using a laptop as a jukebox? questions?

[shateredsoul]

My sibling gave me an old hp laptop that she's replacing with a new one.  I have a 15" elo touch screen. Soooo i've decided to start thinking about doing a jukebox in the future.  I had a few questions and was wondering what you guys thought.

1. Is it hard to take a laptop out of it's case? I won't be needing the monitor from the laptop (it's broken anyways)

2. What's the best way to setup a jukebox? My wife thinks it would be cool to have it setup like a picture frame and hung up from a wall.  the other alternative is something like a bartop.  What designs would usually be more likely to please the wifey or just look nice? I also don't want it to look like a video game.... but

3. Any good touchscreen games? Maybe it makes sense to include pop cap games.

4. Will a laptop produce poor sound? and would you recommend an external soundcard?

I'd appreciate any advice =)

-SS

[gryhnd]

I can answer a couple of your questions.

Decasing a laptop can range from pretty damn easy to unfrickingly frustrating. I've run the gamut of turning my screen broken Macbook Pro into a headless unit that is now our kitchen PC (ok, technically not headless anymore), to getting stymied by an old Sony Vaio, to just the other day completing the "tick me off" decasing of an Acer.  The latter took me a few days before I traced two hidden screws preventing me from my goal, and the internet was no help.

So, all that said: google first, then just go for it, but go slow. If something seems stuck, there's probably a hidden screw(s) somewhere...so take your time.

Now for sound: that too is highly variable. I'm in the middle of a jukebox project that until last week was going to be run by a repurposed dell optiplex (P4 1.7 IIRC) with basic on board sound. Then, a lady gave me her busted Acer 4420 Athalon X2 1.9gHz laptop. She'd gotten pissed at it because of a broken power jack and pretty much flung it across the room, destroying the LCD as well.  After getting it decased, de-LCD'd, and hot wiring the power I resurrected it. The onboard sound for this laptop is far superior to the Dell I was going to use, and far more configurable, so it's now the heart of my juke. Not top of the line, no, but pretty darned good for free.

Mine too will be run via an ELO 15", but I'm not going for a hang on the wall style but for a "conversion" of an old (.......) cabinet. I'll be posting about it in the very near future.

[shateredsoul]

Thanks for responding! Hmm.. I really don't know much about the dell I'm getting.  It's actually my sisters old laptop.. not really a friend.  She bought it about 3 or 2 years ago and it cost her a pretty penny.  Well it didn't really cost her, she received a scholarship.  It's a Dell laptop.. and that's all I know right now.  I have about 200gbs of music that i'm cleaning through and making sure I have art for each album. By the time I finish I'll probalby have 150 gbs or less.  I imagine i'll need to upgrade the hdd.  I have an old 160gb hdd that might work. I don't have the laptop yet, will in about a month. The only downside is that it has Vista =(

You mentioned that your new laptop will be more configurable.  What kind of options do you mean? What do you usually look for in a jukebox pc?

I'll be keeping an eye out for your project

[gryhnd]

The only downside is that it has Vista =(

You mentioned that your new laptop will be more configurable.  What kind of options do you mean? What do you usually look for in a jukebox pc?

Ya, this laptop is vista too 

By more configurable, I mean that the sound card's software has an equalizer function, some special effects for making things sound like you're in a tin can or under water, and other tweaks the Dell I was going to use didn't. When I hooked it up for a listen, it sounded great good enough to me for its intended purpose (non-audiophile). I do like however, that I can adjust the sound parameters once everything is all put together.

What to look for in a jukebox? This is my first, so I'm not the best to ask. For me, it's a balance between price, function an design because of limited resources. I'm a CL and eBay addict. So over time I can collect stuff on a water budget.  Sometimes what I come across dictates what direction I might take things, sometimes I'll go months before finding something I really want or need. Be flexible.

[shateredsoul]

cool, you mind sharing resources? I mean if you find a good deal or if I find a good deal we can update this thread. 

I'm still debating whether I want to do the picture frame thing since you will still be able to see the wires unless I make holes in the walls (which is not a possibility). So far I have an ELO touch screen, laptop, and wireless creative system, power supply.  Just need a set of nice speakers, maybe some vinyl, and art. It would be nice to have a controller too... hmm.

[caesar]

Hello,
Just a few things to mention:

1. A picture frame juke will end up being 4"-6" inches thick (depth) unless it's built flush into the wall (I know that's not an option).
2. All wiring(AC power, audio) should be hidden in the wall (Looks best).
3. Where are you placing the amp & speakers?
4. Ventilation - Leave room for at least 1 additional cabinet cooling fan.
5. Depending on the age of the laptop, make sure you max out the ram memory in case you start playing touch games or music videos. (older laps may only have a max of 128mb - 512mb)

   Pretty much on-board sound is fine. I agree with the others, any EQ program can help adjust sound quality.
But before you dissassemble the laptop, plug the laptop into the speaker system of choice and decide if the sound is acceptable.
While using a wireless speaker system, is there any interference from wi/fi, cordless house phones, microwave?
If you move the wireless speaker say outdoors, then guests will have to track into your home to select tunes.

I personally like the smaller self-contained jukes, you can move it to different rooms or into the backyard for a party.

Not trying to sway you on your decision, just wanted to point out a couple pros / cons that come to mind.

Thanks!
Check out my build:
http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?topic=98605.0

[gryhnd]

I'll be keeping an eye out for your project

Just posted.