If FM/AM radio is a must...

BlackGTi · 09-22-2005, 04:26 PM

has anyone ever considered the possibility of using a PC to control the functions of a good quality car radio tuner.

Could a seperate piece of hardware - I'm thinking of the insides of a donor car stereo, in a small case - live outside the PC itself and yet be operated by it?

After all car radio manufacturers have almost perfected high quality tuners that stays locked in pretty well in everything - except, understandably, tunnels and car parks. Plus they can cram in plenty of functionality on to a small interface.

If the Radio Shark is the best available for PC currently, but not to use in the car then is it nonsense to being thinking laterally?

I'm convinced of the merits of a touch-screen in-carpc in an OEM install. But, along with some form of manual control for volume and other functions [PowerMate?] I'd also not want to be without a radio. And because I enjoy listing to sports on the radio, as well as listening to music, it needs to be able to do AM on the move.

Am I going to have to wait a long time?

AlienEclipse · 09-22-2005, 07:30 PM

Is this guy for serious?

In other words, check the sticky threads in this sub forum.

hint "HU Quality AM/FM RDS/RBDS Radio with Features"

AlienEclipse · 09-22-2005, 07:33 PM

Oh, and the wait for it won't be as long for you as it has been for most of us.

BlackGTi · 09-23-2005, 01:48 PM

Sure, flame the newb why don't you?

I read the WHOLE of that long thread. And didn't take from it that this
is what they're doing - sounded to me like they're trying to build something
from the ground-up.

So please, excuse me, I simply posed a question as
to whether an ordinary car stereo could be 'converted' to be run off a
PC. Because 'old/used' car-stereos are cheap and plentiful in the Northern
Hemisphere.

I'm not an electronics guy - that's why I asked.

Vchat20 · 09-23-2005, 02:31 PM

sure. and its been discussed before. but there are some technical issues involved with such a solution such as not being able to know where exactly the tuner is set at (say if the tuner loses power and it reverts to the default station. the tuner will read like 89.5 and the computer will still read what you had before ie. 103.4)

if it wasnt for simple and stupid limitations such as that, im sure many would have already went with the idea.

rando · 09-23-2005, 02:57 PM

Yah, it's a good idea and has been disscussed here several times. I even started into it one afternoon many many months ago. The biggest problem is finding a suitable doner and hacking up an interface. Once you're done you'll still need software support which isn't likely to be forthcoming unless the solution is repeatable and inexpensive so that the masses can try it.

DeltaFX · 09-23-2005, 03:55 PM

If your car is "recent" and uses a mux, tapping directly into the car buses might be more usefull. For example 2002+ peugeot 206 are muxed and their stock HU is tied to a CAN bus, as is the CDchanger. By tapping in that bus, not only it is possible to fool the HU to make it think it has a cdc -your computer-, but your computer can retrieves datas about the car itself. No fancy McGyverin' to detect you pulled the hand brake or you are going reverse, the car knows it, your puter too.

But that still a work in progress..... There : http://rt3wiki.free.fr/pmwiki.php?n=Us.Document