Foot Operated Remote for Minidisc Player

Make a foot operated remote control for your HHB Portadisc MDP500 minidisc player. I use this in my puppet shows as I generally use two glove puppets and have yet to try growing a third hand.

The HHB Portadisc comes with a 'remote' socket, already for transport controls to be implemented in any form you like.

The HHB Portadisc has a rather useful pause after track function, so that I can keep pressing pause to cue the next track.

The MDP500 is a minidisc player that will record and play minidiscs. It has a useful pause after track function (auto pause) that allows you to play a track then have the unit go straight into pause ready to play the next track as soon as you hit the pause button. Just perfect for cuing sound effects and music intros.

I bought this specifically for my puppet shows and to record audio for some animated stores I was working on at the time.

You can see in the second picture the socket labelled 'remote'. This is where the remote plugs in.

Here is a pin out for the din plug and a circuit diagram. The only thing to point out here, and the one thing that stumped me for far too long was the REMOTE ON.

When I plugged my remote into the Portadisc the first time, the Portadisc was off. I assumed that the remote on was a remote means of powering up the port a disk.

...

!! WRONG !!

...

The remote on simply enables or disables the switches on the remote. Like I say, it took far too long to work that out!!

Requirements:
- foot operated
- robust
- low profile - I have to use it with my foot remember

Materials:
- 3 x Big heavy duty Impact resistant waterproof single pole make/break switches. These are the sort of switches used in industrial settings to take a blow from people or machinery in order to actuate. The tops are all metal.
- 3 x small white waterproof single pole make/break push switches
- 1x rocker switch. This one has a waterproof hood.
- 2 x single pole toggle switches
- Some wire
- An 8 pin din plug
- some wooden batten offcuts and some hardboard

(I use water in my shows, so thought some waterproofing was probably a good idea)

Currently the case is wooden (and has no sides) as there were some handy offcuts. I may (or may not) one day re-box this...

Originally i was going to use an 8pn din male to male lead, with a socket in the remote. However, I abandoned that Idea, as it was quicker to just cut the end of the pre-wired lead and wire it in directly. It also means there is one less connection to make when it comes to setting up my puppet booth, and that the wire is less likely to be knocked out by my feet mid show.

The decal is applied with a fine line ink pen directly on to the hardboard shell.

Here is a view inside.
When I find a handy cable clamp I will add one. I have one in the garage somewhere...
Meanwhile I have routed the cable round the switches to provide some relief.

As you can see there are simply two wooden battens along the long edges of the enclosure.
Wires are soldered to the switches in order to minimise amount of height needed in for the enclosure.

The din pug did not fit in the socket in the Portadisc because of the socket being inset slightly. So I shaved it with a sharp knife.

And finally the remote in action.