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Step 9: Enjoy and impress your friends! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 Step 10: How to use the plasma speaker . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 Step 11: Interesting discharges... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 Related Instructables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 Comments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
http://www.instructables.com/id/Build-A-Plasma-Speaker/
Author:Plasmana
My motto: "Energy cannot be created nor destroyed!" I have a brain condition called Asperger syndrome, so I may be a bit strange to you... And I tend to take things a bit too literally. I love anything that can light up the skies and ending with an loud band, lighting, fireworks, and EXPLOSIVES! As long as no harm has been done, therefore I absolutely hate wars, what is the point? I was born and raised in New Orleans, USA, then my family finally decided to move to England after Hurricane Katrina gave us a push to do so. After we moved, I developed great interest in electronics, then igh voltage electronics. I have archived many projects I wanted to do, but never succeeded at constructing the ultimate project, the Tesla Coil... But I am not that easily discouraged, I will continue working on until I succeed. There is a saying that my Gran always say, "The first you failed, try and try again until you succeed!" Now I go to College and study Electrics (not surprising!) to get my qualification, because all of this dang ultra strict Health and Safety laws!
http://www.instructables.com/id/Build-A-Plasma-Speaker/
http://www.instructables.com/id/Build-A-Plasma-Speaker/
Step 2: Schematics
I got the idea from scopeboy's website on his flyback driver section, but the schematic was quite complex and buying four MOSFET's is a little too expensive for me... So I simplified the design to using one MOSFET. I get a lot of complainants of this project is not working very well or at all. This new design WORKs, however, for most people it may not work. This is due to the MOSFET (and some other components) is poor quality. I just recently found out that manufacture who makes the components sell the best quality ones to other manufactures and sell the poorer quality ones to the whole sellers and retailers. For this project, the best grade MOSFET's is critical, and it can only be gotten by salvaging old electronic devices, unless you are willing to pay for thousands of components for the manufacture... :-)
http://www.instructables.com/id/Build-A-Plasma-Speaker/
http://www.instructables.com/id/Build-A-Plasma-Speaker/
Image Notes 1. MOSFET with a massive heatsink. 2. TL494 oscillator, 3. part of the flyback transformer. 4. 12v power source.
http://www.instructables.com/id/Build-A-Plasma-Speaker/
http://www.instructables.com/id/Build-A-Plasma-Speaker/
http://www.instructables.com/id/Build-A-Plasma-Speaker/
http://www.instructables.com/id/Build-A-Plasma-Speaker/
http://www.instructables.com/id/Build-A-Plasma-Speaker/
http://www.instructables.com/id/Build-A-Plasma-Speaker/
Well, I hoped you enjoyed this instructable! If you have any questions, or need help, or found an error, or anything, make a comment! I like comments! :-)
http://www.instructables.com/id/Build-A-Plasma-Speaker/
http://www.instructables.com/id/Build-A-Plasma-Speaker/
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Comments
50 comments Add Comment view all 1360 comments
www.microbike.ie says:
what is the running cost and how loud it is?
teslacoilguitaramp,helpmeplz says:
Mar 1, 2011. 6:19 PM REPLY and one other thing, how much does this cost to produce, i have a tight budget, and everything needs to be bought slowly, and the more expensive it is the longer it will take. Mar 1, 2011. 6:17 PM REPLY i created a profiole to ask you, or anyone, will this work with a Tesla coil, all i want to do is make a tesla coil guitar amp and this would be a major step for me getting there. and the more people help me the sooner i may be able to make a page on how to do that. so please help me!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
teslacoilguitaramp,helpmeplz says:
Enoch23 says:
why not use more mosfets. I have seen a scematic that uses 3 or 4 i believe, and they all have little heatsinks on them...
uberdum05 says:
Feb 20, 2011. 3:23 AM REPLY Couldn't you parallel up more IRF540's to get more power handling capability and then you could share the load between them all?
jaaz95 says:
Oct 10, 2010. 6:09 AM REPLY can you replace the flyback transformer with a NST and use this circuit in a tesla coil? if so is it even necessary to switch out the flyback transformer?
