Thread: Lots of questions.. long post.

Forgot one thing... what about software? (not frontface software like MediaCar, but like IE, Outlook, etc.)

What do you guys use? Will XPLite slim down my XP to *my* bare minimum config? Any particular app that makes your carputer amazing? There's just so much out there, it's hard to sift through.

For that matter, can I use XPLite on my regular Home PC to get rid of all the bloatware **** that Windows ships with?

Thanks again.

YOU KNOW IT! Female and proud of it... but I do play lots of sports. Love all kinds of sports, computers and other "man" type things.

Thanks for the info everyone... keep it coming if you got it! I do this kind of thing all the time-- research it to death but never actually get my feet wet. We'll see if I'll ever afford to get this off the ground

Let's see if I can add some info too...

OBD-II: Yea, since it's pre 96, you don't need this. And even if it is post 96, you don't need it, although it is a pretty cool thing to have. Don't worry about this.

Motherboard: May I ask why you don't want to go with a VIA board? I have the VIA M10000 and it works great for everything I want it to do. (MP3, DVD, movie, Emulators). Since you're not going to be doing any hardcore gaming, then you don't need anything that powerful. I got mine for $145 at www.monarchcomputer.com, shipped. I also went for this b/c it's small. I put it in a Morex 3677. These cases are really small, though it's a tight fit for everything inside of it. But it's small enough for me to put under the seat. The VIA also doesn't produce alot of heat and they don't suck alot of energy.

PSU: Go with an Opus, either 90W or 150W. From my experience (and alot of others that I've read here) this thing is the best way to go. It's a bit expensive though, I spent about $160 on mine. I got a 90W and actually put that inside the case, removing the PSU that came with it. Check this thread if you're interested in going this rout. http://www.mp3car.com/vbulletin/show...d=1#post268325

Others here will say that you don't need an opus, just get an inverter, but I felt better with spending more money and getting something that almost everyone here has had success with.

Stereo/Amp: I had to remove the stock radio in my car b/c that's where the LCD screen is going. That left me with the question of am I going to use a radio or an amplifier to power my speakers. I chose the stereo rout over the amplifier b/c with a stereo, I could still have my radio, and a way of controlling the volume other than using windows. Luckily in my car, I could install the radio where the clock is. I dunno exactly how you might hook everything up in your car, but if you don't have a place to install a stereo, then you might want to go the amp rout. I'm sure others have better input on this subject than I though. If you go the stereo rout though, it's better to do the installation yourself. All you need is a stereo wiring harness for you car and a crimping kit. If you can connect two wires together and crimp them, then you can install a stereo.

Wiring: This at first can seem a daunting task, if once you get down to it, it's really not all the difficult. If you do get a Opus, then you pretty much have to hook up 3 wires. One wire goes from the Opus (red wire) to the positive terminal on the batter (with a fuse in it, I put mine before the battery). The 2nd wire goes from the Opus (black wire) to the negative terminal. The 3rd wire on the Opus (instructions said yellow, but mine was blue) goes to either the ignition, or to a switch. I didn't want to hook mine up to the ignition b/c I also have a turbo timer and thought that would be too complicated. Instead I hooked it up to a switch that looks like those missle buttons on a jet fighter. ^_^ So, the blue wire when to a point on the switch, and I had a return wire go from the other point on the switch back to the red wire (the one that goes to the battery). Look at the diagram on the Opus manual and hopefully that'll make some sense.

LCD: I have a lilliput LCD screen, and it works great, or rather I should say it WORKED great. That was until I took it apart to fit it in this bezel I bought for it to fit in my car. I messed around with the ribbon cable in it too much and I think I broke it. I'm waiting for a replacement cable so hopefully that'll fix it. But before I messed it up, it worked great for me. I've seen people here who have mixed feelings about the Lilliput, so I don't want to give any definate answers on this.

Pictures: If you look at the picture of my switch, you'll see a piece of gold-colored metal. That's actually a brace I made myself out of some spare pieces of metal. I used a dremel to cut the metal into the shape that I wanted it, and a drill to drill a hole in it for the switch to fit thru. I also used a dremel to cut a side into my computer for the power cables to come out of from the opus PSU. That's about all the cutting/drilling that I did.


Well, this is all that comes to mind right now, let me know if you have any more questions.

Originally Posted by Udonboy

Motherboard: May I ask why you don't want to go with a VIA board? I have the VIA M10000 and it works great for everything I want it to do. (MP3, DVD, movie, Emulators).

One of those won't work for Dreamcast emulation.

well as I am aware you cannot use the stock head unit unless someone has a mod that they know about that I don't to add inputs. I make a dumb mistake by going out and purchasing a headunit which doesn't have a aux-in . My system isn't setup for gaming but I do have a more powerful system than what I need due to money constraints and the need for a graphics card that supports the lilliput's native resolution ( not a massive fan of funky resolutions but I'll make due with a ATI card which will support it). I am in need in deciding a method of putting in audio into the existing the system or an aftermarket with no aux-in ( I can't take it back now unfortunately but it does have lineout) or just installing a amp and replacing the whole darn thing. my screen hasn't arrived so there is no telling how it will fit in. I don't extactly have an S10 I have a S15 from GMC which is very similar and it's pre 1996 so it is very similar probably. I managed to fit my computer behind the seat vertically within a box 4x12x24 inch

I am also looking for input on a shutdown controller or switch and should I wire via from fuse socket or running a new line from the battery.

Any suggustions on molding it into the dashboard as well or similar?