Topic: Car Systems (Read 7758 times)

JimH · « **on:** September 03, 2003, 04:36:08 pm »

I'd like to have a sound system in my car that could connect to my wireless network when I park in my garage or near my house and download anything new from my library.

Anyone know of something like this?

If you could design something that might be built, what would you want?

KingSparta · « **Reply #1 on:** September 03, 2003, 04:44:00 pm »

An All In One Stereo

with a 10gig+ hard drive that plays MP3s
with a graphical screen and displays cover art
mp3\cd player
Satellite Radio
AM\FM Radio

kiwi · « **Reply #2 on:** September 03, 2003, 04:44:19 pm »

Are you think along the lines of a computer designed to fit into your car? Or more along the lines of a specific device with an embedded controller that works in your car?

Some of the Mini-ITX systems might work well, and could be put into your trunk. Or an old laptop, get a cheap used laptop, hack the display off (or nicely mount the display in your dash) and use it. Throw a wireless card in its PC Card slot.

kiwi

knickelfarz · « **Reply #3 on:** September 03, 2003, 04:46:35 pm »

Ah, that old ramshackle truck is just camouflage to confuse thiefs...

KingSparta · « **Reply #4 on:** September 03, 2003, 04:48:34 pm »

Quote

Ah, that old ramshackle truck is just camouflage to confuse thiefs...

The Anti Theft Device Is Blood Poison (Lockjaw) From Getting Cut on the Rust and sharp edges.

JimH · « **Reply #5 on:** September 03, 2003, 05:07:06 pm »

Ok, it's not a car....
http://www.jriver.com/~jriver/2003/nebraska/truck/index.html

MachineHead · « **Reply #6 on:** September 03, 2003, 05:23:38 pm »

http://www.gnetcanada.com/autopc-overview.htm

knickelfarz · « **Reply #7 on:** September 03, 2003, 05:25:19 pm »

Take a look at the last entries on http://www.mini-itx.com/, especially Kurt Kressin's "I.C.E. Unit"

MGD_King · « **Reply #8 on:** September 03, 2003, 05:50:08 pm »

Quote

I'd like to have a sound system in my car that could connect to my wireless network when I park in my garage or near my house and download anything new from my library.

Anyone know of something like this?

If you could design something that might be built, what would you want?

Now wouldn't that be the coolest?

If you find one Jim, let me know.

All I have in my car is a Pioneer head unit that plays MP3s. It sounds great, but it has a delay in between tracks that drives me up the wall!!!! No, it's not the standard 0.025 second gap in most MP3s, it's about a second and a half long as the head unit is queing up the next track. A friend of mine has a Kenwood that doesn't do that, but he doesn't have the audio adjustments that mine has, so you win some, you lose some.

gkerber · « **Reply #9 on:** September 03, 2003, 05:51:59 pm »

Quote

I'd like to have a sound system in my car that could connect to my wireless network when I park in my garage or near my house and download anything new from my library.

Anyone know of something like this?

If you could design something that might be built, what would you want?

To put in your new truck (pic posted)?

What you describe would be really cool. Once you get it all working and debugged, please post details! And pictures!

PhatPhreddy · « **Reply #10 on:** September 03, 2003, 10:37:58 pm »

I am halfway into a project like this...

I am running 98Lite on a Libretto 110CT I had doing nothing... The output is obviously amped and then to speakers...

I then have a 802.11 card in the libretto and set it to show up as network drive on my main machine... This way I can export and convert APE's to MP3's via MJ as easy as pie... All i need to do is start the car or leave the ignition on while I am parked in the carport... So thats easy getting data onto the libretto...

For easy of use I am in the process of applying a charging line into the libratto and setting the power control functions to hibernate whenever on battery power for >30 Secs... So turning off the car ignition puts the machine into standby in 30 Secs, by cutting the amp power at turn off it works smooth...

My two next parts of the project are to add a 800x480 VGA touchscreen from Xenarc..

http://www.xenarc.com/product/700ts.html

I hesitated as I wanted to see how easy the system was to use but I think I will go this way... Plus by having the touchscreen and setting the libretto to come out of hibernate on mouse action simply pressing the touchscreen will boot it... I get about a <10 second lag with 98Lite and hibernate... These look great when embedded into a dash...

