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Thread: My Sound System.

  1. #1

    My Sound System.

    I have a 1963 Futura. The original 1963 transistor radio that was in the car wasn't working so I bought a working 1962 Falcon vacuum tube radio off e-bay for $62. I really like the vacuum tubes. They take a minute to warm up and then kick in with a snap. The original speaker was mostly disintegrated, so I bought a 5” x 7” replacement radio speaker ($24.95) from Classic Auto Parts. The speaker fit perfectly and sounds great. The radio can be turned up LOUD without distortion. There is not much to listen to anymore on AM, however, so I bought a period Radio-Shack brand "Realistic" FM converter off e-bay for $25. I added one of these to the Falcon I had in high school when disco took over the AM band. My "new" FM converter worked, but FM has too many commercials, the pop music is horrible, and the "oldies" stations were playing disco and Phil Collins (also horrible). So, I bought an MP3 player off e-bay $2.60 (direct from China postage included). The MP3 player plugs into the cigarette lighter and broadcasts an FM signal, that gets picked up by the FM converter and amplified by the vacuum tube AM radio and played through the new dashboard speaker. The little thumb drive is 8 GB (I think). I loaded it with 10 CD's and it only took 14% of the capacity. I was pleasantly surprised to find that the car radio is plenty loud even while driving with the windows down. Now I can drive around while listening to BB King, Chuck Berry, the Grateful Dead, and Joni Mitchell blasting out of my single dashboard speaker (how the car was originally configured). The MP3 player just plugs in, and the FM converter is mounted with Velcro. I can easily remove them anytime and revert the car back to all original. See the following picture (click on it to make it larger):

    Sound System.jpg

    The little gauge behind the MP3 player is an inside thermometer that I bought off Amazon.com for $9 (I think). I had a magnetic dashboard thermometer on the Falcon I had in high school and wanted one for my "new" Falcon. I snipped off a strip from an old aluminum license plate and bent it to make a mount for the thermometer. I colored the strip black with a sharpie and mounted it to the bottom of the dash with a magnet and then attached the thermometer with its self-adhesive backing. Since it is mounted with a magnet it can also be easily removed.
    Last edited by ew1usnr; June 28th, 2014 at 02:40 PM. Reason: spelling errors

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Oct 2006
    Location
    Eagle Point OR
    Posts
    55
    Thats what I call thinking outside the box. Well done. I am in the process of converting some old drive in speakers to house the speakers for my sound system and using an old suitcase for the amp and sub enclosure so you dont see them (I have a 2dr wagon so you see everything in the back). Nice job.
    No matter where you go, there you are...

  3. #3

    Cool idea!

    I just left the old radio in the dash, and mounted an Alpine head unit under the dash. I also use flash drives in my glove box. This gives the freedom to expand my sound system. Great thinking out of the box
    Bill Proctor .. 1963 Falcon Sprint. Looking forward to learning new things.

  4. #4

    Radio Noise Supressor

    I have been happy with my "MP3 broadcaster to FM converter to 1962 vacuum tube AM radio" sound system. I was driving around listening to Leslie Gore belting it out from my dashboard speaker this morning.

    Sound System.jpg

    But ... there has been an annoying degree of static mixed in with the music. I have resistor spark plugs, noise-suppressor spark plug wires, and a capacitor on my generator and wondered what else I could do. I just ordered this in-line power supply filter from e-bay for $5.77, shipping included. The price seemed good. You run the power through it and there is a black wire that hooks to ground. I will run the power supplies for both the AM radio and FM converter through this gizmo and see if it reduces the noise.

    Power supplu noise supressor .77.jpg
    Last edited by ew1usnr; June 28th, 2014 at 02:43 PM.
    Dennis Pierson
    Tampa, FL
    "The Wonder Falcon"

    '63 Futura Hardtop (260, Ford-O-Matic, bench seat)

  5. #5
    If you go all the way back to AM (no MP3 player), do you still get similar "static" coming through on stronger stations? These old tube radios, like any of the AC versions I've restored, have paper and filter capacitors inside and these, like the electrolytic's it may have, dry up over time. When this happens capacitors can make a lot of noise in the output. You mention buying a "working" radio, but not whether it was serviced.

    Old capacitors can fail in not so good a way (like little fire crackers), so if this isn't known for sure whether they are original or not, you may want to consider this if the power supply filter (ahem.. another filter capacitor) doesn't resolve your issue. Most places will service these in about 3-5 weeks for about $125.
    Last edited by Luva65wagon; June 30th, 2014 at 11:07 AM.
    Roger Moore

    63 "Flarechero"
    powered by: 347ci stroker | Tremec T5 | 8" 3:45 TracLoc rear



  6. #6

    I like vacuum tubes.

