Car PC

[BMac1203]

have you tried sending the VGA signal from the CarPC mobo to another output? (ie: CarPC -> Computer Monitor)

 

Then, you might find that its the mobo that's bad.

 

Can't remember if this was said; any chance its improper refresh rates, or something of that nature, that is incorrectly setup on the mobo?

[f1anatic]

then your problem is the hack job VGA connector

[Kargurra]

Sounds like a bad ground to me...

 

How well is the mobo grounded? Maybe the laptop VGA connector is grounded better?

[Vsick]

Has anyone tried this?

 

Also, I am ready to order a xenarc, I sit pretty much impossible to mount the xenarc in te cubby area without moving the rear cover and trimming the sides?

[Vsick]

sorry forgot link

http://store.mp3car.com/Subaru_WRX_bolt_in_kit_with_toushcreen_p/dsh-013.htm

 

not even sure where it "bolts on to" says legacy 2005 specific

[BMac1203]

Thats false advertising, that made me mad when I saw that.

 

It fits 2005-2006 Legacy 2.5i's, not LGT's. 2.5i's are able to remove the radio and replace with a double-din, but we cannot.

 

This unit IS NOT bolt-in compatible with LGT's. You need a cubby bezel made for your screen and then you must mount the computer somewhere.

 

If you end up going down the cubby route, PM me, I have an extra ready-to-install screen bezel.

[Vsick]

Thats false advertising, that made me mad when I saw that.

 

It fits 2005-2006 Legacy 2.5i's, not LGT's. 2.5i's are able to remove the radio and replace with a double-din, but we cannot.

 

This unit IS NOT bolt-in compatible with LGT's. You need a cubby bezel made for your screen and then you must mount the computer somewhere.

 

If you end up going down the cubby route, PM me, I have an extra ready-to-install screen bezel.

 

 

check your pm bigmac, I think I PMed you before.

[f1anatic]

I subscribe: there is no GT kit for Car PC. False advertisement.

[BMac1203]

I used 12awg wire, with an inline fuse about 6" away from the battery. Im at work so I cant give you the amperage right now, though.

 

Use an automotive fuse holder, and that should be "heavy duty" or something to that affect. It'll have 12-14awg wire coming out either side (if you buy from Radioshack).

 

I did not use any distribution blocks.

 

I ran power straight to the battery, grounded to the chassis right infront/below the fuse box, and used a ground loop isolator for audio. I have no whines or interference.

[BMac1203]

Actually, now that I think about it, I might try my audio without the ground loop isolator. Ive always had it in there, never tried it without to even see if I was having any ground loop issues.

 

Ive read that ground loop isolators really kill the low end. Im experiencing that right now. I went from ipod->jazzymod and it had CRAZY bass. Now I have CarPC->Ground Loop Isolator->Jazzymod and the bass is VERY tight, no real lows anymore.

 

I want my bling-bling rattle-rattle bass back hah. Really, music just isn't the same without the low end. I GUESS I could get the OEM sub to even it out and keep the GLI, but I'd be spending extra money for what I was doing before for less...

[BMac1203]

AFAIK, just run a 1"+ wire out of the DB, and then solder the 18awg wire to that. I could be wrong, but don't see why that wouldn't work. But then again, Im not an Electrical Engineer.

 

What PSU did you choose to go with?

[f1anatic]

I ran 2 x 10 gauge wires from the battery to the back of the car where the power source is. Actually it was a wire that I scavenged off a vacuum cleaner - so pretty sturdy and thick one may say. I bought the automotive fuse holder from Pep Boys (the one that takes the larger fuses). One of the wires is (+) and carries the fuse, about 20 cm from the battery and the other (-) duh. However I "grounded" mine at the battery. I felt the more I avoid the chassis, the better it will be.

 

It is rather difficult to take pictures of the area where the wires pass thru the firewall. I had a local member do it. Funky Weasel is much better at explaining since he did it for me. He ran them thru the doorstep on the left side of the car to the rear - my power source is in the trunk.

 

The battery connectors : I had a thick copper metal sheet from which I cut 2 pieces, drilled holes thru it and soldered the wires onto. Then attached them to screws of those clamps that get hooked to the battery terminals (English pawns me here but you know what I mean). I am sure you could purchase something less ghetto in the store.

