Ensoniq ESQ-1/SQ-80 EEPROM Cartridge PCB - Direct from PCB designer

What is it?

Please note! This item ONLY includes a single unassembled PCB.

This open source PCB replicates the writeable patch cartridges used with the Ensoniq ESQ-1 and SQ-80 synthesizer released in the late 1980s. The OEM cartridges used 64kb EEPROMs and stored 2 banks of 40 patches each. This design uses more modern EEPROMs which can

Why did you make it?

I (the owner of this Reverb store) created this PCB because the OEM cartridges are getting harder and harder to find. Cartridges ended up being nearly as expensive as the ESQ-1 synth itself. While the schematics for the OEM cartridge have existed in various forms on the public internet for years, no one had taken the designs to completion and released a complete, working, open source PCB design. Now someone has!

Why did you list it on Reverb?

I have received a number of messages through other websites asking about whether I was selling these boards on Reverb. Turns out someone else has decided to post my design without including details about it being an open source project nor linking back to either the GitHub repo, the Tindie store, or any of the other places I've posted information about this project.

In order to reduce confusion, and make sure I can better support these boards, I decided to learn how to sell stuff on Reverb.

Fair warning: International shipping has bit me pretty hard already on this project. I'm sorry but I can't afford to ship outside of the US currently.

That said, the design is open source for exactly that reason: Take the design and bend it to your own needs.

How do I build it?

All relevant build details (BoM and schematics with build notes and up-to-date errata) can be found in the official GitHub repository: github.com/JamesHagerman/Ensoniq-ESQ-1-EEPROM-Cartridge

You will have to source the components and 3D printed enclosure on your own.

How do I use it?

Once you've assembled the complete cartridge, you will need to insert it into the synth and initialize it by writing the current patches stored on your synth to the various banks on the cartridge. These directions should be close:

• Power up the synth
• Plug in the cartridge
• Press “STORAGE”
• Press the button under “CARTRIDGE”
• Press the button for “INT TO CART A” or “INT TO CART B”
• Press the button for “YES”
  

I want to know more...

Please feel free to message me on Reverb!