High-end speakers have a lot of components and features that contribute to the quality of their sounds. However, these are the reasons they are often expensive. These speakers would still produce sounds if they only had magnets, wire and a source of power. When electricity is applied, the wire generates a magnetic field and the magnet causes the wire to vibrate. This vibration generates audio. Electronics enthusiasts and DIY fans can recreate this process with items found around the house, for under a buck.
Instructions
Make a Speaker with a Styrofoam Cup
1. Connect the wire to the steel brad. Wrap all but 4 inches of each end of the magnet wire near the head of the brass-coated steel brad. You will need the end wire to make a connection to your speaker.
2. Connect the magnet to the steel brad. Stick the magnet just under the head of the brad.
3. Connect the magnet to the Styrofoam cup. Turn the cup upside down. Push the brad through the center of the bottom of the cup.
4. Turn the cup over. Pull the tines of the brad apart and press them against the bottom and sides of the cup. This helps to keep the brad and magnet in place.
5. Clean the ends of the wire. Use the sandpaper to clean about ¾ inches of the end wires. This will remove the enamel coating so that an electrical connection is possible.
Make a Simple Speaker for Your Personal Player
6. Strip the plastic coating off both ends of the wire.
7. Wrap the wire around the magnet. Leave the stripped ends sticking out from the sides of the magnet.
8. Tape the magnet to the center of the paper plate.
9. Cut the wires extending from your headphones. Connect the ends of the headphone wires to the ends of the magnet wire.
10. Test your speaker. Plug the headphone wire jack into your personal player and check for audio.
Make a speaker with a plastic cup and Lego blocks
11. Cut two strips of paper. The paper should be 0.5 inches by 11 inches.
12. Wrap the sides of the magnet with one strip of paper. Place a small strip of tape on the paper to secure it.
13. Wrap the second piece of paper over the first strip of paper. Secure the second strip of paper with a small strip of tape.
14. Remove the magnet from the paper cylinder carefully. Glue the bottoms of the cylinders to the center of the business card.
15. Wait for the glue to dry. When it is completely dry place the magnet back into the paper cylinder.
16. Make a coil. Leaving a long strip of wire at the beginning, wrap about 60 loops of wire around the cylinder. Leave a long strip of wire at the end before you cut the wire. Use a strip of tape to stop the wire from unraveling.
17.Assemble the speaker frame. Leaving enough space in the center of the Lego board for the business card, place a Lego block at each corner. The frame should be approximately 1 inch high.
18. Cover the top of the magnet with hot glue. Avoid putting glue on the paper cylinder.
19. Take the card to the Lego board. Turn it over carefully so that the magnet falls to the top of the paper cylinder and onto the center of the Lego board. Wait for the glue on the magnet to dry so that it is securely attached to the board.
20. Lift the card and the coil off the magnet. Remove the inner paper cylinder from the coil. Leave the second paper cylinder in place, within the coil.
21. Place the card and coil on the magnet. The coil should not touch the magnet.
22. Connect the ends of the wire to each terminal of your plug. Connect one to the ground and the other to the left or right connector.
23. Find out create different speaker designs. Read "Designing, Building, and Testing Your Own Speaker System with Projects" by David B. Weems for more information (see Resources below).
Tags: paper cylinder, ends wire, Lego board, steel brad, strip paper