Ghettoblaster MP3 player installation

This shows the conversion or more of an installation of a 4 gig Creative Zen MP3 personal media player into a vintage National Panasonic RX-5030 boombox ghettoblaster.

I've featured the finished product on my home website Furocious Studios

Thanks to those users who have gone before me unknownuser2007 and HappyDad their instructables were key in pointing me in the right direction.

The inspiration for my project actually came from the guy who installed a 7 inch Tablet PC into a Hitachi ghettoblaster to achieve a Boombox PC. Gutterslide And now with the advent of the iPod Touch and several knockoff versions of the MP3 player...hmmm consider the possibilities!

WARNING!!!!
Don't electrocute yourself! If you don't know anything about electricity then Stay Away! The warning on the cover of appliances about electrocution is there for a reason. You can be shocked and even killed x_X I haven't been shocked on this project but I don't go poking around where I shouldn't be. If you are getting jolts or blowing fuses that is a sure sign that you have no business messing with electronics. Consider yourself lucky you could be dead.

Step 1 Choosing Components

Make sure you carefully plan out your modifications and hopefully have some back up plans in case things don't work out. Leave some room for experimentation. If you can find some junk to play around with before you move on to the good stuff that is preferable. I wasn't about to go installing a $300 iPod before I tried this out with the cheaper stuff on my first attempt. The 1st MP3 player I used cost me $11. Use cheaper components to test your connections. Make sure you have a Multimeter and know how to use it!

Selecting a Boombox

I found my boombox on ebay. There you have a bit of a selection. I also kept my eye open for 2nd hand shops, flea markets and yard sales.

1. I was looking for a boombox that had Aux Inputs just in case modifying
the tape deck didn't work out.

2. I payed particular attention to the ends and face of the box to make sure
there would be room to add the additional jacks and ports for my mods.

3. I wanted a boombox that could put out some decent volume. EQ wasn't as
necessary because most MP3 players have presets.

4. I was looking for a King of Boomboxes or at least the classic look.

5. Lots of chrome and lots of buttons and lots of features!!!

6. I was looking for a box with VU meters but those can be added later so
that wasn't as important.

Selecting an MP3 player

I looked for deals online. I ended up with a refurbished player for a fraction of the price for one brand new.

1. I had to keep in mind that I was going to install the MP3 player in the Cassette Deck
and make it appear as if it were a cassette in the window. So I had to choose an MP3
player that had a landscape orientation.

2. Most of the functions needed to be on the front of the MP3 player or I was going to have
wire displaced buttons to somewhere on the front of the boombox. The more buttons
to move then the more chances I would singe the circuits on the MP3 player (MP3
players have a lot of micro circuitry that is tricky to solder with clumsy fingers like mine).

Finding the bits

I made several trips to Radio Shack and ordered some buttons and things at sparkfun.com Look around online there are lots of places to buy components. Best of all many of the components I scavenged from other electronics I had previously. I'm a pack rat so I managed to save a lot of money on parts.

Comments

[dll932]

I once had a large, advanced boombox...whose cassette deck and amp died. The speakers and power supply and antenna were still in good shape. I also had a car cassette receiver I didn't need. I hacksawed/Dremeled the top plate to fit the deck knobs and faceplate, wired it up to the power supply and hooked up the antenna to the antenna jack. Finally, I wired up the output to the speakers. Worked great for several years (of course, the P/S has to be adequate and the speakers of matching impedance). I was gonna paint it camo and letter FrankenBlaster on it but never got "aroundtuit."

[Kepster]

Car Stereos add a whole new realm of possibilities. My latest idea is to make a boombox (custom portable cabinet) from a complete car stereo system. There are many luxurious features on car stereos that most home systems don't have.

Let me know if you post some pictures of the FrankenBlaster, it would be interesting to see!

[dll932]

Sorry, it's long gone. Car stereos have better sensitivity/selectivity than many stationary audio stuff-by necessity.

[cowscankill]

I have been trying all day to attach an aux cable to the cassette tape output. There is a red, white, and black wire on both the cassette and aux wires. I can already tell that black is ground, but when I cut the connection for the black only, sound keeps playing?
I am pretty sure I need to hook a potentiometer to these wires somehow because my mp3 player puts out too strong of signal. The problem is that I have no clue what to attach the potentiometer to? Can anyone help me?

[cowscankill]

Ah, well I found out the cassette tape output is similar to a microphone... sound came out the speakers just by tapping the wire. Anyone wanna recommend a new place to attach the aux input?

