Simple iPod Music Playing Box - Dancing LEDs

This is a pretty simple dancing light tutorial.
Here's a video of it in action...

What you'll need:
TIP31 Transistor (MUST HAVE (for dancing lights anyway)) - $1 at Radio Shack
3.5 Jack (aka any old headphones) - Find some under the bed
Singing Card OR small speaker - Have a birthday and get a singing card
2 Super Bright LEDs (You can add more, just add more voltage) - I pulled mine out of a book reading light
9v Battery

What is optional:
Electrical or Masking tape
Random switches
Knife or other sharp cutting device
Thin see-through plastic
Lighter
Wire strippers

Step 1 Prepare Wiring

Pull out the speaker from the singing car and take the circuit board off. You will be left with just the speaker and 2 wires coming off of it (usually white)

Most headphone interior wiring is laced with acrylic paint (which gives it the color) 
This paint IS NOT conductive, so in order to use headphone wires, you MUST burn off the paint,
The easiest way it to simply use a lighter and light it on fire, blow it out once it has burned, and light it again until the copper wiring turns a faint orange meaning all the paint is gone.
Here is a video demonstration..

Comments

[zazenergy]

Cool!

[TheTechHelpDude]

Thanks :D