How Does a Speaker Work?

• A speaker receives an electrical signal from the audio device (such as a stereo), and converts this signal to a mechanical wave that our ears can hear. The electrical signal is a complex AC signal. This signal can vary in voltage, thus creating the differences in volume that our ears hear when it is applied across a speaker. This signal can also vary in frequency, so the speaker converts these frequency differences into differences in pitch that we hear. Therefore, the higher the AC frequency is, the more shrill the pitch will be.
  
  

Making a Home Speaker System

• One mono (single channel) speaker to the speakers should be the same length for electrical load-balancing purposes. The principles are similar for stereo (two-channel) or other multichannel systems. To make a home speaker system, you will need the following:
  
  --A speaker cabinet, with an appropriate hole for the speaker. This is the housing that your speaker will sit in, plus it serves as a protective covering for the electrical and mechanical connections you will make while installing the speaker. A speaker cabinet can be made out of almost any material that does not connect electricity, such as wood or plastic. This cabinet should have a hole in the back as well.
  
  --For a stereo system, these should be two similar or identical speakers (i.e. two 6-inch woofers rather than a 6-inch woofer and a 3-inch tweeter). Other multichannel systems normally have matching sets of speakers, such as two woofers and two tweeters, four woofers. Buta system with an odd number of channels of two woofers and one tweeter, for example, have been known to be used as well.
  
  --A spool of speaker cable.
  --Screws, electrical pliers, a screwdriver, a soldering iron, and solder will to be used to make the mechanical connections in this project.
  
  Run the speaker wire through the speaker cabinet, back to front, and pull out of the hole where the speaker will be mounted. Leave about 6 inches of wire slack. Strip the end of the wire of about 1 inch of insulation. Gently pull the two pieces of wire apart. Each wire of the cable pair should be separated from the other wire for about four inches. Solder one wire to one of the speaker electrical leads. Solder the other wire to the other lead.
  
  Mount the speaker to the cabinet, and attach using the screws. Run the wire to the length from the stereo the speaker will sit, and cut the wire. Strip the wire of about 1 inch of insulation. Gently pull the two pieces of wire apart. Each wire of the cable pair should be separated from the other wire for about two inches.
  
  

Special Note:

• In a stereo or other multichannel configuration, the wires leading to the speakers should be the same length for electrical load-balancing purposes.