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[mgstair]

I would like a song to start playing automatically when someone enters a room. 

Preferably, the song should be a track on a CD, and activated via an electric eye or an inconspicuous door-mounted micro-switch.  The doors are saloon-type swinging cafe style, so there's no standard jamb/stop on which to mount a typical alarm-style sensor.

Any info or suggestions are greatly appreciated!

Thanks in advance!

Mike

[dave w]

mgstair
You complicate the issue by the "Preferably, the song should be a track on a CD" portion of the request.
How much do you want to spend?? How complicated to you want this to get?
CHEAP
put your song on a endless loop cassette($10 Radio Shack) and use an ancient cassette recorder/player ($7 at Goodwill) with the saloon door switch (micro switch or magnetic window switch from Radio shack) wired to the recorders pause control. Whole shebang, under $30.

EXPENSIVE
Use X10 "Active Eye", Smarthome 1132CU, and a Dell computer running "Homeseer 2.0 " home automation program which can be scripted to play any MP3 files, or wave files, or speak text to speech, and to trigger any other X10 events, when triggered by any X10 code. It will even send you an email telling you what it just did...over $500 with a cheap Dell. (email service additional cost).

[mgstair]

dave w,

Thanks for the perfectly-on-target reply!

I had considered your "cheap" option, but thought that would require a bit too much manual intervention to make it reliable (no easy way to make sure that the tape is queued up to just where I want it to start, no easy way to stop the tape after just a single playing, have to swap tapes to play a different song, etc.).

Your "expensive" option may not be so costly after all, since I already have the PC.  :-)  I didn't realize that the Homeseer could kick off an MP3, though.  That's just what I was looking for!

Many thanks, pardner!!  (theme song from "The Good, The Bad & The Ugly" playing in the background...)!

[dave w]

Every once in a while I get lucky. I need to write this down so I won't forget it.....

[DeltaNu1142]

Your "expensive" option may not be so costly after all, since I already have the PC.  :-)  I didn't realize that the Homeseer could kick off an MP3, though.  That's just what I was looking for!

Many thanks, pardner!!  (theme song from "The Good, The Bad & The Ugly" playing in the background...)!

I'm eventually going to do something like this...  you could use an IR module to send a series of signals, "receiver ON" "select CD" and "play," after burning your disc with your desired tune on track 1.  I'm worried about the time delay associated with this, though--my receiver takes a few seconds to power up.  Dave W's "quick & dirty" option is most importantly QUICK--turn on the tape deck & wham-o...

...or you could put a motion sensor up the hallway a bit, & put your best saunter on.  By the time you swing those doors open, "woooOOOOoooOOOoooohhhh..." (how do you type the GB&U theme song?).  That'd be hysterical.

[Tuicemen]

One way that will work much like the expensive way Dave mentioned! but much cheeper!
AHP and X10dispatch plugins aren't needed!
Think X10dispatch will work with the CM19A as it uses the AHP SDK, and the Cm19A works with the SDK 

[-Bill- (of wgjohns.com)]

OK, how about this?

Radio Shack sells (sold?) voice record / playback modules.  I made a door-bell out of one of these a few years ago.  Record your song on it, use an A/C adapter for the power supply.  Plug it into an appliance module!

Not HI-FI, but fine for a sound effect! 

[Dan Lawrence]

Radio Shack is (or has) phasing out their Plug-N-Power line. Most Radio Shacks are totally out of anything Plug-N-Power.

[-Bill- (of wgjohns.com)]

Radio Shack is (or has) phasing out their Plug-N-Power line. Most Radio Shacks are totally out of anything Plug-N-Power.

It's not a Plug-N-Power.  It was a circuit board with an attached speaker, microphone and 6 volt battery pack that you could build into your own case.