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tristanh , ^^^ that's the way to do it! The Doctor , Yup, that's not a bad idea. However... I had a pioneer one of those back in the 90's (it had the CD controls on it too). I couldn't get on with it. Either the loud bits distorted or the quiet bits were lost in the noise. I had to break out the audio and wire it to an AUX on the headunit eventually. It just wasn't good enough. I'm an audio engineer so I'm probably a bit sensitive to distortion. I've spent a career listening for it and maybe my box wasn't the best. Even so, I like bits of wire these days! James
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It's a pity after all that work that the sound quality hasn't improved. I'm sure you will get there in the end.
Mark
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14 Audi A3 Sportback - Easy driver
05 Audi TT MK1 3.2 DSG - Damn quick
73 Triumph 2000 - Needs work
03 Range Rover 4.4 V8 petrol. Had to get it out of my system.
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The Doctor
Club Retro Rides Member
Posts: 3,448
Club RR Member Number: 48
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Yup, that's not a bad idea. However... I had a pioneer one of those back in the 90's (it had the CD controls on it too). I couldn't get on with it. Either the loud bits distorted or the quiet bits were lost in the noise. I had to break out the audio and wire it to an AUX on the headunit eventually. It just wasn't good enough. I'm an audio engineer so I'm probably a bit sensitive to distortion. I've spent a career listening for it and maybe my box wasn't the best. Even so, I like bits of wire these days! James The one i had was fully stand alone, came with it's own control box and even a remote! I couldn't control it from the radio. I found it very good, but maybe that's because i'm not an audio engineer, just an enthusiastic music listener  |
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Why use English on a car that was never supposed to leave Japan? If there's one thing I've learnt in my many trips to Japan, it's that in their opinion, you can never have enough random English on things! Especially halfway through a sentence! |
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Bluetooth line-in is pretty useful if you also use your phone for satnav. It plays the direction commands through the same channels and reduces the music volume as it does so just as if you have a factory fitted unit.
Some bluetooth dongles have a button on them to connect to your phone everytime but i found one that connect automatically once paired so you can hide the dongle somewhere and then get in the car and off you go. I was fortunate and piggy-backed the aux in on my stereo but others have sacrificed the tape connections inside the unit.
Anyway this feels like deviation away from the original thread so i'll stop talking about blue teeth and get back to admiring this Mister2!
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Last Edit: Aug 7, 2017 12:32:05 GMT by toast00
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tristanh
Part of things
Routinely bewildered
Posts: 990 
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The "Bluetooth into retro radio without line in fandangles" thing deserves a thread all of its own!
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Whether you believe you can, or you cannot, you're probably right.
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It's a pity after all that work that the sound quality hasn't improved. I'm sure you will get there in the end. Mark Don't get me wrong, it might not sound much different but it's quite a lot louder now before it starts to sound rough. Now I can use that power to drive another pair of slightly bigger speakers and get a bit of bass back. The one i had was fully stand alone, came with it's own control box and even a remote! I couldn't control it from the radio. I found it very good, but maybe that's because i'm not an audio engineer, just an enthusiastic music listener Well now, just because I claim to to know what I'm talking about doesn't make my opinion on sound quality any better than anybody else's. If you like it that's all that matters - and don't let anybody tell you different. There's an old BBC designed speaker known as the LS53/5A. Many of my engineer mates will tell you that 3/5A's are still the best thing since sliced bread. Personally I don't rate them, certainly not at the price some people ask. Who's right? All of us! Thinking about this, why don't we have arguments over whether vinyl sounds better than CD anymore? Oh yes, it's because almost nobody under the age of 30 has listened to a record. They don't know what they are missing!  If there's one thing I've learnt in my many trips to Japan, it's that in their opinion, you can never have enough random English on things! Especially halfway through a sentence! Post war American influence I guess. Oddly you'd think that after being bombed into submission in a particularly evil way by an English speaking people they'd all learn German. Or Russian. Arabic maybe? Anything but English. What a fascinating country Japan must be... How do you get on over there? I'm guessing you don't speak much Japanese? I'd love to go but it's a bloody long way and I have to admit I'm a bit scared of the language problems. I feel fairly uncomfortable and stupid in France! toast00 , tristanh , I'm not very good with technology. I thought BlueTooth was a disease in sheep for years... One of you can start a thread! James |
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Last Edit: Aug 7, 2017 20:58:28 GMT by Sweetpea
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How do you get on over there? I'm guessing you don't speak much Japanese? I'd love to go but it's a bloody long way and I have to admit I'm a bit scared of the language problems. I feel fairly uncomfortable and stupid in France! James Madam keeps harping on about going. We really must. She worked over there for a few years and is fully fluid! Maybe when things have settled a bit... |
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oukie
Part of things
Posts: 307
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I think the biggest reason there is a lot of English language in Japan, is down to their schooling, I believe English is taught compulsory, mainly because, wherever a Japanese person goes in the world, they'll likely be someone who speaks English, but highly unlikely that they'll be anyone who speaks Japanese in comparison,
My mk1 mr2 supercharger is a full on jdm car and not a single button or switch is in Japanese, yet my old Delica had a mish mash of language on the buttons, but the touch screen controls for the factory mms system was in kanji.
