AdventureTaco - turbodb's build and adventures

10 stop Neutral density filter? Lightning trigger works too.

 

You have to know about things to use them

That lightning trigger is pretty cool. If I was around lightning more, I might consider it.

 

Triggers usually have other functions as well. Like capturing droplets. That kinda thing-always wanted one but cannot convince myself it's worth getting. So, ND filter it is. You can use that to make buttery smooth water too.

 

Awesome, thanks for the tips! I got a cheap ND filter for daytime timelapses earlier this year, I'll keep it at the ready if I ever stumble upon a thunderstorm. The colors in those photos are just amazing, good work!

Still planning it out, but we're starting at New Pine Creek loosely following one of the BDRs north then west. I was too slow to book any of the fire lookouts, but will still try to view some from a distance along the way. Other destinations are Crater Lake and Mt Hood. (We watched the Shining a lot during the lockdown!) I'm not finding many back-country through routes for traversing the west half of the state, let me know if you have any suggestions!

It turns out that I really like bridges, so that's become a theme of the trip as well. We're going to sneak up into WA to check out Vance Creek and the High Steel Bridges before heading home along the coast. It's looking like it'll mostly be an on-pavement trip, but it's shaping up to be fun.

Re-reading many of your adventures in these areas now, and already planning a return trip -- there's just too damn much to see!


EDIT: I guess I was already several months behind on the trip reports. Damn, you get out a lot!

I just wanted to add to the conversation from a few months ago regarding propane campfires in Canyonlands. I asked the ranger specifically about that when we called in for our permit last year (~July 2020). She said OK, so long as it sits off the ground and doesn't make ash. Ours has little fold out legs and is full of lava rocks, so it's allowed.

I'll agree that it's stupid and bulky, but that little propane campfire has become one of my favorite camping things! I don't deal with cold nearly as well as you do.

 

I follow Moose Peterson. He's a photographer who used to spend a lot of time on the east side of the Sierra. Wildlife and aviation photography are his thing. He posted a reference for a lightning trigger today. It's from a company called Miops.

I got nothing but thought since we'd been talking about it, might be worth seeing what they are and how they work.

 

10 stop ND filters are also excellent at making people disappear.

 

Car shows. Almost mandatory.

 

A Stereo that Just Works - Kenwood DMX906S

It was five years ago now that I made a huge mistake in the stereo department for the Tacoma. At the time, I thought I was fixing my first mistake in the stereo department, but it turns out I was simply prioritizing form over function - and that's never the right decision. But let's take a step back in history for just a second, to see how we got here.

When I purchased the truck in late 1999, I got the fanciest stereo I could from Toyota. It was super gnarly. I mean really. Of course it had AM radio, and FM too. I loved the tape player. I mean, it could autoreverse and fast-forward to the next song. For real though. The cherry on the top - naturally - was the CD player. I mean seriously, a built-in CD player in the car!

I was living the good life.

​

But then, I got jealous. Jealous of the Bluetooth that I saw in other cars. And so I did some research and installed the stereo that I was sure would be the last I'd ever install. Not only did it have Bluetooth, but it had a touch screen. And it played videos. Seriously, I was so rad.

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The problem with the Panasonic was twofold: first, the screen was a resistive (rather than capacitive) and so wasn't ever really that bright or responsive. But more disastrously, it always looked like it was in "club mode." Seriously, it was like the designer had just discovered animated gifs and Windows 95 screensavers and mashed them together. And there was no way to just "turn it all off."

I suffered for three years before convincing myself that I should just get a stereo that I could set a black background on and be happy. I decided I might as well go all out and get something completely configurable so that I'd never have this kind of problem again. And what's more configurable than a stereo running Android, amiright?!

So, I did some more research and settled on one that had all the right specs. Running Android 6.0 on a quad-core processor with 2GB of RAM and 32GB of ROM, it had all number of cool features including navigation and OBDII integration. This thing was the bomb.

​

Except that it wasn't. It did solve the background issue - I was able to use a black background too keep myself from going crazy - but that's about where the awesomeness ended. It had Bluetooth, but the implementation was so terrible that you had to start one app to connect a phone, then another to actually stream music. I could download apps from the Play Store, several of the apps I wanted to use - for OBDII and navigation - didn't work well or at all. And overall the UI just felt a little cramped - because while it's kinda cool to run Android apps, there's a reason that Android Auto and Apple CarPlay exist: phone UI just doesn't work real well in the dashboard.

