Sewable Speaker #
Tutorial: https://makezine.com/projects/soft-speakers
I drew from the makezine.com tutorial to make my own sewable speaker. It explains how the speaker works, so read through it then come back here to learn how to make one with our digital embroidery machine.
At the bottom of this page, you’ll find more related tutorials, resources, and artist works. Check them out if you want to use other conductive materials or are interested in magnetics to visualise frequencies and create sound.
Materials & Tools: #
- Enamel-coated copper thread loaded on the bobbin - slow down bobbin speed to avoid breakage
- Calico
- Viscose thread
- Adafruit Mono 2.5W Class D Audio Amplifier - PAM8302
- Magnet
- Jumper wires
- hot glue
- mini jack cable
- USB 2.0 A cable
- Wooden embroidery hoop
- Janome MC 15000 (digital embroidery machine)
- Multimeter
Resistance + Speaker Impedance #
The amp has an impedance of 4-8 ohms. To ensure you don’t damage the amp, the resistance of your thread needs to sit within this range.
What Does Ohm Rating Mean in Speakers? An ohm is a unit of electrical resistance. When used in speakers, it refers to a speaker’s resistance to an amplifier’s power. This resistance, also known as impedance, affects a speaker’s sound quality; thus, when purchasing a speaker, the ohm rating is a crucial factor for consideration.
Generally, there are 2, 4, and 8-ohm speakers. If the resistance is high, the sound will be better, crispier, and cleaner. However, the 4-ohm is the prevalent one. The more resistance or impedance, the less power you need, while the lower the ohm, the more power you need.
Save as SVG, clean up in Illustrator if necessary, and then open in Artistic Digitiser
Why Does Ohm Matter in a Speaker? In speakers, ohms are vital because they affect sound quality and loudness (loudness is measured in decibels). To get louder without producing distortion, you need to find speakers with higher impedance ratings than those with lower ratings.
On the other hand, if you want to preserve clarity at high or low frequencies while getting the most volume possible out of your system, go for speakers with lower impedances. The lower the impedance, the more current flows and the greater the load, which means increased power.Similarly, the higher the impedance, the lower the current flow and load, leading to decreased power.
Draw Spiral #
Use the multimeter to measure the resistance of your thread. You will need to calculate the resistance of your conductive thread per metre to generate the spiral in the calculator linked here: https://leecyborg.github.io/soft-speaker-spiral-calculator/
My spiral:
Save the SVG and open in Illustrator if you need to clean it up or resize before importing into Artistic Digitiser.
Embroidery #
Embroidery Machine Settings:
| Material | Top Thread | Bobbin | Tension |
|---|---|---|---|
| Calico Cotton 150gsm | Viscose | Enamelled Copper CUL 100/0,10 (0.1mm) | Auto -2 (3.0) |
More Tutorials #
Embroidered Fabric Speaker:
https://www.instructables.com/Embroidered-Fabric-Speaker/
https://www.kobakant.at/DIY/?p=2936
Sewable Pillow: https://www.kobakant.at/DIY/?p=3857
Sonoflex embroidered headphones/speakers: https://mi-lab.org/sonoflex-embroidered-speakers/
Related Projects #
Claire Williams:
http://www.xxx-clairewilliams-xxx.com/projets/sound-embroidery/
http://www.xxx-clairewilliams-xxx.com/projets/chants-magnetiques/