AC Delco Model 16131355 This post details the repair of a early 1991 AC Delco stereo. AC Delco made many variants of this stereo for both Chevrolet and GM cars, trucks, and vans from the early 80’s to the mid-90’s. While many of the stereos have more or less features (cassette players, radio presets, etc), the amplifier section of the radio is fairly standard and unchanged. Internal Pinout and Schematic ...
This is a great bluetooth speaker - loud, good sound quality, waterproof, and durable. Yet sometimes it has bluetooth problems, playback problems, and doesn’t work when in motion (like in a backpack). I opened this up to look for issues. I found none. Note that you are removing glued pieces and may lose some waterproofing. Mine still seems very water resistant, but I wouldn’t dunk it in a lake. ...
This was for a pair of outdoor speakers in front of KMNR, my college radio station. KMNR was receiving complaints for having the music too loud at night. An Arduino checks clock and adjusts volume using digital potentiometers This post is a walkthrough of the design and implementation. Design I interfaced an Arduino with a RTC (real time clock) to get the time. The RTC is Maxim’s DS1307 and it should last 17 years on it’s backup battery. It communicates over I2C and you can find already written code here. ...
In the winter of 2013, LED strip lighting hit its tipping point - a big rise in popularity. A year beforehand, in 2012, I had an idea to build a controller for LED strip lighting. A sound reactive LED controller to make the lights get brighter on the bass notes. Biggest problem - I didn’t know how to make one. I finally started getting comfortable with electronics in 2014. ...
After half a semester of college, I learned that my 8″, 40W woofer wasn’t enough. I wanted something bigger, but didn’t want to have to upgrade again in the future. So I decided on something reasonable for any 10’x15′ dorm room - two 15″ subwoofers powered by a 1000W car amp. My goals: keep it under $400, design it so one of the two subs can be placed in a car and be powered from a 12V source (like a car battery), and build them to be as durable as possible. ...
Logitech has a large presence in 2.1 systems, where price and appearance dominate. This sub is designed to trick you, there’s more to it than what meets the eye. I picked up a used Logitech Z340 2.1, sans the 2. I got a woofer with no satellites or volume control. notice in the corner - Mr. Happy Hammer 🙂 8″ subwoofer (4″ speaker + cardboard) Since I don’t have the satellites, this is of no value to me. And the speaker isn’t of much value either, so I want the amplifier out of this. ...
Running wire, head unit adapters, fuses, and less trunk space all suck. Let’s not do that. Modular setups seem more promising. A few months ago, I assembled a $6 tube subwoofer that could be used in a house or in a car. I only recently set up my car for this sub. It took an hour. No new head unit required. There’s only one real compromise to this, only the audio coming from the auxiliary port is sent to the sub. That’s how I listen to music 95% of the time, so no subwoofer with the CD player or radio is fine for me. I tapped into the auxiliary output right next to the cigarette lighter, so I ran power from there. The cigarette lighter is only on when the car is on, so I don’t have to worry about draining the battery when the car is off. There are no power supply issues, as the cigarette lighter supplies 20A, while the sub only draws 4A max. ...
I have a thing for subwoofers, convenience, and low cost. Arguing over DVCs in $300 subs isn’t my thing. This 8-inch tube subwoofer was $1 a garage sale. Tube subs are popular for their size and portability, you can set it in a car trunk or behind a truck seat with no thought or effort. The enclosure is plastic so they are lightweight. To reclaim trunk space, pull it out. ...
Kicker’s Free Airs left a legacy in the market. They have almost no enclosure requirements and are often drop-in upgrades. I picked up two used 6.5″ Kicker Free Air subwoofers. “Free Air” is a misnomer, they still need an enclosure. However the enclosure space can be relatively large. The trunk of your car could be considered an enclosure, as long as the space in front of these speaker is sealed off from the space behind these speakers. I don’t plan to put these in a car, they are going to be for a home sound system. I like the early 2000’s sub look that these Kickers have: thickly stitched cones, paint chipped rusting frame, rotting seal, and corroded leads. At one point they were very nice, now they are fair. I can deal with fair speakers if they are free. ...