Bang & Olufsen Beovox CX50 User manual

A WRITTEN GUIDE TO UPCYCLING A
Beovox CX50

INTRODUCTION
This is a guide on how to upcycle a Beovox CX50 loudspeaker using a
BeoCreate 4-Channel amplifier and a Raspberry Pi.
The upcycling process will take roughly two hours and we advise you
to prepare for the project by having all the required items at hand.
PARTS
· Beovox CX50
· BeoCreate 4-Channel Amplifier
· Raspberry Pi 3
· MicroSD card (at least 4GB)
· Power plug & supply (page 3)
·3D printed parts (page 3)
· Hot glue or epoxy glue
· Screws and spacers
to fit the 3D printed frame
· Two insulated wires for the
power connector (20cm)
TOOLS
·Soldering iron
· Screwdrivers
· Glue gun
· Wirecutters
· Wirestripper
· Hacksaw
2

YOU WILL ALSO NEED:
Recommended power supply
18-24V, about 90W
(link to come)
Recommended power plug
mounting hole diameter: Ø8mm
(link to come)
Files for 3D printing
You will need to two 3D printed parts
· Puck for power connector
·Bracket for BeoCreate 4-Channel amplifier
downloads.hifiberry.com/beocreate
3

TAKING APART THE CX50
STEP ONE
4

From the front of the speaker, remove the
fabric covers.
From the reverse side, first unscrew the
back plate.
5

Remove the dampening material. Cut all of the wires connecting the drivers
to the back plate.
6

NOTE
Evaluate the state of the speaker drivers and make
sure they are in good condition. If the speaker
foams are damaged a repair is needed.
You can either:
a) refoam yourself (refoaming kits and instructions
are available here: (link to come))
b) buy new drivers compatiable with the original
(link to come)
c) get them repaired by a professional
(link to come)
7

CREATING A NEW POWER CONNECTION
STEP TWO
8

Remove the original plastic speaker
connector with a saw. Make sure to cut
through the wider end, upon which you will
be later placing the 3D printed puck.
Screw the power plug into the 3D printed
puck.
9

Apply glue to the 3D printed holder.
Make sure to cover all the inner walls with a
vast amount of glue.
Place the parts upon the opening you just
created. Make sure they fit in as tightly as
possible.
10

Strip the insulated wires you reserved for
the power connector, so that approximately
1cm of wire is exposed.
Check the polarity of the power supply
(which is +/-) and identify the
corresponding pin on the power plug.
Solder both wires to the power plug pins. 11

ASSEMBLE THE PARTS
STEP THREE
12

Strip the wires coming from the drivers, so
that again approximately 1 cm of wire is
exposed.
Place the Raspberry Pi upon the BeoCreate
4-Channel Amplifier.
13

Install spacers to three corners of topside of
the Pi using the supplied nuts as seen in the
pictures (there are both nuts and screws in
the box).
Screw the 4CA to the frame. Don’t use
screws in the holes that will be covered by
the spacers
14

Install the Pi onto the 4CA. The spacers
won’t ax the Pi to the 4CA, but just pre-
vent it from flexing and touching any com-
ponents on it.
Fit in the cut wires into the Amplifier.
For details check the illustration on the
next page.
15

16
AMPLIFIER OUTPUTS
22

CLOSING UP
STEP FOUR
17

Connect the power supply. Plug the power supply into a wall socket.
18

Make sure a red light turns on on the
Raspberry Pi.
Unplug the power supply from the wall
socket to further proceed with the
up-cycling.
19

Now prepare the SD card, by downloading
its relevant software:
www.hifiberry.com/build/documentation/beocreate/
beocreate-how-to-start/
Insert the SD card into the Raspberry Pi.
20