BOOM BOX!

[Dee Jay]

Killer...

been doing some dumpster diving lately and been scoring some quality stuff!

the best one being a two-5"-speaker 100w mono Sony PA ! Gonna slap some tweeter horns on it and convert it to a boom box! I love the rugged wood and rubber cabinet and a big ass SONY logo in the middle! The steel mounting hardware on the sides are perfect for a handle and tweeter enclosures! Man I miss good old fashion BOOM BOXES! They are no longer made, at least the way they were made in the 70's and 80's.



I ordered a very compact 200 watt stereo amplifier kit and an AC power supply kit that operates 28V max so I'm thinking of making it a portable boom box with some Dewalt 28v battery packs.

This is gonna be the baddest Road Worthy Boom Box... Anyone know if it's been done before? A123 powered Boom Box?

Hopefully I'll be up and running in time for the cherry blossom picnics!

 

[AussieJester]

Picked up a Panasonic and a Sharp portable stereos this curbside collection, the Sharp is somewhat boom boxish both work really well the Sharp REALLY pumps out the tunes ol twin cassette job graphic equalizer, just need me sheets of cardbord me ol style Nikes and ill be busting some break dance moves

View attachment IMG_4681.jpg

KiM

 

[Dee Jay]

Werd 'em up B-Boy Aussie, cardboard sheet and Nikes... didn't know you were so down! 8) I was the odd duck amongst my electro/hip-hop buddies: wearing chuck taylors, peg leg jeans, torn t shirt, army jacket, spiky hair, pogo dancing to the sex pistols... but I also loved reggae, dub, rap, electronica, disco and everything in between, basically what the The Clash was all about. RIP Joe Strummer..

Yeah dual cassettes was high tech back in da day..mid to late 80's?

[youtube]G-t52zc8Ex4[/youtube]

[youtube]9SgvJY9xxcA[/youtube]

 

[AussieJester]

Werd 'em up B-Boy Aussie, cardboard sheet and Nikes... didn't know you were so down!

hahaha actually...i'm not LoL..back in the 80s i wore stretch jeans and Kung-Fu shoes was into Tae Kwon Do back then
and frequently practised it on my fellow school mates that wore nikes baggy jeans and spun around on the head on cardboard

AC/DC baby A C D C

KiM

 

[Dee Jay]

My Kits arrived! Amp, Power Supply, and tweeters w crossovers. I felt like Wile E. Coyote Super Genius once again!

The amp and PS assembly was a piece-o-cake but I think I screwed up the IC's. :? So I wrote to the manufacturer:

Note: Take care that IC's leads DO NOT TOUCH the metal plate!

Well, it happened. The Metal Plate did touch the IC leads for several reasons:

1) Inconsistent terminology was confusing

- Metal Plate (Holder)

- Holder (Metal Plate)

- Metal Back (IC)


2) Lack of illustration and instruction in page 10 on how to install (orientation of) the "Holder" AKA "Metal Plate"

3) The "Holder" AKA "Metal Plate" could've been designed much better to prevent contact to IC Leads

4) There was no preventative measure to insure the "Holder" AKA "Metal Plate" does not touch the IC leads. A simple suggestion of using tape or cardboard during installation would've been a good advice.

5) The most important WARNING was not emphasized and only printed near the end of assembly instruction. There should be a dedicated page on proper handling of such a sensitive element in the kit.

So did I destroy the IC's buy touching the "Holder" AKA "Metal Plate"? How much are these IC's? And where could I get replacements? Will the warranty cover the IC damage due the 5 reasons I listed?

PLEASE ADVICE, thanks.

 

[StudEbiker]

[youtube]e84hf5aUmNA[/youtube]

 

[Dee Jay]

That was RETRO! Nice one Stud, thanks!

