Car audio meets home computer audio. An idea I had, but maybe I'm not the first.
#12
An Ipod actually is a 1 bit DAC device, where as a computer sound card can be 24bit or higher. For those who think #bit DAC = sound quality.
I say ditch the head unit all together, and just run a car PC [Read: Atom PC]. You can run a 3.5mm (headphone jack) to RCA and use the computer for T/A, Cross overs, 1tb HDD of music,huge EQ, ect. The features are limit less with software on a computer. Not to mention you could actually get 90 degree cross over filters. Although it would sound weird.
I've been wanted to do this for a while, but what ends up holding me back (besides money, as I'm a student) is trying to find a 5-9in LCD. Doesn't need to be touch screen, as I think a keyboard would be way more useful (being able to search through winamp or w/e you use), but then I usually have a 2nd person in the car with me most of the time.
What I've been doing for the last little while is: I found a headunit that uses the ipod connector to read/surf through the ipod. Then I replaced my 30gb ipod video HDD with a 100GB hdd. This way its not using the 1bit ipod DACs then using the AUX ADC, -> headunit DACs ect.. Only problem is you're still locked into what apple deems as 'lossless' if you're really picky.
Good luck.
I say ditch the head unit all together, and just run a car PC [Read: Atom PC]. You can run a 3.5mm (headphone jack) to RCA and use the computer for T/A, Cross overs, 1tb HDD of music,huge EQ, ect. The features are limit less with software on a computer. Not to mention you could actually get 90 degree cross over filters. Although it would sound weird.
I've been wanted to do this for a while, but what ends up holding me back (besides money, as I'm a student) is trying to find a 5-9in LCD. Doesn't need to be touch screen, as I think a keyboard would be way more useful (being able to search through winamp or w/e you use), but then I usually have a 2nd person in the car with me most of the time.
What I've been doing for the last little while is: I found a headunit that uses the ipod connector to read/surf through the ipod. Then I replaced my 30gb ipod video HDD with a 100GB hdd. This way its not using the 1bit ipod DACs then using the AUX ADC, -> headunit DACs ect.. Only problem is you're still locked into what apple deems as 'lossless' if you're really picky.
Good luck.
#16
Yeah, but you're still listening to an iPod, with it's questionable internal DAC. This way you're getting a bit-perfect output to a much better DAC. The HRT musicstreamers (I have the musicstreamer+) are pretty amazing. They've just been replaced by newer models and are going for cheap--a streamer for well under a hundred and a streamer plus for as low as 200. Really, you could use any kind of USB DAC (or firewire, or S/PDIF or whatever, as long as you can power it), but the HRTs are small, easy to power, cheap, and sound amazing.
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d4rin
Car Audio Technical Discussions
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06-04-2013 09:32 PM