Years ago I had HyperDyne Labs build me a custom Wookiee sound effects board, which I assembled into a portable sound unit to be worn under my suit. It has two micro-switches which can be worn on each hand. One switch plays four different Wookiee yells, the other switch plays four different Wookiee "sentences." The sounds are 44.1kHz, 16-bit stereo and sound excellent when hooked up to a full stereo system. It is contained in a plastic project enclosure from radio shack and runs off of a 9-volt battery. It is mounted onto a breast strap near the left shoulder. A small amplified speaker from radio shack (commonly used by Stormtroopers before this model was discontinued) is mounted on the opposing shoulder. It also runs on a 9-volt battery pack.

The strap looks similar to a bra so my friends and I nicknamed it "The Bro" or "The Manzierre."

I never really used it because as far as I know there are no portable speakers systems that can be worn underneath the suit and also delivery high volume, low-distortion, and excellent sound quality. The smaller speakers tend to sound like, well, speakers. Great if you are doing Vader, Threepio, or a Stormtrooper, not so great if you want to sound like an alien. I do a pretty decent job at the Wookiee sounds myself, so I've never actually used the sound unit with the full costume.

I tried to sell it a number of years back but never had any takers. If you or anyone else is interested in buying it, please contact me off list and we'll discuss it. It's still in perfect shape and would sound great (as would an MP3 player or any other sound unit) if only a quality portable speaker system could be found.


I know that the guy at makingwookiee.co.uk build a sound effects unit into his mask that triggered whenever the jaw was opened. He also has a collection of Wookiee sound effects on his site.

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Matt Pfingsten
Film & Video Editor - Avid/Final Cut Pro/Pro Tools/Steenbeck
matt@...
http://mattpf.com