Almost all of us have old radios. They are good looking and have a sturdy built too. The reason for this is that in the olden times the people used to treat the appliances as pieces of their home furniture and therefore the appliances were designed after a lot of thought and care. Along with playing music, the appliances were also required to suit the traditional decor. As a result some marvelous pieces of technology were created which were encased in handsome wood and fabric. You can further add your iPod with your old radio which will enable the radio to survive in the new technological environment. You can get an old radio easily from an antique store, yard sales or flea markets if you already do not have one. They are always available on eBay though the price can be a bit high. You must ensure that the speaker is working properly. If the radio lacks the permanent magnet speaker, it can be replaced easily.
Difficulty level: Moderate
Time required: 30 minutes to 1 hour
Resources required:
1.An old time radio
2. Amplifier
3. 12 volt power supply
4. Soldering iron
5. 22 gauge copper strand wire
6. 1/8” or 3.5 mm audio cable
7. Sticky tape
Instructions:
Remember that all radios are different but does essentially work the same way. For finding out the analogous parts of the radio, the noodle can be used.
1. Separate the radio from the cabinet.
- Separate the radio from the cabinet by unscrewing the back and removing the radio gently. The knobs should also be removed before sliding the radio out.
- Clean the brunches of crud present inside the radio.
2. Disconnect the old speaker wires.
- Disconnect the old wires from the solder terminals of the speakers.
- You can use the soldering iron for this purpose.
3. Connect the new speaker wires.
- Get the new wires ready. now you can strip back a bit of insulation and put a small amount of solder on the new wire.
- Now connect this new wire to the soldering terminal of the speaker.
- Once the wires are connected to the input terminal of the speaker,you can cut them in such a way so that they are long enough for reaching the radio cabinet’s side.
- In the second wire you must first strip back the insulation a bit and then can add some solder to its end.
- Now you can solder this second wire to the second terminal of the speaker. After soldering, cut off the wire in such a way so that it is long enough to reach the side of the cabinet.
4. Remove the capacitor from the potentiometer.
- The radio’s volume knob must be able to control the volume. For make this happen, new wires can be added from the volume knob to the new amplifier.
- Behind the volume knob are located the potentiometer and the capacitor. The potentiometer is often black in color and the capacitor is orange colored. For connecting the wire from the volume knob to the new amplifier, both of them have to be removed.
- The capacitor can be removed form the pot by using the soldering iron.
5. Add new volume wires to the volume pot or knob.
- Take some amount of new wire. Now pull back the insulation a bit and then add on some amount of solder.
- You can now add the new wires to the terminals of the solder.
- Now cut each wire at such a length so that they are long enough to reach the inside sides of the radio’s cabinet.
- When these wires are connected to the amplifier, the middle soldering terminal’s wire must connect with the amplifier’s middle screw terminal. We will be able to easily figure out the middle wire by cutting it a length which is a bit longer than the other two wires.
- The volume wires can be threaded though the holes which are present on the tube amplifier
6. Connect the wires to the new amplifier.
- On the amplifier locate the pot screw terminal. It is black in color with three screws on the top and three holes.
- The middle wire for the pot is to be connected with the middle screw terminal of the amplifier.
- The other two wires from the knob can be connected with the other two screw terminals which are located outside the amplifier.
- You can now connect the speaker wires to the speaker’s amplifier terminal. Any wire can go into any terminal.
7. Reassemble the radio.
- Put the radio back into its cabinet and out the knobs on the radio.
- On the back of the amplifier put some sticky tape.
- Mount the amplifier on the inside of the cabinet. The sticky tap will hold it securely.
- Play the radio after plugging in the audio source and power cable and enjoy the modern music on the old radio.
Frequently asked questions
Q1. Will the sound change from stereo to mono ?
Ans. Yes, the sound will change from stereo to mono.
Q2. Where to buy the old radios at cheap prices ?
Ans. Radios are available on cheap prices at flea markets, yard ales and antique stores.
Q3. Are the old radios available online ?
Ans. You can find an old radio on shopping websites like eBay.
Quick tips
- Try to keep things tidy.
- While testing the radio if the volume gets softer when it is turned up, the outside wire of the pot terminal need to be switched. This can be done easily by unscrewing thE wires, switching them and screwing them again.
Things to watch out for
- Use caution while using electrical equipment.
- Screw the radio firmly inside the cabinet.
