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Nocheez posted:Here's an old memory: I built a ridiculous box for my 1990 Cutlass Supreme (the w-body, Lumina clone). My brother and I called MTX and spoke with an engineer there who asked what we were doing, what components, type of music, etc. He then faxed us (lol) some build sheets and we went to work making a ported box with 2x10" subs. My first one I built was this goofy bandpass thing with an acrylic window (that was way too thin and flexed like crazy) and ports that were calculated via "that looks right" and a 12" Pioneer sub from the 90's. I absolutely thought it was cool and sounded good and I guarantee if I had a time machine to go listen to it I would laugh very hard at myself. I have to remember what it's like to be 16 or 17 when I'm roasting the hillbilly garbage car stereo stuff on FB marketplace and have a little humility.
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Jul 14, 2022 14:09
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I was given a free pair (probably stolen, thinking back) of subwoofers from a buddy I worked at the car was with. He told me they were 12s, but they were actually 15s when I measured. I built a box and put them in my 92 Supra turbo. It was way too much bass, but it was perfect for that highway monster.
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Jul 14, 2022 14:27
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Nocheez posted:I was given a free pair (probably stolen, thinking back) of subwoofers from a buddy I worked at the car was with. He told me they were 12s, but they were actually 15s when I measured. I built a box and put them in my 92 Supra turbo. It was way too much bass, but it was perfect for that highway monster. Just having flashbacks to my single 12" Kicker competition sliding around in the trunk of my '95 Subaru Legacy as I did donuts in snowy parking lots, what a time to be alive. That said, I'd love to still have the 6.5" Clarion components I put in that car, they were great.
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Jul 14, 2022 14:33
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Nocheez posted:Here's an old memory: I built a ridiculous box for my 1990 Cutlass Supreme (the w-body, Lumina clone). My brother and I called MTX and spoke with an engineer there who asked what we were doing, what components, type of music, etc. He then faxed us (lol) some build sheets and we went to work making a ported box with 2x10" subs. Buddy of mine had a pair of custom Toby 15s (as I recall) in a box that literally filled the entire hatch area of his third-gen Camaro. It was ridiculous, but it would drat near go subsonic. My first "big" system is still in my '70 Cutlass. A pair of Pioneer free air 12s in infinite baffle and a Carver M2120 amp. Carver only made mobile audio for a few years - I caught this one on a good price at Crutchfield. I also had a pair of used 12" Lanzars - not bad, not the best. They were in my '81 Regal in a box replacing the rear seatback. I think I used the Carver there, too, then put it back in the Cutlass when I retired the Buick. I still have one of the subs - the other locked up a voice coil. Various other cheap-rear end woofers over the years in various things. Nowadays Boss and Dual are the "cheap car audio" of choice it seems. Back in my day it was Pyle and Pyramid Gold. Slightly better that Rockwood, Kenford, and Alphine. ...I still have a Pyramid Gold in the Cutlass driving the 6x9s on the rear deck. I had a JL Audio 10" in my Crown Vic, but I let it play after the surround separated and it locked up the voice coil, too. That really annoyed me. I'd had that sub for like 20 years. What *really* annoyed me was that I bought a kit and replaced the surround before realizing that it had died. Then there's the Godfather 8" subs I still have, though the foam has been patched with silicone and tissue extensively. I should see about re-foaming those. Man, I should scan some of the pictures from '90 car audio shows I went to... Half the old big names that were expensive superior quality are now Chinese zombie brands. Phoenix Gold, Precision Power, Soundstream, Hifonics (I think). edit: oh, man, you guys sent me down a nostalgia path. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Geevr9GOBw and: https://www.facebook.com/OldSchoolStereo/
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Jul 14, 2022 18:58
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https://i.imgur.com/BuzSky1.jpeg Nowadays I roll with a couple of amps, two 12" subs, and NOS.
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Jul 14, 2022 20:51
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Nocheez posted:https://i.imgur.com/BuzSky1.jpeg NICE!  I have one of the original NOS energy drink bottles that actually looked like a NOS nitrous bottle - the cap even looks like the valve knob. I want to mount one in the trunk somewhere.
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Jul 14, 2022 22:24
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This feels like the dumbest question but I've been struggling. What is good speaker wire? This is for the Galaxie, to connect a pair of speakers in the back to a small stereo. I just want something nice enough that I don't have to do it twice.
