Quote: Originally Posted by
Grrrmachine 
Riksastar, if you don't really understand the internals of a PC (ie what CPU you want) you REALLY need to read around here a lot more, look at what other users have put in their systems and make your decisions based on that. Many, MANY noobs stumble in going for the POWER POWER POWER options, then realise they need to buy a huge PSU to drive it, which means paying even more money than you wanted to in the first place.
If this is your first system, and even the first PC you've ever built, there's no point spending your entire budget on the core because as AND WHEN you get problems, you won't have any more money to spend on a regular PSU to test your system, or upgraded cables to cope with the power demands, or even a multimeter to find out why it'll work in the house but not in the car.
KISS - Keep It Simple, Stupid.
I completely agree. you dont need a gaming computer in your car to run music and movies...thats something i always run into when i go to LAN parties with my car...lol. everyone is always like "WEAK!!!!! my 2 year old laptop is more powerful than that"...
the power supply's can get expensive...that is why i chose a 65W processor for you. they do make 45W and lower CPU's now, but this will also keep you chuggin away for a very long time...if you never use flash, and never plan to, something less powerful will work...but why do that when prices are as they are? the 45W procs are not worth the money for this type of application at this moment
just to give you an idea as to how much i have done to my carpc...and the problems i have encountered...
so far, these things have died on me at random since i started in May, 2007:
3x 3.5" HDD from Seagate...luckily they were covered under warranty...i now have a 2.5" which is what i should have done to begin with.
2x sticks of RAM...both died at the same time and not covered under warranty for a reason corsair wouldnt tell me...they just told me "dont bother" once i told them i had the computer replace my headunit in my car. the lady literally said "what?!".
1x mobo (believe it was defective from the factory, cause when i sent it back to MSI, they replaced numerous capacitors and 2 faulty chips that were coming loose.) covered by warranty.
i sent my transflective back to mp3car because i thought it was defective. nothing i did would allow me to use the left half of the screen. they said they couldnt find an issue, and sent it back to me...it worked perfectly when i got it back 2 months later (i had a hole in my dash for 2 months).
also, the big money i spent on the transflective...well spent, but the addition to the screen that makes it sunlight readable is peeling off after less than a year. there was literally an air gap between the added layer and the glass. it is still like that, but i gooped the edges to keep dust out and i dont have the cashflow for another one or for someone qualified to fix it.
my Opus 250W power supply was a pain in the butt to install. once i got it in, it worked for about 2 weeks before problems started appearing. i sent it back, and there was apparently no problem according to mp3car staff. but...the Amp turn-on delay still doesnt work, and i have to keep the jumper pin completely off the PSU or my carputer wont even start...and i have checked with a multimeter that my car is running 14.2V @ 3000rpm, and 12.1V @ idle...if i put the jumper at 12V, it just laughs at me and doesnt turn on.
even with the 7-9V settings it does this...and it has since day one. I took my car to the dealership where my buddy works at, had him look at it, and yes, it is wired correctly.
i know this sounds like a tangent...but this is stuff every newb should know, so they learn from my mistakes and what i have gone through.
1. If you have knowledge of how a car's electrical system works, you are well ahead of the game (us computer nerds normally dont deal with cars...only computers).
2. you will have to learn how to hook up an amplifier to your car, and possibly replace your stock speakers depending on which amp you get and how you want your system to sound.
3. You will have to figure out which wires are which in your car, so you can splice the wires to hook up your PSU (if you get a carputer PSU that is, like an Opus or M2ATX, or whatever ones are out there now.)
4. you will have to learn how to fabricate the screen into your dash (fiberglass, bondo etc.)
5. and you will definately need to learn how to build a computer (since you said you dont know how to already). they do make them for you on sites like this one, but you wont be able to customize the hardware for what you need to make it "futureproof" if you dont want to have to upgrade for a very long time if ever.
6. have lots of time to troubleshoot and always keep your imagination plugging away at what you can do with this glorious toy now in your car.
if you cant do all the stuff mentioned above, you can pay someone to do it for you, but where is the fun in that, and you will need deep pockets for that...
i am always fidgeting with my carputer...its what gets me out of bed on the weekends...lol
hopefully that helps...
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