I was going to keep it a secret till my project was done but I decided to install antennas even though there won't be an FM stereo receiver, only a stereo input for media/CD player

Also I will have an aluminum plate with an image of a cassette tape under the SONY logo

oh and a pair of VU meters that I'm hoping to get it to actually work! If not they'll just be um.."representing" like the rest of the cosmetics.

The toroidal power supply will be detachable and housed separately like a giant wall wart. The 28v Dewalt packs for portability will probably be started next spring 8) 8) 8) 8) 8) 8) 8) 8) 8) 8) 8) 8) 8)

 

[Dee Jay]

Went through the other vids and found some homemade boomboxer makers! Damn!

Don't really like the Car Stereo and Speakers stuff. Most of these Ghetto Blasters are just that, pretty GHETTO .. I wanna see some classy ones with pro audio speakers and amps. Not just loud, I'm talking professionally built ones but with some crazy features! The pink one is the best and the music was very cool too. I like the idea of voltmeter & ammeter! I just might do the same.

Cmon Doctorbass, Represent and show these fools what is up with Lithium Ion Nano Phosphate powered BOOMBOX! And spare the duct tape Ha ha!

[youtube]E_0IaCmsie4[/youtube]

[youtube]W4Vs1ScUNZ4[/youtube]

[youtube]3fUD6rlFOCI[/youtube]

[youtube]tBaBWDcu-Mc[/youtube]

[youtube]wfIYUb5ST1o[/youtube]

[youtube]i-KoDGELgeQ[/youtube]

[youtube]sqU8dLqHymU[/youtube]

 

[TylerDurden]

Old-school is still kickin...


edit: replaced missing image.

 

[def215]

mines is sub-par at best and not really a boombox but ill give it a shot.
its a 1200w 2-ch amp bridged to run a 10 inch sub with a 5x7. its runnoff of my 12drill battery composed of tenergy sub-c cells.
its all crappy components but its not too bad sound quality.

i guess this one can be called a "boomdesk"?...lol

 

[Dee Jay]

Old-school is still kickin...

Oooh good condish... that one is no Ghetto Blaster, its a serious portable stereo. It would clean up nicely, make it nice and shiny again. Love that monolithic look. For mine, I'm going for a stereolithiumythic look!

I can totally relate when Lyle Owerko mentioned how the slow and elegant opening motion of the cassette door was such a Turn-On LOL!

i guess this one can be called a "boomdesk"?...lol

:lol: 12 volts packs? How long does a pack last?

 

[Dee Jay]

OK, I just ordered a Toroid 2 x 18vac 100va transformer $80 w shipping!

I don't know for sure if the Philips TDA1514A IC was destroyed during assembly but I pressed my panic button and ordered a pair. If they're OK, then I'll at least have spares.

Man, Philips TDA1514A IC was hard to find! Lots of Ebay sellers from Taiwan and Hong Kong but there had been reports of fake chips. I found only guitar shops in the US that sells them at reasonable prices, the lowest was $11.95 x 2 plus shipping came out to $30.90.

a $31 mistake that the kit manufacture should've helped me avoid

 

[Dee Jay]

HOO YEAH ! I AM BAD!

I AM A BAD PERSON 8)

My toroid transformer came in! I hooked it up to my power supply and amplifier kits today for the first time... I had my fire extinguisher handy when I pushed the on button...

..and man, I was BOOMIN' with some JAZZ!

IT SOUNDS VERY CLEAN! I'm a DJ but not an audiophile but I will say that this amp gave the music so much presence, it was a bit scary!

$232 for a clean and compact 200 watts stereo amp is an awesome deal! 2 spare IC's, 1 toroid, and shipping included.

So I didn't damage the TDA1514A IC's after all ! But I love the sound quality of this very VERY COMPACT and VERY ROBUST AMP so much that I'm glad I bought spares for the day when I somehow blow it up, and by that time, these IC's might be even harder to find! :wink:

This boom box project is really coming along.. next is to rewire the two mono speakers into stereo!

