One-of-a-kind home built headunit
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New member Username: Slovenian6474Post Number: 2 Registered: Aug-06 | Someone told me i couldn't possibly do this so i had to do it. I built a complete computer system (yes 60Gb harddrive for those mp3s) into a single din slot. DVD, GPS, Touchscreen, Harddrive, and wireless (good at rest stations on trips). Took quite awhile and isn't as good as i wanted to look due to lack of the right tools, but wanted to see what you guys thought. Pic link: http://i16.photobucket.com/albums/b48/slovenian/Picture102.jpg |
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Gold Member Username: Chaunb3400Huntsville, Alabama U.S. Post Number: 8430 Registered: Jul-05 | nice.....how much did it cost him to make??? |
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New member Username: Slovenian6474Post Number: 3 Registered: Aug-06 | I spent roughly $900 on it. Had to get a 4channel amp for it also since no built in amp. |
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Bronze Member Username: Volsrule2069Post Number: 97 Registered: Feb-05 | holy sh!t thats incredible. are your runnin windows XP on that? |
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New member Username: Slovenian6474Post Number: 4 Registered: Aug-06 | Yes it is running XP. I forgot to mention i had also integrated bluetooth in it. You can set it to use your cell phone and when you get calls, it would turn down the volume and put the call through the car speakers. |
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Bronze Member Username: Th3pwn3rChicago, Illinois U.S.A Post Number: 46 Registered: Jul-06 | Lol 900 dollars not to mention the time invested in work.I'm good at building PC's and modding things but I wouldn't bother investing that much time ,me being lazy and all.  |
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Silver Member Username: JustababyboyPhilly, PA Post Number: 104 Registered: Jun-05 | Thats pretty cool how did you go about getting parts and all. |
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New member Username: Slovenian6474Post Number: 8 Registered: Aug-06 | Measured what i could put in there and drew the whole thing up in Autocad just to make sure it would fit. The motherboard is a Mini ITX board. You can get alot of the parts from logicsupply.com and mp3car.com Those are the only US based companies i know that sell small enough boards. The rest of the stuff is mostly laptop parts. Also this was built almost 2 years ago so i'm sure the prices have gone down and i know they have released an even smaller board. The case was designed from sheetmetal and acrylic. |
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Silver Member Username: Big_fletchNewport, Ar, Ar United states Post Number: 421 Registered: May-06 | nice work |
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Bronze Member Username: Naledge503Portland, Oregon U.S. Post Number: 93 Registered: Jun-06 | Wow bro, thats incredible. good job. |
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Gold Member Username: IlluminatorUSA Post Number: 3897 Registered: Apr-05 | Incredibly nice, and for $900, that's a great deal!! Think of the name-brand equivalent(if existent) that setup would cost...not cheap, that's for sure. Most of these types of installs I see don't fit into the DIN, but are scattered behind it and in the glovebox etc. That's extremely impressive. Looks great aesthetically as well. |
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New member Username: Slovenian6474Post Number: 10 Registered: Aug-06 | Ya i searched for one installed like that but only found one (and it didn't have half the stuff i crammed in there). Most people don't try to fit it in the DIN because it's cheaper to scatter it. Thanks for all the comments! |
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Bronze Member Username: Slovenian6474Post Number: 11 Registered: Aug-06 | Pic of the inside before i got the mirrored acrylic in.  |
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Bronze Member Username: JustblazeSt.Louis, MO USA Post Number: 57 Registered: Jun-06 | damn want to make me one? haha |
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Bronze Member Username: Slovenian6474Post Number: 12 Registered: Aug-06 | lol if you want one |
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Gold Member Username: Sploosh56Ohio Post Number: 1470 Registered: May-04 | dude that's awesome |
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Bronze Member Username: FuryousMiami, FL USA Post Number: 23 Registered: Aug-06 | I love it when people say it can't be one and hen some dude with brains and creativity does it. Excellent work, man. To think it could be updated with a cellular wireless card and have internet access while on the road. Someone asks "Do you have this song?" "Nope. But you can download it if you like." Sweet. |