I also have a 20 GB laptop HD (currently in my HTPC as my WD80GB died and they are taking ages over warrantee replacement) so that will be dropped into the Libretto once its free...

Currently its still in the spend no money / proof of concept stage.... I like it and it works so adding the screen is a no brainer and will then be a really pro install... I will do some pics once that is in but it may be moneths before I spend the $400 on the screen...

For Car side SW I use Media Engine ( http://mediaengine.org/ ) as its is easy and touchscreen oriented... v2 is due out any day now and should be really good...

Of course you could just buy one of these (and add a USB 802.11 card)...

http://www.xenarc.com/trcinfo.html

For forums I strongly reccomend research at MP3Car.com as well as bargain in thier classifieds...

PhatPhreddy · « **Reply #11 on:** September 03, 2003, 10:44:28 pm »

Here are some more shots of v2 Media Engine in widescreen mode....

http://www.mediaengine.org/index.php?progshots

Open source so anyone that wants to improve or work on it can...

kiwi · « **Reply #12 on:** September 04, 2003, 03:34:30 am »

I've thought many times about setting up something like that.

Then I got an iPod and found it did everything that I needed to do. When I need new music, I bring it inside and add more music to it.

The best part, is that I keep an extra pair of headphones in the car and can bring the iPod w/ me whenever I'm somewhere that I'll have to wait for a while.

kiwi

crowfan · « **Reply #13 on:** September 04, 2003, 07:16:31 am »

kiwi,

How do you connect your iPod in the car? Wired to the head unit, or do you use one of those iPod FM transmitters? If you use the FM transmitter, how's the sound quality?

It would be nice if they made an all in one unit for the iPod in the car. Charger/mounter/audio output so you could just hardwire it once, drop the iPod in and go. They made one for the older iPods but not the 3Gs.

Thanks

crow

Mastiff · « **Reply #14 on:** September 04, 2003, 08:49:06 am »

I built a 1,2 Duron with a mini AT main board into a metal/wood suitcase, put two Sb Live! 5.1 in with kX drivers and run a three zone system (two headphones to the kids, one zone for the car audio system). This is with WinXP, Girder, Media Center 9 and NetRemote control. Works like a charm! With a few relays I've got it controlling it's own inverter via the 12V that goes to harddisks, so when it's turned off nothing uses power. And hibernation takes about 8 seconds (but can be done after the car key has been removed) and startup from hibernation takes aroun 12 seconds. Of course there's two 120 gig harddisks so I've got all my +30K mp3 tracks avilable. And this is also the backup for my main system.

I use a WLAN card, but the problem is that it takes too long if I need to synchronize much. So I run a simple 75 foot network cable to the switch when larger amounts needs to be moved.

f1bred · « **Reply #15 on:** September 04, 2003, 10:17:06 am »

Hey, check this out:
http://www.omnifimedia.com/home/
It a new company from Rockford Fosgate.
It uses the 802.11b standard, but will soon support the faster 802.11g standard.
Currently it's only an add-on that basically takes the place of a CD changer and works through your existing head unit. Personally, I am waiting until they come out with this integrated into a head unit with a recevier as well.
The merging of our audio libraries is complete!

Mastiff · « **Reply #16 on:** September 04, 2003, 12:55:13 pm »

Two problems with that approac:

1. Where's the fun in buying something ready made?!

2. It's not using Media Center. That can't be legal!

I would have to say that I've got more out of my system for a much, much and probably much lower price. ALl in all it cost me (with harddisks, and they were a lot more expensive then) around 800 dollars. And those harddisks account for more than half of it. And I would have bought them anyway, because having a very neat library of more than 30 000 MP3s without a full backup is what I would call living far too dangerously!

jleerigby · « **Reply #17 on:** September 04, 2003, 01:44:59 pm »

Quote

I built a 1,2 Duron with a mini AT main board into a metal/wood suitcase, put two Sb Live! 5.1 in with kX drivers and run a three zone system (two headphones to the kids, one zone for the car audio system). This is with WinXP, Girder, Media Center 9 and NetRemote control. Works like a charm! With a few relays I've got it controlling it's own inverter via the 12V that goes to harddisks, so when it's turned off nothing uses power. And hibernation takes about 8 seconds (but can be done after the car key has been removed) and startup from hibernation takes aroun 12 seconds. Of course there's two 120 gig harddisks so I've got all my +30K mp3 tracks avilable. And this is also the backup for my main system.

