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Contents Vol.30, No.3; March 2017 SILICON CHIP www.siliconchip.com.au Features 17 Vale Maurie Findlay: Australian electronics “royalty” Many of our older readers would be saddened to hear of the passing of Maurie Findlay in January. Here’s a small tribute – by Ross Tester 18 Putting a big 43-inch 4K monitor to the test Do you work with two monitors on your desk? You’ll save space with one. Leo Simpson looks at Philips BDM4350 43-inch model. His verdict? Simply brilliant! 21 Australia’s largest vintage radio exhibition It’s the Historical Radio Society of Australia’s 35th birthday and next month in Melbourne they are staging the largest vintage radio display Australia has ever seen . . . and you’re welcome to visit – by Kevin Poulter Swimming Pool Lap Counter – Page 24 64 Getting Started with the Micromite, Part Two One of the outstanding features of the Micromite is its ability to drive a variety of LCD panels, so this month we look at graphics­– by Geoff Graham Pro jects To Build 24 All-new Swimming Pool Lap Counter If you swim laps for fitness it’s really easy to lose count of the number of laps. This new, versatile unit keeps count for you. And you can use it for other sports/ pastimes (such as running) where laps are involved – by John Clarke HRSA’s 35th Birthday and Australia’s largest Vintage Radio Exhibition – Page 21 34 The Stationmaster: walk-around PWM train control Pulse-width modulation design is easy to build, handles an AC or DC input and even has a walk-around throttle controller – design by Bob Sherwood 44 Bargain Solar Cells – and what to do with them! We’ve tracked down some really cheap, small solar cells! There’s a whole lot of things you can do with them – by Ross Tester 74 New SC200 Audio Amplifier – Part 3 Bargain Solar Cells – Page 44 Completing the SC200 amplifier module, we show its performance graphs (they’re really good!) and also show details of a suitable power supply. Finally, we give a thorough testing and troubleshooting procedure – by Nicholas Vinen 82 El Cheapo Modules, Part 5: LCD module with I2C This module combines a 16 x 2 backlit alphanumeric LCD and a small “piggyback” module to provide it with an I 2C interface – by Jim Rowe Special Columns 58 Serviceman’s Log Fixing a guitar amp is an enjoyable task – by Dave Thompson Getting Started with the Micromite, Part II – Page 64 86 Circuit Notebook (1) ATmega-based metal detector with stepped frequency indication (2) Remote tell-tale indicator for garage doors (3) Reduced noise for Isolated Current Probe 90 Vintage Radio Sony’s TR-712 Mantel Radio – by Ian Batty Departments 4 Publisher’s Letter   98 6 Mailbag 103 57 Product Showcase 104 siliconchip.com.au 96 SC Online Shop 104 Ask Silicon Chip    Market Centre Advertising Index Notes and Errata The Stationmaster model train controller – Page 34 March 2017  1 www.facebook.com/siliconchipmagazine