Carputer vs. double-din stereo+scanner setup in a Jetta/Golf

[erwatson]

i have a 2001 mkIV jetta which had a double-single-din stereo, with an aftermarket, single din stereo and a 3 gauge cluster panel in the extra din slot, and a pro-97 hardwired that sits perfectly and securely in the pop-out cup holders on the early mkIV Jetta/Golf's had. it used to clip to the cover for the sunroof motor, but the metal and plastic clips holding the cover there have broken off from the weight of the scanner and too many bumps on a light-track built suspension. i originally purchased the pro97 a couple years ago when i joined a fire department which operates on a 150mhz system with EMS and a couple of the surrounding town's emergency responders. this was before i realized all of the digital trunking going on in neighboring towns and over state communications.


i had been planning on installing a custom/home built car-puter in the double din area (mp3/GPS/OBDII+ECU monitoring+data logging, the whole deal). both of the stereo slots would be filled by a 7.5" touchscreen LCD with the hardware in the trunk, but the pop-out cup holders would block the screen enough where the screen would be useless. a base/mobile scanner would also be out of the question as there are no other places to mount the scanner, except in the glove box which is near the bottom of the list of what i would be willing to do, besides the fact the glove box isn't real big. the other option is to fabricate a bracket, or pay out an arm and a leg for a pop-out lcd display and have a base/mobile scanner in the 2nd stereo din.

then it hit me. install a scanner that allows for a computer interface control, mounted in the trunk along with the car-puter hardware. i was going to get a a door mount for the antenna and mount it off the trunk of the car. the addition of a scanner into the interface would just add to the coolness factor. i would also be able to balance in the volume of the scanner with the car radio. i have a small remote-control dial, comparable to a joystick, that allows for complex scripted macro's so i could fade in/out the scanner and radio with a simple input from one hand. it is very easy even while driving. easy as in easier than trying to dial a cell phone, adjust a setting on my scanner like lockout, or attenuation, or finding the song on an mp3 CD in the head unit.

how are the controls on mobile/base scanners that can be controlled by a computer GUI interface?
if you have experience with this would it just be easier to do a double din, stereo/scanner setup? or are the computer interface controls worth taking a look at?

this also opens the doors to multiple scanners if they can all be controlled with a PC interface, or remotely.

the area of Connecticut i live has a plethora of systems. i will be scanning a 150mhz analog system with repeaters in the 450mhz range, motorola II analog and apco25 digital trunking, P25, MPT-1327 and EDACS. and i would also need an antenna. my current pro97 barely cuts it with an extendable whip and rubber antenna. but i also take this scanner inside with me quite a bit of the time.

 

[bootsfirst]

That's attempting to tackle quite a bit. I'm not really sure how versed you are with modding, installing, programming, and interfacing devices...but that's going to be a ton of work. Just warning you.

With that said, it sounds totally bad ass.

Just some random ideas off the top of my head regarding this:
* Look into a mini-ITX board to run everything. They're small and relatively cheap, and sounds like it would be the perfect application. Since you mentioned your suspension, you might consider using a solid-state drive (SSD) to avoid having a hard drive bouncing around in your trunk.
* There's going to need to be some sort of custom software to run all of this. I'm not aware of *any* type of "roll your own* software that could accomplish this. Sounds crazy, but an install of Windows XP running stripped down is probably going to be your best bet as far as compatibility for everything. It'll probably be up to you to write some type of automation/control interface that's user accessible.
* You run into several problems having a computer/scanner/whatever built in your trunk. You're a long way away from the power switch. Simply killing the power to them is going to damage the electronics eventually.
* It's going to cost. Yep, I'd say you're looking at anywhere from $1000-$2000 when you're all said and done. Oh, and a lot of time and cussing.

Some random links:
http://store.mp3car.com/category_s/136.htm -- Looks like a good start for some car software. Probably pretty limited and not accessible to your scanner.
http://store.mp3car.com/Micro_Shutdown_Controller_p/pwr-007.htm -- Might be something you could use to turn on/off devices automagically.

Good luck man! I've wanted to do something like this for a long time, but always lacked time to ever try anything. Keep us updated and let us know how it goes.

Stay safe/Garrett

 

[smason]

I had been planning on installing a custom/home built car-puter in the double din area (mp3/GPS/OBDII+ECU monitoring+data logging, the whole deal).

Gotta love Vag-Com! I've had a pipe dream for a while of doing similar. I have a Phatbox and the factory stereo in my Passat, GPS on my PDA, but have always wanted a carputer for music, GPS, diagnostic monitoring and a scanner.
I will likely never get it done, but it would be cool to have a computer and scanner in the trunk, all controlled from a touchscreen. The audio might be a bit tricky, but doable.

I *think* some of the Bearcat line have computer controllable volume/squelch, but I'm not sure.

 

[erwatson]

i have read about scanners that have a computer interface so i was just wondering how well the manufacturers did on this. i have limited experience with C++ and am pretty good at scripting. i don't plan on making any programs or interfaces for a scanner, just scripting shortcuts for my controller. i just want the ability to adjust attenuation, pause/resume scanning, lockout, possibly add a frequency to memory from my car's center console. i really only need the ability to pause. i could do the rest with the car parked.

computer hardware is taken care of. hard drives are cheap and i would use my external USB drive to keep an image of the system, so if a drive fails. i hook a new one up and restore the image, which could even be done over a wireless connection. i keep an eye on blogs/forums with people who have carputers installed and even people with stiffer suspensions seem to get a couple years out of your mainstream rotational hard drives.


i think i may just go the route of a remote display with the scanner under one of the front seats. installed from the back so i can remove the scanner fairly easily and bring it inside and put it on my desk. i should have enough room with the seat cranked up a little. passengers are at a minimum. i had an idea before of modifying the sun-roof motor compartment to have a small screen attached to it. maybe have a friend with fiberglass experience make a new cover, and upholster it to match the interior. a small remote screen would fit, but i think a base/mobile scanner would be to big and awkward to mount up there. i want to keep car molestation down to a minimum in case i ever decide to sell this car. another option for teh scanner is to cut out where the 12v/cig lighter and ash tray are in front of the stick shift.