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Bronze Member Username: Slovenian6474Post Number: 13 Registered: Aug-06 | Thanks guys. I love the cellular wireless card idea (except for the price of highspeed wireless $60-$80 a month!! ouch) I've been testing it through the summer and seeing how it deals with the heat. Starts right up after sitting in the car (130 degrees in direct sunlight). |
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Silver Member Username: AstrosafariDelhi, Ontario Canada Post Number: 559 Registered: Aug-05 | thast pretty sweet, is like a home computer? where you can chat and play games, and down load music? i was a computer good enough in my van so i can go on msn, and download my music, and maybe search the net... that wont be for a long time tho.... looks good man. |
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Bronze Member Username: Slovenian6474Post Number: 14 Registered: Aug-06 | It's pretty close to a home computer. Due to space and heat, i chose a low voltage processor. I think the whole unit w/screen only uses around 50 watts. So this means you can do the normal stuff a home computer can although intense 3D games would not run well on this system. As for chat, download, music, movies, internet, all that stuff it can do. I connect my cell phone through bluetooth and use it as a dialup modem for basic internet stuff. If you feel like going highspeed, the computer can handle that also. A friend of mine found it quite fun to look up pron in a mcdonalds drivethru (mcd's has free wireless). |
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Silver Member Username: Volsrule2069Post Number: 104 Registered: Feb-05 | hahaahh thats incredble. its just amazing you me you did that yourself. thats somethin i would love to do i just dont no anything haha. did you go to school to learn that much about computers and electronics or what? |
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Gold Member Username: 54danny54Betsy layne, Kentucky..GO... USA duh Post Number: 2748 Registered: Nov-04 | hey Tim Z...do me a favor dude... dan_da_man_blhs64@hotmail.com send me an email with the parts list u used and stuff. ive been wanting to build one forever |
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Silver Member Username: DelsolePost Number: 419 Registered: Feb-05 | holy fu ck nice work man |
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New member Username: Therunner3Post Number: 1 Registered: Aug-06 | damn thats bad |
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Gold Member Username: JuliobSanto DomingoDominican Re... Post Number: 1958 Registered: Dec-05 | DREAM of car audio freaks!!! |
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Gold Member Username: Killerzracing71Fredericksburg, Virginia United states Post Number: 1107 Registered: Aug-05 | car pcs are nothing new....... i cant wait to build mine........ n its the best HU ever cuz u can make it do whatever u want www.mp3car.com i used to stay on that site.... plan on running 8" touch screen with Media Engine or windows Media player prolly engine cuz its free |
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Bronze Member Username: CavsmaximaPost Number: 97 Registered: Aug-06 | Aweosme work, havent seen anything like that b4. |
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Gold Member Username: IlluminatorUSA Post Number: 4657 Registered: Apr-05 | I watched the cnet vid indirectly linked at the mp3car.com site and it brought up the very thing that's keeping them from being OEM equipment-the hard drives. Right now they aren't reliable enough for cars. I would have no problem with replacing the hard drive every 1 or 2 years though (I'm sure I'm being liberal with those guesses), provided it was backed up well. I still think the original poster's computer is the best I've seen to date. |
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Bronze Member Username: Slovenian6474Post Number: 15 Registered: Aug-06 | Hey. Thanks for the compliment. I wouldn't be so worried about HDs in cars. Not much different that portable mp3 players. Laptop harddrives can take up to around 250 Gs. So unless you get in wrecks often you should be alright. As some precautions, i did mount the harddrive with rubber around the screws just to out some vibrations. Heat's not really a problem here either. The fan on the front isn't necessary but i put it there just in case. Ironically, i chose a Seagate hard drive just for the fact that they come with a 5 yr warranty. As for the 1-2 years, i'm going on 2 yrs without a problem with mine. |
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Gold Member Username: InsearchofbassPost Number: 4893 Registered: Jun-04 | Ive had this idea for a few years now ....as wreak havock will tell you but I had your ideas and a little bit more....nothin like inspiration for me not to give up on the idea hehe....did you use a line driver with that setup? |
