Originally posted by F-N-S@Feb 7 2006, 01:33 PM
but i guess the speaker could be a problem 
[snapback]1178146[/snapback]
I'm most concerned about the speaker, controls, and power.
The controls might be rigged to some of the existing switches on the radio. With only one track to play, all we need is power on, power off, play, and stop. Depending on how the MP3 player is set up, that can achieved with only two switches: one for on/off and one for play/stop. If the existing controls can't be used (I don't know why they couldn't... I'm just spit balling here) then another interface might be rigged up on the back panel or through a seperate control unit connected by a wire running to the unit.
"Throw away" batteries are going to require an access panel for changing them out, while rechargables will require a power connection for the recharger. Both take up space. Obviously the radio already has a battery compartment, but it seems that is the area that get's chopped. This is really going to depend on the power requirements of the MP3 player and speaker used. If it will run of a couple of small watch batteries it might not be an issue at all.
The speaker is an obvious issue. The screen used prop had no need for one (as the old saying goes, "We'll fix it in post" {post referring to "post production", I probably didn't need to explain that on this forum}) while our functioning replica will. I see two obvious answers: 1) a very tiny speaker inside the unit 2) an external speaker attached with a thin cable. I have not yet spent any time searching for a speaker (since I didn't have the unit's internal dimension) so option 1 might not even be possible. Option 2 is not desireable because it further reduces screen accuracy, but it sure makes construction a LOT easier. If you are costuming, you might even run this to a speaker and power supply housed in a PAL casing attacked to a belt or vest.
We really don't need a data input port. The recording can be uploaded before the MP3 is dismantled. Saving it might be fun as you can upload recordings of other scenes from the show or your own messages later on, but it isn't necessary to make the prop replica functional. It's especially fun if we go back to the costuming idea with a speaker in a PAL case. As you walk around Captain Mal periodically shouts orders at you over the communications device :lol However, those could also be uploaded before dismanteling the device if one thinks ahead. No, no need to save any microphone of data input port from the MP3.
