Stereo Cabinet for the H33C

[H33CRich]

I made a stereo equipment box that sits at the back of the map table under the companion way bridge deck. It also has a two socket 12 volt outlet, the interior vhf radio handset and a few other instruments mounted on it. The wiring exits an 1.5" hole in the bottom of the cabinet and follows a cable race of sorts to the hole left open in the back corner of the map table. I have the cockpit speakers (2 Polyplanar MA905s mounted where the vents used to be in the helm's lazarette). I moved the vents inward a bit to maintain the same airflow (better actually, the holes behind the grate are larger). The cabin speakers are 6.5 inch Pyles mounted in the hanging locker ceilings port and starboard pointing up. I still need to pull the wiring over to the cabin speakers, but they are hooked up to the stereo end. The cockpit sound from the MA905s is awesome.

The stereo is the Fusion AV700 with an iPod docking station. I will be installing a 12 volt 19 or 22 inch TV (Symphony i believe) on the surface above the map table eventually. That should round out the entertainment system I had plans for. The TV will swing out to be viewed from either the cabin or cockpit (although watching it from the cockpit is not the primary objective, but you never know when at a mice anchorage someplace you want to enjoy the fresh eveing air, sip refreshments and catch a movie or ball game, yes a flat HD antena will be installed too). We have pandora playing from one of our iPhones in the docking station which is better than satelite radio IMHO. My iPod also has 6500 tracks of music and books from Audible available.

I will add a complete writeup on my website and the owner mods section of this site once I get the last pieces (the TV monitor) installed and configured.

 

[rardiH36]

Good looking box! Nice wood work.

Re the 19" or 22" tv. If the extra 2 - 3" h/w dimensions of the 22" fit compared to the 19" fit, do the bigger. When I have looked at sets side side-by-side on display somewhere, the difference in screen area between 19" and 22" is very very noticeable. But I'm sure that you know this yourself.

 

[Redbeard33]

Wow, nicely done!! Just out of curiosity why did you move the stereo to the nav station instead of utilizing the original cutout in the starboard hanging locker? or was that not a standard feature? My boat had a cassette player and two speakers inside, the whole system was toast and has been removed but I had just planned to go back in the same spot. Any considerations for moving the "head unit" other than personal preference?

 

[H33CRich]

Dimensionaly, I think either will do, but the 19 inch for some reason has a wider viewing angle. I would prefer the wider viewing angle to the slight edge in size. However, what is reported for one unit maybe the total (L+R of center) vs. one side of center (L or R) for the other. The problem is finding a place that has these units to see before you buy. The units are made by Supersonic and their office is in CA. I may need to call their office to find a local dealer in NJ.

19" Dimensions: L 18.19 x W 1.87 x H 12.96, Viewing angle:170? (H), 160? (V)
21" Dimensions: L 21.12 x W 1.75 x H 13.5, Viewing Angle: 85? (H), 80? (V)

 

[J Hunter]

Rich- nice mod. I was out on my friends boat this weekend and helped him swap out a broken stereo for a Fusion one like yours. He has got a random drip problem that has killed 3 stereos in 5 summers. He got that one because of their "true marine" and "waterproof" marketing claims. He also got the guy at WM to knock an amount off the original price to just about match what they charged to add a fourth and fifth year to the 3 year warranty, and make it one of those "no hassle" replace it on the spot for any malfunction warranty. The thing sounded great and the Iphone bay and controls were nice.

What is that other rectangular component you have mounted in your box? A hard drive? Are you thinking about a power amp and a sub maybe?

Redbeard I bow to your fiberglass work. I know you're a responsible guy so I am sure you know the 3 safety concerns with that lp tank top heater. Leaks or emissions of unburned gas that can fill low spots in you boat and explode with the first small ignition source, poor ventilation and or malfunctioning burner that could allow CO to build up and kill you in your sleep, fire hazard of getting heater to close to combustible materials. Stay thirsty my friend, and you have to be alive for that.

Safety Note: Any fuel burning ventless appliance needs adequate air exchange to replenish Oxygen and remove products of combustion. Standards require at least a 1 square inch fresh air opening for every 1000 BTUs of propane used by any appliance. Replacement air (oxygen) is provided best by two vents, one low on an outside wall and the other high on another outside wall.

This high/low vent is hard to do on a boat as you know.

 

[Redbeard33]

J-Hunter, I know it was less than responsible to have that in the boat but I would never sleep on the boat while using it. It was only used while i was working on the boat and a hatch board was left out opposite an open port to promote a cross vent. It is inherently dangerous however the electric service at the pier is only 15A and the little electric space heater couldn't be used with the halogen light simultaneously, so a fuel burning device was the only option. Not much of an excuse but it was a compromise between calculated risk and waiting months for the weather to warm up. I do plan on adding a natural draft dickinson diesel heater as soon as i get some extra coin

 

[J Hunter]

Red- I'm far from the safety nazi you seem to have taken me as, I was serious (not sarcastic) when I said I thought you probably were using the heater responsibly, I didn't want to come across as holier than thou. Just a refresher/reminder that the dangers of the thing have to be respected, and even more so on a boat, which you obviously have been doing- cheers.

 

[Redbeard33]

I'm sorry if that message came across spiteful. I hadn't meant that in a negative way at all, simply explaining the reasons for choosing to using it despite the risk involved. I always appreciate constructive criticism, I do not think your a safety nazi. CO poisoning is a real danger, a regular reminder is good insurance against a false sense of safety, thanks

 

[H33CRich]

Rich- nice mod....

What is that other rectangular component you have mounted in your box? A hard drive? Are you thinking about a power amp and a sub maybe?

The extra bay is an iPod docking station for iPhone/iPod. We use my wifes iphone to stream Pandora. You can find the desciption here: http://www.fusionelectronics.com/marine/products/marine-docks/ms-ipdockg2
It takes my old 30GB iPod, but for some reason, I don't have full access to my library yet. I need to call Fusion to find out why since I have 28 days of books and music on it. The old iPod is a bit long in the tooth, but I hate parting with it. Last year I upgraded the disk drive to a 32GB solidstate disk (disk to CF card conversion) to take vibration sustained while riding the motorcycle. Vibration is not really a cancern on the boat.

 

[J Hunter]

Oh Ok, the one we put in on my friends boat was the 700 series with the Ipod/Iphone bay right in the head unit, I looked it up and I see now you got the one with the optical disk reader in the head unit. We used an Iphone with Pandora in it the day we put it in, but did notice three things about doing that: 1 you need to strip off your case. 2 If you are using Pandora you need to shut it off and pull it out to change "stations" or take control of the Pandora functions 3. When you get a call you have to fish your phone out of the slot to answer it. Would one of those Bluetooth earpeice things let you leave it in there to take a call does anyone know? Would there be a way to resume Pandora after the call is done ?

 

[H33CRich]

The unit is not designed to control iPhone applications (like Pandora). It is designed to control the iPod/iPhone music library. Once we select a Genre on Pandora, we leave it there. If my wife gets a call while we are sailing(it's her iPhone), it goes to voice mail. If it is something urgent with my kids or relatives, they know to call me on my BlackBerry.

I just hooked up the FM antenna and the Pyle cabin speakers this past weekend. Sound is acceptable (not as good as the PolyPlanar MA905s in the cockpit, but more than decent for a $14 set). I decided to upgrade the iPod to the new 160gb version (like my truck, its time to renew). That should correct this issue of not accessing the full library (reading the fine print, the non-video 30gb version is not listed) plus allow me to put all of my iTunes content on one device.