help the noob....

[ryoken]

hi guys......

ok, school a stereo noob... I can install one, etc, etc, but there's a few very basic questions I have...

hopefully you've all peeked at my build thread... I'm researching running a carpc and am liking the idea of NOT installing a head unit.. just mp3's, etc off the pc...

the other aspect is I plan on a single 10" sub at the back of my console..

I'm trying to look into what brands are quality, and what kinda specs I'd be looking for... As many know, I'm not afraid to spend money for quality...

here's what I think I'd like to run, please correct\guide me..

the 10" sub, 2 door speakers, I'm willing to hack the lowers.. figure maybe some nice 2-way 6 x 9's? then maybe a couple tweeters in the overhead console..

now I need to look at amps... not looking for huge volume, I'd really like a tough, durable unit... I figure my top price could be $300 for something nice... i know to look at rms, not peak power...

now specs and brands for amps and speakers? rockford fosgate, mtx, alpine, JL, etc? and would a 2-channel run that speaker setup? and would I want to run an actual crossover unit in this system if I can? how critical is that, or can I just run some inlinex-overs?


as you can tell, I know very little... TIA!

 

[5280k5]

I can't do you much help with the carputer but would be a nice addition to the rest of your build.
As far as brands, most all of the big name brands will have lower level stuff and their more expensive line, just depends on your goals & budget.
For the fronts, I would look into doing something with a component set, seperate woofer & tweeter and passive crossover. You'd probably be ok to mount both speakers in the door or get creative a build some kick panels for them. I don't think having tweeters in the overhead console is going to work right.
You might look into a four channel amp, run 2 channels for the fronts and bridge channels 3 & 4 for your sub. This will give you all the power you need out of 1 amp, just use your speakers power ratings to guide you on your amp purchase.

 

[lectric80]

First I would say scrap the idea of putting 6x9's in the doors, it can be done but the sound quality of an oval speaker is not nearly as good as a round. Maybe do a set of 6.5" speakers for the doors.
These are very similiar to the ones I plan for the front of mine:
http://www.sonicelectronix.com/item_13969_Infinity+Kappa+60.9cs.html

Since these are components, they have the mids as well as a good crossover to keep everything clean. You may want to consider mounting the tweeters on your a-pillar bars, rather than in the overhead. Tweeters really like more of a line of sight type placement.

I personally like Infinity for mids and highs, but it is a personal preference thing.

Subs, JL makes very nice subs, as does Infinity, and either is going to give you some good kick as long as you have enough airspace in the console. That is the most critical part, having the right airspace for the sub you choose.

Amps - Take your pick, I have been looking at some Infinity amps for mine, but I plan on at least three amps in my system. Alpine makes some nice amps, but they can be big $$, same with JL and Infinity. I would say for what you have planned, a good four channel amp with at least 450 watts should meet your needs.

 

[mr.smartass]

Not much help here sorry... I just pieced my together for cheap but it sounds great.

Go marine application! You're a boat guy, you must have seen some nice systems in these boats, and I'm sure they're way more durable.

 

[viperrgh2]

I'd go with a set of 6.5" components in the front , a pair of matching 6.5" coaxial speakers in the rear and a your single 10" sub, wouldn't go to crazy with the subwoofer as you won't be able to build a very large enclosure there. If your looking to stick to name brand I like infinity and Pioneer, both sound amazing I find infinity to have more of a tighter sound compared to pioneers open and smooth sound.. As far as tweeter moutning you want them as close to the midbass as possible.. in the doors is best or tweeters on top of the dash is ok ...
Pioneer
http://www.millionbuy.com/piotsd1720c.html
http://www.millionbuy.com/piotsd602p.html
http://www.millionbuy.com/piotsw258d4.html
http://www.millionbuy.com/piogm6400f.html
http://www.millionbuy.com/piogmd7400m.html

Infinity would be the speaker posted earlier along with similar items to that I posted but infinity, however I'm not a fan of infinity amps.. Other good amp choices are Hifonics and kicker. As far as running the car PC I would highly suggest sending it through an equalizer first then to the amps

 

[Blue85]

While CarPCs can add a lot of power to your system, they can also add a lot of headaches. If you go this route, I recommend a real car PC (micro ATX?) and not a laptop hidden under a seat or something. Having the power moding on board solves a lot of issues (Have you ever heard a computer sound card switch on and off while connected to 1000W of amplifiers?) and you will never get a good boot time unless the BIOS is specifically designed for this. Don't forget that the most basic functions of a car stereo are all add-ons to the PC (FM tuner, CD deck, clock display).

Keep everything powered from 12V and avoid all switching power adapters and power inverters as they present noise challenges that might not be solvable. Also, use a preamp or EQ between the PC and the amps that has a volume control. Trust me, sometimes you just want an accessible hardware volume control. Make an accessible line-in somewhere, too. In the event you need to do work on the PC or it is just being ornry, at least you can plug in a portable mp3 player or something.