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Jul 25, 2022 19:17
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Speaker wire is usually pretty forgiving as long as you have a good connection, but thicker is always going to be better (giggity). Either 18 or 16 gauge should be more than enough. I got my stereo installed, but there are issues as always. I need to get my backup camera working (or buy theirs which can do live view while driving), get my steering wheel controls working, and get the correct dongle to use the factory USB port.
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Jul 25, 2022 19:27
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I've always been really impressed with KnuKonceptz wiring stuff. They also get a billion bonus points from me for actually making coax RCA cables and not just dumb twisted pair poo poo. It doesn't really matter a whole lot, though. As long as you route/secure/crimp/size it properly, nobody will ever know you used grandma's lamp cord.
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Jul 25, 2022 21:46
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Perfect I just ordered some from monoprice that's a pair of wires in a jacket. That'll provide some abrasian resistance that I crave.
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Jul 25, 2022 22:05
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StormDrain posted:This feels like the dumbest question but I've been struggling. loving anything. Almost. Lamp cord or "zip" cord is actually fine, electrically speaking. 10 million strands of oxygen-free copper with Teflon jackets are unnecessary even when you *are* running high power etc. Nocheez nailed it. There's a famous test where an expert put a whole bunch of high-priced cabling to the test, most critically double-blind listening tests, and literally none of the cabling snobs were able to pick out the expensive directional O2-free gold-terminated cabling reliably from other choices such as the same-gauge lamp cord and, amusingly, coat hanger wire. What I'm saying is Monster Cable is bullshit. They make quality stuff, but none of that makes any real difference in electrical delivery, provided sizing is the same. They're just nicer to work with, and tend to stay together better. The esoteric brands positioning themselves above Monster Cable are even deeper in the dookie. Power cable is even more basic, but having a shitload of strands on a heavy gauge wire is very nice for flexibility (think welding cable - which a lot of old-school installs used!) I like 16 gauge for most stuff, just in case, since I tend to run amps, but 18 gauge is fine for head unit power levels. Anything thinner just gets kind of difficult to work with in terms of crimp connectors and durability. The clear-jacketed stuff with a decent number of strands for flexibility is OK. Just make sure it's pure copper - a lot of the budget wire is copper-clad aluminum, and I don't feel good about that. I've not seen any tests or anything, but... eh? StormDrain posted:Perfect I just ordered some from monoprice that's a pair of wires in a jacket. That'll provide some abrasian resistance that I crave. Monoprice is a good choice for inexpensive but decent stuff. You just need something with appropriate flexibility and sizing. edit: I was briefly searching for the original test I read about, and OMG some of the incredibly stupid comments about this out there... Mostly false equivalence about insulation, other components ("so if price doesn't matter just buy the cheapest everything, right!" - no, we're just talking about speaker cable Karen,) and basically not understanding or misrepresenting what is being tested (same length, same size/gauge for all types.) My God, how people will stan for a company they gave a buttload of money to. My dudes, speaker cable is literally the simplest, least affecting thing in your device chain. except *maybe* the AC power cord. As long as it's big enough, and connected securely/making good contact, YOU CAN NOT HEAR THE DIFFERENCE. This isn't the test I remember - that was in the '80s, maybe '90s, as I recall, but it's the same poo poo: https://consumerist.com/2008/03/03/do-coat-hangers-sound-as-good-monster-cables/ Another one, more detailed, and more recent: https://www.soundguys.com/cable-myths-reviving-the-coathanger-test-23553/ edit2: I may have strong opinions about this. edit, the third: More info than you would ever want. Addresses a number of factors, and I think the Gordon Gow (a McIntosh engineer) test he talks about meay be the one I'm thinking of? http://www.roger-russell.com/wire/wire.htm Darchangel fucked around with this message at 23:43 on Jul 26, 2022 |
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Jul 26, 2022 22:51
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The other thing with speaker wire if I recall (and this applies to power too) is that the length of the run matters as far as power handling goes. An 8" run of 8ga between a (fused) distribution block and an amp isn't going to melt and cause a fire as long as the longer run to the battery is 4ga. This revelation saved me a shitload of time and effort, especially given that even some cheaper monobloc amps in the 500w range have 8ga terminals, and 4ga > 4ga distribution blocks are nowhere near as easy to grab as a 4 > 8. If you mount the block close to your monobloc, and run a short run of 8ga to that and whatever run you need to your 2/4ch amp, which is going to be just fine and probably can't take a 4ga cable anyway, you're going to have way fewer headaches IMO. Just make sure any time you go down a gauge you have a fuse there, and save yourself the pain of trying to trim down 4ga copper to fit in a terminal designed for 8. Same applies to speaker wire - if you're just slapping a pair of 150w splits in, a short run of 18awg factory speaker wire running through the door hinge into the speakers isn't going to hurt you the way having 18ga running all the way from the dash to your boot might, and while it is probably -optimal- to run fresh new 16ga ofc all the way from the amp to the terminals on the speaker, more often than not you're going to spend more time on that metre or so of cable than the rest of your system combined. Fusing isn't as big a deal here because you're not dealing with massive current. If you're doing a big spl build and throwing in big power speakers you're probably doing a heap of fabricating to begin with, so drilling holes or unwrapping a factory loom is probably less of a waste of time for you. If you're just putting in some nice aftermarket speakers, meh. I usually run 16ga up the centre console and terminate behind the deck into the factory loom, which is probably not as good as running fresh wire to the door looms (and tends to make space a premium back there), but time is money, friends.
