I would like to make a car stereo system. But how? Finding the hardware is a challenge i can get my head wrapped around. My first impulse is then to hook up a dc 12v power controller to an arduino, along with an fm and hopefully a dab module. Then id set this up with a touch screen. But. Would this work. And also. How would i handle the information given to me by the FM receiver. Should i just amplify it and send it to the dc power controller? And as a small conclusion to this long painful question: How would i separate Left and Right speakers?
What is your level of skill and experience in electronics and programming?
Your project is very very ambitious even for longterm experts if you want to start from scratch and apparently with no clear specification.
I would go and buy me one, maybe a used one on e..y, would be cheaper. You will still have pain to install it in your car, if you have no experience.
Start to learn about Arduino with smaller steps.
nosknut:
I would like to make a car stereo system. But how?
Probably not with an arduino.
If you have to ask such an open question, you do not have the skill to do such a project.
Do you have expertise in electronics and programming? Do you know how to assemble audio and digital devices?
No? Then forget it!
Weedpharma
ok, while I agree it sounds like you're in way over your head, how about this...
Draw up a block diagram of the major elements in your intended project...
- AM-FM-DAB/2 Receiver
- Power Amplifiers (channels ?)
- Thermal management
- MP3/CD source
- Controller. (Arduino? or ...)
- Front panel & Display (specification)
- Power supply/management
- Enclosure(s)
As you can see, the controller is only a relatively small part of the project.
It could very rewarding if you can hold the course.
Once you have these corralled, you can start planning and designing each of them, or you may decide to buy some and make others.
I recently made a bluetooth speaker, installed it in a cigar box. I play music from my iPhone. Most everybody these days have smart phones. I love it and it looks cool. You could essentially, just install it in your car. They have audio amp boards(stereo..meaning left and right), bluetooth boards, audio potentiometers, that you can buy and assemble from internet stores even direct from china for cheap and still reliable
The last car radio I bought was €35, with lcd display, bluetooth, fm-am-radio, MP3, micro-sd, usb, remote control, 4 x 45W, cabling and frame included, with housing and an acceptable design.
What benefit would a homebrew solution offer?
I'm in the process of hacking a BMW stereo unit at the moment. I'm initially building a board that handles Bluetooth streaming from an iPhone (or Android if you're that way inclined 
), and also has a Keystone DAB/FM radio module, Aux passthrough, hands free telephone capability, audio source switching and an on board pre-amp circuit.
This is all controlled via the cars data bus, and displays everything on the BMW stereo display. All control is via the buttons on the BMW stereo unit/steering wheel, so it's completely stock to look at.
It's still a work in progress, but the board is working well. I've got the Bluetooth audio streaming working nicely, and can browse the iPhone music library from the stereo unit. Next step is to write the code for the DAB/FM radio module.
My ultimate goal is to completely replace the electronics inside the BMW stereo. I've already started looking at driving the display panel directly (I2C interface), but it's proving tricky. I've had partial success, but haven't been able to write to all the display yet. Still need to fully understand the data sheets for the display driver chipset, but if nothing, I'm persistent.
I can imagine creating something from scratch would be a huge project, but hacking something that already exists (for more features and better sound quality) is certainly possible.
Ian.
Whandall:
The last car radio I bought was €35, with lcd display, bluetooth, fm-am-radio, MP3, micro-sd, usb, remote control, 4 x 45W, cabling and frame included, with housing and an acceptable design.What benefit would a homebrew solution offer?
I could by a quadcopter for 20$ on ebay. But what would be the poiint if the goal is to learn?
I do have extensive knowledge regarding arduino programming, general C# and electronnic circutry. My problem is more related to what info i wold receive from the antenna and how i would translate this into electrical signals for the speakers.
How did you get on breaking down the requirements of reply #4 ?
You seem to have the Arduino part sorted, now you need to research & work on the other modules.
Sorry to reactivate this old topic, but i'm also brainstorming in this section with my schizophrenic myself.
If someone is still searching for some inspiration - check this out:
Insane project!
It is NOT my project, i'm just doing some research in this area. I'm also planning a "retrostyle" upgrade for my youngtimer stereo. As this is a pretty small market, there is nothing ready to buy that will fit my needs.
Only a fool would open an Active Server Pages (ASP) website. This just begs for installing spamware or worse on your PC.