<Edit: There'd been some confusion below about the build, and I want to spare Gary Tayman from having to answer questions about work he didn't do. To be clear, Gary did just his standard AM/FM conversion of my AM radio, while I did everything else- the microswitch rack, mp3 board, etc., etc. Gary did a fine and professional job on the AM/FM conversion and I would recommend him without hesitation.>
After much planning and effort, I've just finished the radio for my '65 'vert. I wanted AM/FM stereo and to be able to play mp3s, preferably without any external devices or controls of any kind, and I wanted it in a stock appearing radio. The end result allows me to toggle between radio and mp3 and control the mp3 track and folder functions with the tuner preset buttons, which continue to function normally when listening to the radio.
The USA-66 has a good look, but there are too many horror stories about the tuner. CAS also wants crazy $$$ for their USB mp3 reader, and if that wasn't bad enough it only supports ten folders in the root of the device, and they must have specific names.
The Retrosound looks like a nice piece, but the look is definitely wrong. The upcoming Model 2 looks much, much better, but it's still a bit of a cobbled install with the adapter bezel and the protruding nosepiece.
With those out, I decided one of the Antique Auto Radio boards was probably closer to what I needed. They're 180 watts RMS through 4 channels and have vox activated auxiliary inputs (radio switches to other input device when signal present). They're sold just through installer/dealers, and to be honest I wasn't excited at the prospect of setting up the digital tuner on the board to read the original analog tuner, so I had Gary Tayman do the AM/FM conversion on a spare Motorola 5TMZ. His work was very clean and professional, and he did a nice job doing a cosmetic resto on the case as well.
Here's another Motorola 5TMZ unmodified. This particular one is working and original to the car, and will go in storage. Nice vintage tobacco residue visible on the underside of the case, which sits just over the ashtray.
Here's the other Motorola 5TMZ after conversion, as delivered by Gary. Most of the guts and the original PC board are gone, new 180 watt AAR board(s) mounted in lower right. Auxiliary inputs (auto-switched by presence of input signal) visible at top, massive heat sink sandwiched between new board and case at bottom. Lots of room left for me to work in.
When radio is first turned on it's in FM mode- off, then on again is AM.
Microswitches mounted on alignment rack ready to go in. Each microswitch is activated by one of the preset buttons and operates a function on the mp3 decoder board. Threaded rack allows for precise alignment over preset plunger.
Here's the modified 5TMZ with microswitch rack and mp3 decoder board mocked into position prior to final mount. The microswitch on the far right will trigger the impulse relay providing power to the mp3 and will get heavier hookups to handle the 12v load, not yet installed here. A 6" USB cable will connect the mp3 board to a panel USB connector on the exterior of the case, where a separate cable will connect to a panel mount USB port in the ashtray. The board isn't limited by volume size, but navigability without a display means thumbdrives. Not bad for a $15 board, and the sound quality is quite good.
Switch rack slightly reengineered, mp3 board mount tray, impulse relay, and 12v>5v power supply installed. I wasn't happy with the audio quality from any of the 12v mp3 boards I listened to, so the 5v power supply is necessary. The impulse relay toggles power to the mp3 board on and off in response to the momentary activation of the microswitch on the far right.
Complete, ready to button up the case. The impulse relay makes it a snug fit, but I really didn't want to locate it remotely. RF interference not an issue as none of the additional components are powered when the tuner is active.
Ready for installation. Auxiliary inputs and USB port visible at far right. When in mp3 mode, preset buttons function as follows from left to right: Previous track, next track, previous folder, next folder, and radio/mp3 toggle. As I mentioned they still move the tuner and function normally otherwise.