As we’re getting ready for a trip to Colorado I thought I’d take a moment to present an overview of our entertainment system in the Airstream. Let me apologize in advance if I lose anyone with the technical mumbo-jumbo below.
All the media (movies, music, tv shows) is loaded on a small linux server that is mounted in the overhead bin next to the stereo system. I built this system using a special 12v power supply, so there is no need to run the inverter to power it, and it only takes about 20 watts. The audio output from this computer is plugged into the Sony stereo system that came already installed in the Airstream.
To handle the video we’re running a piece of software called MythTV, which is an open source DVR (Digital Video Recorder – like TIVO). We’re mainly using this to load up all the DVDs that we’ve purchased so we can watch them on-demand.
For playing music we’re running a piece of software called MPD (Music Player Daemon) on the same machine. This allows us to play music either throught the built in Sony sound system in the Airstream, or through a set of Bluetooth wireless speakers when we’re sitting outside. We can control the music (both volume along with what music is playing) using remote-control of software that is running on Janet’s iPhone or my Nokia N810 internet tablet. This way we can turn the music up or down while in the bedroom without having to get up.
I’m still in the process of fine-tuning the system. At the moment I’m using a Nitendo WII bluetooth controller to control the movie playback, but I may move back to using an infrared remote for better response.
