Difference between revisions of "Speaker Testing"

Latest revision as of 10:45, 15 August 2014

This page has been migrated to a document on Free Geek's Google Drive.

Information remaining behind may no longer be relevant.

MIGRATOR:

When you have tagged this page as migrated,
please add a link to the new document on Google Drive.

(Link to new page immediately below.)

This flowchart is outdated and has been replaced by this: Media:SpeakerTestingInstructions.odt --Scrump 00:11, 3 August 2012 (UTC)

Howto Flow Chart

Speakers are tested for functionality and good tone. The good ones are then distributed throughout the building (Build, Thrift Store, or Infrastructure.) The ones that don't make the cut are recycled.

This is a graph with borders and nodes. Maybe there is an Imagemap used so the nodes may be linking to some Pages.

Please see Advanced Speaker Testing for a more complete description of how to test speakers.

How to Find a Power Adaptor

Look at the back of the speaker to try to find out the voltage and current (AC or DC), and try to find a power supply to match. If at all possible, also try to match ampage and speaker brand.
If you cannot find power information, try any one that fits to test. If the plug is still not the right voltage or amperage for the speakers, a buzzing sound will happen when you turn the speakers on.

Testing Speakers

Make sure the computer at the testing station is turned on. If it isn't, turn it on. If it still won't turn on, make sure the power strip is turned on.
Put an audio CD in the CD-ROM drive. It should start automatically. If it doesn't, double click on the icon on the desktop of the computer and then hit play.
Find a set of speakers with corresponding power adaptor, as well as a cord to go between the 2 speakers (if a cord is not attached) and a cord to go to the computer (if one is not attached) .
Plug the computer into the green sound port on the computer.
Adjust the volume as necessary. Listen for quality of tone, and listen for any distortion. If you are in doubt about the sound of any speaker, ask a fellow receiver.
If the speakers sound good, rubber band both the speakers and the power supply (and any cords you may have added) and put the whole thing on the upper shelf in the basic testing room.
If the speakers do not sound good, or don't make any sounds at all, then recycle them by clipping their cords and putting them in the box labeled Copper Bearing Materials in the main Receiving room. The cord can be put in the metal cart.

UNPLUG SPEAKERS BEFORE CLIPPING THEIR CORDS!

