8mm Forum: Neat Idea for a back yard

This is topic Neat Idea for a back yard in forum General Yak at 8mm Forum.

To visit this topic, use this URL:
https://8mmforum.film-tech.com/cgi-bin/ubb/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=8;t=003974

Posted by Jim Schrader (Member # 9) on June 05, 2016, 10:51 AM:

Posted by Pasquale DAlessio (Member # 2052) on June 05, 2016, 11:22 AM:

I would but there aren't any parking spaces left! [Big Grin]

Posted by Melvin England (Member # 5270) on June 05, 2016, 11:26 AM:

.... and it would have to be a road movie!

Posted by Steve Klare (Member # 12) on June 06, 2016, 08:09 AM:

I have this in my "Theater":

Because of it I am the largest car-free indoor drive-in theater on my block!

(............as far as I know!)

Posted by Tom Photiou (Member # 130) on June 08, 2016, 04:22 AM:

You do get some pretty coooooool stuff in the states. [Wink]

Posted by Steve Klare (Member # 12) on June 08, 2016, 08:31 AM:

Drive-In speakers are actually very common.

Most drive in theaters have gone out of business and most of the ones still operating have gone to FM broadcast for audio, so there are thousands and thousands of used ones available.

-plus you can buy brand new ones from Detroit Diecast.

Detroit Diecast

Mine is one of these.

If I get another one, I think I'd like to buy a dead vintage one and restore it. It is very common for them to have the names of the old theaters still on them and in the best case it would be great to have one from a local theater. (E-bay usually has a couple of dozen on auction ranging all the way from corroded and dead right up to brand new.)

The parts are readily available. The catch is you need to buy a special screwdriver to open them up, because otherwise the patrons sometimes tampered with them. They often tried to drive away with the speaker still hanging in the car window, but that's another story.

Beyond the cool exterior, it's just a regular 8 Ohm speaker with a volume control (other than being weather proof...). I've wired it into the Ext. speaker jack on my Elmo machines and it sounds pretty good.

Long term I want to permanently connect it into my home cinema audio system and have it sitting on an end table (I mentioned hanging it on a vintage car door in the living room: my wife vetoed it thoroughly! [Wink]

), but like many of my projects it's waiting in line for some other one to get finished.

I also think it would be cool to plumb it into an FM radio or automotive sound system so I could use it at a real drive in theater, but right now that's just a "maybe someday".

UBB.classic^TM 6.3.1.2