DJ'ing, Audio, and Automotive

Index

Need a DJ?

I'll be honest, with how busy I am I rarely get time to practice DJ'ing, but everyone seems to enjoy it! I picked up a used DDJ400 a year ago and have played several parties with it!

To me, half of being a DJ is just collecting good music. Once upon a time this meant you were the guy with 500lbs of vinyl records. Nowadays I comb through fringe Youtube archives where those same people have generously uploaded their collection for all to enjoy. Someday i'll start accumulating vinyl and using real turn tables, I all ready have a Gemini table actually, but it needs a lot of repairs. 

I started getting really into electronic music when I was 17 and now I'm obsessed. Most electric genres are satisfying in their own ways, but several are best for parties. In order of what I mix most to least:

To catch an occasional stream or see more videos check Twitch @YellowcakesBlastPit Youtube @Chuzzlepuff

The Costco table with a bad attitude

No stage? No problem! The Mk. 1.0 Costco Bass Command Center bundles everything you need in a nice, approximately 100lb package that fits in your car! 

The system is made with a cheap 1200 watt (actually closer to like 400watts) 4 channel amp. 2 Channels feed stereo monitors permanently mounted to the legs, and 2 channels are bridged for the 10 inch subwoofer. The woofer cabinet was a DIY build, coated with aesthetically pleasing green felt. The woofers are cheap 375 watt Duals, but they match the amps power nicely. To power it all, a 700 watt computer power supply provides 12 volts from wall power. Since its on 12 volts, I also mounted bolts on the side for the + and -. This means if you really want, you can use jumper cables and run it off a car battery! A 3 Farad 12 volt capacitor is present to smooth the reactive load on the power supply. 

A laptop charger, RCA splitters, 5v USB power, and Arduino light controls are also integrated into the table. 12v black lights are hidden inside the subwoofer bezel, the monitors bezels, and the electronic box. The Arduino Nano controls a stack of TIP210 darlington transistors to provide dynamic 12v lighting to the LED strip. Currently the Arduino is coded to animate the lights in time with the BPM you set with a potentiometer. I plan to update the code to interpret the BPM automatically via the audio signal or a microphone. There's also a flip up light for the DJ. Its color can be adjusted with 3 potentiometers. 

The whole thing folds up with all components attached for car transport. You can get a party going in 10 minutes anywhere! A realistic power output for this system is around 400 watts before it starts clipping. The woofer cabinet is very large, ported, and tuned to 34 hZ, so regardless of the moderate power it still carries nicely. It is perfect for large house parties. Anything louder would piss off the neighbors. This was ultimately a budget build with parts I had laying around combined with maybe 150 dollars, I think it was well worth it! Regardless, I do have plans to add more amplifiers and woofers soon...don't tell the neighbors!

Protogen sound system

Whats cooler than a fold-up mobile DJ table? Being a boombox! 

So, last year I had an awakening and decided I wanted to be a robot. I fixed my gaze on the large circular hip emblems of the Protogen and decided what looked best there was some big cheap loudspeakers! 

The system has been reworked through several iterations of protogen design. The current Mk3 armor has a 200 watt (probably closer to 80 watts) 2 channel amp hidden in the chest armor. The gain trimpot was removed from the amp board and extended to bolt directly to the chest for control. The RCA inputs are sent through a DPDT switch to chose between 2 inputs. The first input is a 5v Bluetooth receiver, the second leads to 3.5mm jack port to connect to a DJ controller. So yes the protogen is basically a Bluetooth boombox. 

The amplified audio is sent to aviator connectors in the chest. When donning the armor, coil cord leading from the hips is plugged into these connectors. The Hips have frequency isolators that deliver the signal to 6 inch loudspeakers and 1.5 inch tweeters. I also installed a 3 amp analog ammeter along the main power line. This is just about the perfect range to make the needle move around a bunch every time there's a bass kick, though if you turn it up beyond half the needle pegs. 

This system is incredibly overpowered for the application. The fiberglass Protogen hips are upholstered with foam and fleece for comfort, but they improve the audio quality significantly. The size of the Protogen hips is just about the perfect acoustic cabinet for this size speaker when your legs are inside. As an added benefit, the gaps around your legs almost act like a porthole and the vibrating air really cools you off! 

Mobile DJ table

Need custom audio systems?

The above sections detailed some of the weirder audio systems i've thrown together. Below you can see some some more progress pics and examples of simpler cabinets i've built.

If you need me to build you custom audio systems like these, or install audio systems and subwoofers in your car contact me via  the usual Telegram / Twitter accounts! I can custom fabricate subwoofer cabinets for you and use a variety of felt colors. I can also add fancy Arduino RGB lighting to the woofers or your vehicle. As always, pricing will be heavily dependent on the request, but some rough estimates are as follows:

• Install vehicle subwoofers (running lines, tuning) (This is assuming you have the woofers, cabinets, wire kit and amp) ~$150 USD

• Install vehicle subwoofers (but I buy the wiring kit) ~$200 USD

• Custom Subwoofer Cabinets

  • Single woofer no port ~$150 Single ~$300 pair

  • Double woofer no port ~$250

  • Single woofer ported ~$225 ~450 pair

  • Double woofer ported ~ $400

• Other weird audio systems or lighting contact me for quotes!

Need a mechanic?

I've also spent 5+years as a mechanic at shops and a combined 10 years doing freelance work. I 've rebuilt several engines and motorcycles and have the tools for very involved maintenance. The only work I cant do with my tools is tire replacement or engine/transmission swaps, but I can still recommend the most cost effective solutions for you in those scenarios.

I guarantee I will charge less than any shop by a landslide. They always overprice their parts and labor, and I source my parts from rock auto usually at 1/4 the price. I prefer bigger jobs, as the preparation time for small tasks like oil changes in my back yard hardly warrants the pay. As such the prices for smaller tasks will be higher, but realistically still less than any commercial shop. 

Estimates for combined price of parts and labor for some common and uncommon jobs:

• Oil change $70 USD

• Brake pads and rotors (front or rear) $250

• Brake pads and rotors (front AND rear) $450

• Wheel bearings $300

• Tie Rods $150

• Struts $400

• Strut pairs $800

• Ball Joints $400

• Exhaust (Depends) Mufflers ~$300 / Catalytic converters ~$500 / Pipes and resonators ~$200

• Antifreeze/ Transmission/brake flushes ~$150, some transmissions require special tools

• Engine/block work (contact me)

• Light replacement ~$40 headlights ~$20 signals

• Battery replacement ~$160 (mostly part cost)

• Motorcycle tire swaps ~$250

• Motorcycle carburetor cleaning ~$150 per carb (free vacuum balancing after, up to 2 carburetors)

• Motorcycle battery swap ~$120 (mostly part cost)

• Motorcycle oil change ~$60

• Motorcycle brakes ~$300 per front or back, very dependent on part price

• Motorcycle spark plugs ~$150

Diagnostic help through my contacts is free! Contact me through my social links if you need help troubleshooting.

For all inquiries just use my usual contacts: Telegram / Twitter