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Taking an amplifier off an old CRT

My old monitor has two mounted loundspeakers that I fell in love with.
Even though the monitor is no longer usable, I would like to continue
to use the speakers next to my new monitor. The speakers themselves are
detachable, but they require the amplifying unit that is part of the
monitor. It would be difficult for me to obtain a cheap and simple
amplifier to power this set, so I think it might be a good idea to take
the original amplifier off the monitor. I haven't looked inside yet (I
have yet to ask a technician to discharge the CRT before anything
else), but I want to know if it would be a wise thing to try. Do these
integrated amplifiers tend to be isolated from the main CRT circuitry,
only sharing the power cord with it?
 
R

Rono

Jan 1, 1970
0
Without knowing the model of the unit, most of these type monitors,
you can remove the whole audio amplifier section, & use it, but you
may have to make up a power supply, to run it! Rono.
 
A

Andy Cuffe

Jan 1, 1970
0
My old monitor has two mounted loundspeakers that I fell in love with.
Even though the monitor is no longer usable, I would like to continue
to use the speakers next to my new monitor. The speakers themselves are
detachable, but they require the amplifying unit that is part of the
monitor. It would be difficult for me to obtain a cheap and simple
amplifier to power this set, so I think it might be a good idea to take
the original amplifier off the monitor. I haven't looked inside yet (I
have yet to ask a technician to discharge the CRT before anything
else), but I want to know if it would be a wise thing to try. Do these
integrated amplifiers tend to be isolated from the main CRT circuitry,
only sharing the power cord with it?


It depends on the monitor. The amp could be a completely separate
board that only requires a single low voltage power supply that you
could get from a 'wall wart' adapter. If you're unlucky it could be
part of the main board and almost impossible to run without the rest
of the monitor. If your plan fails, there are small, inexpensive
amplifiers that would do the job.

Discharging the CRT is something you can easily and safely do
yourself. Do a google groups search for instructions. All you will
need is a long screwdriver and a piece of wire. The CRT can hold a
painful, but not dangerous charge.
Andy Cuffe

[email protected] <-- Use this address until 12/31/2005

[email protected] <-- Use this address after 12/31/2005
 
Without knowing the model of the unit, most of these type monitors,
you can remove the whole audio amplifier section, & use it

That's good to know. The model is Packard Bell 2160, a 15" CRT monitor
made in 1998.
but you may have to make up a power supply, to run it! Rono.

The transformer ought to be somewhere inside :)

Thanks, Rono
 
J

James Sweet

Jan 1, 1970
0
That's good to know. The model is Packard Bell 2160, a 15" CRT monitor
made in 1998.


The transformer ought to be somewhere inside :)

Thanks, Rono

Have you tried any other decent PC speakers? My dad had a PB monitor like
that, the speakers were decent for being part of such a cheap POS monitor
but they were nothing to write home about. A good $30-$80 set of PC speakers
will blow them away.
 
Yes, I tried other speakers, but couldn't find a decent alternative.
Cheap speakers actually do a jood job in my opinion, but the ones I've
seen feature a constant low-frequency "hum", probably as a result of
"efficient" design, that I'd rather live without. I generally aim for a
high-quality set of speakers for music playback. Just a plain 2.0 set.
Do you have a specific model in mind?
 
My plan didn't work out too well. As Andy suspected, the amplifier
turned out to be too integrated into the main circuitry. It wouldn't be
worth the hassle to get it out of there.
 
F

Franc Zabkar

Jan 1, 1970
0
My plan didn't work out too well. As Andy suspected, the amplifier
turned out to be too integrated into the main circuitry. It wouldn't be
worth the hassle to get it out of there.

A fretsaw should isolate the amplifier's real estate. There can't be
too many external traces - signal in, speaker out, volume pot, power
in. The datasheet for the power amp (eg TDAxxxx) will most probably
have an application circuit.


-- Franc Zabkar

Please remove one 'i' from my address when replying by email.
 
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