2001 Mitsubishi Spyder GTPC

**heptoman** · 01-13-2007, 05:33 PM

Well I've been lurking for a while, doing a little work here and there on my PC, planning/installing, re-installing, re-wiring, taking pics every now and then, but now I'm finally posting because I think I have enough material.

"Stock" dash (with Kenwood X817):

For a while I was toying with the idea of a fold out monitor in the bottom DIN slot because I didn't want to do any fabrication. The sound would come from the PC to my Kenwood via aux-in, and out into the stock Infinity amp/Basslink. I wanted to utilize the X817's preouts because that made it drastically easier.

Regardless, I ordered my barebones to set up. Picture of bench testing (see specs of system to the left):

Ordered M1-ATX, continued bench testing....sorry no pic of that setup.

Then the DL065A came out! It seemed like a perfect solution because I didn't want to fabricate.......only I didn't have room for the Kenwood anymore. I didn't want to put it into the clock pod, like some in the Club3G community have, because eventually I'd want 5.1 sound and the stereo would take up the center channel speaker's space.

I finally got the monitor and installed it.....

The way the stock Mitsubishi din brackets are setup does not really allow for creative liberty in mounting....so I had to devise a new way. Couldn't take pic, sorry.....but I used two PC case screws in one of the mounting holes on the monitor. This made my monitor sag a little....didn't really like that, but I didn't want to hack up the monitor....yet.....

**heptoman** · 01-13-2007, 05:45 PM

One of the things I was disappointed with in the DL065A was that the eject button didn't work!

Lo and behold, Brett at Panda posted a how-to for fixing the broken connector (THANKS BRETT!!!!). While I had the thing apart, I noticed that I would be able to drill extra holes so the monitor would be more stable in the dash.

Since the monitor took up both din slots, I toyed with having the head unit in my glove compartment, but that plain didn't work.

But I eventually settled with having that in the back seat.

I also didn't have enough cabling to reach from the trunk to the monitor, so I decided (in the meantime for my trip to Florida) to keep the computer in the back seat.

What a rat's nest of cabling. Ugh.

So, I drove to Florida this past Christmas, the computer worked splendidly.

**trititan** · 01-13-2007, 05:47 PM

sloppy yet affective

**heptoman** · 01-13-2007, 05:58 PM

THEN, once in Florida, I wanted to hook up my PS2 to the monitor and head unit, just to see how well it would work. I powered the Playstation with an inverter situated inside the center console.

But something happened, I don't know exactly what it was, everything was wired correctly, but my motherboard fried.

I decided to use my dad's tools to fix my sagging monitor problem, and drilled two new holes in the casing of the monitor. Don't have pics for this either, perhaps I'll take more next time I rip apart my console and dash. But here's a few pics of the monitor finally installed correctly:

One thing I really do not like about this set up is that you can see the stock radio brackets, and also the white plastic of the HVAC. The screen is also recessed a little bit, but that's the lack of liberties with placement of the brackets. Eventually I'll put some cloth over that....but that's the least of my worries right now.

I also decided to make an anti-theft "device" to make the unit look stock, inspired by this thread in the Club3G forum: http://www.eclipseforums.org/post2683907.html#2683907

So I bought a stock double din radio off of ebay for 30 bucks (15 for the unit, 15 shipping), hacked the faceplate, gave the unit to a student, and since then I've been using that.

Despite that I didn't like how recessed the monitor was, it let the stock faceplate sit perfectly flush, so now I have this nice sleeper look. :-)

**heptoman** · 01-13-2007, 06:05 PM

Originally Posted by trititan

sloppy yet affective

QUITE sloppy....didn't like it at all.

While I was trying to thread the cabling/motherboard/headunit into the trunk, my Kenwood hit a contact on the car body and fried. Despite my best efforts, it is still crapped out.......

I enlisted the help of my old man and we mounted the fried motherboard in the trunk. I bought some cable extensions and a USB hub for the center console and we got to work.

The trunk of the Eclipse Spyder is very small, but there's space between the carpet and the actual body on the side, so I decided to stick that puppy in there.

Carpet removed:

Close-up:

I didn't mount the HD or PSU yet, that's coming once I finally get my replacement motherboard, RMA is in progress right now.

Carpet placed back:

Other side of trunk, with Infinity Basslink:

**heptoman** · 01-13-2007, 06:11 PM

Since my Kenwood has fried also, I hardwired my DellDJ into the stock Infinity amp, and my monitor is going unused in my dash.

However, my final plans do not include the Kenwood, so I guess it served its purpose!

I eventually want to feed audio from the PC into a Roadie Advantage, and push the front and rear 4 channel sound into an amp which I will mount behind the seat and underneath the convertible stack. Here's a pic but you can't really tell what it is.

This is a pic of the bracket the amp will rest on, viewing from the trunk toward the front of the car. The trunk carpet has been pulled off its anchor points and folded forward. I have a good access point on the other side, I'll have to pull away the vinyl shielding for the convertible stack, but it will work great.

The roadie will also push unamplified sound to the center speaker behind the clock pod in the dash, and preouts to the Basslink.

**heptoman** · 01-13-2007, 06:12 PM

Okay, if you get redx's then it's because Geocities completely BLOWS!!!!

edit:

Switched to photobucket....hopefully their bandwidth limit isn't as small as Geocities'.

**heptoman** · 01-13-2007, 06:24 PM

Well crap I just noticed I put this in the wrong forum. Mods, can you please move this to "Work-logs?" Sorry........didn't

**heptoman** · 01-13-2007, 07:48 PM

Here is a diagram of my hopefully finished product. Scheduled to be completed by the end of the school year.......

(edit: check mark means item has been purchased and installed!)

Please lend me your expertise and give me comments! Thanks.

**breaker021** · 01-19-2007, 09:27 AM

That is absolutely magnificent. Screens and things of that nature attract unwanted attention from ******* burglars. That is an awesome solution that you have there!!!

Major props,
- sh00k