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Jul 27, 2022 07:40
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Oh, definitely - that's basic physics. Resistance goes up with length, limiting current capacity. There are some easy charts and guidelines out there for what a particular length of a particular gauge of wire can handle, just like when dealing with, say, AC power extension cords.
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Jul 27, 2022 23:21
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eia3It81mak Hell yeah, now we're getting into irresponsibly cheap. They're just givin' watts away now.
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Jul 28, 2022 23:43
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Ya my main problem is I was either finding lamp cord (felt cheap, I was worried the insulation would stiffen up and crack) or way expensive fancy looking wire (expensive for no reason, color that I didn't need). All I wanted was what I got. Two wires inside of a jacket. I felt like there had to be an obvious answer I was missing and I found it. Edit, I probably won't pursue it but I was toying with getting a small four channel amp, an recommendations for an inexpensive model? It's driving small speakers anyway, I just don't think the radio I have will have much power and it's easier to run power etc now while the car is in shambles. I'd probably install something under $100 but just use the receiver power for anything higher than $200. I'd do a lot of soul searching between there. StormDrain fucked around with this message at 18:11 on Jul 29, 2022 |
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Jul 29, 2022 18:08
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After an extended wait for my bracket to arrive to go with the replacement head unit I ordered for my new-to-me CRV, I realized I didn't order a loving harness. And now all I can find are harnesses for 4th gen, 2012 and up, nothing for 2011 
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Aug 26, 2022 22:42
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Atoto responded to my 3-star rating for a smaller unit I was dissatisfied with by offering the larger unit at no expense, didn't even have to pay for return shipping -- and it was no longer on discount either and should have been a solid $50 more by the time they replied. Solid company to use in my case.
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Aug 26, 2022 22:55
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codo27 posted:After an extended wait for my bracket to arrive to go with the replacement head unit I ordered for my new-to-me CRV, I realized I didn't order a loving harness. And now all I can find are harnesses for 4th gen, 2012 and up, nothing for 2011 Nothing on Crutchfield? I picked a random 2011 CR-V and radio, they said they have an adapter. But I don't know if I picked the car that you have, had options for changers and subs and such.
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Aug 27, 2022 02:20
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I would be shocked if Crutchfield didn’t have a harness for any 2011 Honda.
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Aug 27, 2022 05:42
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They had a harness for a 2012 Civic when I looked earlier this year.