    Hello, Roger.

    I have not had the radio serviced, but I don't hear the static when it is running off just the battery. I hear the static when the engine is running and it gets louder when the engine runs faster. The antenna mast should be shielded from the engine by the hood and fenders, so my guess is that the static is coming through from the power supply.

    Another twist is that the broadcast signal from the MP3 player is not very strong, so I have to turn the radio up and that makes the static louder. So ... I am going to try adding an amplified antenna inside the car and right next to the MP3 player. I'll mount the antenna under the dash right next to the MP3 player. That should minimize interference from other radio stations or external static and it will feed an amplified signal to the FM converter so I should not have to turn the AM radio up as loud to hear the music. The antenna amplifier has a red wire that goes to a 12V power supply.

    amplified antenna.JPG

    I ordered this amplified (see above) “New Universal Car Windshield Glass Electronic Radio Non-Directional Antenna 12V” from e-bay for $2.87, including shipping from Hong Kong. The price seemed right. “Can amplify FM signals. Strengthen the weak signal receiving sensitivity.” Specifications: Input voltage: 12V, FM gain: 20±3dB, AM gain: 18dB, Absorption: -8mA, Power supply: 60-100 MA, Working frequency: 48-860 Hz, Noise factor: ≤ 7 dB, Output impedance: 75 Ω, Output standing wave: ≤3.
    Last edited by ew1usnr; September 19th, 2015 at 05:35 PM.
    Dennis Pierson
    Tampa, FL
    "The Wonder Falcon"

    '63 Futura Hardtop (260, Ford-O-Matic, bench seat)

  7. #7
    Well Dennis - none of that can hurt. I was just wondering whether the noise was there with the engine running and only AM station tuned. Filter capacitors are just that - filters to remove minuscule changes in voltage up to radical changes. Smoothing everything out. Noisy tube radios are usually a result of these no longer doing their job. With the engine off, the battery voltage it pretty stable and there would not be anything happening to induce noise.

    Let us know what happens with the new bits.
    Roger Moore

    63 "Flarechero"
    powered by: 347ci stroker | Tremec T5 | 8" 3:45 TracLoc rear



  8. #8

    This is great!

    I added the filter in-line with the power to the AM radio and the FM converter this morning, and .... Wow! The static is gone. The music plays crystal clear. It sounds like a CD, it is that clear. The filter very much exceeded my expectations.

    Power supplu noise supressor .77.jpg

    I don't think that I will bother with the amplified antenna now. This is perfectly fine the way it is.
    Last edited by ew1usnr; January 30th, 2015 at 04:53 AM.
    Dennis Pierson
    Tampa, FL
    "The Wonder Falcon"

    '63 Futura Hardtop (260, Ford-O-Matic, bench seat)

  9. #9

    Spring-base antenna

    I bought a “New vintage style spring radio antenna top side fender cowl mount round base NOS fits one-inch hole” off e-bay. It has a 33-inch fixed mast, 56-inch cable, and a Motorola type plug.

    4.jpg

    This antenna is not stock, but it is period correct. The Falcon station wagon that I had while in high school had a spring-base antenna like this and I always that it was pretty cool. It will keep the antenna from being broken off in an automatic car wash.

    3.jpg

    Dennis.
    Last edited by ew1usnr; January 29th, 2015 at 02:36 PM.
    Dennis Pierson
    Tampa, FL
    "The Wonder Falcon"

    '63 Futura Hardtop (260, Ford-O-Matic, bench seat)

  10. #10

    A Falcon's Progress

    As an upgrade to the the sound system in the Falcon, I finally got around to ordering a car antenna male to two female adapter from Amazon for $4.92 including postage.
    Car Antenna Male to Two Female Adapter.jpg

    That will let me leave the outside antenna connected while also adding my $2.87 power-amplified antenna inside the car along the bottom edge of the dash.
    amplified antenna.JPG

    The amplified antenna will boost the weak FM signal broadcast from my $3 cigarette-lighter MP3 that is received by the FM converter that plays through my AM radio.
    Sound System.JPG

    That will give a stronger input signal to the radio so that I a get a louder output volume and will not have to turn it all the way up in order to hear it.
    Dennis Pierson
    Tampa, FL
    "The Wonder Falcon"

    '63 Futura Hardtop (260, Ford-O-Matic, bench seat)

  11. #11
    Wow Dennis. Next will come a GPS navigation unit. Maybe streaming video? I can see it now.
    Roger Moore

    63 "Flarechero"
    powered by: 347ci stroker | Tremec T5 | 8" 3:45 TracLoc rear



  12. #12

    ReadyRad

    My amplified antenna idea didn't work. The sound actually dropped when I turned it on. The amplified signal must have caused an automatic gain in the radio to attenuate the signal.