Go check out some of the free carPC front ends: http://www.mp3car.com/vbulletin/front-ends/

 

[jonrpick]

While CarPCs can add a lot of power to your system, they can also add a lot of headaches. If you go this route, I recommend a real car PC (micro ATX?) and not a laptop hidden under a seat or something. Having the power moding on board solves a lot of issues (Have you ever heard a computer sound card switch on and off while connected to 1000W of amplifiers?) and you will never get a good boot time unless the BIOS is specifically designed for this. Don't forget that the most basic functions of a car stereo are all add-ons to the PC (FM tuner, CD deck, clock display).

Keep everything powered from 12V and avoid all switching power adapters and power inverters as they present noise challenges that might not be solvable. Also, use a preamp or EQ between the PC and the amps that has a volume control. Trust me, sometimes you just want an accessible hardware volume control. Make an accessible line-in somewhere, too. In the event you need to do work on the PC or it is just being ornry, at least you can plug in a portable mp3 player or something.

Go check out some of the free carPC front ends: http://www.mp3car.com/vbulletin/front-ends/

Most, if not all of the Mini-ITX stuff that I've been looking at uses an external power supply, no different than a laptop power supply. I know switching PS's are available, but given the low-power design of mATX and Mini-ITX stuff, (as well as Nano-ATX) it's really pointless to have a switching supply.

Shuttle has a nice little Intel Atom-powered system now that uses that type of power setup.

Here's some in-dash PC stuff:

http://shop.ebay.com/?_from=R40&_trksid=p3907.m38.l1313&_nkw=lilliput+din&_sacat=See-All-Categories

This is something I'm considering for mine:

http://cgi.ebay.com/Double-DIN-Lill...5|66:2|65:12|39:1|240:1318|301:1|293:1|294:50

Although, there's one that only occupies half the space and flips out when you need it. Underneath the flip model, I'd mount this:

http://cgi.ebay.com/Lilliput-TC1000...5?hash=item45dcaedab0&_trksid=p3286.m20.l1116

That's actually a computer case made to be mounted in the dash.

I may just go with the fixed touch-screen and locate the actual PC in the console. I'd still run some USB ports to the dash for accesories, with a keyboard (with integrated touchpad) being something I'd carry along for email-on-the-go and all.

You don't really *need* a CD player. My plan is to keep a USB DVD-ROM in the cab, and I can plug it up as needed. I wouldn't use it for playing until I was sitting still. CDs ripped down to mp3 or even a larger lossless format won't occupy much hard disk space, and they can be ripped down in a matter of a couple of minutes, so no need to use power actually spinning a disc for playback. Plus I can use it to rip movies down.

Hard drive: go with SSD. It's more $$$ but there's no moving parts, hence they're pretty vibration proof. If you choose to keep the "media" (music & video) on a separate SSD drive, you can just connect it via a USB port (like connecting an iPod to your car stereo) as needed. This has the added benefit of making your media portable, and you could bring it in the house and transfer more content onto it without having to actually be in the truck. Or, you could go to a friend's house and dump your favorites from their media library on to it.... lots of options here.

Fast boot times... Yep. Faster is better. You'll always have the option to "suspend" the operating system as long as the carputer has constant power. One of the Mini-ITX machines tested in one of my Linux mags pulled right at 3W at idle, less when suspended. You'd basically have instant-on capabilities. You could get trick, and rig up a "wake on ignition" system, so that the computer comes out of suspend mode when the ignition goes to the 'on' position.

If you're willing to go with Linux, there are distributions that are fast booting and tailored for low-power and portable computing.


You gots some reading to do, Paul.... It'll be badass when you're done, though!

 

[Blue85]

Be careful putting your media on USB drives, though. They aren't always instantly "there" when you come out of hibernate or suspend. This can be the OS or the hardware to blame and you can't always predict it. The mp3 player can get lost and flake out. Putting it on the internal drive is safest, but solid state is kind of pricey. You might be able to use solid state for the OS and glass platters for the bulk storage, both on the IDE or SATA. You need to limit the write cycles, so look into that before committing to flash.

BTW, when I say "switching power supply" it's not specific to a metal box with a fan. I mean anything that is chopping current to convert voltage levels, which includes those inside and outside the PC.

 

[cdoggwsu]

Another option if you're not too keen on a dash-mounted PC is a remote mounted LCD. I've seen them setup with a vacuum fluorescent and OLED display as well. There's a pretty good community that has been developing WinAmp plugins for remote display and playlist control for years. It looks like some of them support S3/S4 power mode control, too.

IIRC, you were wanting to have a dash mounted spectrum analyzer, right?

 

[lak2004]

how much do you want to spend on the front speakers? JL makes some real nice component sets as does Morel and Focal. Kicker also makes awesome components. For an amp look into Kicker or ARC audio. I prefer the kicker amps, but arc makes some really small powerful amps. As for sub, I say check into JL, kicker, eclipse or alpine. All make some nice stuff. Let me know when you are ready to buy and I can probably get you a better deal on some stuff.