonites.
We’ve had a great start to the year here in the workshop. A handy form was provided in the last journal entry and you sent in a lot of questions! This post will be focused on answering all of them.
Pat asked “Do you have any plans to update the Chromagnon spreadsheet any time soon?”
Pat, the most up to date information is here in this weekly journal. I’ve added a note to the shared spreadsheet to reflect that.
Right now we are laser focused on getting the project production ready.
Once we hit production ready, our focus shifts to shipping unit one.
From that point, our focus shifts to shipping all pre-orders.
At each stage, the variability of the project timeline decreases, and our ability to accurately forecast your delivery date increases.
By the time we hit production ready we’ll have a straight shot to shipping unit one. It will be a list of tasks with predictable timelines, and low chance of delays.
By the time we hit shipping unit one, it will finally be possible to provide a more accurate shipping estimate and schedule.
I’d like to be production ready in February, and shipping unit one in March-April. After that, fulfilling all orders could happen in a few weeks or will drag out several months. The pace we can fulfill will be set by the overall strength of our sales and cash flow. I’ll be updating you here, weekly.
Graham asked “As the release date approaches, when do you expect to unpause the pre-orders?”
Graham, we are currently accepting pre-orders for Chromagnon. We just do not plan to advertise pre-orders until we reach the shipping unit one milestone. You may place a pre-order via our website.
Graham also asked “I've noticed some people are selling their pre-orders. Is that a legit or sketchy process?”
That’s fine, Graham – just make sure you loop our sales team in on it before any money is exchanged. We’ll be happy to validate whether or not a pre-order is valid, and transfer ownership to you at the seller’s request. Just e-mail sales@lzxindustries.net.
Brandon said “Thinking about Chromagnon being at the forefront [of an image processing] focused rig currently, what are your recommendations for modules that are functional today and enhanced by a Chromagnon later?”
Brandon, my first choice for Chromagnon expansion is more modulators. Chromagnon has some powerful internal modulators, but to maximize its potential, you’ll want a variety of modulation sources to feed it. I asked around the workshop and here's everyone's take.
"Two DWO3s" -Andrew
"Bunch of DWO3s" - Nick
"Scrolls or DWO3 or DSG3 or Ribbons" - Me
Bradley said “No questions really... just wanted to say how much I love the idea of the journal. Just giving us a peek inside your workshop really feels like it breaks down the walls of brand and customer.”
Cheers Bradley.
Zoe asked “What's the plan for Chromagnon after pre-orders are fulfilled? I'd love to budget for my own!”
Zoe! We plan to have a strong launch and keep Chromagnon available for many years.
Flo asked “What about the firmware for Diver? Is this project abandoned?”
Howdy Flo – yes, Diver was discontinued a few years ago now. The firmware has been published to our GitHub for open source development. Diver had a few issues – only one can be considered critical to operation: a glitch or blip in the output every few seconds. This issue is related to the hardware, and not the firmware -- it can be resolved by changing your sync configuration and routing. Reach out to support@lzxindustries.net and we’ll be happy to work through it with you.
Marco asked “How about Chromagnon and ILDA? Could I use it for controlling lasers in a safe way, you know frequency limitations, etc...?”
Yes Marco! Chromagnon has integrated low pass filters for the ILDA outputs, with 4 different frequency cutoffs (these are adjustable with the rear DIP switch settings.)
Mike asked “Do you think it’s possible that there’s video synthesis on other planets? Have any other life forms placed any orders for Chromagnons? Also, what are the chances that ancient civilizations developed comparable technology?”
Mike, if species on other planets also developed visual sensors like the eyeballs and cones of animals on Planet Earth, and tamed electrical currents like humans have, I am certain that technologies similar to Chromagnon would emerge, sooner or later.
While it would be difficult to determine the nature of entities placing Chromagnon pre-orders, I assume they are fellow humans. It’s probable that dolphins and cats would be placing orders, if they did not lack opposable thumbs.
I think the visual technologies of ancient civilizations, such as the Atlanteans, more likely had to do with primitive mankind’s deeper understanding of remote viewing and alternate states of consciousness than it does with an electrical device like a video synthesizer. But I would love to be disproven.
Clark asked “How will I know when it’s shipping… and what number on the list I am?”
Clark, we will send you an individual e-mail before your order ships, to make sure your shipping address is correct. We’ll publish an order number queue after we reach our ship unit one milestone.
Next week, I’ll be back to sharing details about the Chromagnon Core PCB that is incoming, and our plan for tackling the hardware review.
Yours,
Lars