If you are looking for a great activity that will make the connection between sound waves and basic electric circuits, you may want to create an electric guitar out of a cup.
What you will need
These are the things you will need:
- A paper cup
- A piezo speaker (a small round speaker that can operate around the audible range of 2kHz)
- Small plug end with wires (e.g. the plug from unused earphones)
- A battery powered speaker
- A long string or a fishing line (about 10 feet in length)
- A roll of masking tape
- Small cardboard or craft foam
- A sharp pencil
Steps to follow
After gathering all the materials follow these steps to create your own electric cup guitar.
- Cut a small hole at the bottom of a paper cup by using the sharp end of a pencil. The hole should be small and yet big enough to fit the string through.
- Thread a piece of string through the hole on the cup.
- Take the piezo speaker and attach its wires to the mini plug. This will allow you to plug it to the battery powered speaker. Make sure the wires attached to the piezo are long enough to come from the bottom of the cup and outside to a speaker beside the cup.
- Cut a small piece of cardboard or craft foam and create 2 holes in them. Take the end of the string that you put inside the cup and thread it through the holes of the cardboard/craft foam. Tie the strings together so the cardboard will keep the string from slipping out the hole of the cup.
- Place the cardboard holding the strings at the bottom of the cup.
- Put masking tape over the piezo and place it over the cardboard with the string. This will sandwich the string between the cup and the piezo.
- Secure the whole thing at the bottom of the cup by adding some tape over it.
- Take the other end of the string and attach it to a wall or a shelf. You can also let it hang from the ceiling or have someone hold the other end.
- Stretch the string and pluck it to create some music.
The sound waves created by plucking the string are amplified by the piezo speaker. The volume of the sound can be controlled through the speaker.
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