Stereo in shop

[daddo]

I use a cheap radio/cd player and dust it once a year whether it needs it or not.

But you could build a box with small air conditioner filters on two sides with a little fan in it if your concerned about heat or dust.  I have a 120 watt receiver I would do that with- it gets warm.

Play symphony music- that keeps it cooler than loud rock.  

[Big Dave]

LIL thanks guys. Internet radio and Amazon streaming are wonderful things, and they would be nice to have. But I have a huge CD collection and definitely will want to spin those. I also like quality audio gear -- and it's too easy to buy good stuff used these days. So for the sake of argument, suppose I end up with a conventional stereo. Just supposing. Like, something where I would care if the amp bit the dust. Any thoughts on that?

I, too had a sizeable CD collection. My initial plan during construction of my shop was to have a stereo & CD player wired in to speakers in the ceiling. That all worked well & good up until the day I received an Ipod as a gift. All of my CD's have been loaded onto it ( a little over 6000 songs...), as well as a few playlists. And there's plenty of room for more.

As you can see I've plugged it into a mid-to-late 70's Kenwood receiver/amplifier that gives me more than enough sound in the shop. I've also got a couple speakers mounted under the eves of the shop pointed toward the patio for those nights when a little outdoor music is required. I have since gotten rid of the CD player.



It works like a champ, and I don't have to change any CD's...



I can't really help you with locating your stereo for dust concerns as I have mine mounted in the shop's bathroom. There's a little bit of dust, but I haven't had any issues...

Dave

[Stwood_]

Bosch jobsite radio here. Dust doesn't seem to affect it after 10-12 years in the shop

[barryvabeach]

My experience is that dust mostly settles on stuff, it doesn't move as much laterally.  So you can probably get away with building a shelf 4 to 6 inches above your gear, to catch most of the dust , or put you gear on a full extension slide,  again with a few inches of clearance above and to the sides, and that should keep out most of the dust.

[Derek Cohen]

I think that CDs are asking for trouble. Dust will get into the drawer, and the mechanism will be damaged. Stay with equipment that is relatively safe from dust.

I have an old set of AR speakers fed by an old amplifier. Into this is plugged an old iPhone. This holds hundreds of my CDs, and lets me tune into jazz programs around the world via Internet radio. 

Regards from Perth

Derek

[fredhargis]

You're worried about nothing. I had the same concerns 2 shops ago, and built a tight enclosure for the stuff (cable box, receiver, CD, and cassette (yep, still got one) player. I out a 120V muffin fan blowing out through the top of the cabinet, and put slots in the bottom which where then covered with a good quality pleated filter. Worked like a champ, but after a few years I found opening the cabinet to get to something was not all that handy and finally started leaving it open. Went another 6 years like that, then we loved. This time I just put all that stuff (ex cable box) on a shelf near the ceiling, but no2w I've added a computer and monitor. Lived there like that 5 years, nary a problem. We've moved again (last time, I hope) and the current shop will have that same stuff just like the last one. I have ditched the CD player, it was one of those old refurbed carrousel types and changing CDs was a pain. Besides, with a computer I mostly stream what I listen to now.

[s9plus20]

---

I agree with fredhargis, nothing to worry about.  Set it up and use it.

I have had a stereo and CDs in my shop for many years.  As you can see from the photo, dust does settle.
I use a cheapo DVD player and they seem to last for years.  I take an air compressor and blow out the stereo and the dvd player once in a while, perhaps once a year. The players are very cheap and can be replaced if necessary. (which I have not needed to do)

My speakers are sealed up, with no bass reflex port, so they are not sucking in any dust.  Its not high end audio for sure, but it works well for this application. I do connect an iPod occasionally. I like to listen to a couple of local FM stations.  I listen to a college game when it is not televised or else I don't want to sit in front of a TV. (Or go see in person) I have about 50 CDs in a drawer, the stack on top has some new ones that I recently brought into the shop.




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[TDKPE]

I was powering my cheap little shop speakers from the second zone of my Yamaha HT receiver, and controlling it from my iPhone, but the speakers blew their foam surrounds and I haven't gotten around to re-foaming them.

So lately I've been using my garage Lunchbox radio in my basement shop. I may not bother going back to the Yamaha at this point, and perhaps use the second zone for outdoor speakers instead. The Lunchbox doesn't have a CD player, but I don't care about that - I just listen to the radio, and almost always the same station, which is hard to get in the basement. It does a great job pulling that low-power station in, and with PLL tuning, it never wanders, with good selectivity. Something my former shop radio, a Tivoli Model 1 with analog tuning knob, stinks at (speaking of AR), so it lives in my BR where the signal is stronger.

https://www.amazon.com/Sangean-LB-100-Co...B0033WSDY2

p.s. Not that you're in the market, but for another $20, the Toughbox version has a battery charger built into it, so if using rechargeable batts, having it plugged in automatically recharges them. Mine is almost always plugged in, so I don't care about battery charging.

[Wipedout]

Ok build a box for it with filters around it instead of sides and top

[iclark]

Years ago, I picked up a small Sony stereo unit with radio & CD player and separate speakers. It sits on top of an old fridge behind my main lathe. After lots of years, I have not had any problems with dust. I did run into a problem that the non-slip shelf liner stuff that I put on top of the fridge started eating into the back of the remote control for the stereo. The shelf liner plasticizer was eating into the plastic of the remote where it was sitting on the liner.

I do have CD cleaner discs tucked away somewhere, but it has been years since I needed to use one (in a computer) and I am not positive where they are stored.

The biggest issue that I would expect would be turning green oak near an amp/tuner that has a perf metal top. The dust from green oak has a high acid content. It might not be good for the PC-board traces or the pins on the tubes (if you swing that way).

Oh, and, yes, I was very surprised that the plastic-bead-type shelf liner stuff was a bad choice to put under plastic stuff. So far, I have not noticed a problem with plastic screwdriver handles.

I did have a problem with the Zerust version staining hand plane bodies. The Zerust folks did not appreciate my posting about that and contacted me, but they failed to deliver on their promises to make things right by me.