Portable Amplifier Enclosure?
May 17, 2009 at 4:53 AM Thread Starter Post #1 of 9

blawh

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I was thinking about making an enclosure for this amp:

250ff1bfb3a7241819d81ff.jpg


It is too long to fit an altoids tin, so I was wondering if covering the components with hot glue/any other things that dry up hard. That way it would still be small, and at the same time be rugged
 
May 17, 2009 at 5:45 AM Post #2 of 9
I wouldn't use hot glue. The result will likely look like an elephant booger with a volume knob. I suppose you could get something more attractively organic if you had sculpting skills. Even then, the surface will get chipped up and dirtied easily.

Search the electronic part distributor catalogs, and your local stores. You might find the perfect enclosure.

If you really want to encase this thing in something permanently, the easiest thing to use would be potting compound, available from any big electronics distributor. It's made for environmental sealing of electronics from weather and chemicals, or when black instead of transparent, for security when someone doesn't want the parts used to be visible.

If you aren't going to subject it to big temperature swings, you could use one of the hard types, pot it using a too-big box as a mold, then cut away the mold and excess potting compound with a band saw or jig saw, giving nice clean edges. Then you can shape and smooth it with sand paper. This would work best if the jacks and volume knob are all on the same surface, so that can just be oriented upward, with that surface being set by the level where you stopped pouring the potting compound.

The only problem with potting compound is that it's somewhat expensive. The smallest container Digi-Key carries is 50 mL for $14. That's the price of a good case. Your board looks like you could get away with as little as about 30 mL if you're making a rectangular solid shape, so this isn't terribly wasteful.
 
May 17, 2009 at 11:36 AM Post #6 of 9
Anything I can use other than potting compound to "dip" the amplifier into to make a hard case? Living in Shanghai, China doesn't help! If I have no choice, would the method of using hot glue work? Or would the heat from the hot glue damage components?
 
May 17, 2009 at 2:51 PM Post #7 of 9
You still need some batteries, input jack, on-off switch, and maybe a charger and a DC jack. Are you thinking of gluing all those parts together?
 
May 17, 2009 at 9:30 PM Post #9 of 9
I've used the 2-part 5 minute clear epoxy to pot several USB memory sticks. I tend to drop them a lot for some reason, and the little plastic cases break off and go flying. I do one side at a time, and take care to get the edges. The epoxy is thick enough that it tends to sit where you put it. Not the prettiest result, but you could always paint it if you wanted to. It's fairly easy to work with, but don't try to do too much at once. Better to go back and do another layer.
 

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