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Mobile Theater (Car TV)

R

ratthedd

GUEST
I'm planning on sticking a TV in my AV for the benefit of the back seat passengers and am looking for some input. There are a few different ones I'm looking at and would like to hear pros and cons from whoever may have installed similar ones in their vehicles.

Right now the one that's on the top of the list is a 9" console replacement from Steel Horse that's supposed to fit right in a Suburban/Tahoe/Avalanche, but the pictures that I've seen don't show any vents. The Suburbans run the venting through the ceiling so that's not a problem for them, but in the AV the only venting for the back comes in from the console. http://www.stylinconcepts.com has them for about $900.

Matt, I was hoping you might have more info on this.

http://www.stylinconcepts.com/images/uploadedimages/Pickup/500021_opt.jpg


My second choice is a 9" TV console made by Santeca Electronics that looks like it replaces the back cover of the stock console, but again there are no pictures available for the Avalanche, although http://www.performanceproducts.com does offer a part number for the AV model, again for about $900.

http://catalogs.google.com/catalogs?hl=en&issue=5740&catpage=21

http://www.performanceproducts.com/Assets/product_content/Integrated Video Console/Video.jpg

http://www.performanceproducts.com/Assets/product_content/Integrated Video Console/system.jpg

http://www.performanceproducts.com/...uch Entertainment Console/Tag3_in_w_Panel.jpg


My third, and last choice is to piece together a bunch of parts from http://www.partsexpress.com and mount a 12" LCD screen from the ceiling. The big drawbacks of this option are the additional wiring that needs to be run up under the ceiling fabric, cutting holes in the fabric, and the AV doesn't look like it has the same support structure as some of the other big GM vehicles so I'm not sure there would be a tight fit for the mounting bezel.

205-416m.jpg



I can see that the tuner unit will fit under one of the back seats quite nicely. How are the rest of you mounting your antennas? Can I fit them on the back window? For those of you with ceiling mounts, how are they holding up? Are the hinges and latches durable enough to handle what the erst of the AV can handle?
 
I put in a TV that I will eventually use for gps, dvd, rear camera, etc. It is mounted to an adapter coming out of the storage area above the cd storage in the console. It comes out just above the cup holders, but I can still use the cup holders. The tuner is mounted in the console below the cup holders. The antenae fit good just inside the roof rack with a wire coming down between the roof rack and the window seal. An in dash would have been nice, but lots more expensive. I got the 6.8 LCD and tuner for $325 on e-bay (Boss), and had autoradio install it for $368. So far all is ok. Tom
 
I forgot to tell you where I bought mine. I went to Yahoo Shopping and found one for $749.00 complete.
 
I plan on taking out my stereo, and puttin in an 8-track, that plays nothing but show tunes, so that my kids will have to endure road trips the way I did when I was a kid. ;D
 
Anyone know anything about the new clarion joyride (updated autopc)?
 
This is wild!! I just got my windows tinted in the Av today and I was talking to the owner there about what types of mobile theaters he carried. And now I get home and log into the site for the day you folks are already discussing the same subject. I guess being Av owner we all think along the same lines! ;D

Anyway here is what it would cost me for him to do a custom install. He gave me a price of $1600 for a DVD, CD, MP3 and game station system completely hard wired in. There would be 2 7.5" LCD's mounted in the front seat head rests and the DVD unit would mount in my center console. A FM modulator added to the stock radio so I can put the sound through the Av's sound system and 2 wireless head sets for private listening.
 
7.5" in the headrest. Is he replacing them? Is the DVD,MP3 ect, one unit? If that price includes parts and labor..its a good deal. Do you know the brands he would use?

I love having am FM modulator. I like seeing peopel stare at my truck when i have the fight scene from gladiator or pearl harbor on , blaring through my stereo system.

The wireless headphones are very cool.
 
I wouldn't mind a setup like that for when I went camping, but I am not sure I would ever use a theatre system in my vehicle on a daily bassis.

If you don't mind my asking, why do you guys want a system like that in your truck? I am curious as to what kind of use the driver of the vehicle would get out of something like that.

I have been around the custom car world for awhile now, and I have seen some interesting entertainment systems installed in cars. And usually when asked, the owner/operator of the vehicle installed the stuff, just because is was "cool" and they tended only to use/demonstrate the stuff at auto shows.

Are you installing it for the "cool" factor (I think they are cool, but cool doesn't mean anything to my wife who would veto that kind of thing), or is it a baby sitting device, or a camping device, or what?
 
Well I guess you have not heard the works "ARE WE THEIR YET". When you have kids and you go on trips, it i nice for them to watch a movie, I even bring some popcorn. Also they hook up their game players or what ever the kids call them. It just works when you have kids.
 
yep great for

1. stuck in traffic on the 405 freeway because of an accident on the other freakin side of the freeway.