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Gold Member Username: InsearchofbassPost Number: 4894 Registered: Jun-04 | oh and ..nice work! |
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Bronze Member Username: Slovenian6474Post Number: 16 Registered: Aug-06 | Thanks. Hope yours goes well. Sorry, but i'm not familiar with a line driver, so i assume i didn't use one. |
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Silver Member Username: RiskybPost Number: 299 Registered: Feb-06 | Thats tight, but for 900$ you could just buy a laptop and hook it up your headunit. Props for creativity though. |
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Bronze Member Username: Slovenian6474Post Number: 17 Registered: Aug-06 | Yes you can. This is much more integrated into the car than a laptop can though. |
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Gold Member Username: InsearchofbassPost Number: 4895 Registered: Jun-04 | A line driver would have give you more voltage out from your computer to your amplifier....here's a link...8 volts out much more than the computer id assume puts out which gives you a cleaner signal |
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Gold Member Username: InsearchofbassPost Number: 4896 Registered: Jun-04 | http://cgi.ebay.com/PHOENIX-GOLD-TLD22-8-VOLT-LINE-DRIVER-LINE-DRIVER-NEW_W0QQit emZ250041051165QQihZ015QQcategoryZ79842QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem |
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Gold Member Username: InsearchofbassPost Number: 4897 Registered: Jun-04 | Grant Law....Technically speaking you wouldnt need a headunit at all....there are so many addons for computers you could have built in fm and xm radio as well if you wanted |
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Gold Member Username: InsearchofbassPost Number: 4898 Registered: Jun-04 | as far as keyboard I saw pimp my ride show a infrared kind of keyboar from fome company it just lights up on an open surface area...nice if you dont wanna take up space also you could use a wireless mouse or the buit in mouse on your laptop if thats what you where using as your pc |
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Bronze Member Username: Slovenian6474Post Number: 18 Registered: Aug-06 | I've seen those infrared keyboards. I've heard they're very glitchy though with false keystrokes and when your hands are over the keyboard area, you can't see the keys under your hands. Very attention grabbing though. I chose one of those roll up rubber style keyboards. Can't say it was the best choice but it works. I think a good idea would have been to not go with the touchscreen and a get a small usb touchpad to mount to the steering wheel. Hmm, figures i just thought of that now. |
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Gold Member Username: InsearchofbassPost Number: 4899 Registered: Jun-04 | problem is mounting to the steering wheel is illegal lol...what amplifier do you have hooked up for your setup? |
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Gold Member Username: InsearchofbassPost Number: 4900 Registered: Jun-04 | also do any of your friends have car pc's....also wouldnt it be nice if they did and you played xbox wifi from car to car heads up |
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Gold Member Username: InsearchofbassPost Number: 4901 Registered: Jun-04 | or transfered files back and forth mp3's or even funny movie c lips racing clips etc. |
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Gold Member Username: InsearchofbassPost Number: 4902 Registered: Jun-04 | or free voice chat over aol instant messenger etc. all over your own private network |
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Gold Member Username: InsearchofbassPost Number: 4903 Registered: Jun-04 | or if you were on a long trip and near each other you could talk while driving through your network without using the cell phone |
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Bronze Member Username: SidmeisterPost Number: 13 Registered: Oct-06 | Is it able to turn you amplifier on, since i dont see how it can without a remote wire hookup |
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Bronze Member Username: Slovenian6474Post Number: 19 Registered: Aug-06 | Yes it does turn the amp on. A remote wire is hooked directly into the computer's powersupply. When the computer is turned on, the amp turns on. |
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Silver Member Username: Denali_on_22sMaryville, TN Us Post Number: 486 Registered: Feb-06 | That's nice... I love people with motivation and brains |
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Silver Member Username: J_baby15Kentucky Post Number: 890 Registered: Feb-06 | Awesome job man. |
