Shop Tunes/thoughts & a question on filters

Ned Bulken

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Location
Lakeport NY and/or the nearest hotel
Wood magazine has a short article on how to pipe tunes into the shop. Who here has more than just a boom box in their shop? After I get the shop built, I'll be spending a Lot of time out there, and I'm thinking that a couple of things will make that time more comfortable. I'm not quite an audiophile, but I enjoy having good tunes in the shop. Depending on mood, it could be anything from Jazz to C&W, to Classic Rock to talk radio. I"m also a baseball fan, and will be listening to many games. I'll start out with a boom box, and for awhile that will suffice, but I'd like to build an enclosure to keep the dust out of my stereo tuner. I'm also going to have a TV and vcr, but I'm less concerned with them than the tuner. I realize that periodically vacuuming and/or compressed air will help, but I'd also like to keep the dust out if I can.

I'm thinking of a ventilated/filtered box with a gasket around the face of the tuner, allowing access to the face of the tuner. The only 'problem' with the tuner it never has had a remote , so I'll need to have the front open for access to the controls.

Has anyone built a box to keep the dust out? I'm thinking that a couple of pancake fans to overpressure the cabinet, but where do I pull the air in from? If I pull from the shop, I'll just be concentrating the dust quicker. What sort of filter media should I look for?

My eventual plans for the shop include a DC of course, plus a home brewed air cleaner on a timer, so hopefully I'll just be minimizing a small amount of dust to begin with.
 
Ned,

Are you maybe overthinking this one? I've got a halfway decent system in the shop (good enough to listen to opera on), but it's just sitting on a very high shelf, without any special protection. It's not like it has a fan to suck air through it like a computer would. It's been up there for 2 1/2 years now, no problems so far. Got the thing for a song at costco. I keep meaning to distribute the speakers around the room, but never get around to it This is actually rational, since one will never get good acoustics in a shop... a good layer of sawdust on all those metal machines might mitigate things a little, but not much... ;)

But here's the wierd thing: I find myself actually using the system less and less. What I do use is my 'shoptunes', sound deadening headphones with an am/fm radio built in. I've taken to wearing them constantly while working... for some reason, it's better to have all other sound cancelled out, so I have no distractions. I'm just there, toiling away in my own little world. They cost 50 bucks, and I've gotten more use out of them than any other tool in the shop.

Now if I could only figure out how to plug an mp3 player into them... ;)

Thanks,

Bill
 
Old outdated free computer, free monitor, network connection, WinAmp software (free version) and a $50 set of Altec Lansing speakers w?subwoofer = Music machine.

You can find just about anything you want to listen to on the internet.
 
Ned,

Are you maybe overthinking this one? I've got a halfway decent system in the shop (good enough to listen to opera on), but it's just sitting on a very high shelf, without any special protection. It's not like it has a fan to suck air through it like a computer would. It's been up there for 2 1/2 years now, no problems so far. Got the thing for a song at costco. I keep meaning to distribute the speakers around the room, but never get around to it This is actually rational, since one will never get good acoustics in a shop... a good layer of sawdust on all those metal machines might mitigate things a little, but not much... ;)

But here's the wierd thing: I find myself actually using the system less and less. What I do use is my 'shoptunes', sound deadening headphones with an am/fm radio built in. I've taken to wearing them constantly while working... for some reason, it's better to have all other sound cancelled out, so I have no distractions. I'm just there, toiling away in my own little world. They cost 50 bucks, and I've gotten more use out of them than any other tool in the shop.

Now if I could only figure out how to plug an mp3 player into them... ;)

Thanks,

Bill

Bill,
first off, they now make a shoptunes with input for $70 or so, and secondly... it won't be the first time I've ever over-thought something.

I just hate to see a nice tuner get ruined by dust.
 
I have a inexpensive AM FM cassette & 3 disk CD changer in a cabinet along with a $39 DVD & a VCR I picked out of a dumpster with the operators manual & remote. I just drilled a hole out the side for all the cords & cable & the TV sets on a corner shelf up next to the ceiling. I did counter sink some holes for plexi glass right in front of where the receiver for the remote is in both the VCR & DVD & then using duct tape hung some little pieces of plastic mirror angled so I can operate them from over at my bench by bouncing the signal off the mirror into the unit receiver through the little plexi glass covered holes. Don't over think it. Its really not all that complicated.
 
