custom electronics thread

[kronoSX]

I thought of starting a thread about custom electronics which is my field for 12-24v systems,
Cars,bikes,trucks...etc you name it i am willing to help you members out there with tips tricks and faultfinding in auto electronics
If you like you can post your problems and i will try my best to give solution for non technical people with bikes cars..etc

Example:My cars battery is running flat,i am ready to dowse this thing with major unleaded..
Answer:1 non technical solution to this would be,start your car and take off the positive terminal while its idling,if the car still runs your alternator is working
this is just one example,ther are so many solutions i can give...well on with it then...Post away fellows.

 

[kronoSX]

testing my subscription.

 

[Gnome]

Answer:1 non technical solution to this would be,start your car and take off the positive terminal while its idling,if the car still runs your alternator is working

This is actually a bad idea with modern cars, almost all of which use electronic ignition. Voltage ripple and noise from alternators can be considerable, car batteries like capacitors help to smooth out current.

Just about every Hayness manual (got plenty of them from News servers ) I've read advices against starting a car without a battery.

It's quite easy to see if a alternator is working by connecting a Digital Multimeter to the battery terminals (cheapo R40 DMM is perfect), 12v = Alternator is shot, 14v = Alternator is ok. >14v = Alternator voltage regulator is crapped out.

My 2c.

 

[HavocXphere]

Doesn't have anything to do with cars but maybe you can help:

I want to build a DIY security camera system. The basic idea is to hook a webcam or something up to an LCD via RCA cables but the distance in between is fairly large:

Could I run a low voltage (not sure what the camera would need), 5v or so over like 10m or would I loose too much juice?

Would I need to amplify the RCA signal somehow? How?

Not car related...but yeah.

 

[kronoSX]

This is actually a bad idea with modern cars, almost all of which use electronic ignition. Voltage ripple and noise from alternators can be considerable, car batteries like capacitors help to smooth out current.

Just about every Hayness manual (got plenty of them from News servers ) I've read advices against starting a car without a battery.

It's quite easy to see if a alternator is working by connecting a Digital Multimeter to the battery terminals (cheapo R40 DMM is perfect), 12v = Alternator is shot, 14v = Alternator is ok. >14v = Alternator voltage regulator is crapped out.

My 2c.

i said a simple way..not with MM man...I am trying to do a good thing here.i worked on million rand cars and lambos/Ferraris..you name it

 

[kronoSX]

Doesn't have anything to do with cars but maybe you can help:

I want to build a DIY security camera system. The basic idea is to hook a webcam or something up to an LCD via RCA cables but the distance in between is fairly large:

Could I run a low voltage (not sure what the camera would need), 5v or so over like 10m or would I loose too much juice?

Would I need to amplify the RCA signal somehow? How?

Not car related...but yeah.

the image would be a bit fuzzy on the otherside,and with cable length comes resistance and the dreaded capacitance.
but 10m is fine,just no quality..you dont care about that hey
you will notice a slight blurr,just kidding,you can do it

 

[Gnome]

Doesn't have anything to do with cars but maybe you can help:

Don't want to hijack dablakmark8's thread but since it's not strictly related to cars I though I'd comment...

I want to build a DIY security camera system. The basic idea is to hook a webcam or something up to an LCD via RCA cables but the distance in between is fairly large:

Could I run a low voltage (not sure what the camera would need), 5v or so over like 10m or would I loose too much juice?

Short Answer: Bad idea.

Long Answer: It depends completely on the cable. RCA's will have sufficient insulation for 5v DC the problem is that you have no idea what the conductor size is. AWG (American Wire Gauge) is the standard widely used (or MM squared if you prefer metric), google is your friend for more info. But put simply using a AWG table you can calculate the voltage drop and also the maximum current carrying capacity for a conductor.

Since most RCA's don't specify conductor width it's a bad idea and second you need to know how much current the device will use.

Would I need to amplify the RCA signal somehow? How?

It depends entirely on the cable. If the cable has high signal loss, you'd be better of using COAX cable (UG60 is best), but you can try amplify it, of course that will result in more noise. The only way to know for sure is to test.

 

[Gnome]

i said a simple way..not with MM man...I am trying to do a good thing here.i worked on million rand cars and lambos/Ferraris..you name it

K wasn't a personal attack, just gave my opinion. Anyway won't hijack your thread any further, my bad

 

[kronoSX]

K wasn't a personal attack, just gave my opinion. Anyway won't hijack your thread any further, my bad

just kidding man,just revvingyou up..i understand your concern,maybe i should edit my first post on this subject..Just wanted to help and share my knowledge for you the ppl

 

[kronoSX]

Don't want to hijack dablakmark8's thread but since it's not strictly related to cars I though I'd comment...





Short Answer: Bad idea.

Long Answer: It depends completely on the cable. RCA's will have sufficient insulation for 5v DC the problem is that you have no idea what the conductor size is. AWG (American Wire Gauge) is the standard widely used (or MM squared if you prefer metric), google is your friend for more info. But put simply using a AWG table you can calculate the voltage drop and also the maximum current carrying capacity for a conductor.

Since most RCA's don't specify conductor width it's a bad idea and second you need to know how much current the device will use.



