MP3: The Definitive Guide

Kit Players

If none of the commercial offerings available by the time you read this quite fit the bill, if you think you can do it yourself cheaper, or if you’re the type who has a garage of tools dangerous enough to take off a limb, you’re a good candidate for an MP3 hardware kit. If you want something done right, do it yourself, right? Right.

Note

Virtually all of the commercial manufacturers go to pains to remain compliant with SDMI and other security considerations. If you’d rather not be beholden to these laws and would rather be on your own recognizance in terms of legal issues, building your own player will give you the freedom to get tunes into and out of the unit without having to jump over security fences.

There are basically two approaches to building home- and car-based MP3 units:

• Purchase all the parts and plans as part of a bundled unit. Spend an evening with the instructions, get out your razor blade and gluestick, and and start sticking Tab A in Slot B until you’ve got something resembling an MP3 player. This is the easiest approach, designed for those with little-to-no experience working with hardware and software at a low level.

• Purchase, download, or otherwise procure plans—without the parts. Then hunt down the parts yourself at flea markets and electronics warehouses. With any luck, you’ll actually be able to find the same parts specified in the plans and everything will just work. In all likelihood, you’ll end up doing some improvising and further research to make ...