Well Im about to dump a load of money into my project. My last thing to get is a dial volume control for my external sound card, im going to look for a 5 channel voltage volume control so i can control the volume in the trunk with a dial in the dash... any info would be GREAT!!!

 

Huh?

Why not use an IR Remote and have *****/buttons wherever you want them? Or take apart a media KB with volume ****, play, stop, skip, and pause buttons so that you can use the buttons mounted to a panel or something? If using an external sound card (Xtigy?) can't you get USB up to 50' ? Why not mount the Xtigy in the dash?

 

I was thinking about doing a computer install too. It seems to be a good way to get everything I want in one package. Put all my CDs in mp3 format then just use the computer to play them. buy a Dvd-writer and install it right under the Din Unit so I can play DVD movies install new programs, use DVD navigation, etc. Install a TV/FM tuner chip so I can also listen to the radio or watch TV through the comp. get a wireless mouse and one of those mini-keyboards they use for PDAs, so it can be hidden away when I'm not using it. I have some friends that do programming so I could have them write some WRX desktop themes and a cool 3d display that would run when i'm not using the comp.

I'd mount the comp in the trunk with my amps. I'd also try to figure out a way to rig up some kind of ventilation cuz it'll get pretty hot back there without ventilation. maybe some kind of tube with a small fan I could put behind the rear seat panels to suck cooler air into the trunk and another tube on the other side blowing the hot air out of the trunk. I could probably figure out a way to run an AC line to the trunk to if my other idea didn't work. I dunno these are just thoughts right now. i wont have the money to do this until late this summer. but hey it doesn't hurt to start planning early.

 

Hmm.. with the tiny all-in-one MBs I've seen, installing into the dash just seems logical, especially with the space in the WRX dash.

However, if you want a nice Auto-PC, with a powerfull (see: HOT) processor, you had better build an enclosure with fans or use a PC case with all the holes for fans laid out. I guess you also have to worry about condensation and other stuff.. Should be fun!

 

I dont want to use the IR because its software based and I want a physcal way to turn down the stereo easy and quick. I want to put the sound card in the trunk because then im not sending the analog signal across the car, if its in the trunk it will stay digital and the the rca's will be very short. I realize that this sounds a little silly, but I do some of the highest level theaters and sound systems for a living, that and im using McIntosh amps. So I want to keep all the sound quility i can. If the volume on the sound card is digital though, i can relocate it to the front without a problem. The other reason I dont want to mount the sound card in the dash is I dont want anything to be visable. With the cost of everything and 2 big McIntosh amps in there, I would rather someone looking in the car and not seeing even a Head unit let alone what is really in there

Its great talking this out with you guys, thanks and lets keep this thread going!

 

Well, I know you can get a usb compatible volume **** that controls the main system power under winfows.. I'm not sure where to get it, but I've seen someone that has one, its a box about 2"X2"x2", with a little **** sticking out, thats it.. he had it mounted on the side of the monitor w/ double sided tape. That should work for you very well.. Another thing, go to radio shack and buy an inexpensive ground loop isolator, use on the power line the screen and the computer.. I got ground interference with mine w/o it.

 

PS. its not an analog signal, its a simple usb on that commands windows to turn the system volume up or down..

another alternative, if you use on the the newer all-in-wonder cards i suggested, they bring an RF (not IR) remote that will control most of the computer functions (mouse, volume, play, stop, rewind, minimize, maximize, etc..) also a possibility if you want more control from the front seat to trunk, with no wires or analog signals to distort.

 

I've got a pre-order in on an ATI 9700PRO AIW for my main system. I know it's silly to get an all-in-one solution when going for performance, because it will just cost that much more each time you upgrade, but I'm thinking of how nice this vid card would fit in my car when I do upgrade. For now I've got a very functional single DIN (fold down) MP3 player in the car with a snazzy OrganicEL(tm) LCD that plays little AVI movies to 'ooh' and 'ahh' the cheese police. It's got all the crossovers built into it with preamp and 23w RMS x 4 output using a nice clean built-in Mosfet amp. The amp rocks my dash with heat, but not so bad as it would cause a fire or melt anything. It's power is just enough to keep me happy while I wait for a wad of cash that's headed my way very soon.