Now if I could only figure out how to plug an mp3 player into them... ;)

One of those FM transmitter dealies oughta do the trick, bill!

And they're usually small enough to fit in a pocket, just like an MP3 player :)

it won't be the first time I've ever over-thought something.

I just hate to see a nice tuner get ruined by dust.

Since it doesn't have a remote, why not fully enclose the thing in an air-tight container with a door that seals well? Sure, you'd have to open the door to change stations and whatnot, but you get used to that fairly quickly :)
 
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Ned, this was a fun project to build. It's basically a sealed box with an automotive air filter mounted on the bottom, and an old pc cooling fan mounted at the top. The fan draws filtered air through the unit keeping it cool. About every six months, I remove the filter and blow it out with compressed air. I have been using this system for several years without any problems.
 

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A couple years ago, I bought the DeWalt Work Site radio. It only has for buttons but can remember 4 stations each on AM and FM. It has a built in charger for DeWalt tools. I got it at the orange borg. It works pretty well, and it certainly isn't HI-FI. My only objection is that the clock doesn't keep time very well.

If figure fidelity is not a big point in the shop, you should be paying attention to your work and tools, not listening to a radio. I use mine frequently, but it is getting so that all you can find is C&W, and liberal talk shows like Rush and Sean. We do have one classical station, but it isn't too strong out here in the boonies. If figure having the radio on is OK in my case because I spend a lot of time figuring out how to fix what I did wrong.
 
Ned, this was a fun project to build. It's basically a sealed box with an automotive air filter mounted on the bottom, and an old pc cooling fan mounted at the top. The fan draws filtered air through the unit keeping it cool. About every six months, I remove the filter and blow it out with compressed air. I have been using this system for several years without any problems.

very cool system bruce, That's similar to what I'm thinking of, and the AV equipment looks very nice as well.


Ken,
I use the music as 'white noise' in the background, and I too do a lot of bench planning before I actually get cutting. I agree that distractions in the shop are not a good idea though. I think the face of my unit is sealed well enough that a box similar to Bruce's and my thought to have the face open so I can access the controls will work for me. Now i just need to get the shop built so I can build this to go in it.
 
I've got a powered sub-woofer / satellite setup like folks might use in a game room. This sets out as it is pretty much all enclosed and operates via a remote. It is of a small enough scale that it does not run fans but loud enough to be louder than I want. The cables run into a cabinet where an old laptop sets. I grab a selection of internet radio stations or hit Yahoo Radio and let 'er go. For me its K.I.S.S. I'm out there to enjoy the woodworking; the music just keeps me company. Hi-Fi (oooh, did that give away my age) is not the primary goal.
 
Mine is not nearly as sophisticated as some listed so far. I use the Worktunes headset and think it's great. It allows me to take my listening out to the patio (my summertime finishing booth), mow the lawn, etc. When in the shop I have my 35 yr old Panasonic receiver hooked to 4 inexpensive speakers mounted on the ceiling - toward each of the corners. I keep it on the same station I have on the work tunes - never miss a word or tune taking them on and off. You can see two of the speakers in the attached photos.
DSCN0859T.jpg DSCN0850T.jpg

My faithful, just can't kill it, Panasonic sits high on a shelf.
DSCN0848T.jpg
 
ned, i went with a bar-band set-up.....pa speakers and a small mixer board, i had....past tense, a cd changer......the dust killed several before marty talked me into xm......the pa type gear is made to live in a beer/smoke/dirty enviornment so i figured it would fair well in a shop.....so far it`s done well.the xm reciever is all digital so no moving parts for sawdust to clog up it`s holding up well so far....tod
 
I have been using this system for several years without any problems.

yeah but we all know that drawing pristen air threw a filter is going to deliver clear air to the insides and we have never seen a speck of dust in your shop bruce, you have some masterful way of keeping all your dust hidden or GONE.. we could call you mr Clean:D :thumb:
 
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