Okay. Highly technical question. I am getting ready to put a receiver and set of stereo speakers in my shop. Although the receiver is an older model, it is an above average receiver.
How do I protect the speakers and receiver from dust? Without affecting the sound coming out of the speakers?
Any technical advice? Based on experience?
Alan – planesaw
Replies
Dont bother,when your machines have been turned on they are probably in the 70db.and up range your high fidelity has been drowned out,and besides when you are performing a critical cut with your machinery the last thing you should be paying attention to your music.Dont get me wrong I love music too but in the shop it isnt worth it.Safety First.Good Luck.
Well I can give a couple of examples that may be helpful. One guy I worked with whose shop was in his basement used his stereo and CD changer on the first floor and could switch over to basement speakers. He also had a kill switch by the speakers for when he was on the phone. So presuming that you don't want to change the station frequently that might be one way to go. Currently I work in a theater scene shop and we have four big Klipsch speakers (big boxes, about as big as the cabinet on our table saw) and keep the reciever and the CD changer in the shop office. The changer does get dusty, and the speakers we don't worry about that much. They're all mounted relatively high up, and while they do get dusty they're not directly in the way of anything. My personal opinion would be that if you've got older speakers don't worry about the saw dust too much, and just blow them out occaisionally. The only thing that I'd be worried about would be metal filings which would be attracted to the magnet and potentially clog the speaker up. So that was the long way around to a couple simple ideas, hope they help.
Datachanel
Doing things the hard way
First I have a regular portable radio minus CD player with a plastic cover over the top to keep the dust off,second I have a pair of mediocre computer speakers with a signal line from my main audio upstairs where its clean to hear from a CD .I dont use any wireless remotes for any controls.Good Luck.
Let me know if/when you get tired of the Klipsch speakers (ha ha). I'll buy them.
I have my speakers set on top of some open ceiling joists; facing downward. Dust would not be a problem anyway, unless it was abrasive. Remember that a speaker diaphram moving at thousands of times per second for thousands of hours translates into a potential for cutting the diaphrams if abrasive material is in contact with them.
I placed my receiver on a shelf and put a peice of paneling on top with very short (3/4") legs under the paneling. This has helped to reduce the amount of dust that settles out on the receiver. I would think that the main problem of dust in the electronics would be a reduction in cooling capacity of the output amplifiers heat-sinks (wood insulates).
Edited 5/11/2004 12:35 pm ET by mlbfreestyle
Oh my! Paradigm speakers in the shop! That is overkill ;) hehehe
If the speakers are out of the way there is nothing to worry about. Dusting them off once in a while is a good idea. As for metal flakes and shavings I doubt they will find their way there if the speakers are high up on a wall.
As for the amplifier, having it in an other room is best, if not possible putting some air filter like it was suggested is a good idea, you could also use an old nylon sock. There is no active cooling on amplifiers so air circulation within the unit is minimum, using a fan would make the problem a lot worse.
As for music, I agree it can be distracting... and being distracted around tools that spin at thousands of RPM is not a good idea. I would keep it to instumental music, that can actually increase concentration.
Sorry, they're not mine to sell, adnd we enjoy them much to much. What would shop parties be like without them?Datachanel
Doing things the hard way
i have a stereo set up in my shop that has no dust protection. ive always told myself it was a temporary set up, but its been a while. i dont worry about the dust save for taking the reciever and cd players top off and blowing it out with the air hose about once every 8 or 10 monthes. i never touch my speakers, im not sure if the dust has any effect on sound quality or not.
Custom Cabinetry and Furniture
http://www.BartlettWoodworking.com
Yeah just treat it as background noise filler.cheers.
I agree with gecko. I've had a Technics system (my old stereo) out in the shop for several years now with no problems. The speakers have the original dust covers and are mounted up high. The stereo itself including the CD player gets dusty but I dust it off or blow the dust off occasionally. Works great. Theres nothing like being out in the shop, doing some work, and listening to some tunes.
Bob
I have an old Kenwood receiver (70's) that I picked up on EBay for $15. The seller lived in Ottawa so I did a local pickup to save shipping. I have a pair of Paradigm speakers mounted about 7' off the floor. The speakers are encloded so I don't worry about dust.
To protect the receiver, I put it on top of the extra fridge in my workshop, and cover the vents on top of the receiver with a few thin sheets of air filter fabric I found at a garage sale. It's been in place for over a year now, and no dust has found it's way into the receiver. I don't think it would do any harm if it did, but at least this way I don't have to worry about it.
