I used a basic zener diode to control the power flow, and it works fine. I think I used 5, have to open it back up to look. Its most likely not the best way to do it, but it DOES work. I might switch over to the LM386, but I would like better sound reaction than direct contact, and the ability to add in two speakers in the back, and have those speakers only function as "bass" speakers, and filter out everything else above a certain frequency (adjustable maybe?).