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Mount Car Stereo in PC Case?

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DS1MCSE

Member
Well, I've just pulled a decent car stereo from a car that I junked and was thinking it would make a perfect garage setup mounted in a box. While thinking of ways to power it (spare car battery, etc.) it came to me that it runs off of 12V DC, so I could use a PC Power supply. Once I realized that, it wasn't much of a leap for me to begin thinking of actually mounting this in a PC case.

Ideally, I'd like to mount it in a mini to mid-tower with a powered antenna through the top of the box, with a sub below the stereo and two to four satellite speakers.

Has anybody out there done this, or know somebody who has? I realize that the stereo is wider than 5.25" so it wouldn't be an easy fit. I may have to resort to a desktop case, but I'd like to try and squeeze it into a tower if at all possible.

Does anybody have any case recommendations or power/installation/concept caveats?

Thanks!
 
OMG! i was thinking the exact same thing just yesterday!!

didn't think about the sub and speakers tho! i thought that a DVD drive would fit in the car stereo to put it in the car!

i would love to see how this turns out! 🙂

Confused
 
Just a thought that you wouldnt really want any of the speakers in the same case as the main Head Unit or any other source due to the vibrations (especially from sub!!)
 


<< Just a thought that you wouldnt really want any of the speakers in the same case as the main Head Unit or any other source due to the vibrations (especially from sub!!) >>



Yeah, that may be a concern. Also most PC cases aren't sturdy enough to take speakers anyways without creating a huge rattle themselves.
 
Okay, with that said, I'll likely go ahead with the desktop case and a stationary "euro" antenna. I'm sure it will make life a little easier to deal with as the dimensions of the unit are 7 1/16W x 1 15/16H x 5 1/8D.

Are there any other issues with what I've outlined? The stereo is a Kenwood KRC-1006 and I've looked at the power requirements and a PSU with a decent 12V rail should be fine as the Operating Voltage is 14.4V with an allowable range of 11-16V @ 6A. I'm also assuming that I'll have to go with an AT case/PSU as I will not have a motherboard in the box. That is, unless somebody can tell me how to re-wire an ATX PSU so that it doesn't need to be connected to a mobo.

Hmmm...with a decent desktop case, I may just be able to get an old CDROM drive and interface it somehow...

The possibilities are becoming more and more interesting. 😉
 


<< I'm also assuming that I'll have to go with an AT case/PSU as I will not have a motherboard in the box. That is, unless somebody can tell me how to re-wire an ATX PSU so that it doesn't need to be connected to a mobo. >>



Just connect the Green wire on the ATX header to any of the black wires 😉. I normally just shove a paperclip in the two holes & it'll work, but you probably will want to make a switch.
 


<<

<< I'm also assuming that I'll have to go with an AT case/PSU as I will not have a motherboard in the box. That is, unless somebody can tell me how to re-wire an ATX PSU so that it doesn't need to be connected to a mobo. >>

Just connect the Green wire on the ATX header to any of the black wires 😉. I normally just shove a paperclip in the two holes & it'll work, but you probably will want to make a switch. >>



Here's a guide I ran across yesterday

PSU wiring guide
 


<< Don't forget you'll need a constant 12V for the memory and such. >>



get a 9v battery & run 2 AA cells in series with it. = 12v. I'm pretty sure the current for the memory is VERY low.
 
Actually, I was thinking of using another PSU lead, wired to 5V, to connect the stereo memory wire. I'm hopeful that will be enough, otherwise, I'll try 7 then 12V.

As far as maintaining the power flow, I'm tossing around a couple of ideas. The first is a $10 device (113 0282) from Cyberguys that puts a +5V DC draw on the PSU to keep it alive. If that doesn't prove to be a workable solution, I think I'll just wire the case power switch between the PSU and stereo on the 12V connection and short the PSU so that it powers on as soon as it's plugged in.
 
I'm also looking for a case.

Dad/son project this past weekend, did this with a tag sale set of speakers and a car radio.

But now, want to get the radio in a box of some kind.
 
i would honestly think you would have problems when it came to powering the amp...

Some of those suckers can easily break over 1000W...
 
No external amp for me. Used a pair of aiwa book shelf speakers, wired up to the front and rear outputs.

Probably going to end up with a Dremel and an old computer case.
 
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