Lighted Speaker Enclosure Continued

Hello and welcome to part 2 of this instructable, this part will deal with the LED installation and wiring of the enclosure.

If you missed the first part then here is the link to it, there is also a link to a video of it.

Instructable: https://www.instructables.com/id/Awsome-Lighted-Speaker-Enclosure/

Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l419QejRLJs

For a large project like this you want to run the LEDs in series meaning the negative lead on the LED connects to the Positive lead on the next LED and so forth, position the LEDs into the holes and then glue them into place with hot glue, hot glue is great because it is easy to use and it dries quickly, it also won't damage the LED. Once your done gluing you want to start connecting the LEDs with a small gauge wire (if the leads don't reach) its easiest to bend the leads flat then stick the wire segment under them then solder together. You want the positive and negative to end close together and then for running the sides you will need to figure out how it should be wired because it will vary just be sure they're all in series, the same goes for the front

With the Sony speakers I had from the first part I was able to put LEDs inside the speaker which really adds to it, here is how it was done.

I started by removing the cover and determining where an LED could fit then I drilled a hole in the Plastic part of the frame NOT THE MESH and pulled the LED leads through so they pointed at the mesh of the speaker, then I took a little piece of foil and cut it into a triangle and slid it under the LED then you take your glue gun and squirt glue into the hole for the LED so a litte gets on the foil to hold it in place then glue around the top of the LED to hold it in place firmly. Finally you need to run thin wires around the out side of the speaker cover keeping the LEDs in series. (This is the reason you only put 74 holes in the box 8 LEDs go into each speaker to light it generously, if your not putting any LEDs into the speakers then simply put the rest into the box totalling 85~90 LEDs or If you can put LEDs into more of your speakers then just be sure they total 85~90 LEDs. Also be sure to cover any exposed connections with hot glue on the speaker cover so they won't short with the speaker frame, then either run the wires out a hole in the speaker frame (if there is one) or drill a hole in the plastic speaker covering, NOT THE SPEAKER ITSELF.

First off you will need a disposable camera to power the LEDs, a disposable camera is the only cheap thing that can produce 300 volts to run all the LEDs, you need this many because each LED draws 3 volts and when in series one LED needs 3 volts, 2 need 6 volts, 3 need 9 volts, and so on. So on your camera carefully remove the housing using a small object to push in the locks on the sides(DO NOT REMOVE THE CAMERA CIRCUIT FROM THE INTERIOR ASSEMBLY LIKE SHOW UNLESS YOU CAN MAKE THE FLASH TRIGGER WITHOUT THE INTERIOR ASSEMBLY) then charge the camera and remove the battery, then rotate the small sprocket just above the film window and push the shutter button, the flash should now go off, after that take a rubber handled screwdriver and short the capacitor leads becareful it will spark. Then solder on 2 wires in thelocations shown in the photo and your power supply is done, just be sure to never let the 2 wires touch otherwise it ruins the camera, also for safety you can solder a resistor across the leads of the capacitor to make it self discharging.

Ok so you now have the camera set up to power the LEDs next you need to get you audio cable and cut one end off a few inches from the end, then stripp about an inch off the end of the audio cable then take the free wires around the 2 insulated wires and wrap all the strands together leaving the 2 insuated wires in place then twist together the negative lead from the camera to the exposed strands on the audio cable. (this joins the negative of the camera to the ground on the audio plug.) Then solder the 2 connected negative wires to the TIP31 transistor as shown. Then wire ONE of the insulated wires from audio cable to the oposite side of the transistor as shown, then connect a wire from the center pin to the negative lead of the LED circuit. Then solder the positive from the camera to the positive lead of the LED circuit, as seen in the picture. Then take some hot glue and stick the transistor wherever its convenient.

Now that all your LEDs are in place and wired up it is time to do the final assembly of the box put the top on and glue it into place (and nail it if you can) then make sure the front fits into the opening and is held in place by the pressure from the sides, top, and bottom. You DON'T want to glue it in because you need to be able to access the interior for repairs or modifications. Also if you want you can wire in a switch so you can put your camera on the inside and then just interrupt the battery power to the camera so your box isn't always energized. Otherwise you can leave the camera on the outside of the box and just remove the battery when not in use

Now that your box is finished its time to power it up, first although if using an amp with an audio caqble you will need a splitter for your audio source so one male 3.5mm headphone plug goes to two female 3.5mm plugs, otherwise you will still need it and then you will have to wire the other end of an audio cord into your amp. After that connect your plug to your audio source and then insert your battery into the camera and make sure it powers up, the LEDs should be off unless you have an audio signal playing. If it doesn't light up with some music playing then you have a problem somewhere and trouble shooting will be the next step.

Problem                                                     Causes                                                       Solution

LEDs don't Light up.                        Music not loud enough                     Turn the volume all the way up on your audio source.
                                                         Transisitor wired wrong                   Check wiring and re-do if wrong.
                                                         Camera not working                         Battery not inserted right, flash not pushed, or need new camera 
                                                         LED wiring wrong                             Check each one with a small power supply to make sure they work.


Music Doesn't Play                           Audio cable not conncted                Check connections.
                                                          Audio cable damaged                      Check cable and get new one if needed.
                                                          AMP not powerd on                          Check power to AMP.
                                                          Volume turned down                        Turn up volume on audio source or amp
                                                          Speakers connected wrong             Check speaker wiring and connection tightness.

Sound quality is Bad                        Speaker connections loose              Check Connections
                                                         Bad Speakers                                   Check speakers, replace if necessary
                                                         Bad AMP                                           Check AMP, replace if necessary
                                                         Poor quality audio recording             Check using headphones or other speakers
                                                         Echoing                                             Fill enclosure with towels or foam to dampen echoes.
                                                         Bad power supply                          Mainly from inverters but usually not from household electrical current.