Great Solution To A Sound Problem

The sound coming from our TV above our dash has never been very good. It sounded muffled and distorted.  The speakers of the TV are trapped inside the wood cabinet it's installed within.  There are great speakers for our radio throughout the motorcoach but for some reason these were not used for the TV

When we were visiting my brother, Harry, I asked him to help us trouble shoot the problem and offer a possible solution.  He owns a Radio Shack in Rochester and this type of puzzle really is fun for him to solve.  We stopped at the store and enlisted the help of his manager, Travis, too. 


It was decided that we needed a new radio that had two axillary ports.  One would be used for the TV and the other for my IPOD.  Cool!   The added bonus of being able to play my IPOD through the radio was great.  All our music is stored on it and constantly changing radio stations as you travel is a hassle.  Now we can listen to music and pod casts that we like as we meander down the road. 


Travis spent a lot of time trying to find a radio that work well for us.  He decided on a Kenwood KDC-X995.  It also has a remote to change stations, adjust volume etc.  It's a great thing for a copilot  to have available. 


It took some time to install this radio and run cables from the TV around the dash to connect with it.  It was a family affair with a few trials and errors. They worked into the wee hours of the morning finishing everything and we were all pleased with the results.  

Harry sorting out all the wires

Working in the small spaces of a motorcoach is not easy

Travis came to help too

Jen and Jimmy supervising

New radio

It looks and works great.  With the radio changed to the video setting the TV sound comes out of the speakers of the motorcoach.  It is such a great improvement.  It sort of like surround sound at the movie theatre.  The radio does need to be turned on when the TV is playing for this to work. 

Below are the two cords for plugging the IPOD into the radio.  I can control the setting from the copiolet seat as we are going down the road.  Or, it can be played anytime while we are stationary.  I had a small speaker for playing my IPOD in the past, but it sounds so much better coming through the speakers of the motorcoach.. 

 

Thanks Harry and Travis for helping us with this great solution. It's awesome!

Traveling On Down The Highway - Added Three More States To Our Map

Woodstock, NY  (50 degrees, gray skies, scattered showers)

The weather has caused a few delays as we travel to New York. A spring snow storm was predicted by the weather channels to drop a whole lot of snow right along the route we had planned. Sheesh!  My brother said that we are providing solutions for global warming, one state at a time! Snow seems to show up where ever we have been this winter.  So, we decided to hang out in Toledo Ohio for a few days and wait it out.

KOA gives you a few night free stay certificates to use when you are traveling to a new campground.  After leaving Indiana we stopped at the Toledo East KOA for what turned out to be three nights due to the weather.  The campground was in poor shape.  It certainly is not worth the $43 per night rate.  The sites were a good size and level with nice trees.  But, that's about the only good things to share.  It looked very run down and unkempt. 

KOA Toledo East Ohio

Yes, we managed to find snow AGAIN

Our next stop was a KOA in Bellefonte Pennsylvania.  This is a beautiful campground.  It's about two miles from the interstate 80 and overlooks the Appalachian Mountains.  It is very nicely landscaped and  has a nice pool and fishing pond.  Our site below was more level then it appears.  It is a very peaceful place and we really liked staying here. 

KOA Bellefonte PA

Gamble Mill Tavern

We had dinner at Gamble Mill Tavern that was originally built in 1790.  There is a fine dining restaurant, however we chose to eat in the tavern.  We had a great meal and there was even a micro brewery on the premises.  We found this restaurant with a Trip Advisor app on my Droid phone.  It's a great way to find places to eat or visit as you travel.  This was rated #1 for the area. 

This time of year you can always expect a lot of construction and lets just say we found a lot of it.  Today we headed to Woodstock New York.  This was our most difficult driving day. The roads were really rough at times too.  I think John was really worn out at the end of the day.   

Construction delays

We are staying tonight at the KOA in Woodstock New York.  It is a well maintained campground but it takes some negotiating to get to your campsite.  We would not consider it big rig friendly due to all the curves and negotiating around trees.  Be sure to arrive during day light.  Our satellite could not find a signal, however, they have free cable.  This campground is located in a very pretty area with charming homes and lots of restaurants nearby.  Turns out the Woodstock Festival in 1969 took place 60 miles from here.

We had to have dinner at The Bear Cafe in Bearsville.  Yes, the hamlet (new word for us) is really called Bearsville.  John's nickname is Bear and our motorcoach is nicknamed "Big Bear".  It is a great restaurant overlooking a pretty river.  We had a delicious dinner and unwound after a somewhat stressful day. 

KOA Woodstock NY

Tomorrow we'll be in Bennington Vermont just in time to celebrate Martha's birthday (John's sister).  She is teaching for a few months at Bennington College.  We decided to work camp in this area so that we could be close to her.  She normally lives in Sao Paolo Brazil so the opportunity to see her for an extended period is priceless.