It depends entirely on the cable. If the cable has high signal loss, you'd be better of using COAX cable (UG60 is best), but you can try amplify it, of course that will result in more noise. The only way to know for sure is to test.

sorry don't mean to judge anything you say,its true what you are sayin just a bit to technical,if you could simplify it for people,this is what i am trying to do in this thread,to simplify matters for the everyday man or women...
Instead of the awg you could just maybe say thicker wire carry more signal
Anyway..you doing a great job in helping all of us even me.

 

[Gnome]

sorry dont mean to judge anything you say,its true what you are sayin just a bit to technical,if you could simplify it for people,this is waht i am trying to do in this thread,to simply amtters for the everyday man or women...
Instead of the awg you could just maybe say thicker wire carry more signal
Anyway..you doing a great job in helping all of us even me.

LOL, K cool Yes I do sometimes over complicate things but guess it's in my nature (and career choice ).

Anyway good luck with the thread, I'll drop in every now and then to keep you on your toes

 

[kronoSX]

thanks..keep me on my feet yes,got it

 

[HavocXphere]

RCA's will have sufficient insulation for 5v DC the problem is that you have no idea what the conductor size is.

Sorry I envisioned 2 cables. RCA for signal and normal cable (the one where the two plastics shielding is sorta melted together) for the power.

But now that you mentioned it....RCA cables have 3 cables so maybe I can run video over the 1 and juice over the other two.

the image would be a bit fuzzy on the otherside,and with cable length comes resistance and the dreaded capacitance.
but 10m is fine,just no quality..you dont care about that hey
you will notice a slight blurr,just kidding,you can do it

So a thick, high quality cable will result in a better image?

Short Answer: Bad idea.

So whats the correct way of doing this?

 

[gregmcc]

I've just had a car problem....maybe this will help someone out as well.

tried to start it yesterday - didnt start, but sound like a relay clicking at high speed. (for those that dont know what a relay is....sounded like a high pitch clicking/buzzing sound)

Lights/hooter/radio/alarm all working fine - so I thought it can't be the battery.......wrong.

Turns out it was the battery - charged it overnight - the next day it started fine. Took the battery to be tested....kaput! New battery R900 later!

 

[Gnome]

So whats the correct way of doing this?

Well for the power cable I would buy some El' Cheapo power cord, the type you usually used to power lamps and such, doesn't need to be very thick. Most electronics shops sell them for very cheap.

Then for the actual video you can try either A) RCA and see how the signal looks or B) Play it safe and buy COAX right of the bat. A single COAX is enough for audio and video if you want to incorporate both.

In terms of COAX UG60 might be overkill for 10M so UG59 is probably best, since copper prices just rose, COAX might be bit expensive. Btw. UG rating just refers to the type of shielding and what frequencies the cable is specified for. Basically UG59 is specified for Ethernet but can be used for video runs such as security camera because resolution is low, the run is short so signal loss is low enough. Usually UG60 COAX cable is used for TV runs, IE. Cable TV in the US uses UG60.

UG59 COAX can be obtained from all electronic stores such as Communica and Electronics 123. Although network cable suppliers like WireCom will likely be cheaper, I know WireCom (google the name ) supplies both UG60/UG59 COAX cable.

Hope that helps

 

[kronoSX]

I've just had a car problem....maybe this will help someone out as well.

tried to start it yesterday - didnt start, but sound like a relay clicking at high speed. (for those that dont know what a relay is....sounded like a high pitch clicking/buzzing sound)

Lights/hooter/radio/alarm all working fine - so I thought it can't be the battery.......wrong.

Turns out it was the battery - charged it overnight - the next day it started fine. Took the battery to be tested....kaput! New battery R900 later!

thanks greg for the tips

 

[HavocXphere]

Thanks Gnome...ill check if I can get some COAX.

dbm: Do standard car radios have some sort of audio in at the back?

 

[kronoSX]

Thanks Gnome...ill check if I can get some COAX.

dbm: Do standard car radios have some sort of audio in at the back?

you wanna connect your ipod..mmm
well what you mean by standard,the factory radio,and what model car is it
usually most latest cars has a aux imput,if it does not have one then rf is your best bet...
There are gadgets on the market for playing your ipod with radios that does not have a input source.
What i really need is your radio model and from what car

 

[HavocXphere]

you wanna connect your ipod..mmm
well what you mean by standard,the factory radio,and what model car is it
usually most latest cars has a aux imput,if it does not have one then rf is your best bet...
There are gadgets on the market for playing your ipod with radios that does not have a input source.
What i really need is your radio model and from what car

VW Polo. Old model...like 7 years old or so. Not exactly in the "latest cars" category.

Radio is VW brand. The oke at the official VW garage said he had never seen one of those ever...

How much are those rf things and where would I buy one?

you wanna connect your ipod..mmm

Close. Cellphone (for music).

 

[Nocturnity]

Hmm... I have a question that's not reallly technical but more product orientated. I want to install a radio in my car that has stereo bluetooth (A2DP) but can also play MP3 DVDs. Is there anything like that that you know of? This would mean that my radio will have an automatic handsfree ability for my phone and I can play music off it. Also, I'd like to my steering controls to still function (if possible).

I'm still searching around on the net. I see Clarion has something but I can't find anything locally...

How's THAT for a tall order?