The Disco Drink Table
Click the image above for a brief YouTube video of the Disco Drink Table in action
The Disco Drink table is just a plywood box with a piece of plastic diffuser and a pair of revolving LED "party lights". However, this contraption started out as something quite different. Read on...
Psychedelic Light Box
Click image to see a brief YouTube video of the PLB light effect.
What is this thing? I'll call it a psychedelic light box, but maybe it's called something else. I've poked around on the Internet, but haven't found anything quite like it. What I have found are light boxes called "color organs" or "light organs". However, these boxes lack the middle light baffle as described below.
The first and last time I encountered this idea was way back (around 1982) in my junior high school shop class. Lots of kids built these things so the idea must still exist out there somewhere. I don't remember what I did with the one from junior high. But around 2016 I decided to build another.
This project was a semi-fail because the C7 bulbs I used were too dim. It looked okay in a dark room (see the PLB video above). But there was too much ambient light in my gameroom for good effect. Perhaps I should have gone with the prism clear diffuser instead of the cracked ice white. The prism clear was more translucent and may have reflected less ambient room light.
The project comprised a plywood box with three panels. The rear panel supported a system of randomly flashing lights. The middle panel or light baffle created shapes of light. And the front panel diffuser displayed the shapes projected from the baffle.
I started by constructing the box which was about 12" tall and 24" wide and made from ¾" plywood. The box could be any shape. I designed mine to sit atop the refrigerator in my gameroom. I faced the box with molding to create a bezel for the diffuser panel. I added six inner cleats to fasten the baffle. And I routed a rabbet around the back to support the rear panel. The box is about 12" deep. The baffle is about 3" back from the diffuser. The rear panel is about 9" back from the baffle. I painted the outside of the box white and sprayed black on all the inside surfaces.
Front view of the box.
Back view of the box.
The light baffle was made from ¼" plywood with a random assortment of circles. Any shape would do. I stuck with circles because they were easy to cut with hole saws.
Light baffle.
The front panel is made from plastic of the sort used to diffuse the florescent lights in suspended ceiling systems. First I tried prism clear. But the diffusion effect was too aggressive and the circles were too ill-defined. Next I tried cracked ice white which did a better job of displaying the circles projected from the baffle. The cracked ice white panel is attached behind the front bezel with a few beads of silicone caulk.
Cracked ice white versus prism clear.
Cracked ice white versus prism clear.
Cracked ice white panel installed from behind with silicone caulk.
Next the light baffle was installed to the cleats with screws.
For lighting I went on the Internet to a company called Novelty Lights and bought their "commercial grade" string of E12 lamp sockets. I wanted something of higher quality than what I'd find in the Christmas department at Walmart. The E12 socket corresponds with the C7 lamp.
I used incandescent C7 twinkle bulbs for a random light effect. Modern LED versions of the C7 twinkle bulb are also available. LEDs might have been the smarter choice. But I like the color of incandescent bulbs and was afraid the LEDs might not look right. What's important here is that each bulb must flash independently from every other bulb so as to create a random light effect. An integrated light system that produces a recurring light pattern won't look right.
The rear panel is made from ½" plywood and includes a series of upper and lower vent holes since I decided to go with incandescent lamps. Each socket was secured with small screws and a pair of plastic staples of the sort used for house wiring. The sockets were spaced 12" apart so I snaked the wire back and forth to get a more compact arrangement. I used a total of twelve sockets and three each of red, green, amber and blue bulbs. Note that the back panel included a pencil tracing of the light baffle. No socket was mounted directly behind any baffle hole. I thought this might mitigate hot spots.
Rear panel.
Rear panel.
Rear panel installed.
Finished box.
As noted above, my C7 twinkle bulbs were no good for anything brighter than a dark room. Where to go from here? This all seemed way cooler back in junior high. I don't think the C9 twinkle bulbs would make a significant difference. I don't think the C7/C9 LED equivalents would make a significant difference. Another option may be a flash button which would accommodate any standard bulb (up to 60 watts). But that product looks to have disappeared. I'm thinking I may need bright LEDs with each LED powered from a corresponding solid-state automotive flasher. The flashers are relatively inexpensive and are specifically designed with LEDs in mind. Now all I need is some renewed motivation...
The Disco Drink Table
The never-used psychedelic light box sat in storage for years. Then in 2023 someone decided to give me their unwanted collection of LED party light bulbs. I didn't really know what to do with these things. But then I decided to stick one in the old psychedelic light box. I liked it! See video at the top of the page for the end result.
LED party lights.
I no longer had space for a big horizontal box. But then I turned the box on its end and realized it was almost the right height to be a small drink table.
I scrapped the inner light baffle along with all the C7 Christmas lights and wiring. Instead I used a pair of common plastic E26 lamp holders. I thought the light would be more interesting if it were skewed against the diffuser. So I put a block under one side of each lamp holder.
Revised rear panel.
To make the table a bit taller, I added an 11" by 11" pedestal base made from scraps of 1x4. The pedestal base also serves as a toe kick and may prevent damage to the diffuser panel. The box was scuffed and discolored from years in storage. Plus I used junky plywood. So I did some filling and sanding and refinished the table in a red and black scheme.
Done!