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HOW TO: Send Audio/Your Voice Over a Beam of Light

Step 2The Schematics

These schematics were taken straight from the website I cited.

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3 comments

Aug 1, 2009. 6:03 PMponsshin says:

Could you tell me the purpose of the transformer here? I mean, couldn't we just use the audio signal to go in the LED so that it blinks as signal amplitude goes up and down? Sorry, i'm a noob. My idea is to put a small microphone instead of a jack, that's why i'm asking.

May 25, 2011. 10:59 AMPyro Fiend says:

Transformers are very important here. Audio signals tend to be really low voltage (the audio output from my MP3 player doesn't even turn on a low voltage transistor). You really do need to step-up the signal in order to get it to work, also because the LED won't get a "clean" output without it.

Jan 21, 2010. 4:48 PMMagic Raisinets says:

The reason there is a transformer is because the voltage of the audio signal is not enough to really do anything at all, so the transformer is there to more or less boost the voltage of the audio.