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Mr2 mk1 x4
Honda Accord 2.4 Executive (luxo barge)
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How do you get on over there? I'm guessing you don't speak much Japanese? I'd love to go but it's a bloody long way and I have to admit I'm a bit scared of the language problems. I feel fairly uncomfortable and stupid in France! James Madam keeps harping on about going. We really must. She worked over there for a few years and is fully fluid! Maybe when things have settled a bit... Both of you should! It's amazingly easy to get around. As oukie said, it's pretty much compulsory. You will struggle to find a place where no one speaks English, and as long as you're not American and apologise in Japanese for not speaking it they're generally very polite and helpful. It's a 9 hour flight from here, which is about the limit of what I can manage in one jump. But so cheap! I haven't done Europe yet because I can't justify the cost vs seeing most of Asia haha. |
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was8v
Part of things
Posts: 46
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If you want to mod your head unit for aux.....you could do this: follow the traces from the tape head to find the tape head pre amplifier. look up the data sheet for it (pins may be obvious) interrupt the power line and break out to a switch connect your aux wire to the left right channel outputs remove all the innards from a tape when using aux, use your switch to cut the power to the tape preamp (which will cut the noise) and the empty cassette to make the unit change input. this way your head unit will still play tapes fine (when you use your switch to send power to the pre amp) for bluetooth audio use on of these - a2dp assures good SQ. www.ebay.co.uk/itm/141899511812use a mosfet to power or this will give you plug and play with phone charging ability too www.ebay.co.uk/itm/112433043145 |
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was8v
Part of things
Posts: 46
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PS this thread is fab. I've been reading in instalments when i'm up with the baby in the dead of night!
I regret passing up few MK1 MR2s over the years. Great project.
I suffer with the same affliction as yourself. i (engineer) inherited the condition from my father (engineer). I too believe if someone else can do something, there is no reason why I can't.
I hate paying people to do things I could do myself. Its not about the money or begrudging others, its something deep within. I also absolutely hate throwing things away that can be fixed and will spend endless hours fixing things that could be cheaply replaced.
That applies to everything from fixing cars, to installing gas appliances, to trading stocks and shares. Except plastering, I never got the hang of that, you can't imagine my frustration with plastering......although I'm sure with a bit of regular practice....
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Last Edit: Aug 13, 2017 7:48:12 GMT by was8v
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Aug 13, 2017 13:39:57 GMT
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Hi was8v, Glad you are enjoying the thread. Got a little one eh? I avoided that so I'm lucky that we don't have to worry about money too much. The down side of that is that I have no excuse for being a tight git. Apart from - I'm a tight git! Oh, and I enjoy working things out for myself... That too. The other problem with not having kids is who'll look after me when I'm old? I reckon the missus will lock me in the car and just have us both crushed when I'm past it. Work on the car has been frustratingly slow this year. Too many other jobs to do. Got a few plans though. Put the new handbrake cables on... Replace the big end shells - you should hear the racket it makes when you start it. Some more body work - mostly the front wings and one rear arch. Replace the left rear wing. And so on... The other thing I'm noticing is that the car pitches up at the front when spanking it away from the lights. Also it feels light and floaty at speed. I was swinging it left and right on an empty bit on motorway (in the south east?!!) the other night. It rolls, settles and then feels as if it's going to steer from the back. Hmmm. I think the 30 year old dampers are 20 years past their best... Wish me luck! James |
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Aug 15, 2017 11:13:53 GMT
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Well that's a strange way of spending two days of your holiday - sitting in a caravan in Devon reading a 48 page thread about a car, until yesterday, you had zero interest in.