[BMac1203]

Yup, I passed wires at the same place. I said I used 12awg, but could have been 10 as well. I did the same, ran 2 big wires to the trunk.

 

I used copper eye sockets to attach to bolt on battery.

[NSFW]

How thick is a typical CarPC LCD panel after the case is removed?

 

It occurred to me today that I could just remove the upper display from the stock radio and leave the rest of the electronics intact. Then cut out the stock trim panel and blend the LCD panel into it. There would be less than a half-inch of depth to work with, beyond that the trim panel would need to be built up to get flush with the LCD.

 

If the stock trim has to be built up, it would not look as good as cutting and relocating the top half of the stock radio circuit board, but it would be far less work and much lower risk.

[f1anatic]

@ NSFW

 

I chose to keep the original frame (albeit chopped the sides) of the Xenarc monitor because it provides protection and housing to the LCD internals. There is more to it than a mere glass. The circuit boards attach to one another and to the frame.

 

I am not sure precisely what you mean...but I am absolutely certain that there is a lot more work involved going your route.

 

If you go back to the beginning of this thread you will see some pictures of how each one of us did his Car PC.

[BMac1203]

Wow, looks really great!

 

Few things, why did you make a switch for the screen? Couldnt you have set it to auto-on, and then if you don't want it on, you could just use the remote to turn it off?

 

Also, not sure if you tested this on the bench, but you might experience slowdown issues with having your GPS attached to a USB Hub. This happened with me, that's why I say that.

 

I had my GPS pugged into my hub, and when I turned on the GPS, my computer really bogged down for some reason. Once I gave my GPS receiver its own dedicated USB cable, my issue went away.

 

But then again, every setup is different, so you might not have any issues to begin with.

[BMac1203]

Congrats!

 

What type of screen do you have?

[f1anatic]

Holy Impressive. I wish I had that custom harness myself. Dealing with multiple wires is teh majorest bitch.

[f1anatic]

35 watts ? Kray Zee ! Mine draws about 70 and my psu is rated 150. Including the 2 usb hubs though.

[f1anatic]

The Empire Strikes Back

 

http://www.microsoft.com/windowsautomotive/wa5/default.mspx

[f1anatic]

Meaning...Windows Automotive 5.0

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=47&p=1&SrcDisplayLang=en&SrcCategoryId=&SrcFamilyId=5d3839cf-2205-41c2-859e-f25b80daaf4e&u=details.aspx%3ffamilyid%3dFBA4E943-9B9F-48C8-8195-1000D3398F3F%26displaylang%3den

 

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=5D3839CF-2205-41C2-859E-F25B80DAAF4E&displaylang=en

[andrew.anderson]

Meaning...Windows Automotive 5.0

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=47&p=1&SrcDisplayLang=en&SrcCategoryId=&SrcFamilyId=5d3839cf-2205-41c2-859e-f25b80daaf4e&u=details.aspx%3ffamilyid%3dFBA4E943-9B9F-48C8-8195-1000D3398F3F%26displaylang%3den

 

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=5D3839CF-2205-41C2-859E-F25B80DAAF4E&displaylang=en

 

 

Great! Now all we need is someone with MSDN access to download it for us.

[andrew.anderson]

With Microsoft onboard it should help to increase interest in the Carputer arena which will encourage hardware and software developement which will eventually drive down prices.

[NSFW]

Windows Automotive is based on CE though... That's fine for big manufacturers, but if you want to roll your own system you're better off with XP. It's got better driver support and runs out-of-the-box on most any PC-compatible hardware.

 

I can see it being available in plenty of cars, but not as an aftermarket add-on, unless packaged up by a car-electronics vendor like Clarion, Alpine, etc.

[BMac1203]

Sebb,

 

You willing to share that skin?

 

I'm not gonna lie, I just gave in and purchased Centrafuse (because my trial FINALLY ran out)

 

But that skin looks like the sex...very non-cluttered like you said, very functional.

 

I'm also not happy with the iG3 plug-in for CF, and yours seems to suit it better.

 

Any ideas when yours will be ready for trials?