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Aug 27, 2022 20:14
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I got bored after like 150 days of uptime on my weird carputer DSP thingy, so I redid the whole drat thing with Linux. It was a huge pain in the rear end, but now it is even cooler. Carla actually properly supports VSTs unlike how they kind of half work in Equalizer APO, but the best part is that it can actually route all the knobs and poo poo through OSC. I used Open Stage Control to build a web UI with relevant audio stuff I might want to tweak like crossovers, channel gains, and other processing stuff like LoAIR which is basically an AudioControl Epicenter in VST form. Linux also supports AptX-HD, AAC, and SBC XD bluetooth sources, which is definitely a bit cleaner than stock 53 bitpool SBC that windows is stuck at. However, I only really use that now if I want to stream Spotify or Youtube Music or something, because now I use KDE Connect to remotely control a local media player on the laptop, or upload stuff to it. Don't have to worry about bluetooth resampling or dropouts, and I still just control it from a couple little Sanwa arcade buttons on a wireless microcontroller. Overall I didn't think it would make any difference, but the high end definitely sounds a bit clearer, and a little bit of noise that was present on very low or high volumes is gone now too, likely both caused by SBC resampling. I changed some stuff with my sub IR, so I can't for sure say if it sounds better because of that or something else, but it does sound better as well. Only downside is it takes a few seconds longer to boot than Windows 10 did. It was a pain in the rear end to get hibernate working in Fedora 36, and when I finally did it actually resumed in the same amount of time or slower than just a cold boot. This seems weird because fully booted windows was at like 1.1 gigs of ram used, and linux is like 500, but whatever, systemd-analyze has nothing left to blame at this point. I still need to figure out some kind of sleep-then-shutdown setup, but I think 15 seconds is still plenty reasonable. I want to do a cool custom single-din deck to control everything that looks like an old-school high-end head unit, and I've found some nice rotary encoders and switches, but I'm having a tough time finding the right display. Lowclock fucked around with this message at 09:53 on Sep 14, 2022 |
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Sep 14, 2022 02:10
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Can you please do a quick vid of this? Sounds pretty cool. I had always thought of using a rpi w/ some hifi dac hat but in the end it was too much effort/work to be worth it to me. But i still enjoy seeing others work.
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Sep 14, 2022 02:41
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deong posted:Can you please do a quick vid of this? Sounds pretty cool. Is there anything in particular you wanted to see? I don't even take my phone out of my pocket and kde connect is very boring anyways. If you wanted me to get like some screenshots of the DSP and laptop stuff I can.
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Sep 14, 2022 04:38
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Is there a good and cheap 1-din DAB+ solution for a BMW E90 that maintains steering wheel controls and at least does a semblance of the orange dash light coloring?
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Sep 16, 2022 16:12
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Just installed the Corehan car play / android deck after reading about all the sub $100 Amazon setups. So far beyond impressed. Touchscreen is phone like, BT connected immediately. CarPlay popped right up but no time to test all. Sounds great. Will finish install in dash in morning. These solder melt connectors are great too highly recommend. Limited-time deal: Double Din Stereo Car Audio Receiver - Corehan 7 Inch Touch Screen Car Stereo with Bluetooth Compatiable with Android Auto Car Play https://a.co/d/b1eTniM   ][/url]
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Sep 22, 2022 01:54
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Those splices are terrible. Guaranteed cold solder joint every time.
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Sep 22, 2022 03:07
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Salami Surgeon posted:Those splices are terrible. Guaranteed cold solder joint every time. K
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Sep 22, 2022 03:33
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Nah he's right though. Blow-drying a bag of tin and glue on top of your wires is just bullshit. I don't understand why anyone likes them when they're not faster, easier, cheaper, or better than either crimps or normal soldering and heat-shrink tubing. 99% of people who think they can't solder just needed more flux. E: $68 for that deck though? That's awesome that it works so well. Probably the same screen you'd find in a $700 Alpine these days too. Lowclock fucked around with this message at 05:22 on Sep 22, 2022 |
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Sep 22, 2022 05:17
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I've been having some really lovely experiences with crimp connectors lately, mind you - mostly where connecting speaker wire runs from a boot mounted amp into flyleads off an ISO loom has been concerned. I went and bought a different brand of connector, tried different style crimpers, each time I ended up behind the dash inside of 2 weeks because I'd lost a channel. Maybe it's the difference in wire gauge between the stuff they use on those ISO harnesses, or they just don't like thicker high-strand copper stuff, but yeah. I used to use screw connectors similar to the sort used in home care electrical wiring and found them to be reliable as hell, but they take up too much space to really be viable for a double din mechanical install I've found. Solder has its own drawbacks - and if you use it in a door skin or under a bonnet you're a drat numptie - but if you're getting that sort of heat under the dash your car is probably already on fire. I think if I ever do that sort of thing again, I'll just depin the ISO connector and use a gauge somewhere between the pathetic gauge they include with aftermarket speakers and the thicc stuff I have lying around for home hi-fi purposes.