2. long trips(short ones also) with kids

3.for breaks at work when you wanna play video games

4. when your camping and you wanna catch somethin on the news

5.When driving your girlfriend around shopping and you wanna watch the game.

6It looks very cool! ;D
 
The difference between my wife and me was:
My wife asked why I put the TV in "before" I put it in.
I asked myself why only "after" I put it in. It seemed like a good idea at the time. Actually I am planning on a rear camera, gps system, dvd, mp3. My question now is to as should I have just saved and done it all together as in the clarion joyride system as doing it in steps as I can afford it.
 
Matt
According to the shop they will use your existing headrests and cut into them to fit the screen. He showed me a one of the headrests he did for a Yukon and it was a very clean installation. I looked the overhead screens systems but I felt that they were to high for children and they would end up with a neck cramp after a long trip. The head rest idea appealed to me since the screen would be all most eye level. As for the brand and componenets, I will talk to him in the morning and give a report later that day.


Spork_Av,
I'm guessing you don't have any children yet or yours are old enough to entertain themselves on a long trip. Mr Bill and Matt are absolutely right about the Mobile theater it is a great way to keep the little ones entertained and the driver from snapping on long trips or being stuck in hours of traffic !! Plus the fact I am a big video game addict, so on long trips I can get in the back seat with the little one and kick back and play "Grand Theft Auto" for a while and let the wife drive!! :D
 
DocToss said:
The difference between my wife and me was:
My wife asked why I put the TV in "before" I put it in.
I asked myself why only "after" I put it in. It seemed like a good idea at the time. Actually I am planning on a rear camera, gps system, dvd, mp3. My question now is to as should I have just saved and done it all together as in the clarion joyride system as doing it in steps as I can afford it.
Click to expand...

Now this setup seems cool to me. I have seen the in dash systems, where the TV folds into the dash, and then pops out so you can use it. GPS, dvd etc... and the driver can use and see it.

I saw an entertainment/DVD system the used a HUD projector for the use of the driver. Has anyone else seen one of these?
 
Rad Tech said:
Spork_Av,
I'm guessing you don't have any children yet or yours are old enough to entertain themselves on a long trip. ?Mr Bill and Matt are absolutely right about the Mobile theater it is a great way to keep the little ones entertained and the driver from snapping on long trips or being stuck in hours of traffic !! ? Plus the fact I am a big video game addict, so on long trips I can get in the back seat with the little one and kick back and play "Grand Theft Auto" for a while and let the wife drive!! ?:D
Click to expand...

Nope, no kids yet. As I said in my first post, I will torture my kids with stuff I had to put up with on road trips when I was their age. ;D

In all honesty, I am not into video games anymore nor do I watch TV a whole lot. Also, when a movie comes out on DVD, I buy it watch it once and then set it on the rack. It is wierd, it is more like I enjoy collecting movies, than actually watching them.
 
I have 5 kids and on long trips the TV is a real lifesaver. We use a van for long trips ,but may take the Av occasionally (but not all the kids), so maybe the TV will help then.
 
you mean you don't have to do the "if I have to turn around one more time, one of you is going to be walking home" speach. I have waited all my life to do that speach to my kids.
 
Now spork_av I see you got the point. Like all of us you will be in the same boat someday. Funny how all the one liners are the same all over the country.
 
Matts_U.A.V. said:
7.5" in the headrest. Is he replacing them? Is the DVD,MP3 ect, one unit? If that price includes parts and labor..its a good deal. Do ?you know the brands he would use?


Matt,
I just got off the phone with my friend at the speed shop and he said that the components he would use is either Audio Vox or Power Accostics. Now, I am not sure how good these brands are, but I will do some research prior to giving him the go ahead to rip my truck apart. Brands such as Sony, Technics and Pioneer I know will cost an arm and a leg and probably then some. To install that kind of equipment is beyond me and puts that idea right back in the "I wish I had box".
;)
Click to expand...
 
Hey Radtech,
There is nothing at all wrong with either one of those. My DVD player is power acoustic and I have installed more of those than any other. Both of those names are very common and work great.

Are you in California?
 
Hey Matt,

No, I am over here on the East Coast in MD. The guy that is doing some of the work on my Av takes a lot of trips out your way a comes back with a lot of new ideas to introduce to the folks on the East Coast. :)
 
MrBill,

Thanks for posting that link. I don't know much about mobile theaters, but the system looks great and the price is very nice.
Seems like everyone is jumping on the band wagon introducing very trick ways to watching movies while they are on the road. It's going to be a tough decision to make when I decided to make my move to do this mod. ;D
 
We used ours in our Trooper for noise abatement -- keeps the whining from the back seat down. Headphones are a must, keeps the kids in their world, my wife and I in our own.

When you mount the player under the back seat, 1) how difficult is it to get to while on the road, and 2) does it impact the whole midgate/change-for-a-dollar thing?
 
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