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Thread: Sound System For The Shop

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Mar 2006
    Location
    San Diego area
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    365

    Sound System For The Shop

    This is a 30' x 40' shop with 12' ceilings. Now we have a little radio sitting on a bench which works well enough but I'd like something a little better with a few speakers around the room. Don't want a lot of base, or anything (expensive) fancy.

    can the speakers be wireless? We tune into a oldies channel now, what are some good low cost options besides local radio?
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    WoodsShop

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Mar 2003
    Location
    SE PA - Central Bucks County
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    65,685
    I use an older Nakamichi "modular" system that I got with AMEX points many years ago for my home office. It "kicks" in the shop with the main L/R speakers mounted up high and the subwoofer just behind my bandsaw near floor level. I originally used a traditional "receiver" plus a few small speakers, but that setup died years ago and honestly, didn't sound nearly as good as what I'm using now.

    Toward your question, yes you can use wireless speakers, but you'll want something that supports having multiple speakers from one sound source. Some "home theater" systems support wireless speakers and also have wireless subs, too. Your sound source can be almost anything that that stream via bluetooth or via a physical connection to a "primary" node of whatever wireless speaker system you select. I listen to non-commercial radio in my shop as my older system mentioned above doesn't support Bluetooth, although I suppose I could buy an adapter. But it's a station I support (WXPN.org) and the music is incredible.
    --

    The most expensive tool is the one you buy "cheaply" and often...

  3. #3
    Joe Wood,

    Yes, there are plenty of reasonably priced wireless speakers :

    https://www.amazon.com/Wireless-Speakers/b?node=172572

    > which are Bluetooth and each speaker has an integrated amplifier. The range in an open space such as your workshop is not a problem. Find a reasonable stereo receiver with AM, FM,
    bluetooth output and remote control and a couple of inputs so you can add a CD player- get one with a remote also to play CD's on it as well. The remotes are so it can be muted when the big machines are running, the phone rings, or when the Woody Guthrie program changes to evening Rap classics.

    If you want a more versatile system, you could buy a low end used workstation such as a Dell Precision T3400 or better, T3500 ($60-80), add WiFi ($20), a Bluetooth transmitter/receiver adapter ($30-30), a good, used sound card- for example a Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium ($25-30), set up the wireless speakers, and then you use it for workshop online business, ordering, etc. and have YouTube or online streaming in the background from anywhere in the World. I like older workstatiosn as they are tough and have good power supplies. YouTube has autoplay, so doing a search means you can line up 20-50 videos and it will play your selections for hours. The computer will have a CD/DVD player as well, so disks can brought in. This is what I do for music in my "workshop": Connected to an HP z620 workstation is a Focusrite Scarlett 2i4 USB sound interface that runs to two wired (balanced XLR) Mackie HR 824 studio monitors. I sometimes stream BBC 3 from England as well, or radio from Holland or Germany.

    Alan Caro
    Last edited by Alan Caro; 10-14-2018 at 6:16 PM.

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Feb 2008
    Location
    NE Connecticut
    Posts
    695
    I have a pair of outdoor speakers I kept from a previous house, wired to a craigslist receiver I got for $25. I plug my phone into the receiver and stream Pandora or a podcast. This also helps me hear if my phone rings.

    The outdoor speakers are nice because they came with mounting brackets. I have them mounted at the ceiling joists and aiming into the shop. They're 11 years old and no longer available, but they work great. I paid $50 for the pair.


  5. #5
    Join Date
    Nov 2007
    Location
    NW Indiana
    Posts
    3,078
    I built a Bluetooth speaker using a board that has 50w per channel. They are relatively cheap for the boards on eBay. I bought speakers and parts at Parts Express.

    Works great for me and so has a rechargeable battery built into it.

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Oct 2007
    Location
    Cache Valley, Utah
    Posts
    1,722
    I have a couple of old Bose speakers hooked up to a cheap Lepai solid state amp from Amazon. The music source is (generally) my Pandora account from the shop computer. I originally had the speakers hooked up via a Bluetooth setup but it turned out to be a big PITA, losing the connection, needing to reboot, etc, so I finally just hardwired everything. Much better now. Now that I have an Ethernet connection in the shop and don't have to rely on WiFi from the house, better yet.

  7. #7
    Join Date
    May 2015
    Location
    Ingleside, IL
    Posts
    1,417
    I use a Harman Kardon bluetooth speaker and pandora from my phone. The HK Onyx Studio 3 speaker is the best bluetooth speaker I've ever heard. Lot's of volume with quality sound. About 150 bucks on amazon. I wish I still had my old job site stereo: a pair of JBL studio monitors bolted to a hand truck, with a Harman Kardan 150 w tuner nailed to the top of it. The entire neighborhood knew where we were working.
    Stand for something, or you'll fall for anything.

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Aug 2011
    Location
    New York, NY
    Posts
    2,203
    Sonos if you want everything synced together wirelessly. Also, you can control it with your phone.

  9. #9
    I have 2 of these--
    ecox.jpg
    not exactly cheap at around $200, but for shop music you really only need one- I got 2 so I can have stereo sound with my outside projector TV; when you pair them together via bluetooth they become left/right speakers...

    Their tagline is 'play it Loud!', and its definitely that! Totally waterproof, bluetooth to each other and from anything else, has an AM/FM receiver, and inputs for whatever else you want to play. Has mic inputs for karaoke (oh joy) or for PA use... Battery operated, they say 10 hours at mid-volume levels, my kid borrowed one for a picnic during the summer, was on for 6 hours and never moved the battery meter. Plugs in with any 110v 'computer' plug cord (which it comes with)...

    There's no tone control, they're biased for high volume, but if you input music you can run thru an equalizer first, they're capable of reasonably good high-fidelity...

    There's different versions of these and other brands too, I just like how these things are always ready to go, just wheel it to where you want it and turn it on...



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    Last edited by Kev Williams; 10-15-2018 at 1:06 AM.
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  10. #10
    Join Date
    Sep 2007
    Location
    Longview WA
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    27,347
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    My set up is a portable AM/FM radio/CD player and a Classic iPod with an FM transmitter.

    Playlists are loaded up with different mixes to suit my mood.

    jtk
    "A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty."
    - Sir Winston Churchill (1874-1965)

  11. #11
    Join Date
    Nov 2012
    Location
    North Dana, Masachusetts
    Posts
    486
    I have a Sony amplifier connected to a Sirius XM receiver. The antenna is on a pole outside the shop. The receiver does not have mono, only stereo. Given that I work in various locations around the shop, mono would be a better choice. I have about eight bookshelf speakers mounted 9' off the floor, pointed slightly down, around the shop. For example one speaker is right over a shaper. Unfortunately, I only get the left or right channel out of each speaker. The next receiver will have a mono button.

  12. #12
    Quote Originally Posted by Peter Kelly View Post
    Sonos if you want everything synced together wirelessly. Also, you can control it with your phone.
    Yup, a couple Play:1 and you can stream nearly any music service or radio station in the world. I have 3 Sonos in my shop.

  13. #13
    I use my computer connected to a Scosche FM transmitter. I have an old AM / FM receiver that picks up the signal, along with my Work Tunes head set. Speakers are an old RCA set of two speakers and a woofer, mounted at ceiling height. Transmitter cost about $14 from Walmart, and uses two AAA batteries. For batteries, I use HF's rechargeable NMH. Always keep a fresh set charged.

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