Beat Box

This beat box is a box, fitted with multiple LED lights that turn on when the sound recieved by the sensor surpasses a certain threshold.

Step 1: Requirements

Supplies needed:

-1 Arduino Uno

-A breadboard

-Male/Male jumpers

-Male/Female jumpers

-An Arduino sound sensor (four pins)

-As many LED lights as you want

-Resistors (same amount as LED's you use) -

-10 x 25 cardboard box -Worbla -Paint

Step 2: Connecting the Arduino, Breadboard and Sound Sensor

The sound sensor has four pins: The AO, the GND, the VCC (aka the +) and the DO. You have to connect the pins with the Arduino in the following way:

AO = AO GND = GND VCC (+) = 5V DO = Digital Pin 2

You can also look at the table for reference.

The Arduino, sound sensor and the breadboard are connected with each other as seen in the reference picture. In the picture there's only one LED connected however, you can always connect more if you want to. Of course you have to make sure every LED has their own resistor. The resistors have to be connected to just one jumper that's connected to the GND of the Arduino.
So the order from the LED to Arduino is: Digital pin on Arduino, LED light -, LED light +, resistor, GND on Arduino.

Step 3: Soldering and Wiring

After making sure everything worked correctly, I soldered everything and resized the breadboard to make sure it fits in your box.

Please be kind to the poor soldering job, I'm just a stress-filled student with no technical comprehension whatsoever after all.

Step 4: Coding the Project

The file "soundsensor.ino" contains the code that I have used for my project. The sound sensor may need some tweaking of the sensitivity. I did this by going to the serial monitor (top right in Arduino software) and looking at the "analog" value. If it's somewhere around 20, you put the "int_threshold" in the code at 21 or something close. You can also play around with the sensitivity of the sound sensor itself by turning the little knob on top of the blue rectangle.

Step 5: Building the Housing

For the housing of the project, I used a simple cardboard box to begin with. I then covered it with Worbla, a certain type of thermoplastic, for durability. I also made some details on the casing using Worbla, and made the "lock" out of EVA foam. While the Worbla was still moldable, I made five holes on top of the box for the LED's to go trough, and a hole in the back for any wiring. Make sure the holes are big enough!

I didn't prime the Worbla before painting on purpose, as I knew I wanted to mimic a rough, leather-like texture. After letting the Worbla cool down, I painted the box completely black. Then I dabbed on various colors in layers to avoid any area turning a fake, same color.

And then you just put all of your hardware into the box! I used the back hole for the wire to my power source and my sound sensor, so I can put its microphone wherever I want. However, I didn't make anything to make the hardware fit easier into the box. I'd probably have done that if I had just a bit more time.

Now all you have to do is choose your favourite music!