I use a WLAN card, but the problem is that it takes too long if I need to synchronize much. So I run a simple 75 foot network cable to the switch when larger amounts needs to be moved.

Mastiff - I read your web site last weekend and was very impressed with what you've achieved (and thanks for the tip about Psychic MP3, it's changed my life). But that's nothing compared to this. It's bloody ridiculous - and I mean that in the nicest way. If someone posted an OT to ask what's the best way of making toast I would just love to see your response...

f1bred · « **Reply #18 on:** September 04, 2003, 03:21:12 pm »

Almost forgot... Linksys was supposed to have something similar out by July but it doesn't look like they made it.
http://www.nwfusion.com/net.worker/news/2003/0512netlead.html
I have looked but cannot find any info about it except for the above link.

Mastiff · « **Reply #19 on:** September 04, 2003, 10:26:17 pm »

Thank you, JLee! As for toast every Saturday and Sunday morning I always use my surplus army flame thrower. I first buy a truckload of bread, cut it in 0.5 inch thick slices, lay them out on a football field nearby and start shooting. Then, about 25 seconds later, I go over the bread, and I will usually find enough slices amongst the about 30 000 slices that the truckload gives me to feed me, my wife and my two kids that day. Yes, it's expensive. But it tastes good!

And then I spend the rest of the day on the police station being interrogated for excessive use of matches. Go figure...

jleerigby · « **Reply #20 on:** September 04, 2003, 11:18:27 pm »

sapnho · « **Reply #21 on:** September 05, 2003, 12:43:02 pm »

Mastiff, you ARE crazy!

But I like it!

Happy flame throwing!

kiwi · « **Reply #22 on:** September 06, 2003, 09:33:33 am »

Quote

kiwi,

How do you connect your iPod in the car? Wired to the head unit, or do you use one of those iPod FM transmitters? If you use the FM transmitter, how's the sound quality?

With my old car, I used an FM transmitter. The sound quality was ok... nothing great, better than radio, but not by much... with my new car, it has an AUX input on the head unit, so I just plug it right in. It sounds great that way.

From this point on, I will never get a head unit that doesn't have an AUX input, they are just too handy to have.

Quote

It would be nice if they made an all in one unit for the iPod in the car. Charger/mounter/audio output so you could just hardwire it once, drop the iPod in and go. They made one for the older iPods but not the 3Gs.

Yeah, I was thinking about getting one of the 3G models and getting an extra base unit to use for those purposes and then hacking it so that it worked in the car... and mounted to something. But it's very hard to justify getting a new iPod when my orig 5g unit still works flawlessly (see, I'm even trying to jinx it). In my old car, I used an old Cellphone holder that I'd found to mount the iPod up at roughly steering wheel level, so that I could controll it w/o too much difficulty.

kiwi

fex · « **Reply #23 on:** September 06, 2003, 11:03:12 am »

Quote

I've thought many times about setting up something like that.
Then I got an iPod and found it did everything that I needed to do.

Same here. Thought about all the touch screens, little PC's and so one. Then I got my iPod. It's absolutely the easyest way. And I'm able to use it wherever I want to.

Bought me a year ago a car radio with a back and (there we go) a front (AUX) input for my iPod. Plug and go.

My car audio:
http://www.jvc.com/product.jsp?modelId=MODL026816&page=2

P.S.: Ok, it's not very funny to set this up (to easy)

. But it works very well for your daily use.

INTERACT FORUM

Author Topic: Car Systems (Read 7758 times)

MachineHead

gkerber

jleerigby

jleerigby

fex