Music in the Shop

[james manutes]

When I put the shop together , I installed 4 nice home theater speakers in the walls . No wires to deal with , sounds great . I find I'm listening to the old CD collection most of the time , streaming less than I used to .

[Brice Rogers]

I either listen to CDs or, more likely, Pandora internet radio using my cell phone to transmit via blue tooth to a BT receiver. The receiver is a Logitech that I plugged into an old 200 watt stereo and some big speakers. I put the CD player in a zip lock bag to keep the dust out. The Logitech blue tooth "pairs" automatically.

[James Cheever]

I use a couple of Sonos speakers in my shop. Can either stream various services or play albums from my collection or Amazon or Apple.

[Mike Burke]

Thanks for all the input. Looks like there are a lot of ways to listen to our old classic rock or other choices.
I like to listen to a variety of music also..

Old classic rock
World Cafe streaming radio sometimes
even a little Willie Nelson or Arlo thrown in there.

I have built a few pairs of speaker so I listen to them.

[Jim Becker]

T
World Cafe streaming radio sometimes.

Which originates at WXPN.ORG that I mentioned above. If you like World Café...give a listen to the very broad mix across other time slots!

[Jack Frederick]

I live in a third world nation. Actually maybe fourth. Once off the coast of CA it gets primitive. AT&T are our internet providers and offer “up to 3mbps.” UP to! My brother-in-law did a trip a couple years ago across Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Thailand and said that in the remote villages he could get 25-50 mbps. I am signed up for the Starlink Beta program coming mid-year. As a result I have an old IPod on a Bose base. It has good music, but we can’t stream anything from the house to the shop. I remember when AT&T was a real outfit that offered real service, but I date myself.

[Jim Becker]

Jack, check on T-Mobile's new fixed 5G internet service if it's in your area.

[Jack Frederick]

Thanks, Jim. Will do.

[Gerald Etto]

On the topic of music, are there any protective earplug or headphones suitable fr the shop, with decent quality audio and bluetooth?

[Alan Lightstone]

Big Classic Hits on iHeart Radio on my Alexa. Pretty crappy sound quality, but easy to use.

[Bill Conerly]

I stream Pandora, and occasionally podcasts, using an old cell phone's wifi. I plug the phone into old computer speakers. I leave the old cell phone in the shop. The shop is a bad environment for electronics, but I've got a few more old cell phones in a drawer just waiting for the current one to die.

[Jack Llewyllson]

Do you listen to music in your wood shop ?
What do you use for a music player ?

I've always been a "Goodwill radio on a shelf" guy for shop tunes, but my still-unfinished new shop is pleasantly assailed by enabling friends. I ran "future-proofing" 16-ga. zipcord up into the new shop trusses from a banana jack plate on the wall. The moment I asked a group of riding/eating motorcycle buddies about what to look for in a ceiling speaker, I found myself gifted with two pairs of speakers (Polk Audio bookshelf speakers and Bose 301s), an early 21st century A/V receiver of 130 watts, and a flat screen TV. Those speakers are now dangling from the rafters. I blowgun the dust off the receiver once or twice a week, but I should really close it into a cabinet.

When I'm working on projects, I generally play the NPR classical station (not always quietly, because Tchaikovsky!), but when I'm working out on the weightlifting cage in the corner, it's straight to cheesy pop and antediluvian rock. Thanks to mineral wool in the walls, the sound doesn't carry unless I open the big door.

I may add a sub at some point, and will probably add sources beyond FM radio if I can't figure out how to stream internet music through the dated A/V receiver, but for now the musical capacity of hand-me-down gear feels entirely satisfactory for a shop with a compressor, power tools, and an air filter whooshing along, occupied by a guy with "artillery ears."

Your mileage may vary.

[Osvaldo Cristo]

I love music... I have around 700 vinyls and several hundreds of CDs...

On the other hand I do not like music when either reading, studying or working in the shop. Actually it is a big nuisance for me and a potential for distraction that can be dangerous when working with some tools.

It really surprises me how much people actually look to listen music simultaneously to tasks completely unrelated.

[Charlie Jones]

I am in the no music in the shop class. I feel like it could distract me at the wrong time.

[Brian W Evans]

On the topic of music, are there any protective earplug or headphones suitable fr the shop, with decent quality audio and bluetooth?

I like my worktunes headphones: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0723CYHPZ

The sound quality is quite good - they're not Bose, but plenty good enough for me, and the noise reduction is sufficient for most things. Good battery life, too.

I also wear them when mowing the lawn - even with the noise reduction I can hear enough of what's going on with the mower to be safe.