Portable power supply for powering hi-Fi in field

Candiety

Standard Member
Joined
Mar 6, 2005
Messages
40
Reaction score
2
Points
40
Ello everyone,

Do any of you know of a way to power a small-ish HiFi system when I go camping?

I think it's 65w - surely there must be a modern solution to allow for this apart from a noisy generator?

Ideally it would be something that could plugged into the mains somewhere and re-charged.

Ideas? Solutions? This has been bugging me for years. Thanks

(P.S it would be somewhere remote & not very loud - just can't allow myself to sacrifice sound quality!)
 
I can't be as useful as to tell you where to get it, or even exactly what it is, but maybe you could look at whatever buskers use to power guitar amps and keyboards etc?
 
Something like this maybe...

150W DC 12V to AC 230V Power Invertor with USB Charging Socket : InCar Power Invertors : Maplin



I can't be as useful as to tell you where to get it, or even exactly what it is, but maybe you could look at whatever buskers use to power guitar amps and keyboards etc?

Roland Cube Street battery powered stereo amp (Red): Amazon.co.uk: Musical Instruments

Roland Mobile Cube Portable Amplifier: Amazon.co.uk: Musical Instruments



Personally I use one of these...
Supertooth Disco Portable Bluetooth Stereo Speaker: Amazon.co.uk: Electronics
...and my iPhone.

:)
 
— As an Amazon Associate, AVForums earns from qualifying purchases —

I've got something fairly similar but to be honest, sound quality for me is just far too important. My old Hi-Fi produces unbelievable sound and that's about the standard I'd like to set myself!

It seems like power inverters are the solution I've been (occasionally) looking for all these years!

I'm pretty certain that my Hi-Fi is about 65W, and apparently I would need a sine-wave convertor (and not a modified sine-wave converter) as the power in the modified converter tends to cause audible feedback of some sort.

Does anybody know how to make sense of the specs of these things though? How do you determine how long they can power your equipment for?

And assuming it was a 65w HiFi and (for example) a 100w inverter, would 35w be saved, or would that excess power simply be used up?

Thanks for the help peoples, I feel I may get somewhere here.
 
— As an Amazon Associate, AVForums earns from qualifying purchases —
I've got something fairly similar but to be honest, sound quality for me is just far too important. My old Hi-Fi produces unbelievable sound and that's about the standard I'd like to set myself!

It seems like power inverters are the solution I've been (occasionally) looking for all these years!

I'm pretty certain that my Hi-Fi is about 65W, and apparently I would need a sine-wave convertor (and not a modified sine-wave converter) as the power in the modified converter tends to cause audible feedback of some sort.

Does anybody know how to make sense of the specs of these things though? How do you determine how long they can power your equipment for?

And assuming it was a 65w HiFi and (for example) a 100w inverter, would 35w be saved, or would that excess power simply be used up?

Thanks for the help peoples, I feel I may get somewhere here.



I can imagine a pure sine-wave inverter will give much better results over a cheaper unit.

The excess capacity is not used up (thrown away), however I believe inverters work at there most efficient when approaching the maximum rated load.

Bear in mind that your stereo will not be drawing a constant 65W all of the time.

How long will the battery last - no idea, gut feeling about 6 hours.
 
I've got something fairly similar but to be honest, sound quality for me is just far too important. My old Hi-Fi produces unbelievable sound and that's about the standard I'd like to set myself!

.
Somehow i dont think quality of sound is going to be anything like you experience in a home environment.

In the middle of a field with no walls, wind blowing and if you are really unlucky
a herd of cows mooing out of tune in the background:)
 
Thinking about it, maybe you should invest in a really nice pair of headphones if you want that audiophile quality sound of indoors outdoors.
 
I think it's worth a bash, an interesting project. :)

Buying an inverter if you do a bit of camping out of the back of your car is a useful addition anyway. So I guess all else that's needed is a spare battery and a means of charging it up whilst away (mains or from the car).

:)
 
^^I have Sennheiser HD-25 DJ headphones and some high quality Phonak ear-phones, though they wouldn't be much use at all for what I have in mind (camping with friends).

I do realise that sound quality may be effected, but it still should be pretty decent for what I have in mind. Certainly better than tinny, portable speaker units!

In case anybody finds this thread on google, http://www.energyigloo.com is a pretty helpful website. I'm currently awaiting a reply from the owner.
 
Last edited:
If you're camping with friends then surely one of you has and can play a guitar?

Music problem solved :D

Have you thought about creating your own? Maybe with a car battery and some components? I haven't looked into this at all but I'm sure I've seen them made somewhere.

Using something like this with a battery?

http://www.maplin.co.uk/300w-dc-12v...ing-socket-224796?c=froogle&u=224796&t=module

I'm making this up as I go along but maybe it could work?
 
Last edited:
I think it's worth a bash, an interesting project. :)

Buying an inverter if you do a bit of camping out of the back of your car is a useful addition anyway. So I guess all else that's needed is a spare battery and a means of charging it up whilst away (mains or from the car).

:)

What would the purpose of the spare battery be exactly?
 
To ensure your car battery doesn't go flat :thumbsup: Been there, done that...
 
What would the purpose of the spare battery be exactly?

Ahhh, so hang on. You need to power these things by a car battery? And so the car would have to be present, when using the inverter?

Can't you just charge them off the mains?
 
Usually, what sort of trip are you planning? will mains be available at all for a top up?
 
Ahhh, so hang on. You need to power these things by a car battery? And so the car would have to be present, when using the inverter?

Can't you just charge them off the mains?

No. All the inverter does is change 12V DC to 240V AC you still need to supply a source of power i.e. a battery.
 
Usually, what sort of trip are you planning? will mains be available at all for a top up?

The idea was to camp in the British countryside in the middle of nowhere. There is a high possibility we would be camped some distance from the car.

Would a spare car battery by itself suffice, or would it need to connected to the car? This has certainly scuppered my progress somewhat! :facepalm:

I assumed that the inverter would simply be a rechargeable power source!

Can anybody think of ways to rectify this situation? Thanks!
 
whats wrong with an MP3 player?

if your hifi really does draw 65W then even with a 12Ah 12V battery you are going to get 90-120mins of use.
 
The idea was to camp in the British countryside in the middle of nowhere. There is a high possibility we would be camped some distance from the car.

Would a spare car battery by itself suffice, or would it need to connected to the car? This has certainly scuppered my progress somewhat! :facepalm:

I assumed that the inverter would simply be a rechargeable power source!

Can anybody think of ways to rectify this situation? Thanks!

Have a read through this page I found while searching around earlier, could have some very useful info for you.

DIY portable power system for Paul C. Buff monolights: Vagabond III? « Atlanta Photographer blog
 
The idea was to camp in the British countryside in the middle of nowhere. There is a high possibility we would be camped some distance from the car.
Hmm, how far from the car?

Would a spare car battery by itself suffice, or would it need to connected to the car? This has certainly scuppered my progress somewhat! :facepalm:
For one evening I would guess yes, but try this at home 1st. If your intending to party for 12hrs then I'm doubtful a single car battery would have enough charge (could be wrong though).

Can anybody think of ways to rectify this situation? Thanks!

Your fighting physics here, but if you don't want to go the generator route and you want to use your existing stereo then car batteries are your best bet.
 
whats wrong with an MP3 player?

if your hifi really does draw 65W then even with a 12Ah 12V battery you are going to get 90-120mins of use.

Am I talking complete tosh weetsie? How did you work out 90min - if you're correct, then I think we're on to plan B. :(
 

The latest video from AVForums

Is 4K Blu-ray Worth It?
Subscribe to our YouTube channel
Back
Top Bottom