Technical Hidden radios for hotrods...

I have a 34 tudor sedan and would like to install a hidden radio system....I was wondering if anyone out there has any suggestions...I would like to install it behind the rear seat...

 

might do a search here on this - been a topic more than once

 

I have a little speaker and I play stuff through my phone....easy peasy. I hang it from a rearview or sit it in the seat or on the floor. They make all kinds and they have good sound.

 

google is your friend
https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/cool-little-hidden-radio.961414/

 

My avitar has the main unit all in the trunk. I used the stock 6-V unit on off switch to relay the power back to the trunk and a fiber optic cable to run all the change up programs. Been doing just fine for 17 years. Big down side is no digital clock in the Dash,,, oh wait that's not a down side.

 

I got one of these and hang it from the vent handle in my Avatar. Plays from Bluetooth. Really great sound.

 

Here is a build thread I did

https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum...th-sound-system-install-non-invasive.1155455/
The most difficult part was the mounting speakers. I now have 2 hidden sound systems in my home since the write-up.

I have approx $50 into my whole system [plus my phone]
The problem with bluetooth speakers is their lack of power. Quality/Powerful ones are expensive


But if I was in the USA I would use one of these
https://www.woodyscustomshop.com/the-classic-audio-solution/

 

Bluetooth through speakers like these is the way to go. USB charging ports are real easy to hide, and thats all you need. One for your phone, one for the speaker, and maybe one for the wife's phone, just to keep her happy.

Don't take this the wrong way, I am not having a go at you here, but this is where youngsters come in real handy. I would be lost with a lot of this stuff if I did not have my kids to teach me. Talk to them and they will get you on the path...............

 

If you can heat the radio, your exhaust is too quiet!
Just kidding..
Something I'm changing in my El - The high power stereo in the glove box. It just isn't easy to get to while driving. Same goes for glancing at a cell phone to change volume or stations. Going to buy one of the aftermarket head units that looks like a stock one. This way it's all front & center. Hopefully you can find a way to mount the controls so your eyes don't have to drop too far off the road to use it. Possibly a magnetic mount for a remote?
My .02 cents

 

That's all I'm going to have. My son has a small Bose speaker and it's great. Even the little Sony cubes work okay. A sound system in a car has never been a priority for me. It's a car, not a sound lounge.

 

I used the Delco AM radio as a head unit for my I-pod. I cut one end of a 6' mini jack patch cord and kept the male end. I soldered it to the blue wire that feeds the radios AM tuner to its amp. I put a toggle switch in the back of the radio so I could use both. I put a 1K resister on the Left channel and one on the Right channel, twisted them together and soldered them to the radios amp through the switch. I soldered all negative wires to the radios steel cabinet.

I connected a small Blaupunkt amp. Ran the one speaker lead to the amps high side inputs and put a jumper between the R and L terminal on the amp so both channels would come through. Someday I want to make it true Hi-Fi by using a crossover network.

I see no sense having stereo in a old car that has a fairly noisy cab due to lots of steel and a big block Chevrolet engine..

 

Hello,

So, I am not the only one to advocate a music player, Ipod or phone to play music over the in place speakers or through a Bluetooth speaker or speaker systems. The good thing about the Bluetooth system is that installation is simple and easy. No wires or tearing up the carpeting to hide cord holders to the areas that have to have speakers.

It is not only a plug and play (simple way to describe turning on the Bluetooth on the device and link them together), but a safe way to have your old hot rod look clean and not have any other installations in the cockpit. Plus, the whole system is transferrable from your daily driver to the hot rod and vice versa.

We are old school. The phone is used only for calls to and from. But, in my wife’s daily driver (when we drove daily) we have a Bluetooth system using the built-in speakers and an 5th generation Ipod. It has worked every time. But, these posts are all moot if a radio is your goal and you still listen to stuff on it. There are enough distractions let alone someone talking endlessly about nothing on every channel.

