mp3 player enclosure

This is the enclosure I made for PJRC's MP3 player board. I've never put anything in an enclosure before, and I hadn't plugged in a soldering iron for ten years, so I'm absurdly proud of the results, in that when I plug it in, nothing explodes.

The box, wires, ribbon cables, miscellaneous connectors, and standoffs for the board (but not the drive) were purchased in several trips to Radio Shack. The switches and nibbler tool were purchased from a local Radio Shack equivalent (Radio Shack was out of switches.) After several attempts to mount the drive myself, I gave up and ordered the drive standoffs from PJRC.

Click on any image for an enlargement

The ribbon cable connections for the external buttons.

The external buttons. (Halfway through, I realized I could've soldered all the ground connections to a common point at this end, as well. Dang.)

The bottom of the case, with extraneous holes from previous attempts to mount the drive.

The board, with its external hookups. I used external hookups mostly because, as a klutz, I feared having anything on the board actually protruding outside the case where I might drop something on it.

I'm sure the external hookups do nothing to enhance the signal quality, but it mostly lives in my car, which is pretty noisy anyway.

The finished product... I predict many delays if I ever try to get it through airport security. "But it plays music!" "Just step over here, sir..."

Rear view.

Back to Roddy's home page

The ribbon cable connections for the external buttons.	The external buttons. (Halfway through, I realized I could've soldered all the ground connections to a common point at this end, as well. Dang.)
The bottom of the case, with extraneous holes from previous attempts to mount the drive.	The board, with its external hookups. I used external hookups mostly because, as a klutz, I feared having anything on the board actually protruding outside the case where I might drop something on it.
I'm sure the external hookups do nothing to enhance the signal quality, but it mostly lives in my car, which is pretty noisy anyway.	The finished product... I predict many delays if I ever try to get it through airport security. "But it plays music!" "Just step over here, sir..."
Rear view.