[mombartz]

i am trying to build a jukebox out of a usb mp3 player (could be any
mp3 player) and car or home speakers. Anyone have any suggestions?
What kind of amplifier should I use? I dont want it to be to big and
not cost more than $50 - $70.

cheers, Sascha

[Earl Kiosterud]

"mombartz" wrote in message
ups.com...

i am trying to build a jukebox out of a usb mp3 player (could be any
mp3 player) and car or home speakers. Anyone have any suggestions?
What kind of amplifier should I use? I dont want it to be to big and
not cost more than $50 - $70.

cheers, Sascha


Sascha,

The amplifier has more to do with the speakers you'll be using. It needs to have sufficient
power for the volume you expect to play it (and shouldn't be too much, if there will be a
tendency to turn it way up). The amplifier must be able to drive the impedance of the
speakers you'll be using -- if the speaker's impedance is higher than that the amplifier is
capable of driving, you'll get less power (about half if the speaker's impedance is twice
that which the amplifier is rated to drive). If the speaker's impedance is lower than the
amplifier can drive, you will overheat and possibly damage the amplifier at high volumes,
and it may go into over-current limiting, if so provided, (but will still get hotter than it
should).

Power ratings aren't as critical (or important) as many think, so don't worry too much about
it. Even with an amplifier whose sine-wave ("RMS") power matches the power rating of the
speaker, when it's driven into distortion, it's possible to damage speakers, particularly
the tweeters.

The headphone output of the mp3 player generally will have enough voltage to drive most any
amplifier with a line level imput.
--
Regards from Virginia Beach,

Earl Kiosterud
www.smokeylake.com