TimTD says:
Feb 19, 2011. 9:26 AM REPLY No, because NSTs have an iron transformer core, so they cannot handle frequencies above 1 khz, while flyback transformers have feritte cores and work from about 15khz to 60khz. Since this circuit puts out high frequency, an NST will not work.
http://www.instructables.com/id/Build-A-Plasma-Speaker/
jaydenr says:
Feb 16, 2011. 9:43 PM REPLY How "reliable" is this plasma speaker? i mean how likely is the mosfet to overheat and fail? etc. i just ask because i see the link to an instructable above that says " A reliable plasma speaker".
imagigadgets says:
Feb 12, 2011. 4:53 PM REPLY I was thinking of how cool it would be if a guitar could plug into one of these. Is it possible to extend the circuit simply and turn it into a guitar amp?
j_l_larson says:
why no video of the finished project?
junojuno says:
can anyone help me? just a little favor, the required power source was at least 12 volt is there any specific amp for both power supply (for TL494 and flyback)? is it ok if i just use 12 volt 500 mA? thanks for your answer, and pardon my bad english.. LOL
lasermaster3531 says:
Feb 1, 2011. 8:16 PM REPLY A flyback driver circuit needs a lot more than 500ma to work. A circuit like this will draw between 5 and 20 amps. Your best bet would be getting a computer PSU with a big filter cap or a laptop power brick with a big filter cap or a 12 or more volt lead acid battery like a car battery. Bcantley2010 you are thinking of a 500mAh battery which can supply 500 milliamps for an hour. Amps in an hour is like saying gallons per minute per hour. An amp is a measure of current flow. A 500mAh battery wouldn't last long at all if it would work at all because the very high power draw. Hope this helps. Jan 10, 2011. 1:49 PM REPLY
bcantley2010 says:
Someone correct me if i am wrong but i wired this project and monitored the current draw. It was around 6 amps. so you have a battery that can supply .5 amps in one hour.
I believe it would work just fine, although i assume the runtime you may anticipate from your battery would approximately last only roughly 5 minutes.
jbryan says:
Jan 30, 2011. 5:02 PM REPLY i went to that site and looked for that flyback transformer but idk specifically what specs it requires can you help me out with that?
Dec 13, 2010. 9:20 PM REPLY I made my the driver on a bread board when i conected it all up....... nothing happend ,The IRF540did't get warm and there was no spark etier i went over the diagram hundreds of times but it don't work im frustrated.............................. please help.
Blue_Bird says:
Are you sure you wired up the flyback transformer correctly?
Fenex says:
how many spins in the secondary??
bcantley2010 says:
Jan 10, 2011. 2:02 PM REPLY The ratio between the primary and secondary greatly varies. if you put a small a/c voltage across the primary and measure the voltage output on the secondary you can calculate what the turns ratio is. unless you can find the data sheet then its really easy.
melkior34 says:
Nov 1, 2010. 1:40 PM REPLY well..the secondary is inside the flyback..so i think they are a lot of spins inside ...because the transformation coefficient is very big !
http://www.instructables.com/id/Build-A-Plasma-Speaker/
szechuan53 says:
does the inductance of the transformer matter?
bcantley2010 says:
yes completely ideally you want the transformer to resonate with its supporting circuitry.
st3vvpidvu says:
Nov 24, 2010. 10:25 AM REPLY Can anyone help me? Really confused where the negatives go in the schematics. Is it just connected to another piece of metal to ground the wiring? or connected to the 0v which is hte negative?
bcantley2010 says:
All the negatives are tied to a common ground ie: the negative terminal on your power supply.
grenadier says:
Just use a circuit that doesn't tend to blow up. http://teravolt.org/Plasma_Speaker_1.htm
st3vvpidvu says:
Oh my goodness why isnt this video posted for plasmana lol. thanks a lot!!
Crazakis says:
How you connect the flyback?
bcantley2010 says:
step 1. Identify the pin out of the x-former you have.
step 2. identify the primary and secondary windings for mine i used pins 1 and 2 for primary and the cathode and pin 8 as HV return step 3. start to wire from the schematic one connection at a time.
isma14 says:
So, what pins we connect in flyback transformer??
bcantley2010 says:
http://www.instructables.com/answers/how-to-find-flyback-transformer-pinout/
taoybb-TH says:
HI which flyback transformer i can use? Modern or Old (B-W TV) or any?
taoybb-TH says:
It's OK or not if i change fet to IRFP250 or if i want to parallel how can i do seperate Rg or share?
and how about this heatsink this is big enough i bought it for 100baht per one of these (3USD) it weight about 1KG it very old but why modern heatsink are very lightweight (same size)
http://www.instructables.com/id/Build-A-Plasma-Speaker/
seabeepirate says:
Dec 31, 2010. 9:02 PM REPLY So correct me if I'm wrong, but assuming that you've salvaged the flyback mosfets and power supply, this actually looks like it's a project that can be built for less than $20 USD?
gobitz says:
May 27, 2009. 7:48 AM REPLY If you put a smaller heatsink on the mosfet and put it in mineral oil then the temperature should be quite lower, until it warms up the mineral oil.