 

[Dee Jay]

If you're also interested in putting together an old school boombox, you might be interested in this little baby, the Dayton TDA-100 100 watts Digital Stereo amp, assembled! I might've saved myself some work and stress had I known that this thing would come out this May !

http://www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?Partnumber=300-383

 

[def215]

i guess this one can be called a "boomdesk"?...lol

:lol: 12 volts packs? How long does a pack last?

not long at all. probably like a half hour at most. its very much a novelty than anything else.

i was about to ask if you can post a video of how good it sounds, then i just remembered, i dont have the stuff you do...lol(im such an idiot...lol)

sorry but the thread title keeps reminding me of this:
[youtube]8yvEYKRF5IA[/youtube]

 

[Dee Jay]

i was about to ask if you can post a video of how good it sounds

I video recorded the amp in action but I'm still setting up a new webspace that's only 20mb at the moment.

I tried to sign up for a Youtube account just now but Google is now demanding my MOBILE PHONE NUMBER for account verification ?

WHAT THE frock?

Why not just ask for DNA samples? Rub a cotton swab inside your cheek then put it in your handy dandy Logitech USB DNA Reader and press enter?



Fornication
Under
Carnal
Knowledge!

Fornication
Under
Carnal
Knowledge!

Fornication
Under
Carnal
Knowledge!

Fornication
Under
Carnal
Knowledge!

 

[TylerDurden]

Google/Youtube have been under attack from Chinese hackers for the past week. They are also re-routing lots of traffic in the Asia-Pacific region, due to the China pullout.

Mobile confirmation was the original screening process the Google used. They are using it again in Asia Pacific to reduce automated DDoS attacks.

 

[Dee Jay]

Thanks for the heads up, Tyler.

Chinese hacking Youtube?

"What a mean thing to do! What a mean thing!" (Gomer Pyle USMC)

Another good reminder to appreciate the rights and freedom we (the rest of the civilized world) have, for how free is a man who cannot view Bangbus at his leisure? sheesh! *rimshot*

Do I have to remind the Chinese of their own Chinese proverb?

"When in doubt, whip it out"

I think they're attacking because they were offended by this vid:
[youtube]6HIavxnUHls[/youtube]

 

[Dee Jay]

Why is it that when we go to a stereo shop, we are sold stereos by the "wattage": 140 watts Amp and 70 watts speakers, etc.. then we go home and blast our new sound system but we read the power in "VU" Volume Units?

The average music lover probably don't even know what "Volume Units" and "Decibels" mean, nor care.. like me!

But wouldn't it be cool to just have Watt Meters on the amp so we can judge how hard we're making those expensive JBL speakers work? We can say to ourselves:

"Yeah I paid, $500 bucks for this badass 500 watts sound system, I think I pump it ALL THE WAY UP TO 500 WATTS today so I can feel like I'm getting my money's worth!! "

This is what I want to do, hook up Ammeters to the speaker wires right at the speaker connectors in the amp. So tell me, how is this a bad plan?

 

[amberwolf]

Well, as long as the voltage and current doesn't exceed the limits, you could actually use an externally-powered CA, WU, or Turnigy watt meter to hook across the speaker wires and find out what kind of power readings you actually draw from the amp.

That is, assuming the amp is not a push-pull type, but rather is just a single ended output referenced to ground.


Otherwise you could use a KillAWatt to measure incoming AC power to the amp from the wall.

 

[Dee Jay]

Thanks for the input Amberwolf.

CA,WU & Killawatt are all pricey. I want to keep it as low cost as possible with 2 analog ammeters @ $10 a piece, and replacing the meter's notches from ampere with printout labels of calculated watts. I'm drunk.. did I just make any sense?

And I'd also prefer reading the watts at the amp's casing right above the volume knob rather than having to look over at a Killawatt on the wall socket.

I dont understand this push/pull type amp thing. Can you esplain this to me in layman's terms if you have the time? Isn't it as simple as installing the ammeter parallel to the positive/red speaker wires of each channel?