    But then I saw something called a "RediRad" MP3 to AM radio adapter in MAC's auto parts catalog. MAC's wanted $125 for it, but if you go to the manufacturer's web site or Amazon you can buy it for $99.
    ReadyRad AM N.jpg

    “RediRad Model AM/N - Universal AUX Input - Ideal for AM-only Radios in Collector / Classic Automobiles with Negative-Ground Electrical System, made in Delafield, Wisconsin, USA” off Amazon for $99 + $4.99 postage. See: https://rediscoveradio.com/
    “If your Freedom Machine still has its original AM-only radio, congratulations! For so many reasons, there is simply nothing like seeing the factory radio in the dash. But where is the MUSIC? Certainly not on the AM band! Wouldn't it be GREAT to have an auxiliary-input jack for your original radio - without having to resort to an expensive, invasive 'conversion' service? NOW YOU CAN! At only $99, the non-invasive RediRadTM lets you fully enjoy music favorites from any portable source through your existing, functional audio equipment. Have all of this capability without broadcast interference or hacking up that beautiful dashboard! The new RediRadTM model AM/N operates on either 6-volts or 12-volts with a negative-ground electrical system (basically everything U.S.-built after 1955), and an AM-only radio.”

    I also bought an MP3 player off Amazon for $18.
    RCA M6204 4 GB Video MP3 Player with 2-Inch Color Display .98.jpg

    I just hooked up a "RediRad" adapter in The Wonder Falcon and it works just like they said it would. Billie Holiday and BB King sounded great through the dashboard speaker.
    2-DCP_0280.jpg

    I have the wire that connects to the MP3 player coiled up in the ash tray. I can pull it out to extend the wire and have the MP3 player on the middle of the bench seat while I am using it. I can put the MP3 player in the glove box when it is not needed and tuck the wire back in the ash tray.

    3-DCP_0283.jpg

    Now I can drive the Falcon while listening to every Grateful Dead album ever made. Yea!

    You might notice what appears to be a choke knob while the V-8 motors were supposed to have an automatic choke. That is because an enterprising former owner installed an additional cigarette lighter where the choke delete plate had been. My car has his and hers cigarette lighters! The radio push buttons have melt marks and nicotine stains from people putting their cigarettes in the ash tray. People in the 1960's liked to smoke.

    Dennis.
    Last edited by ew1usnr; September 20th, 2015 at 05:42 AM.
    Dennis Pierson
    Tampa, FL
    "The Wonder Falcon"

    '63 Futura Hardtop (260, Ford-O-Matic, bench seat)

  13. #13

    YouTube to MP3

    There is a program that can be downloaded for free off the internet that is called FreeMake. It allows people to save music off YouTube as a MP3 file.

    See: http://www.freemake.com/free_youtube_converter/

    Freemake.JPG

    Someone can google "Billboard Top 100 Hits" and the add whatever year they want. Then they can download every song on the list from YouTube.

    See the hits for 1963, for example: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Billbo...ingles_of_1963
    Dennis Pierson
    Tampa, FL
    "The Wonder Falcon"

    '63 Futura Hardtop (260, Ford-O-Matic, bench seat)

  14. #14
    Quote Originally Posted by johnsnowkornar View Post
    What is the purpose for your speakers?
    So he can turn the radio up LOUD without distortion. Do you have a different purpose for your speakers?
    Roger Moore

    63 "Flarechero"
    powered by: 347ci stroker | Tremec T5 | 8" 3:45 TracLoc rear



  15. #15
    I love every part of this, its like watching myself go entirely too far with keeping it real. (Compliment)
    Being a bit too concerned with my abilities to restore a radio that old, mine remains off. My wife turned it on when i was driving and visions of a flaming falcon caused me to frantically swat at the controls mumbling things that probably aren’t true.

    For now, I think ill go with a Bose SoundLink Mini 2, print out some feet for it and plop it right down on the dash when i need some tunes. My biggest problem is not having HD radio.

    Keep it up Dennis, this was great info, thank you!
    Matt
    '63 Falcon Futura Convertible 170ci Special C4 Auto
    "Don't worry, she'll hold together... You hear me baby? Hold together." -Han Solo

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