I keep the radio tuned to a good classical station to keep the mood mellow.
Regards,
Ron
Thanks for everyone's ideas and examples. You've got the idea. I enjoy the music, most of the time, and the system is "old." Just thought I would check in case everyone said it would be foolish to put in the shop. Have had an old battery radio, but want to add some variety. I may see about putting the receiver and any other sources (tape, CD) in another room with wires to speakers in the shop.
Thanks all,
Alan - planesaw
Alan, I can identify with your desire to have good sound in the shop, even if the machines do drown it out part of the time. The speakers shouldn't suffer any ill effects. If you want to protect the receiver, you could either build a filter-equipped box with a small cooling fan (a la your computer), or if you want to drop a little $$ into it, put the receiver in a separate room and buy one of those wireless outfits to relay the signal to the speakers in the shop.
Enjoy!forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)Another proud member of the "I Rocked With ToolDoc Club" .... :>)
I am in the process of pulling wires to putting music in my shop. I have a Bose LifeStyle system on the first floor of my house that can be controlled with an RF remote and can accommodate several zones - so one of the zones will be my shop. (RF so it is not relying on line of sight and remote lets me select radio/cd, stations/cd tracks/ adjust volume etc.) I am putting Bose 151SE - outdoor environmental speakers up so that when they get dusty I can just hose them off. (This is my own idea not something that I ran past the applications folks!) This should give me great sound - but with the plug I've given - I would be remiss if I did not include that I work for Bose. ; )
-Martha
i'm currently mulling over that same question myself. one suggestion i've heard (and will be using in my wood shop) is that for a shop of any size, use a number of smaller speakers spread around the room. that way the sound level is more consistent at any location instead of blasting at one end and too quiet at the opposite side. for my 36x24 space i'll probably put one small 'bookshelf' type speaker more or less in each corner. btw- i have a pair of beautiful jbl studio monitors in my metal-oriented shop. good sound is important to my wife and me.
m
As long as the speakers aren't sitting in the line of fire, the saw dust really shouldn't have much impact on their performance...especially if they have grills. You might try angling them downward so dust is less likely to settle, but like I said, should be no big deal.
The receiver is a different matter...dust is likely to become a problem eventually. Can you keep the receiver in another room? Or....an air tight enclosure with filtered fan ventilation?
I agree with others who have said dust is not much a problem with speakers in the shop.
20 years ago I set up my current shop with four speakers -- 2 good quality Advents, and 2 cheap imports. I stretched thin plastic from a garbage bag over the Advents, and mounted them up high and pointed toward the ceiling for sound dispersal. The other two I strategically located on a couple of shelves with no covering of any kind.
To my amazement, they are still working just fine.
I mounted the receiver in an out-of-the-way location in the shop, and draped a thin cloth over the top to protect it somewhat from dust, but still allow ventilation. It was the cheapest receiver I could purchase from Best Buy, and it was been working great for some 8 years. The FM radio runs all day, everyday.
I would say dust is not a major concern for this type of equipment.
I hope you are listening to public radio, otherwise all those ads blasting at you all day every day will turn your brain into mush... the effects can be severe enough to cause people to vote Republican! :-D"Everything should be made as simple as possible, but no simpler." A. Einstein
http://www.albionworks.net
In my neck of the woods we are blessed with 3 public radio stations -- two with classical music, and one devoted to talk/news.
Otherwise, I'd have to figure out a way to add a CD player to my set-up -- or learn to live with silence.
Oh, good, I was worried about you! Commercial rado sucks so bad, I couldn't imagine a sane person listening to it all day every day.
I can only get one public station well, another one comes in good sometimes and not at all sometimes. I do a Celtic music show on Sunday mornings a couple times a month at the closer station (KZYX). (A legacy from my youth, when we would listen to a Celtic music show on public radio in New Hampshire while working in the college metal shop.)"Everything should be made as simple as possible, but no simpler." A. Einstein
http://www.albionworks.net
Well, it's probably too late. I generally vote Republican anyway. But, I do like the music on public radio. Prairie Home Companion, classical, blue grass, Celtic, folk, etc. Because I generally vote Republican doesn't mean I agree with everything Bush, or any other Republican does. I try to vote for the person who is best candidate for the job, whatever party.
