Buy a JukeBox that can take a PC inside?

[Kelemvor]

I did a few searches online but didn't find much. Does anyone know of anywhere you can buy a full size Juke Box (or plans and parts to build one) that can interface with a PC inside instead of 100s of CDs? I'm sure someone has come up with a way to do this but I haven't been able to find one. My wife really wants a Juke Box for some reason and I figure it might be cheaper to just have a housing with a PC inside and not have all the mechanics of the normal ones.

Any idea?

Thanks.

 

[Kelemvor]

Whoa, the ATOT Brain didn't return anything? Maybe someone just missed it...

 

[fatbaby]

What kind of juke box? The 4 ft. old fashioned ones or the ones that are like cd changers?

 

[Kelemvor]

The sort that you'd find in a bar or a bowling alley or something like that. Not particular about the actual look of it as far as if it has the Cds that flip or just the readouts of certain songs.

Or if someone had modified one to take a PC, I thought maybe there'd be something that would put a computer screen in there and use buttons to pick songs and switch views and things like that.

Not sure if it exists but just thought it'd be neat if they did.

 

[Jzero]

Sounds like that would be easy enough to build....

 

[Kelemvor]

I'd be happy to build something but the whole user interface thing I wouldn't have a clue about. I don't want a keyboard to be there but would prefer the actual number codes like in old jukeboxes. I'd take on something if there were plans or kits available but I wasn't able to find anything like that either...

 

[austin316]

How much are you looking to spend? I'm a collector of juke boxes and I could prolly get you a good deal on a cabinet. As for taking out all the parts and hooking it up to your pc, thats up to you. Your best bet would probably just be to get a cd one. 100 or so discs at 16 songs a cd will get you a lot of playtime.

 

[AU Tiger]

Originally posted by: austin316
How much are you looking to spend? I'm a collector of juke boxes and I could prolly get you a good deal on a cabinet. As for taking out all the parts and hooking it up to your pc, thats up to you. Your best bet would probably just be to get a cd one. 100 or so discs at 16 songs a cd will get you a lot of playtime.

Now you have me curious. How much does older looking (retro style) cd jukebox cabinet run?

 

[Jzero]

Originally posted by: FrankyJunior
I'd be happy to build something but the whole user interface thing I wouldn't have a clue about. I don't want a keyboard to be there but would prefer the actual number codes like in old jukeboxes. I'd take on something if there were plans or kits available but I wasn't able to find anything like that either...

You should be able to buy a PS/2 or serial numeric keypad that interfaces with a regular PC. Then configure your MP3 software to play numbers as they are entered. You might need to do a little coding to get it to queue up titles. Search out Car MP3 players - there is probably some adaptable technology.

Then just hide the PC in a gutted jukebox and make the numbers in the jukebox display correspond to the numbers in the MP3 playlist.

 

[Kelemvor]

Originally posted by: austin316
How much are you looking to spend? I'm a collector of juke boxes and I could prolly get you a good deal on a cabinet. As for taking out all the parts and hooking it up to your pc, thats up to you. Your best bet would probably just be to get a cd one. 100 or so discs at 16 songs a cd will get you a lot of playtime.

The only reason I was thinking abotu doing a PC version would be that if all my CDs were in the Jukebox, then what would I listen to in the car? heh heh. But that's definitely a possibility since most of the time I just find a radio station I like.

Also with a PC thing I woudln't need an actual working jukebox, but just the shell.

I don't even have a clue what a actual working juke box would go for. Can you give me a ballpark figure? Are we talking a couple hundred bucks or a thousand or two or what?

 

[brtspears2]

How about a Touch Tunes jukebox? I remember seeing one boot up, it has a PC inside, roughly 2000 songs that can be updated by downloading, accepts $1 bills, and can play counter-top bar games.

EDIT: It costs an arm and a leg, at around $5k + fees.

 

[austin316]

Originally posted by: AU Tiger

Originally posted by: austin316
How much are you looking to spend? I'm a collector of juke boxes and I could prolly get you a good deal on a cabinet. As for taking out all the parts and hooking it up to your pc, thats up to you. Your best bet would probably just be to get a cd one. 100 or so discs at 16 songs a cd will get you a lot of playtime.

Now you have me curious. How much does older looking (retro style) cd jukebox cabinet run?

Not really sure off hand. My dad is the much bigger collector than me, but I would say about $2500-3000 for a nice one, although the retro stylin ones will cost more. However, Jboxes are like Harleys, unless you break it, its not gonna lose its value. Also, good luck with your tigers this year. I'm a huge Michigan fan and was happy to find out that they are ESPN.coms third choice to win the national title, only behind favorites, OU and OSU.

 

[hevnsnt]

I am building something like that

horrible (not a site just pics right now) here (these are not my pics, but it gives you the idea of what I am building)