Analog IPhone Amplifier Made From Recycled Trumpets

analog_telephonographer

It’s no secret that the audio quality of the iPhone’s built-in speakers isn’t exactly what you would consider to be hi-fi. Sound quality aside, there are plenty of times where even the volume doesn’t do the music justice. While you can always go out and buy a fancy dock to amplify your iGadget’s sound, artist [Christopher Locke] has a different take on the subject.

For a while now, he has been constructing what he calls “Analog Tele-Phonographers”, metal sculptures that can be used to amplify a mobile phone’s audio. Built out of steel and old trumpets, his audio sculptures require no electricity, instead utilizing the same amplification technology as the original phonographs.

While the Tele-Phonographers won’t make your iPhone sound like a high quality tube amp, they do undoubtedly increase the phone’s volume and they are nice to look at. We can certainly get behind this sort of recycling/reuse of old items.

Continue reading to see a quick video of his Analog Tele-Phonographer in action.

[Thanks, Chris]

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=MJFNpE7SLZI&w=470]

14 thoughts on “Analog IPhone Amplifier Made From Recycled Trumpets

  1. Cool sculpture and nice amplifier, just one suggestion, for the next build replace the iPhone holder with a container for a bluetooth earpiece, wireless audio amplified by art, cooler than the other side of the pillow!

  2. While I’m a fan of balancing tubes of paper on phones to get better sound, this seems like a giant waste of space and musical instruments.

    Maybe if these objects were smaller and looked less clumsy, I’d be a fan.

  3. Did similar thing (i.e. passive amplification) with spare bugle and earphones. If chosen properly, earpiece fits inside the bugle’s mouthpiece just fine without any modification. Sounds a little brassy though =)

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