Patent ID: 8063294

Claim:
A musical instrument practice system ( 10 ) for allowing a learner to practice a musical instrument while concurrently listening to background music and practicing music while using earphones, the music not being heard by third persons, the system comprising, in combination: a combining housing ( 14 ) having a plurality of female ports including a first port ( 16 ) and a second port ( 18 ) each adapted to receive musical input, and a third port ( 20 ) adapted to generate musical output as a function of the received inputs; a music player ( 24 ) chosen from the class of music players including an iPod, MP3 player, CD player, cassette player, and record player, a first electrical line ( 26 ) extending from the music player and terminating in a first free end, a first jack ( 28 ) attached to the first free end, the first jack adapted to be coupled to the first port whereby the music player will generate background music to the combining housing for being heard only by a learner; a special effects box ( 32 ), a second electrical line ( 34 ) extending from the special effects box and terminating in a second free end, a second jack ( 36 ) attached to the second free end, the second jack adapted to be coupled to the second port, the special effects box having a supplemental port ( 38 ); a musical instrument ( 42 ), a supplemental electrical line ( 44 ) extending from the musical instrument and terminating in a supplemental free end, a supplemental jack 46 attached to the supplemental free end, the supplemental jack adapted to be coupled to the supplemental port whereby the musical instrument will generate player music to the combining housing for being heard only by the learner; earphones ( 50 ), a third electrical line ( 52 ) extending from the earphones terminating in a third free end, a third jack ( 54 ) attached to the third free end, the third jack adapted to be coupled to the third port whereby the learner may use the earphones to listen to a combined output of the music player and the musical instrument for being heard only by the learner; and each of the electrical lines including a positive wire ( 58 ) and a negative wire ( 60 ) and a ground wire ( 62 ), an electrical assembly within the combining housing, the electrical assembly including the positive wires of each of the lines coupled together and forming a first junction ( 64 ), the electrical assembly including the negative wires of each of the lines coupled together and forming a second junction ( 66 ), the electrical assembly including the ground wires of each of the lines coupled together and forming a third junction ( 68 ), the electrical assembly including a first line defined as the line from the second port to first through third junctions and further including a first resistor ( 70 ) in the positive wire of the first line adjacent to the first junction, a second resistor ( 72 ) in the negative wire of the first line adjacent to the second junction, and a third resistor ( 74 ) in the ground wire of the first line adjacent to the third junction.