DIY: podcast shower radio

Part list:
- Sony ICF-S79V (or any battery powered shower radio)
- Creative Muvo TX FM (or any player willing to take some steam)
- Stereo-to-stereo audio coupler (~$2 bucks at the shack, 274-1555)
- Audio patch cable (stereo to help out the FM transmitter)
- Belkin Tune Cast II FM Transmitter with auto-off
- Energizer Ni-MH rechargeables and charger

Project at a glance: creative muvo mp3 player -> stereo wire -> RF transmitter -> RF input of 87.7FM -> Sony shower radio

Think: I acquired a Sony ICF-S79V shower radio to listen to current events because I was falling behind now that podcasts were filling my radio time. After a few morning of bouncing back and forth between presets station during commercials i was frustrated b/c that was the beauty of podcasts, no commercials. (mr curry please help establish a standard for shows so we can scrape the commercials if we so choose to.) So back to my thoughts, how do I get podcasts to work with my shower radio?

Create: Simple solution (and probably clear by now). What is the only way to get input into this device, RF! I had a Belkin RF transmitter that worked poorly in my car but had everything I needed for this project. I was hoping to setup the RF outside the shower but I literally have to wrap the little antenna around the transmitter. I stopped over at radioshack to get an Audio-Coupler and pulled a stereo to stereo-stereo connector from an older PC speaker system. The next challenge was power! The best solution (and i am still impressed) was good 'ol Energizer Ni-Mh rechargeable batteries and the energizer charger from buy.com. I did some research on what all the specs meant and they came up as the best for price. All this for 10~15 minutes of audio freedom. I think its worth it!

Complete: This setup has been working for me for the last 4 or 5 weeks. I have a routine were i charge the 3 C batteries (+1 C battery in storage b/c you have to buy and charge them in pairs, how convenient) every 2 weeks. One issue I have had was when removing the batteries and charging it overnight I loose the presets and time on the radio. I am going to invest in standby C (regular) batteries so i can the time in the device. The RF transmitter needs to charge its 2 AAA batteries whenever it dies, haven't figured out its pattern yet. My creative muvo has 1 AAA labeled #1 and when the #2 battery is dead they both go into the charger. Sounds really silly but it works like a charm. Now to figure out if the steam will affect my devices ... time will tell.

I stayed away from “plug in the outlet” components here for my safety. I do NOT recommend using A/C electricity for anything in this project ... be safe! Also when dealing with water, i am willing to sacrafice any parts used in this project so please understand what you are doing ... enjoy!

Thank you joanna for the sony radio [christmas], and the mp3 player & fm tuner [valentines].

nickc316 at gmail.com