I purchased a couple of pre-wired piezo discs so I could plug a standard ¼-inch audio plug into a socket attached to them (Figure 1). These pickups are commonly used on acoustic guitars. However, as you start experimenting with sound, you’ll realize that they can be placed on almost any musical instrument with a flat, resonant body. I have many instruments that I would like to electrify, including a Kalimba, Ukulele, Rain Drum, and more.

In my little experiment, I started talking directly to the pickup in my hand, and then grabbed a nearby Pringles can. After some trial and error, I realized the real magic was holding the pickup against the bottom of the can and singing into the top — instantly turning snack packaging into a resonant chamber (Figure 2).

The kit came with two of these durable pickups enclosed in plastic, but if you want a more permanent solution, it may be optimal to purchase the piezo discs themselves and solder them in place. They often come prewired with about a foot of wire leads (Figure 3). Some include screw terminal modules, making them easy to use in breadboard projects, while others may have a bare-bones ¼-inch output jack connected to the piezo pickup without a plastic enclosure, meant to be permanently installed inside of guitar bodies or other musical instruments.

I also have a kit to build my own electric guitar that has six small dots (Figure 4). Electric guitars use something different to detect sound. Rather than vibration through a resonant body, they detect the metal (steel or nickel) strings vibrating above them through electromagnetic induction. This is why electric guitars don’t work with nylon strings.