DIY Bluetooth Satellite Speaker System W/ Subwoofer

In this Instructable I'm going to show you how I created a Bluetooth satellite speaker system using some speaker kits, Baltic birch and a Bluetooth amplifier board.

So the first thing I looked at was the size of my space and in this instance I'm doing this for my shop which is about 200 square feet or 18 1/2 square meters.

I wanted to have two bookshelf style speakers hanging from the ceiling and a modest size subwoofer that would rest on the floor. Powered by an amplifiere for the top speakers and the subwoofer.

This set-up is very effective and is mirrored in many computer set-up systems and music listening environments.

Step 1: Cutting the Wood

The first thing I want to do is build the upper speakers.

So to make the speakers I started with cutting up some 1/2 inch plywood, and the kit tells you the suggested size of the speakers for the best sound, so I followed those specifications to make the box.

I wanted really clean edges so I went with mitered corners. Now the kit's instructions tells you exactly where you should make holes, how big etc... so I simply followed those.

I didn't have a bit that was exactly the right size, so I went for a slightly smaller size and then I used a rasp to get the holes to the right dimensions so the speakers would fit in perfectly.

Now I'm using a kit for this project, however you could definitely take apart some old speakers and build a new case for them and re-purpose old equipment.

Step 2: Rabbets

To fit the bottom and the top in I made some rabbets on the router table.

Then it was simply a matter of gluing the pieces together and using corner clamps is really helpful when you want to make sure everything is square.

I also added a block in the corners which I glued and stapled in for additional stability.

Now the boxes are glued together, except from the back which is open, and I'm just checking to make sure the speaker parts fit in the holes.

I'm connecting the speaker parts together and here I'm simply following the instructions.

The back side has a hole for a piece that the wires to go into, so putting that in. And simply drilling holes around on that piece so I can later connect the box together.

Step 3: Finish

Now I want to make a sealed speaker box, so I decided to put some black caulk in the corners on the inside.

And then I'm sanding the boxes smooth.

So in terms of finish, I wanted these to look really classic and sleek so I decided to go with an ebony dye. Here you can see that I'm first raising the grain and sanding it down before applying the dye. I really like dye, it doesn't smell like stain, dries really quickly, comes out great.

For a top coat, I went with shellac. Once everything was dry I put in the electronics and connected everything.

I also put down some hot glue to secure the sound proofing filler. And then I closed the box, and repeated with the second one.

Step 4: Hanging

To install the speakers, I want to hang them off the beams, so I've got two metal L-brackets here, so just making some smaller holes here. And then spray painting the metal with a darker color.

Then I installed the brackets to the beams, at an angle, and then secured the speakers on the brackets.

Step 5: Subwoofer Build

For the subwoofer I utilized another speaker kit and omitted the tweeters and put both woofers in the same box. These 6/12 woofer is pretty small but effective for this small space. I roughly laid out where the woofers would go on a piece of wood and determined the overall size from there.

I created a simple box for this job, again using baltic birch plywood and I cut out circles to hold the speakers I glued and screwed the side pieces in and simply I screwed down the top to close the box.

The base box will be sitting on the floor, so I wanted to make some feet for the box. So here I'm simply gluing together some pieces of plywood the I connected on the bottom.

Step 6: Subwoofer Finish

Then a little sanding to get all the edges nice and smooth.

And then I dyed this box as well. Once that dried, I put in the two speakers and I hot glued in the air holes. Then connecting the electronics, and I put in the wire input unit on the back. Then I put in some of the sound proofing filler and closed the box up. To cover the screw holes I put in some more black caulk.

Step 7: Amplifier Control Box

So I built a fourth smaller box out of 1/4 inch Baltic birch plywood to house the amplifiers.

Just gluing it together here. It has sections drilled and chiseled out to fit the amplifier perfectly. I cut little pieces for feet for this box as well and glued and clamped them down.

Then I dyed the whole package the same black ebony.

So here we have the box, ready to be assembled. As you can see it has several holes drilled out already to fit the electronics.

Step 8: Inside the Control Box

Now let me show what will fit inside this box:

The 12 volt power comes and first I have a booster that will boost the power to 20 volts. Right before that though, I have a simple switch connected with a 820 ohm resistor to a red light, which connects to the positive side of the booster. Off the booster the splits in two and goes into two amplifiers, one is a bluetooth amplifier which connects to the satellite speakers, and the other is a low pass subwoofer amplifier which connects to the subwoofer. Both the speakers and the amplifiers are 8 ohms.

Step 9: Adding the Electronics

First of all I've drilled six holes on the side where the speaker wires will go in. So I'm doing a little DIY connection here using a bolt, and several nuts, two on the inside and two on the outside of the box. So securing those in place. And to make sure I don't get confused, I'm marking out which one will be positive with a red a marker.

Next I'm securing the subwoofer amplifier in the middle and I have holes drilled out for the knobs there. Putting in the switch and the light so that I can turn the whole system on and off, so securing that with some hot glue. Then I'm putting in the power cord in the back, and securing the booster in place. I am powering both systems with 12 volt DC, however both systems perform better around 20 volts, so I added a voltage booster to bring the power up from 12 to 20, so connecting the power to the booster. Then securing the bluetooth amp with some hot glue, and then doing a little soldering to connect the wires together.

Step 10: Connecting the Electronics

The whole system will be controlled by bluetooth so that amplifier needed to be the primary source. That's why I needed to piggy back the signal onto the other subwoofer amplifier.

So checking if the switch and the light is working.

OK, and now connecting the wires here to the speaker nuts and then connecting those wires to the amplifiers.

And then connecting speaker wires on the other side and tightening the nuts.

I also turned some knobs on the lathe out of walnut for the subwoofer knobs.

Step 11: Conclusion - Watch the Video

The whole system sounds great, and this is a very doable project that you can do yourself and save a lot of money. For a much better perspective, make sure to check out the video!