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Sep 22, 2022 11:32
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The secret to using crimp connectors is to use a good crimper. I use a ratcheting cam-action crimper that can crimp a *lot* tighter than one can with the regular crimpers, typically. Something like this: https://www.amazon.com/Klein-Tools-Ratcheting-Crimper-10-22/dp/B07WMB61J5?th=1 I have an older unit without the changeable dies, but it has platform to rest the terminal end on, and the die crimps the actual connection and snugs the insulation at the same time. Bonus is that you can get additional jaws for other crimp types, like ferrules and "W" crimp bare terminals. This kit has what looks like a decent stripper and additional jaws: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08G48C5NT/ref=syn_sd_onsite_desktop_492?ie=UTF8&pd_rd_plhdr=t&th=1 It's also really important to use the right size crimp terminal. The red ones are up to 18 AWG, which most stereo wiring is, until you get into higher power amp power and speaker cabling. If you don't use a cam-action crimper the type that dimple the barrel work a lot better for me. Like these: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0006M6Y5M/ref=emc_b_5_i They're technically for uninsulated terminals, but work fine on the insulated ones. edit: always tug on the connection after making it. If it's not going to hold, better that it fail *before* you put everything back together. Darchangel fucked around with this message at 16:29 on Sep 22, 2022 |
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Sep 22, 2022 16:27
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Listen to Darchangel. I have used that last crimper for all my jobs for the past 20+ years, and it's still going strong. I also like using auto-strippers to strip wires, and have had the same set for as long as my crimper. I don't have the Irwin one, but mine is basically identical: https://www.amazon.com/IRWIN-VISE-G...ps%2C114&sr=8-7
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Sep 22, 2022 16:44
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Nocheez posted:Listen to Darchangel. I have used that last crimper for all my jobs for the past 20+ years, and it's still going strong. I also like using auto-strippers to strip wires, and have had the same set for as long as my crimper. I picked up a Chinese copy of that Irwin stripper at a swap meet earlier in the year, and I love the thing. I learned to strip with dikes when I did mobile electronics installs professionally in the '90s, but this is *way* easier, and more consistent.
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Sep 22, 2022 17:23
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LloydDobler posted:
Yep, happened again. Every 4 months it factory hard resets and I have to reinstall all the apps and reset all the settings. This should be like #1 priority. This is bullshit and I'm calling in the warranty and/or just getting something else. gently caress this garbage. Joying android headunit for reference. I'm really happy with the build quality and the looks and everything. But internal quality is not there.
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Sep 22, 2022 20:00
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LloydDobler posted:Yep, happened again. Every 4 months it factory hard resets and I have to reinstall all the apps and reset all the settings.
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Sep 22, 2022 22:46
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nope. it holds the memory. It does have to boot from scratch but that's just a boot cycle, the apps and settings are still there. I did that dozens of times while setting it up because I did it on a bench.
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Sep 23, 2022 19:27
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LloydDobler posted:nope. it holds the memory. It does have to boot from scratch but that's just a boot cycle, the apps and settings are still there. I did that dozens of times while setting it up because I did it on a bench. Lowclock fucked around with this message at 09:39 on Sep 24, 2022 |
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Sep 24, 2022 09:37
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Spotify Car Thing is on clearance for 29.99$ because they aren't making them anymore. https://carthing.spotify.com/checkout
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Sep 29, 2022 04:01
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I would blow Dane Cook posted:Spotify Car Thing is on clearance for 29.99$ because they aren't making them anymore. God I'm tempted to get another one just to control spotify in my car. The Android Auto Spotify interface is rear end and this worked great the first one I had.
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Sep 29, 2022 04:27
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Probably should point out that it still needs a phone to get the spotify in your car, it's just a control device. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Z2NxX8G-nU
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Sep 29, 2022 05:19
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LloydDobler posted:Yep, happened again. Every 4 months it factory hard resets and I have to reinstall all the apps and reset all the settings. This should be like #1 priority. This is bullshit and I'm calling in the warranty and/or just getting something else. gently caress this garbage. Ok so since I'm lazy I just left the head unit in the car and left it all default and started using the built in mp3 player. First thing I notice is it sounds noticeably better than the Omnia player I was using. Second thing I notice is I haven't had a single reboot of any kind since the last reset. I'm thinking my media app is the problem. I'm going to try a different one. Testing others on my phone to see if I like the UI before committing to the car. I would use the factory player but it is EXTREMELY stripped down, no search, no playlists, track browsing only. Navigating the library is my #1 requirement. I should probably use voice for that but I haven't installed the microphone yet.
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Oct 21, 2022 01:06
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