Tsunami Qwiic 25 voice and Flash Write Errors

Hi there

I’m having trouble with SD cards. Every card that I have tried seems to fail on two separate boards. I’ve checked the formatting and allocation sizes are correct as per the documentation and that the files are named correctly and the LED still just flashes coninuously.

I can’t tell if I’ve updated the firmware correctly to the stereo version as I just get this flashing light. Some audio is present but it’s massively messed up and I’m getting just tones, hiss and beeps more than anything.

Is this something that you’ve come across and does it sound like an SD card issue? I have 6 Tsunami’s that I need to run together for a project and I’m nervous that I can’t get them working. I’ve used the original Wav Triggers a lot with zero issues so I’m a bit stumped by this one!

Advise very welcome, thanks!

Ok, so from reading a few other posts and seeing comments relating to powering, I tried running the board via the USB-C port from an Apple charger plug. It seems to resolve the issue. I haven’t tried it fully yet but at first try the audio seems a lot cleaner.

Prior to this I was using a Mean Well RS-25-5 switch mode power supply set to 5v. I thought this would be nice and clean and am a bit gutted if I can’t use it actually as there are other components that require powering from it too. I tried reducing the output voltage to match that of the Apple charger plug at 4.8v but it didn’t make any difference.

Why would going into the boards’ VIn and GND pins cause flash write errors? I also notice that there are two sets of VIn/GND. I was using the outer. Is there any difference to them and what are the two sets intended for, daisy-chaining?

Hi all

So, I’ve nailed this down to the mean Well RS-25-5 power supply. The Tsunami doesn’t seem to like it however it delivers power. So far. I’ve tried:

5v from PSU to header pins on Tsunami

5v from PSU to USB-C male plug

5v from PSU to a 5v USB hub

5v from a 5v Apple UK plug to USB-C plug

The only that works is the last, the Apple plug. What’s going on? I need to run 6 Tsunami’s together in a cabinet and can’t possibly power them with 6 full size UK plugs from a multiway socket.

What happens is that any method of powering from the PSU causes what seems to be a flash write error and then the audio is just beeps and splurts and noise.

The PSU is good as it’s powering a headphone amp which is clean without the Tsunami in the mix.

I can’t figure out what the point is of providing header terminals for power if they don’t work?

Please can someone help and let me know if you’ve had similar issues, and if so how you worked around them?

Many thanks

Jon

Hello, thanks for reaching out here.

This is odd behavior and as far as I can tell we have not seen this issue before. I don’t think using different power supplies that fall under the power rating of the board should cause issues like you describe. Puzzling.

We are looking into it. Hope to have a reply soon.

The signal is going to be ‘noisy’ if you are powering different devices (that have different power requirements) with a single supply…the speakers/headphones/etc will benefit greatly from being on a separate power source

The simplest workaround would be to use a power strip https://www.amazon.com/KRIEGER-Universa … B00N13DC9O and just use several mean-well supplies…is the cabinet too small?

You could also engineer a solution tailored to your project’s power requirements…perhaps the power supply in question isn’t performing as advertised. But I’d suggest the above (or similar…maybe a power ‘cube’ or the like) if you’re just wanting to get it working ASAP

Hey all,

I’m currently looking into this as well, with some parts on order. FWW, I reviewed the design verification notes when we tested prototypes and production run boards, and powering from the VIN (at various voltages) was included in the testing. Note, we were using a benchtop power supply [https://www.sparkfun.com/products/retired/9291], so that would most likely be a slightly cleaner supply than the meanwell.

I should have parts in today/tomorrow and will get test setup going asap, so I will report back with any testing results I find.

-Pete

Hey Jon and all,

I just finished running through my test setup, and I have not been able to replicate the issue. I tried a few of our switching power supplies, and also a meanwell NES-150-12, however they all worked.

Jon, at this point, I’m not sure what is going on with your setup. Could you potentially describe your exact wiring in more detail to us? I’m wondering if it might be a grounding issue, that is somehow different/resolved by using the Apple UK USB adapter.

For your reference, I will attach my testing notes and results as a PDF.

Let us know, and sorry we don’t have a more direct answer for you at the moment.

-Pete

Tsunami Super WAV Trigger Power Supply Testing July 2023.pdf (45.7 KB)

Hey guys

Thanks so much for your help, it’s really great that you were able to give this some time.

Unfortunately due to timing of the project I’ve had to go down the route of using a 6-way mains block with 6 Apple style chargers. It all seems to running fine now and fortunately there is enough space in the cabinet to accomodate this.

I will definitely return to this though as no doubt I’ll be using the Tsunamis in future projects.

All the best and thanks again

Jon