This time it took me five years to bit the bullet and address the problem, but I finally have. I swallowed my pride and purchased a Kenwood DMX906S.

​

Now, I want to make sure to set the record straight here from the get go - you guessed it: I messed up again.

As I researched this stereo, one of the "features" I liked was that the screen could tilt up slightly, making for a better viewing angle from the low position in the dash. It turns out however, that no, I was tricked by marketing jargon and this model does not have that feature. Get the DDX9906XR / DDX8906S / DDX8706S / DDX819WBTL (or model year equivalents) if you want a tiltable screen.

​

It does however have several things that I do really like:

• Bluetooth just works. I get in the car, and I'm immediately connected, no matter what mode the stereo is in. Super seamless.
• The ability to connect two smartphones simultaneously. Though, I must admit that so far, I can't figure out how to switch between them without disconnecting one.
• The ability to have a black - and oh-so-importantly-unanimated - background.
• Wireless Apple CarPlay. This is a really great interface, and creates an extremely seamless experience when listening to things like podcasts, vs. having to maintain two "already listened to" lists.
• Better sound. I didn't realize how terrible (soft and gutless) the sound from the Android stereo was, even after adjusting the EQ. So this was a nice surprise for me.

So, for now anyway, I am happy. I don't know if I'll be content with this setup forever, but having something that just works is much more enjoyable for me than something that seems to have infinite configurability.

 

A THOUSAND BUCKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!




Um, yeah. Nice stereo you got there.

 

I have a Kenwood DNX997XR that I’m really happy with. I had some issues with the earlier model where it would just reboot sporadically. Took a while to resolve the problem because it would never happen while at the shop. But it did eventually. Kenwood overnighted a replacement that’s been flawless. Prior to that, I’d had a Pioneer that was a constant pain in the ass.

I really like the wireless CarPlay feature.

 

Is that what it costs somewhere, or are you sure you're looking at the right head unit? I paid a little under $400 at Crutchfield.

Nice to hear they took care of you once it was repro'ed

 

Or the DMX957XR which adds a tilt-able and HD screen. I've had mine for a few months now and its been awesome. I currently just have a reverse camera connected but it has inputs for up to 4 cameras plus a dash camera which would be fun to take advantage of. I see the price has gone up since last year and it's OOS everywhere. What else is new. Either way, you'll be happy with the sound quality of the Kenwood and the convenience of wireless AA. It's hard to beat.​

 

It seems with car audio especially, you tend to get what you pay for. On a budget (sub-$300 head units) you either get a lot of features and have to live with quirkiness and poor performance, or you get limited features and OK performance, leaving you to spend money elsewhere for the other features you want. To get all the latest features (satellite, HD, Apple and Android, possibly built-in GPS) that actually work well, you start hitting the $600-$1K range just for the head unit. Then there's the adapters to retain steering wheel controls (if you have them and want them to work), amps, speakers, maybe a subwoofer. If you are frugal, you can find a decent balance between cost and performance and piece together something decent for around a grand, but you will be missing some features. I put a JVC and speakers in our '06 T4R several years ago, and it is still working well enough for my daughter to be happy. Now, there is a point where there are likely some diminishing returns.

While I miss having Sirius/XM at times (I let my subscription lapse), I tried it again during their free weekend over Memorial Day. It sounds like crap, terrible sound quality compared to direct digital or streaming. I'd pay $4.99 a month forever just for the variety, but man, the sound quality sucks. And I realized that while there was some good '80's music, a lot of it was awful. What were we thinking?

 

DDX, DMX, what's a letter between friends? I Goggled () the model number and didn't notice the first responses were DD and not DM. The DD is running in at $950 - $1k.

 

That’s what I was seeing as well, a tilt function would be awesome, it’s so hard to see the screen sometimes. But I definitely don’t want to spend 1k

 

The reality is, you tilt the screen once and you're done.

 

Correct. But with out that function it’s not a possibly

 

Um Dan?

I'm scratching my head and a gently as I can communicate (as Mike @Digiratus hasn't figured out my sarcasm yet but he's getting there) but there might be a typo somewhere....



Seriously:
How does this integrate with the HAM and other acronyms that track your/camping bud's location?

I have 3 speakers that kinda work and the OEM headunit with the CD jammed in.
This caught my interest to learn from a local PNW peep.

 

My screen tilts out when I turn accessory on and tilts back in to flush on accessory off. It tilts a lot so you wouldn't want it to be sticking out all the time.

 

True. But the return on investment for one adjustment? If I didn’t want other features, I’d live without it.