 

[amberwolf]

CA,WU & Killawatt are all pricey. I want to keep it as low cost as possible with 2 analog ammeters @ $10 a piece, and replacing the meter's notches from ampere with printout labels of calculated watts. I'm drunk.. did I just make any sense?

It does make sense, but...

The power will be changing constantly with (primarily) the lower frequencies, as they push more DC current for longer periods. You won't get a good average sound power reading that way, though you will see it operate and it will probalby show the right amps.

I'm not sure how to calculate the watts out so it'd be correct at all places on the readout; I'm not sure if it's linear or not, due to the way sound is produced for the human ear. You have both changing voltage and changing current, like in a motor controller, so there isn't a fixed value other than the speaker's resistance to calculate from.

And I'd also prefer reading the watts at the amp's casing right above the volume knob rather than having to look over at a Killawatt on the wall socket.

You could just put the KW guts inside the casing, wiring the AC cord's input to the case to the back of the KW, then the KW output to the fused input of the amp guts.

I dont understand this push/pull type amp thing. Can you esplain this to me in layman's terms if you have the time?

A push-pull amp can be designed so that the speaker goes between two sections of an amplifier, rather like an H-bridge motor controller with only the top of the left half and the bottom of the right half. This means there is no static ground to reference from--the voltage goes up and down at both wires of the speaker, usually out-of-phase to get the maximum current flow thru the speaker, and thus the most cone displacement, and the most volume of sound out. That might or might not make a difference to measuring power the way you want to.

Cheaper amps (and lower-power ones) generally only use a top or bottom half of that, so there is still a fixed reference at one end of the speaker, either V+ or ground. Depends on the amp designer's preferences which way they do it, though most of the small amp chips end up being V+ as the fixed point.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Push%E2%80%93pull_output
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Class_A_amplifier#Class_A
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Class_B_amplifier#Class_B_and_AB

Isn't it as simple as installing the ammeter parallel to the positive/red speaker wires of each channel?

The ammeter would actually go in series, so you'd hook one speaker wire to it's corresponding output on the amp, the other wire to one side of the ammeter, the other side of the ammeter to the other amp output for that speaker.

 

[Dee Jay]

So much for layman's terms.. I was hoping you'd use the water and faucet analogy or something ha ha! jk. Seriously, I think I'm getting the gist of what you wrote, hopefully sink in about 10 more years

I keep forgetting to go directly to wiki and youtube as soon as questions pops in my head...

[youtube]_sZJgQfO5wg[/youtube]

[youtube]RLUTQX2dIKI[/youtube]
NICE

this is my amp's schematic

 

[amberwolf]

So much for layman's terms.. I was hoping you'd use the water and faucet analogy or something ha ha! jk. Seriously, I think I'm getting the gist of what you wrote, hopefully sink in about 10 more years

Sorry. Umm...basically you could imagine a rod hooked to each side of the speaker cone, front and back. A push-pull amp would basically be able to both push from the back and pull from the front at the same time;

A single-ended amp can only have a string hooked to the back of the speaker, and it gets to pull on the string and then let go.

That's effectively how it works sound-wise. Electricity-wise, it just means that on a push-pull amp the voltage changes on both sides of the speaker, while a single-ended only changes on one side.

Based on that schematic, your amp appears designed to be either a stereo amp in single-ended mode per-speaker, or a monophonic amp push-pull (bridge) mode.

So in stereo mode you get one speaker from each +LS to each -LS. The power is divided between the two speakers.

In mono mode you get a single speaker from +LS to +LS, no -LS (ground) connection, "bridging" the amps, but it's essentially twice as powerful on that single speaker than either individual stereo speaker would have been.

Does that help?

 

[spinningmagnets]

If you want to buy a stereo amp, make sure to install the Fechter modification, the one that allows it to go to 11 instead of just 10...

edit: this is a joke from the comedy movie "Spinal Tap"