I'm new to stompbox building, but I had an idea I'd like veterans' opinions on, which is a new stompbox that I call The Speakulator.

My idea was for a stompbox that would somehow contain a tiny speaker (like those found in AM/FM alarm clocks).  The principal is based on the fact that an overdriven speaker breaks up a little and sounds good (like my Carvin 4-12" celestion cab).  Basically, as you turn up the volume (i.e., gain) the speaker would break up and increase the overdrive effect.  Care would have to be taken to not blow the little speaker.  The sound would all take place inside of the stompbox, perhaps creating a reverb effect as well, as sound bounces off the interior of the chamber.  The speaker would be microphoned with a tiny (unidirectional?) mic, and this signal would then pass to the guitar amp (probably after the impedance was changed to match a guitar signal, not a mic signal).

So.  Is this feasible?  Does anyone think it would work?  Would anyone go so far as to know what parts it would require for me to build a prototype?

Quote from: GreenEyeI'm new to stompbox building, but I had an idea I'd like veterans' opinions on, which is a new stompbox that I call The Speakulator.

My idea was for a stompbox that would somehow contain a tiny speaker (like those found in AM/FM alarm clocks).  The principal is based on the fact that an overdriven speaker breaks up a little and sounds good (like my Carvin 4-12" celestion cab).  Basically, as you turn up the volume (i.e., gain) the speaker would break up and increase the overdrive effect.  Care would have to be taken to not blow the little speaker.  The sound would all take place inside of the stompbox, perhaps creating a reverb effect as well, as sound bounces off the interior of the chamber.  The speaker would be microphoned with a tiny (unidirectional?) mic, and this signal would then pass to the guitar amp (probably after the impedance was changed to match a guitar signal, not a mic signal).

So.  Is this feasible?  Does anyone think it would work?  Would anyone go so far as to know what parts it would require for me to build a prototype?

Unfortunately, a tiny speaker sounds nothing like a big Vintage 30 being pounded by an amp's power section.  More often than not it sounds buzzy and farty... but with some careful component selection, you could get something sounding good.

IMHO unless you're looking for "extreme" sounds, it's best to mess with clipping/chip distortion, and simulate the big speaker sound with careful EQing.

Quotean overdriven speaker breaks up a little and sounds good (like my Carvin 4-12" celestion cab)

there's a world of pain inbetween the above, and what you're proposing.

"Extreme" and "pain" aren't really what I sought with this idea.  I'll likely stick to checking out the other great projects on the web for now, until I get a better handle on designing my own.  So many cool looking units out there...Blue Magic, Scrambler, Tube Reamer, Brown Sound in a Box, etc.  

I'll have enough projects to keep me busy for a quite awhile.

Thanks for the responses.

Cool idea!  :twisted:  Now go make some noise!

If anyone here is after "that sound", then I'd suggest a piezo element for the inside. They're cheap and all you'd have to do is to hook it up to the speaker or inside of the case, then put it through an opamp and output it.

Could be potentially... interesting Especially with varying levels of background noise bleed-through in the case.

if i remember right, there was something kind of like this
called the "pipe bomb."  it had a speaker in it with a mic.

have fun.

Ah yes:

http://www.crazychucks.com/guitar/PIPEBOMB.GIF

There ARE other weirdos out there like me!  

Nice recollection.