[Kepster]

I don't know the specifics of the equipment you are trying to work with but remember that you are working with Stereo sound as well. You have Left (white) and Right (red) channels so you have to decide how you want to deal with 2 outputs not just one. You may need 2 potentiometers. Personally I haven't any luck using a pot. to reduce the audio signal.

In general when plugging in external devices to a sound system you usually have to set the volume on the actual device at 50% or to whatever level it takes to stop the distortion.

[cowscankill]

I finally figured it out haha... I hooked a resistor to each channel and attached them directly to the amplifying IC. There were two, so I had to find out which one it was. It works great now, audible up to 500 feet!

[zack247]

to get that mp3 player to run off of 5v a idea i have would be to desolder the battery cell from the control circuits, then solder the 5v to the + and - on the battery's control board. it sould work from there, but i cant say im positive it will since i havent tried before.

nice project! who doesnt like the retro look?

[Kepster]

Just make sure you use a voltage regulator so you don't get a huge power surge in your MP3 Player.

[begnbezzy]

LOVE IT! you have a manual or schematics for the Magnovaox? can you send to me @ [e-mail].

[Kepster]

Sorry I couldn't find a service manual for this model of Magnavox anywhere. I did map out the main circuit board but it is hardly usable by anyone else. The best I can do is refer you to the diagram of the Function Switch in the comments below.

[atombomb1945]

Where did you find the schematics for this Boom-box? I found one in a thrift store that is almost the same model. The major difference is that this one did not have the line in jacks. I have been looking for a way to add in a line for the same type of mod. Ironically, I found the box, then found this instructable.

[Kepster]

I found the boombox schematics for the Panasonic on ebay. That was actually easy to find. But I still haven't found schems for the Magnavox. And to date I still haven't finished the Magnavox. I'm still working out the hummm. Ok...so you don't have a line in. My suggestion is that you find the left and right channels from the radio circuit which can be found at selector switch. Add a switch between the radio and your new MP3 player connected to the left and right channels.

[xanxor]

touch the antenna with your hand...
So wierd... i seriously just figured this out on my D8443. and now i find this even though I commented a few weeks ago... And by the way. Touching a D8443 is murder. You really are a murderer

[Kepster]

You are absolutely correct! The D8443 is an awesome box! It is the ultimate for modification. I'm seriously thinking iPod Touch for its majesty. The LEDs are a Must for an add on. I don't know how I ever got along without that feature, it's just too cool.

[xanxor]

MURDERER!!!!

[Kepster]

Lol! IT'S ALIVE IT'S ALIVE, totally unnatural but it's alive. We could call these zombie boxes. Thanks for the feedback...you have no idea what I have buried at my house ^_^

ooo I'm a cannibal too.

[icanhaszombie]

 What if you retained the open/close functionality of the tape door and simply used a cabled connector on the inside? That way you could simply open the door and take the player out to access the buttons, and slide it back in and close the door. If theft is an issue a simple tab-style lock could be installed to keep the door closed unless you want it open

[Kepster]

I'm sure you might be able to covert the cassette deck into a dock with a smaller MP3 but the Zen is too large and the ports are on several sides.  You would have to custom an additional port for the MP3 controls.

My most recent thoughts are to forget about replacing the cassette deck and just mount a simple MP3 player on the top or side of the boombox.

[Spook1991]

Hi...I`m new to this,and i wanted to do this project for long time...I`m wondering,if you connect mp3/mp4 player in the way you said,does the boom box need a battery,or some power source?Please,i really need to know...

[Kepster]

Your boom box would be powered the way it normally is from a power outlet or by battery.

The mp3 is powered by it's own built-in rechargeable battery.

[samuraiclinton]

I better idea would be to make a docking station for the Zen instead of integrate it with warranty-voiding modification.

[Kepster]

The reason I decided against any type of docking station is because if you happen to be in the wrong company for less than even a minute your little mp3 player is gone for good...victim to a five finger discount and a quick slip into a pocket.  A permanent solution is by far the best.

[cynical_chemical]

any ideas of how to mod a dual cassette for this? and still be able to use one

[Kepster]

You could use both tape players if you install a smaller mp3 player somewhere else on the face of the boombox.  If you can figure out how to use the radio circuit (running off the main function selector switch) for your mp3 player so that you install an additional switch between the radio and the mp3 player, then you could leave the tape circuit untouched.