Since last Christmas, we now have the newest generation Ipod that has more power and a larger storage capacity. It is totally wireless and the convenience is that it can be used anywhere, not locked into one place, like in the dash of a hot rod or daily driver. Multiple uses and not wearing down the battery of the primary phone service.

Our phones are on and they are only used for calls or in case we are in an area that needs some direction from the Google Map Service. Fort Lauderdale or West Palm Beach were two places that were a little hectic in roads and places. The map service told us to turn right at a corner and the beach was to the left… The road system did eventually get to the beach, but it took several streets to angle back toward the Atlantic Ocean.

Jnaki

Having installed several radio/tape player systems, it is not always a fun job. The wireless Bluetooth systems are fantastic. We have a huge library of music at our disposal without any subscription services. Our phones are on standby for any calls or emergencies. The rewards are great but nothing is better than listening to the powerful motor sound as it accelerates on any street or on ramp.


A friendly hello to our old 1948 Westside of Long Beach home location to the left of the shift into 2nd. (now a LBUSD maintenance and supply yard attached to an elementary school)

 

I was thinking about using something like the Clarion CMS20. It's a marine type setup the display is 4.5" x 3.5", and the receiver can be tucked away under a seat or in the trunk.

 

I have my limits tech wise,so don't do Bluetooth stuff.
I put in a little unit{was about $50 that plays using two 6in. speakers hiding up under dash,an a tiny remote control pad of about 1.25 in. sq. on my steering column. has radio an plays chip< of 200>> 1955 to 63 rock n roll songs. Woody's radio.

 

I use this at work. Really great! Great highs and lows. $129 at Best Buy.

 

Those things are great, we use one

 

Another option is instead of hiding mine, I used an era correct under dash 8-track player/FM stereo. Then with an FM modulator I have a hidden cd changer in the trunk plugged in, and I can plug in my phone thru the “Jack” if I want pandora. Just another option instead of having to go thru all the hiding stuff.

 

I bought the JBL Flip 4 because it sounds great but mostly because it fits in the cup holder on golf carts.

 

Here is a link to something I built for my roadster. Bluetooth but permanently installed and 12v powered. Kooks better than a tube in a cup holder.
https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/turn-on-tune-in-drop-out-of-sight.1089999/

 

I'm one of those that likes a good sounding stereo in my ride and sometimes I like it loud so I've been staring at my A tudor trying to figure out where to hide it all myself...

 

As described by @Mimilan above, I used this 12volt Bluetooth amp to power two weather resistant black motorcycle speakers that are mounted above the steering column of my Roadster. All recorded media is on my phone, plus music and radio streaming.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/1334819193...rHCAcrb%2F4SouJggXBh|ampid:PL_CLK|clp:2332490

 

I put these in all my cars. I've never had a problem. It syncs up automatically with my iPod and has a remote control. You can install the main control panel in the glovebox.

https://www.classiccarstereos.com/secretaudio-sst.html

 

I don't know how you guys can listen to anything in a roadster. I can barely have a conversation below yelling. Except when sitting at lights.

 

You don't, but EVERYONE around you does! Just like the bagger guys

 

Oooo I hate that.

 

I installed a Secret-audio SRMS in 2013. I mounted the radio box high on the inside of my firewall.
Speakers on seat riser and on firewall above the foot rest. Antenna with Velcro on my top bows.
The remote is out of sight on the back of my steering column.
After nearly nine years it still works great.

 

Here's an amp roughed in to the carboard glove box in my 56( see avatar) I since have it finished ( but can't find photo's- car itself is in paint purgatory) the toggle switch is on/off, the dentist mirror is so I can see the power on light. I've got it elevated , to allow air flow under it. It works with my phone plugged in, or blue tooth ( w/o having to open the glove box door). Speakers are in my dash (one) above the clock, other in stock location/ rear package shelf (one). It's hidden, worked in my garage , but takes up all the room in my glove box.

 

Dana can you get more specific about the components you used to make your sound system?

 

Thanks for the details Blake. very helpful!

 

Blake, do you have to point the remote directly at the receiver to make a change of function?