Introduction: My BoomBox
Hello everyone
Have you ever encountered a situation where you went with friends to the beach at night or maybe some friend's apartment and he had no stereo system?
It happened to me, and it sucks!
So , i decided to build one !
although it weights 6.5 Kilo , You Grab it with both your hands , put the music at Max and have the best time !
Enjoy!
Step 1: Shopping List
Materials :
1X1 meter of Plexiglas , preferable Transparent
screws & nuts - a lot!
12V 7 amp Batteries , preferred 2 for longer operation
Lepai Amp from eBay
12V Charger for the Battery -eBay
Speakers - i got the Pioneer 4.5" as Woofer / Mid-range and a pair of Teac t20 Tweeters
Volt-meter - ( not shown yet , but will be attached later )
Wiring for speakers
Iphone Dock
Aluminum Angles - comes in 3 Meter length - - for connecting the Plexiglas sides to each other
Tools :
Driller and electric screwdriver
Jigsaw - most important instrument - make sure you cut the Plexiglas with a refined saw (designated for steel)
Marker
Leveler
Calipers
A pair of clamps
Drill bits - different sizes
Caliber
Tin snips + a pair of working gloves so you wont cut yourself
Soldering iron - for the wiring
tin
Hot Glue
Time ,Patience , and lots and lots of Coffee !!
Step 2: Cut the Plxiglas
Start by planning the general size of your future to be Boombox.
Measure the inner diameter of your speakers , and accordingly mark it with the Caliber or some other ruler on the Plexiglas
Prepare the driller and and the jigsaw ,and off we go our way
Step 3: Cutting the Aluminum Angles
cut the aluminum with Tin snips .
* please be cautious
Step 4: Drill Holes in the Aluminum and Plexiglas
Make sure you grab the Aluminum angles to some tight ground , only then Drill !
Use a special drill bit for metal, that way the hole will be accurate and round , and probably will take less time to drill.
Step 5:
after i finished the drilling , i took the Aluminum angles and attached them to the Plexiglas with bolts and nuts
Step 6: Moved Forward
Continue sawing slowly , be careful not to brake the Plexiglas ,it`s a very delicate material and it might crack easily .
Step 7: Strengthen the Boombox by Adding an Additional Middle Rib
Step 8: Prepare the Bottom .
since i plan to put two 12V batteries at the bottom , and they are heavy .we need to create a strong durable Plexiglas bottom.
I took two Plexiglas pieces , attached them to each other , drilled holes for the stand , and attached them to the sides with the Aluminum profiles
Step 9: Create an Upper Case Door , With Hinges
On top of the upper case i plan to put the Lepai amp and some Docking station for the iPhone
Step 10: Upper Look
I just put inside the Batteries in order to see if they sit properly
Step 11: Last Steps of Drilling
before you take the Nylon off , it would be wise ( not like i did ) to finish with the Drilling . god forbids i`ll scratch it ;)
Step 12: Pealing Off the Protective Nylon of the Plexiglas
I pealed off the protecting nylon layer of the Plexiglas .
I had to unscrew all the bolts and nuts in order to get rid of the excess layers of nylon.
Step 13: Still Pealing Off
Step 14: Assembling All the Pieces Back Together
Without the Nylon
Step 15: Mounting the Speakers
Step 16: Almost Ready ...
all i need is to wire the speakers and tweeters do some good soldering
Step 17: Hot Glue on the Tweeters
This thing sticks like charm!
At some point i decided to replace to old tweeters with a set of Teac T20 .
It was quite tricky the issue of releasing the grip of the Hot Glue from the Tweeters and the Plexiglas.
after Gooooogling for a while i found a quick Cool way to remove the Glue
Alcohol !
You just put tiny tiny tiny little drop on the Glue and in seconds it releases it`s grip , like taking candy from a baby :)
Step 18: Soldering Ends to Wires and Connecting the Batteries in Parallel
Make sure that you did some good Soldering in here, we don`t want it to disconnect and perhaps make us some Short circuit .
I connected the batteries in Parallel in order to give me higher Amps . Total of 14 Amps
Still i will have 12 Volt direct and stable current
Step 19: Inside Look
Step 20: Charging Moment
After charging it for a few hours ,the batteries gave me a reading of 13.2 Watts and 14 Amps
After 8 hours of playing the Boombox i checked the Voltage with the Volt-Meter and the reading was 12.89 !!
Amazing!
83 Comments
8 years ago on Step 21
Looks awesome!
8 years ago on Introduction
This is pure sexy. I love how it's acrylic and you can see all the components
Reply 8 years ago on Introduction
Thanks!
loved your work - Inventor-Deadmau5 Head
8 years ago on Introduction
hi thanks foe sharing your ideas with us
8 years ago on Introduction
That looks like my pc-case (sharkoon acryl-showcase). Looks rearly cool, i like it.
Reply 8 years ago on Introduction
Thanks!
it is actually the size of a Desktop computer ...
I`m thinking about mounting him a pair of wheels so i can roll it over from place to place instead of lifting it ;)
Reply 8 years ago on Introduction
God ideal :-)
8 years ago on Introduction
If this isn't sweet...I don't know what is! I love to see electronics made with Plexiglass. Wish I had the tools, time and patience.
Reply 8 years ago on Introduction
Thanks!
appreciate it ;)
Go for it , don`t waste time , invest in your self and start expressing your thoughts
8 years ago on Introduction
Very cool!
Very nice looking enclosure too!
Takes me back to my post high-school days when a friend and I used to make and sell sub-woofers, mostly for cars!
3 years ago
Here is one more
6 years ago on Introduction
Nice build!!!
I love that you can see the internals
but to make it a bit more portable you should have used a like 2 of those in parallel i think you need 12v? than that would be an better option? Those car acid batteries are really heavy! but you choice =P Still a nice build!
7 years ago on Introduction
What is the bass like with this? By watching the video the bass almost sounds non-existent. But i assume that's just due to sound quality.
Reply 7 years ago on Introduction
your right!
the bass is actually very surprising . it is very rich and soft and not cold and hard.
it is all due to the Reflex port location and the middle partition , it gives the woofers a better sound
Reply 7 years ago on Introduction
did you ever play music before you cut the reflex port?
Reply 7 years ago on Introduction
Yep
and the sound was rubbish/
well at least the BASS was awful .
you must let the Membranes " Breath " they are moving in and out , and the whole concept of Acoustics is give the sound waves the ability to move freely in the box
either way , the sound is much better with a Reflex port \
Reply 7 years ago on Introduction
I've made an ammo box speaker (my profile picture) but i haven't put a reflex port on it. My problem is knowing where to put it, any ideas? i was thinking on the side of the box where the lid catch is but i don't know. There is a whole science of reflex ports, so any help would be appreciated!
Reply 7 years ago on Introduction
Well you are right about the science issue of those reflex ports
to get the best sound we need to have a professional lab , with a few guys who know a thing or two about acoustics
first i have seen already your boombox and it`s awesome!
second , i would have make a small 3x3 reflex port between the speakers ( top side )
or a better way - on the internal side ( where the air freshener is )
cut a small 3x3 hole( even a 4x4 ) , put a round tube and get it to come all the way over the middle ( above the battery )
i read an article about tubing inside a woofer box and it`s very complex , but it`s better then just making a hole.
attached is picture
Reply 7 years ago on Introduction
I'm just a bit hesitant of cutting a hole as once it is cut then i can't go back. I have just ordered 2 more ammo boxes so maybe i'll transfer the guts into that one and put a port on it. I'll let you know how things turn out!
7 years ago on Introduction
the pictures