# Recommend a standalone speaker w/ usb or sd card input **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [June 5, 2017, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-standalone-speaker-w-usb-or-sd-card-input/788189 "2017-06-05T17:27:19Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![iamthewalrus\_3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/258eb7/32.png) [@iamthewalrus\_3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iamthewalrus_3)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2017, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-standalone-speaker-w-usb-or-sd-card-input/788189/1 "2017-06-05T17:27:19Z")
I want a speaker that I can plug a USB drive or an SD card into that will play the audio files on it in a loop until I turn it off. I feel like this product must exist, but so many speakers like this now are bluetooth and water proof and phone chargers and whatever (which is fine, but I don’t care about those features), and I can’t seem to find if they’ll just play music off of a solid-state source and loop it. Cheaper is better. Sound quality doesn’t have to be amazing. ---
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2017, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-standalone-speaker-w-usb-or-sd-card-input/788189/2 "2017-06-05T18:26:18Z")
YOu may want to expand you search for speakers that use microsd cards. There are a bunch of them. [Like these](https://www.amazon.com/EasyAcc-Portable-Bluetooth-Speaker-Function/dp/B00JGFH33M/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1496686971&sr=1-1-spons&keywords=portable+speaker+micro+sd&psc=1) If you have an old GPS hanging around some of those (like Garmins) will act as a music player and play MP3s directly off an SDCARD in a looped or once through mode. ---
**Author:** ![iamthewalrus\_3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/258eb7/32.png) [@iamthewalrus\_3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iamthewalrus_3)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2017, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-standalone-speaker-w-usb-or-sd-card-input/788189/3 "2017-06-05T19:08:38Z")
> [@astro](#): > > YOu may want to expand you search for speakers that use microsd cards. There are a bunch of them. [Like these](https://www.amazon.com/EasyAcc-Portable-Bluetooth-Speaker-Function/dp/B00JGFH33M/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1496686971&sr=1-1-spons&keywords=portable+speaker+micro+sd&psc=1) I have found a bunch of them. But I can’t find any that mention that they’ll play in loop/repeat mode. I bet some of them will, but I don’t know which ones, and they don’t appear to list that as a feature on their Amazon pages. > [@](#): > > If you have an old GPS hanging around some of those (like Garmins) will act as a music player and play MP3s directly off an SDCARD in a looped or once through mode. I don’t, unfortunately. ---
**Author:** ![iamthewalrus\_3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/258eb7/32.png) [@iamthewalrus\_3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iamthewalrus_3)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2017, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-standalone-speaker-w-usb-or-sd-card-input/788189/4 "2017-06-05T21:10:19Z")
The one in the link also appears not to be able to charge and play music simultaneously. So, a new requirement: This can run on wall power. I’m fine with it having a battery, but it also has to play continuously while plugged in. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2017, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-standalone-speaker-w-usb-or-sd-card-input/788189/5 "2017-06-05T21:38:20Z")
Well, Craig makes this thing: [craig cr 4189 - Search](https://www.bing.com/search?q=craig+cr+4189&form=EDGNTC&qs=PF&cvid=8cd9a8d272d64ff6b437432510216d6b&cc=US&setlang=en-US&PC=LCTS) But I can’t recommend it. Real piece of crap. My kid has gone through 3 of them. Pretty junky. I’ll bet you can find oodles of them at WalMart or Best Buy. (Is that still in business?) ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2017, 1:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-standalone-speaker-w-usb-or-sd-card-input/788189/6 "2017-06-06T13:11:39Z")
I got something like [this](https://www.amazon.com/Bluetooth-Speaker-HotNCold-Surround-wireless/dp/B01C6J2NSE/) as a Xmas gift. Yeah, it’s cheap. And it has Bluetooth which I never use. But the real holdback on it is that you can trivially kill it by overcharging the battery. Once the charging light goes out, you have to unplug it or else. It doesn’t have a practical interface for choosing a song off the card. But for play 'em all mode, that’s basically what it does. So, there’s a lot of these out there. The main issue is telling an out-and-out cheap one from one that is actually cheaply made but not being cheaply sold. Follow the Amazon comparable links and check ratings. One note: Some of these require a “TF card”. That’s just another name for a microSD card.