Hobby Components 8x8x8 Cube Kit (Arduino Compatible)

It should be very rare for any product to receive a 5 star review as the perfect product technically does not exist. But these 5 stas are a mix of product and, that rarest of experiences, superb customer service. Firstly the product itself is well present and applied. The main board is very well made, properly tinned and easy to read screen printing makes construction a breeze. Hobby components build instructions are on their forum presented with clear explanations and photos. follow these carefully and read everything several times as to be absolutely clear on the next step. You need some experience with soldering but all the components are through hole so no fiddly surface mount stuff to battle with. The real challenge with this kit is the construction of the cube of LEDs. There are 8 grids of 8x8 LEDs to construct. Hobby Components recommend that you construct a template made out of a solid material (I used wood) which will ensure that the spacing and layout of thebLEDs is correct. This is essential in my view. Attempting to build the grids without a template is beyond a challenge in my view and likely to lead to errors and hours of problem fixing. Its easy to build a template as instructed (just create an 8x8 table in a spreadsheet to form the correct spacing at the intersections of the cells) using a 3mm drill to create holes that the LEDs will fit snuggly into. The completed project is great fun. For those of you who understanding programming will be able to design their own displays with this cube. So, why 5 stars? After I finished construction I had some problems. Columns of LEDs would not work. I emailed Hobby Components and they immediately emailed back with suggestions and tests to eliminate potential problems. They sent replacement parts in case they were the issue. Eventually I sent them the board to test in their labs. They replaced a component, did a soak test and returned it to me in perfect working order. Although it took a long while to sort out they were superb and really wanted to assist and get the cube working, which they did admirably. If you decide to go for this kit you will undoubtedly receive excellent support post sale if you find you need it. What about the price? Compared to other options this seems a pricier option. But there is a reason. You may not get the same quality of components and main board and very much doubt the after sales service will be anywhere the excellent service Hobby components will provide. So do not go cheap, go reliable with great support. Highly recommended product and company.

Kept me busy for quite a few hours building the cube. No duff components and even had a few spares of the cheaper ones. I did find some of the solder tabs a little too small though and would recommend degreasing with meths or alcohol. I initially had a dry solder joint on the 16 MHz crystal which caused nothing to happen when powered-up. But I eventually found the cause in the online Q&As. The pre-installed program produced some nice patterns, and I even managed to program a few myself.

Great lockdown project for my grandson. Many hours of soldering produced a mesmerising display. Worked perfectly first time. Lack of enclosed assembly instructions annoying but those online are sufficient.

built this modified it to be a bit sturdier but works well

Brilliant kit very quick delivery have yet to build it .only downside it could have included instructions instead of having to go online to download them

watch utube video and you cant go wrong, great display

Got this to try out my new soldering iron. The kit itself is easy enough to put together and I've had a lot of fun reprogramming it. It's a great beginners kit.

Alles prima

Plus: gute Bauanleitung, Lötschablone incl. Minus: die Arduinobibliothek lässt sich leider nicht laden, da die angegebene website tot ist. Auch auf emails keine Reaktion. Summe: wer den Würfel selbst programmieren möchte, sollte einen anderen Anbieter wählen.