Make a Bespoke Bluetooth Speaker
Popular Mechanics US|July - August 2022
When it comes to bluetooth speakers, there are hundreds of options ranging in price from around $12 to more than $1,000.
By Bradley Ford
Make a Bespoke Bluetooth Speaker

PopMech Project

But why buy when you can build one that not only blends in with your décor but also will impress your friends? With a little imagination, just about anything can become a Bluetooth speaker. Lunchbox? Broken ukulele? Jewelry box? Busted antique radio? An old Tonka truck? How about a desk, or a bookcase? The answer to all is yes.

The parts for this 50-watt Bluetooth speaker project aren't expensive, and the process isn't very difficult. If you have basic supplies like speaker wire and solder, it'll cost just under $100. Small circuit boards for Bluetooth receivers with built-in amplifiers are relatively easy to find. The biggest challenge people usually encounter is cutting holes for speakers and then making them look presentable. Our project utilizes sound exciters, or transducers, which vibrate, causing anything they are attached to become a speaker. Basically, they're the back part of a speaker without the cone. These eliminate the need to cut holes for speakers and free you up to use a variety of things that can project your music or podcasts.

For our project, we chose a 1970s-era, plastic Samsonite suitcase. The broad, flat sides will vibrate easily and project sound well. We've also made Bluetooth speakers from old cigar boxes, antique box cameras, and desktop shelves. Also, placing exciters on the bottom of a desktop or on the back of a shelving unit is a simple way to blend the speaker into your décor.

Below we've included a list of parts, but once you know what you'll turn into a speaker, search for the best components for your project. The steps will be basically the same, except for the location and method of securing the components.

INSTRUCTIONS

Step 1 Assemble the Bluetooth receiver

Follow the instructions included with the receiver.

Step 2 Test the receiver

هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة July - August 2022 من Popular Mechanics US.

ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.

هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة July - August 2022 من Popular Mechanics US.

ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.

المزيد من القصص من POPULAR MECHANICS US مشاهدة الكل
ONE OF THE 'GREATEST THREATS' TO THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST ISN'T WHAT YOU THINK.
Popular Mechanics US

ONE OF THE 'GREATEST THREATS' TO THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST ISN'T WHAT YOU THINK.

EXPERTS ARE PREPARING THE REGION AGAINST THE THREAT OF DANGEROUS VOLCANIC MUDFLOWS, KNOWN AS LAHARS, WHICH COULD INUNDATE THE COMMUNITIES SURROUNDING MT. RAINIER IN AS LITTLE AS 30 MINUTES.

time-read
10+ mins  |
January - February 2025
THE WORLD'S TOUGHEST ROW
Popular Mechanics US

THE WORLD'S TOUGHEST ROW

They rowed 3,000 miles across the Atlantic, battling unpredictable weather, chaotic seas, and finicky equipment. But what they discovered gave them profound new insights into the power of the ocean.

time-read
10+ mins  |
January - February 2025
HOW TO DIY OFF-GRID SOLAR
Popular Mechanics US

HOW TO DIY OFF-GRID SOLAR

SPEND THE TIME UP FRONT AND PLAN IT CAREFULLY TO AVOID DISAPPOINTMENT

time-read
9 mins  |
January - February 2025
Are We on the Verge of an ARMS RACE in SPACE?
Popular Mechanics US

Are We on the Verge of an ARMS RACE in SPACE?

RUMORS OF A RUSSIAN SPACE NUKE, ALONG WITH OTHER SATELLITE-TARGETING WEAPONS, HAVE MADE GEOPOLITICAL TENSIONS EXTEND INTO ORBIT.

time-read
10+ mins  |
January - February 2025
Fresh Fingerprints on an Ancient Statue
Popular Mechanics US

Fresh Fingerprints on an Ancient Statue

A CLAY FIGURINE HAS SPENT MILLENNIA incomplete, waiting at the bottom of a lake for its long-dead craftsman to finish the Iron Age-era statuette.

time-read
2 mins  |
January - February 2025
Quantum Entanglement in Our Brains
Popular Mechanics US

Quantum Entanglement in Our Brains

IT HAS LONG BEEN ARGUED THAT THE human brain is similar to a computer. But in reality, that's selling the brain pretty short.

time-read
2 mins  |
January - February 2025
The Tools of Copernicus
Popular Mechanics US

The Tools of Copernicus

WAY BACK IN 1508, WITH ONLY LIMited tools at his disposal, Nicolaus Copernicus developed a celestial model of a heliocentric planetary system, which he described in hist landmark work De revolutionibus orbium coelestium. It was a complete overhaul of our conception of the universe-one that, unfortunately, earned him the ire of the Catholic church for decades after his death-and forever changed the way we look at the stars.

time-read
2 mins  |
January - February 2025
Building a Sixth-Generation Bomber Raptor
Popular Mechanics US

Building a Sixth-Generation Bomber Raptor

THE GLOBAL COMBAT AIR Programme (GCAP)-a project by the U.K., Italy, and Japan to develop a sixth-generation stealth fighter-has been busy at the drawing board reshaping its vision of the future of air warfare. And judging by the new concept model unveiled at this year's Farnborough air show, that future has big triangular wings.

time-read
3 mins  |
January - February 2025
The Electroweak Force of the Early Universe
Popular Mechanics US

The Electroweak Force of the Early Universe

TODAY, THE UNIVERSE AS WE KNOW IT IS governed by four fundamental forces: the strong nuclear force, the weak nuclear force, electromagnetism, and gravity.

time-read
1 min  |
January - February 2025
This Ancient Fossil With a Brain and Guts
Popular Mechanics US

This Ancient Fossil With a Brain and Guts

WE KNOW WHAT FOSSILS LOOK like. For example, typical dinosaur fossils are bones turned to stone and preserved from the passage of time, located, if we're particularly lucky, in large collections that can be reassembled to represent the beast they used to prop up in their entirety.

time-read
1 min  |
January - February 2025