[jerkey]

I believe the problem you are experiencing with the SD card slot is - you can't extend those wires! There is high-speed data going back and forth across them, and any wire you add will scramble that communication with the Zen, and it won't work. Experiment and try shortening the wires, or see if it still works if you put it back the way it was. If it doesn't, maybe it got killed. If it does work, it's probably the wire length - maybe you could get away with a couple of inches?

[Kepster]

Yay! Someone with an SD card slot answer! I don't know of anyone who has tried to do this type of mod with the SD card. The idea is to use SD card kind of like old school cassette tapes only you can have a whole huge collection instead of 40 mins of music. The only way to find out what will actually work is experiment I guess. I think maybe I'll try to modify an SD card reader or something along those lines. Maybe experiment with different extension cables.

[NatureBoom21]

Yay! I found more peoples with the same mp3 player as me!!!

[DIY Dave]

How many volts is the motor you disconected? If it is a 5 volt motor you could run the wires from it to charge your Mp3 player.

[Kepster]

You have to be careful...even if it is a 5 volt motor watch out for power spikes. If you do something like that make sure you use a voltage regulator.

[sk8erdude]

and maybe a capacitor on each side of the regulator to filter power spikes

[Kepster]

I'm sure if that will work. It is very tricky to get charging to work. It's even trickier to get it to charge and play at the same time with out noise interference. I've been considering removing the battery all together and adding a 3.5 v voltage regulator and just using power from the box. 3.5 volts is the current I get from the battery.

[DIY Dave]

I just realized you mentioned that.

[MNEman13]

Hey, newbie modder here. I would love to spend a few days out of my summer figuring out how to mod my old boombox like you did, though I don't know much about electrical circuits. Any advice on where to begin learning? Is there any book or website you would recommend?

[abadfart]

read up on soldering and use your imagination.

[Kepster]

I think Instructables is the right place to learn what you need. There are several people who have attempted similar mods with varied results. If you get stuck along the way you can always use the Ask A Question feature and someone will be along to help you before too long.

Make sure you plan things out. Know what options you want or need to include. Be ready change things. Test your connections before you "finalize" anything. In my Step 1 I share some advice from my experience on how to go about planning for the project.

Make sure you refer to unknownuser2007 who has collected quite a bit of info on the subject as well. http://www.instructables.com/id/PLAY-AND-RECHARGE-IPOD-USING-OLD-BOOMBOX---Hints-a/

You can get electronic components from http://www.sparkfun.com or better yet you can scavenge parts from items you already have. If you already have what you need lying around it shouldn't cost too much. If you have to buy a boombox or mp3 player you can get these for a lower cost (even brand new stuff) on a place like ebay. If you are in it for the fun of making it yourself and you aren't too worried about cost then the sky's the limit. You will have a dream box before you know it.

If you just want a kickin' boombox that will play MP3s then I suggest you just buy one already made. There are a couple of boxes out there that you can slip in an SD card or thumb drive. Back in the day we had to juggle cassette tapes and CDs. Now you can just slip in a Flash Drive and play forever. It took a while but I found a retro box from Lasonic http://www.lasonic.com It is made for iPod but the key is that it has an SD and USB slot.

The best of luck to you! Hope you have fun!!!

[strods]

Brilliant... far better than just adding an MP3 plug in that I see so many of. I love the detail of keeping a clean appearance and even the extra thought of the desktop shot of a tape to fool the eye... I have half a mind to acquire ghettoblaster so I can do this myself. I have a Drama group I direct and this would be handy but with a bit of style.

[HeWantsRevenge]

love how in depth it was...possible additional instructions using the clean line to the tape head would be helpful for those without AUX inputs please T_T haha

[Kepster]

Hehe, it's a secret. Actually this guy's got the best answer I've found in his Instructable about making a dock on his Radio Alarm Clock http://www.instructables.com/id/Mp3-Player-Dock-SpeakersChargeralarm-clock/

With a handy dandy multimeter or a circuit tester you should be able to figure out which lines belong to the radio and the tape player. You just test which lines close when you flip the switch back and forth.

Below is the function switch I mapped out for a Magnavox D8443.

After modifying a couple different boomboxes I'm thinking the best thing you can do is leave the tape circuits alone and use it as an "Off Position." Instead add a switch that bypasses the radio. Then you end up with a switch between your radio and mp3 player.

[team_nes_1986]

One thing coming from the mouth of a total 80's tech freak: SWEET! I'd try this out, but I have neither a ghetto-blaster nor a good MP3 player to do so. Oh well. I can live without them. But I do want to get an iPod Touch one of these days.