Gasburner says:
May 29, 2009. 12:38 PM REPLY You could make a crude water cooling loop with your idea. Simply gain a water cooling loop (a computer one), create a reservoir from something that iwll not melt, and have an input pipe and an output pipe. Then connect the fans and pump to a 12V DC supply and away you go. The pump may kill itself if you use mineral oil, but find something else. Anyway, the liquid is pumped past the MOSFET and then into a radiator, where fans dissipate the heat :D Should be really effective (note: SHOULD be, it may not work)(this is a disclaimer :])
seabeepirate says:
Good thinking gobitz. I had forgotten all about this until you mentioned it.
Using a large container with a thin wall, filled with mineral oil, the entire surface of the container could be used as the heatsink. Perhaps a popcorn tin? It might not need to be that big, I don't know. I'd still attach a small heatsink directly to the MOSFET as gobitz suggested. I think it would help distribute the heat to the oil for better cooling. As an electrician in the Navy I was given a basic knowledge of transformers and most transformers that I dealt with used the oil and case as their heatsink. Usually the case was around 2-3 times the size of the actuall transformer if memory serves me. I seem to remember that most of what is actually in a "pole pig" is just oil to help cool the transformer. I like Gasburner's idea too but I think the oil is a much simpler and probably safer idea. No pumps, the oil works as an insulator, and less chance that a leak will cause any major problems. Not to mention it's probably cheaper unless you happen to have the spare water cooler already. Theoretically the oil could eventually evaporate and as the MOSFET heats the oil you could end with a fire on your hands, but you'd have to run this nonstop for quite a while before it became an issue I think. Periodically checking your oil level and temp could easily prevent this though. You could easily have too little oil for this but never too much, so don't be afraid to use a bigger container. Great instructable! I was actually reading this hoping I might be able to use it with a tesla coil. What do you think?
carebare47 says:
I get the circuit, but could someone explain what the capacitor from the audio jack does?
hyperphreak says:
Dec 27, 2010. 12:49 PM REPLY Im pretty sure thats a voltage spike absorber (Correct me if Im wrong.), if so then its suposed to protect you CD player, MP3, phone etc. Wouldnt be that great to have high voltage feedback going into your precious gadgets or computer!
htc109 says:
Mar 21, 2010. 11:32 AM REPLY can anyone give me advice on a good enough power source or atleast how to make one using some kind of batteries or power adapters????
bcantley2010 says:
a car battery will work
kisalvador says:
havent tried it yet, nor have i built this plasma speaker, but i do know car alarm transmitter batteries are rated at 12V http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3538773&clickid=prod_cs radioshack isnt the best place for components but batteries should be fine lol
Plasmana says:
You can use a car battery...
Power supplies are not recommended as they have 'noise' in the lines, it will interfere the performance of the plasma speaker.
randomapps says:
i have a power supply which is 30v would a capacitor to filter the noise?
http://www.instructables.com/id/Build-A-Plasma-Speaker/
bcantley2010 says:
Jan 10, 2011. 1:43 PM REPLY 3 12 volt batteries in series would give you 36 vdc with less ripple. if you have a o-scope you could always take a look at the ripple with the power supply you currently have. If you use a oscilloscope's AC coupling setting it will reject the supply's DC and reveal any ripple
kool1zero says:
where does everyone get these nice neat diagrams?
jomac_uk says:
Dec 11, 2010. 4:23 PM REPLY Plasmana, Another small point to add if i may, i did a little google because something didn't look right and i wasnt sure what, practically every circuit for an EHT flyback generator had a flyback suppression capacitor across the UF4007 I also tend to agree with electrojohn and his comments. I had heard of these systems, but never seen one in operation until i saw your video, and was i impressed!!
TECHMASTERJOE says:
running 2 mosfet in parallel to help with the load yes you can do it i have ant it helps a lot with heat
disturbedreaper says:
Dec 2, 2010. 5:22 PM REPLY I have a MOSFET that has a rating of 100v and 12A while the one used here has a rating of 100v and 22A. do I need those extra amps? Also, is the heat created a result th MOSFET used in the instructable not being able to handle the amps or just the use of it?
ElvenChild says:
the flapping arc video is a private video
http://www.instructables.com/id/Build-A-Plasma-Speaker/