It would appear we have a very similar attitude/approach to working on things James - I just look and think it's broken, I can't make it any worse so let's have a go! Doesn't always work but I've got a good track record to the point where I have all sorts of toys and household appliances dropped at my feet
"My dad can fix anything!"
All comes from my Dad I think
"All my mates are off down the coast"
"Are they? Well you can give me a hand repairing this dishwasher..."
Could have slapped him at the time but he's actually saved me a fortune in repairs on all sorts.
Anyway I'm rambling now (purely in keeping with the ethos of the thread) so I'm off
Cheers
Jamie
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tristanh
Part of things
Routinely bewildered
Posts: 990
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Aug 15, 2017 11:55:43 GMT
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Me too as well also! My theory is my fingers and brain are of similar size and operation as everyone else. Therefore what someone else built or can repair, I should be able to too.
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Whether you believe you can, or you cannot, you're probably right.
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Phew, well I've been reading this thread over several night shifts and it has been brilliantly entertaining. The innovation is truly inspiring. I know when I've enjoyed a particular build/resto because I start looking for that particular model on various selling sites. I've always loved 80's 90's Japanese/German cars. I currently have a mk2 golf rebuild on here and reading yours makes me really wish I was doing more of it myself.
I don't have anything constructive to add except for some obnoxious trivia that I can contribute related to toyota. Ahem... ''Toyota was originally named Toyoda after the founder Akio Toyoda but the name was changed to Toyota in the late 30's because Toyota is easier to pronounce in English but more interestingly, Toyota has eight strokes and in Japanese culture the number eight is associated with fortune and prosperity.'' Looking forward to see how project Portia progresses.
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Last Edit: Aug 16, 2017 10:07:43 GMT by Coakers
Mk2 Golf 16V resto
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And Yoda was pretty good at reading fortunes!
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And Yoda was pretty good at reading fortunes! Don't mention bloody Fortunas 😠 |
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Aug 20, 2017 16:21:06 GMT
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Sorry chaps,
I seem to be ignoring you all. It's not deliberate. I just find myself in an internet resource poor situation at the moment for various reasons.
As soon as I've resolved the issues I'll be right back.
When did we stop fixing broken stuff and start resolving issues?
James
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It’s been so long since I posted I expect you wondered if I was still alive. All those superstars that have pegged it over the last 18 months or so, you probably thought I was amongst them. Terry Wogan, David Bowie, that James chap of t’interweb… But no, I’m still here. It’s just been a busy year and I haven’t had much time to play with the car. By way of an excuse, remember that cast iron drain pipe I welded up? Started looking like this.  Then…  Well here’s the finished article.  Nice isn’t it? Now it’s back on the house.  Take an ‘ikkle look at the rest of the job.  All this woodwork was was peeling. It’s been burned off, sanded, primed, and painted. Then the cracks in the render on the walls were sorted and painted. It’s taken months of weekends. Months of them. Chuffed though, really pleased with the results. Oh, we went on holiday too! However, there have been moments when the missus went out or looked the other way and I snook out to play with the car. Unfortunately for you some of that tinkering was to improve the car’s security so I’m not going to tell you what I’ve been up to. I have no clue why anybody would want to pinch a scrap car with trashed big ends and a stuffed in rear quarter but, hopefully, it’ll be a bit harder now. Given that my old car has the previously mentioned smashed back corner, and that the nose cone is totally the wrong colour (and the paint is falling off) you may be surprised that the bit of the car’s appearance that really pushed my buttons were these.  Yep, the wipers. I can cope with many of the car’s deficiencies but rusty wipers, for some strange reason, are terribly upsetting. What’s worse is that they weren’t that good at being wipers either. They vibrate and skip across the screen even with new blades. First job, clean the screen.  With wire wool. A bit unconventional but I saw it somewhere and it seems to work. It catches on the bits stuck to the glass and removes them. A bit like claying your paint I guess. Then the arms.  They had a trip through the sand blaster and came out looking like this.  I didn’t take them right back to the metal. Where the paint was stuck I didn’t see the point in removing it. I’m hoping that blasting some grit through the hinge and spring section might clean some of the debris out and might help reduce the skipping. Probably being a bit optimistic. Anyway, a coat of etch primer and a coat of Halfords best black (which isn’t terribly impressive stuff) and they are back on the car.  Now who’s a posh little car then? James PS, Don’t know if they still rattle across the screen. I’ll tell you when I get a moment to actually drive it. |
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Last Edit: Jan 20, 2019 22:35:21 GMT by Sweetpea
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