Box Signs

Powered Speakers

Subwoofer Speaker Sets

Orphaned Speakers

RCA Speakers

Speakers that only connect to a computer

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
-The primary goal of ''speaker testing'' is to weed out broken speakers and pair working speakers with thier appropriate power bricks to send off to the [[Build_Workshop]].
+{{migrated}}
+[https://docs.google.com/document/d/16y9ZsofjQ0tWAsE8w1sfZdTJkbnHkzPZ6yUGCR16GBA/edit?usp=sharing Link]
-==Quick Guide==
+This flowchart is outdated and has been replaced by this: [[Media:SpeakerTestingInstructions.odt]] --[[User:Scrump|Scrump]] 00:11, 3 August 2012 (UTC)
-*Find a pair of matching speakers on the shelf.
-*Look on the back of the main speaker and try to find power information.
-**If you find power information (voltage and maybe amperage), select a power brick that matches.
-**If you cannot find power information, take one of the tester bricks (should be in one of the outlets) and go through until you get a plug to fit. If the plug is still not the right voltage or amperage for the speakers, a buzzing sound will happen when you turn the speakers on.
-*Once you have paired a power brick with matching speakers, plug the speakers into the stereo headphone jack and plug the power brick into the outlet. Tune into your favorite radio station and see if everything sounds right.
-*If the sound isn't distorted, put a matching gizmo id on each speaker and the power brick if there is one. Bag them up and put them in a basket to take back to the [[Build_Workshop]].
-==Power Brick Sorting==
+==Howto Flow Chart==
-We get a lot of power bricks in reciving and most of them all look the same. If they are simply dumped into bins unorganized, it can take quite a long time to find the right brick for a pair of speakers. One of the tasks of reciving / speaker testing is sorting power bricks into proper voltage bins. Once the bricks are in the right bins, speaker testing can process speakers much faster.
+Speakers are tested for functionality and good tone.  The good ones are then distributed throughout the building (Build, Thrift Store, or Infrastructure.)  The ones that don't make the cut are recycled.
-Currently we have four different organized bins. This system probably needs to be revised as we see how many bricks of a specific voltage we get (there may not be enough 6 volt bricks to justify a separate bin). One possibility is to have a bin for "Under 10 volts" another bin for "above 20 volts" etc.
+<graphviz>
+digraph{
-[[Category:Howto]]
+start [label="START HERE", shape="box", fontsize="12"]
-[[Category:Hardware_testing]]
+aesthetic  [label="Are the speakers old, dingy, yellowed,\n dirty, or visibly broken?", fontsize="12"]
-===Current Bins===
+RECYCLE [label="RECYCLE!!!", fontsize="12"]
-*6 Volt AC/DC
+poweradaptor [label="Do the speakers need a power adaptor\n (i.e. need to be plugged into an outlet)?", fontsize="12"]
-*9 Volt AC/DC
+findpower [label="Find a corresponding power adaptor\n(they're organized by voltage)", fontsize="12")
-*12 Volt AC/DC
-*15 Volt AC/DC
+test [label="Plug it in and\n TEST IT!!!", fontsize="12"]
+start -> aesthetic
+aesthetic -> RECYCLE[label="YES"]
+aesthetic -> poweradaptor[label="NO"]
+poweradaptor ->findpower[label="YES"]
+poweradaptor ->test[label="NO"]
+</graphviz>
+Please see [[Advanced Speaker Testing]] for a more complete description of how to test speakers.
+==How to Find a Power Adaptor==
+* Look at the back of the speaker to try to find out the voltage and current (AC or DC), and try to find a power supply to match. If at all possible, also try to match ampage and speaker brand.
+* If you cannot find power information, try any one that fits to test. If the plug is still not the right voltage or amperage for the speakers, a buzzing sound will happen when you turn the speakers on.
+==Testing Speakers==
+* Make sure the computer at the testing station is turned on. If it isn't, turn it on. If it still won't turn on, make sure the power strip is turned on.
+* Put an audio CD in the CD-ROM drive. It should start automatically. If it doesn't, double click on the icon on the desktop of the computer and then hit play.
+* Find a set of speakers with corresponding power adaptor, as well as a cord to go between the 2 speakers (if a cord is not attached) and a cord to go to the computer (if one is not attached) .
+* Plug the computer into the green sound port on the computer.
+* Adjust the volume as necessary. Listen for quality of tone, and listen for any distortion. If you are in doubt about the sound of any speaker, ask a fellow receiver.
+* If the speakers sound good, rubber band both the speakers and the power supply (and any cords you may have added) and put the whole thing on the upper shelf in the basic testing room.
+* If the speakers do not sound good, or don't make any sounds at all, then recycle them by clipping their cords and putting them in the box labeled  [[CBM|Copper Bearing Materials]] in the main Receiving room. The cord can be put in the metal cart.
+===UNPLUG SPEAKERS BEFORE CLIPPING THEIR CORDS!===
+==Box Signs==
+[[Media:Speaker_Testing_-_Powered.odt | Powered Speakers]]
+[[Media:Speaker_Testing_-_Subwoofer.odt‎ | Subwoofer Speaker Sets]]
+[[Media:Speaker_Testing_-_Orphaned_Speakers.odt‎ | Orphaned Speakers]]
+[[Media:Speaker_Testing_-_RCA.odt‎ | RCA Speakers]]
+[[Media:Speaker_Testing_-_ONLY_to_comp.odt‎ | Speakers that only connect to a computer]]
+[[Category: Receiving]]
+[[Category: Hardware Testing]]
+[[Category: Howto]]