Thanks,
Alan - planesaw
Alan
I put the stereo speakers in my workshop about 12 years ago & apart from the odd bit of housekeeping the speakers don't seem to have suffered much. I've got to have our currious brand of football & cricket when I'm working (I'm in the shop all day unless on site fitting) & some background music - the type of which depends on whether my apprentice gets to the tuner first (& if I don't exercise my veto). I know when he's in the shop on his own the speakers probably get a good clean out from the vibration caused by 150db Metalica :-)
I wouldn't worry about dust. In my case the speakers in the house will "need replacement" about the same time the ones in the shop cease to exist.
Don
I wouldn't worry about the speakers/receiver/tuner. But I would be concerned if you're using a CD player. The dust will get on discs and have an effect on the laser reading. If you do use a CD player, be prepared to run a cleaning disc thru it periodically or keep it in a big Baggie.
My system has been in the shop for three years with a lot of MDF dust and the only component giving me problems is the CD player.
Cheers from sunny Somerset UK
I use an Advent indoor/outdoor wireless speaker in the shop. The speakers are pointed down and have a plastic cover which should keep out most dust. You just hook up a transmitter to your home stero. Here's a link to one of the sites that sell them:
http://www.speakerworks.net/wireless.html
Gary
I live with tunes in the shop, gotta have them. Music most of the time but also baseball, football, hockey and Maryland basketball. The speakers are large and are very old, the ones I used in college in the early 70's. They have held up just fine in that enviorment for 20 years. I may retire them to the trash someday and replace them with the Advent bookshelves from the house. "Gee honey I need to get a new pair of speakers for the den :o)". I trashed an older and smaller second pair during last years shop renovations. Two speakers are not as good as four but they had to go.
My old high school and college receiver died in a thunder storm or power surge several years ago. After two weeks of no tunes I was off to Best Buy for a new low end receiver. Only a WW or other assorted garage nut would go out and buy a brand new stereo receiver and take it straight to the shop. Thats Me!
I don't worry about the dust, just clean it up with the brush or shop vac once or twice a year. Now the tape deck is another story. I can't even think about how many times I've had to clean the wheels and heads with Qtips and alcohol.
Turn up the Tunes!
Enjoy, Roy
Roy - Didn't you mean to say "Gee honey I need to "BUILD" a new pair of speakers for the den :o)" ? ;-)
There's an idea. Actually I built a large pair when I was in college. One 12" woofer, 6" horn and 2 tweaters. A friend liked them so much I sold them to him. I wonder if hes using them in his garage, he restores old cars as a hobby.
Shop stereo was cranked today. I was doing stinking yard work out back.
Enjoy, Roy
I explained my set up earlier in this thread.
But I would like to add a CD player to the mix, and I don't really have the option to put it in a dust free location.
Could I get away with simply putting the CD player in a plastic bag, and reaching in there to change CD's as required?
Also, what's the best way to keep CD's clean? Are there special solvents or tools required?
ok- so i'm planning on using 4 spkrs (2 pr), one in each corner of my 24x36 shop. any opinions on arrangement of the lefts and rights for best stereo separation and general sound in the room? if i label the corners a, b, c, & d, with a & b at opposite corners of a short wall, and c & d at the other end of the room, how best to arrange the spkrs?
a- L1, b-R1, c-L2, d-R2? (probably not- puts corresponding lefts and rights at opposite corners)
a-L1, b-R1, c-R2, d-L2? this separates left & right along the narrow dimension.
a-L1, b-L2, c-R1, d-R2? this separates left & right along the wide dimension.
any suggestions?
m
When I had four speakers in the shop all were on the same short wall basically facing the same direction. One pair in the corners, high up, facing the center of the room. The second pair in between them again facing the center of the room. I think the four corners messes up the stereo effect. The second pair 6 to 8 ft. down the wall and centered would work. Lefts and rights together.
Crank it!
Enjoy, Roy
as i mentioned above in post #14, my main concern is having a fairly even sound level/volume throughout the room instead of having too loud at one end and too soft at the other. since my shop won't be used like a dedicated AV room, i'm just looking for the best way to arrange the speakers given the other limitations.
m
Buy ear protection with stereo speakers built in. Great sound.
Hey George:
Do you get any interference from lights or power tools? How about the reception? I've been looking at those, but I live in a relatively remote area and don't want to listen to great sounding static.
This forum post is now archived. Commenting has been disabled