Speaking of audio and on the topic of speakers, anyone had any bad understeer issues loading up the back of the WRX with weight? Like using up the space just behind the rear wheels in the trunk by installing a pair of really heavy 12" subs + enclosures & amps?

 

i have a toshiba laptop, that sports a dvd-rom and 20 gig HD. i was going to mount it securely in trunk using a "dampened drawer" so i could be taken in and out of the car (so i can use it for work too). i did not want to take space up with a full mounted pc case in the trunk.
the laptop would be connected for power using a converter, the docking station's vga output would have a wireless vga-to-tv adapter to link it to a din mounted lcd display. sound would come out of the laptop and into a headunit with AUX in. and a wireless keyboard/mouse for control.
i mainly want this for the gps, the mp3 and dvd player would be nice even with only stereo sound.

 

I have a 2000 civic hatch and I installed a P3 500 behind the cupholders in the middle. in that car the whole dash is empty so you can cram just about anything in there. I used a power inverter behind the glove box and hard drive infront of the stick. I took out the cigarette lighter and put two USB ports there. The CD-rom is under neither the radio in the pocket.....here some of the things that I ran into. the board I used was out of a Micro tower, so its basically a laptop. It fit perfectly, but there is no way to install cards on it to convert from SVGA to RCA or S-Video. I found that Radio Shack sells a converter to do that, so I'm golden on the video. The inverter in the the big snag though. I read that people are having problems with the inverter causeing noise when playing music, bascially engine whine/alternator whine/Ground noise. however there are inverters out there that don't have this problem. keeping it all consealed and the hard drive secure are the key things. you don't want to be reading off a frame mounted hard Drive and hit a pot hole at the same time, cause then you'll be buying a new hard drive. make sure you get the right inverter, suggest buying the first one from someplace with liberal return policy, just incase it cause that whine problem. My understanding was that to get one of "the good ones" it was gonna run like 120 bucks. so don't spend 40 and cross your fingers.

 

A ground loop isolator is $15 plus $40 for a simple inverter.. $65 is alot better than $120.. Try that first before searching for a $120 inverter.

WRX's dash is hollow inside too .. Tons of space for a MB, HD, inverter, DVDROM.. (Or just one of those little mini-PC's) Though I would install the DVDROM in the top compartment and use the dash opening for a $380 7" Panasonic LCD with VGA input and true 640x800 resolution.

I think we already covered all that in another thread but I'm too lazy to make a link.

 

well, from what I heard the noise is not just cause of the ground loop, it actually because of the magnetic feilds that the inferior inverters create. they too wil create problems, and a magnetic feild isn't something easily avoidable.

 

you can buy magnetic shielding to block the electromagnetic interferences.

15"x10" sheet of magnetic shielding wrap for $20 at Crutchfield.com



heres a link

http://www.crutchfield.com/cgi-bin/S...c=11&s=0&g=780

if that doesn't work just go to Crutchfield.com, click on the car audio and video instalation link, then click the noise suppressor link.

hope this helps

 

Keep in mind there are two very distinct problems in a car..

The first is the electrical interference from the engine.. It creates a dirty and noisey 12v power source. This is where a noise filter for the power comes into play.

The second problem is when you are mixxing electical/audio components that do not share a common ground and you get a "ground loop".. This is where you need to attach a ground loop isolator in-line between the audio connection from two mis-matched devices.

In our case, Subaru takes reasonable measures to ensure a somewhat clean power supply. The sound card in the PC would however be running off of a different ground than the amps/crossovers in your trunk. So you can install an in-line RCA style ground loop isolator inbetween the two units and it should fix the problem. Alternatively you could shop around to find more expensive, yet more compatible, audio/power devices. Generally speaking, if you spend a bit extra to go with a high-end brand, you will find that alot these 'extras' are built in to well-built components that detect problems like phase, signal loss, ground loops, etc.., and fix them automatically.