Topic: iPod in your car (Read 5065 times)

MarSies · « **on:** May 20, 2005, 06:54:12 am »

Hi,

I wonder who has experience with an iPod in his car. I have an iRiver iHP-140 and bought an 60GB iPod photo because of the connectivity with most caraudio units.

Gonna get myself a Kenwood 725 with navigation and an iPod adapter. It has a big 7" screen and I was told that you can control the iPod like you control the device itself.

Are there things I need to know?

Marsies .....

pank2002 · « **Reply #1 on:** May 21, 2005, 07:23:19 am »

Does anybody have experience with iTrip? Does is use the line out? I.e. is the volume affected by the volume of the iPod. I have replay gain hence using Shure in-ear 'phones.

Does anybody have experience with Kengiston Digital FM Transmitter/AutoCharger? Does anybody know a place to get this (they must ship international since I'm in Denmark). The good thing about it, is that it use the line out of the iPod.

MarSies · « **Reply #2 on:** May 24, 2005, 03:57:37 pm »

No one who uses the iPod in his/her car?

antolod · « **Reply #3 on:** May 24, 2005, 06:20:52 pm »

I've used my Ipod for a couple of years with both a Belkin FM transmitter and also with a plain old cassette adapter. The cassette probably produces better sound quality than the FM. Both of these solutions plug in to the headphone jack.

mooseman · « **Reply #4 on:** May 24, 2005, 10:27:17 pm »

I got the adapter for rca -> cd changer input for my head unit. Only cost $12, WAY better quality than the $40 fm tuner. But that requires a stereo with cd changer inputs. Waiting to get a new car before looking into the new Alpine adapter.

risingdamp · « **Reply #5 on:** May 25, 2005, 03:03:20 am »

I use the new Pioneer adapter. See this thread.

http://yabb.jriver.com/interact/index.php?topic=27308.0

I'm very happy with it now because of the superior sound quality and ability to control everything on the head unit. The downside is that it's not feasible to browse by anything other than playlist because it's too slow to navigate and you only see 8 characters of text in the display. Now I've got used to those drawbacks I've found it to be a very worthwhile investment.

Bill Kearney · « **Reply #6 on:** May 25, 2005, 10:19:38 am »

Quote from: pank2002 on May 21, 2005, 07:23:19 am

Does anybody have experience with Kengiston Digital FM Transmitter/AutoCharger?

Yes, I had one and took it back. It's volume level was too low. I had to crank the head unit WAY up just to get sound. I got the Monster plus unit and it's been working great. I'm going to go with a direct head unit interface sometime soon. Which one I've not yet decided.

pank2002 · « **Reply #7 on:** May 25, 2005, 10:58:18 am »

Is the monster any good? I might buy one, if they are good. Does the sound level when using head phones affect the sound level of the line out (which the monster use)?

They can be gotten on eBay for like $57 incl. int'l shipping. I find that to be quite expensive... Give me an up if you're selling yours

-Rasmus

tlongacre · « **Reply #8 on:** May 25, 2005, 02:22:26 pm »

Yeah, the monster FM transmitter is expensive compared to others. But it is also far superior. I had an iTrip and it was just a waste of money. Completely unusable. The sound level with the monster is much better (I have a theory that somehow it makes stronger connection through the cigarette lighter).

I used the Monster on a trip to Hawaii. It was brilliant there -- but it was a very contained area. I've tried using it here in the Bay Area of California where I live and it is much harder because I drive all over the place and I have to keep switching channels. So, how well it works practically depends on your environment.

But any FM transmitter will never be as good as a plain old cassette adapter.

pank2002 · « **Reply #9 on:** May 25, 2005, 03:36:22 pm »

Well, if it really is so then Sik Imp may be the perfect solution for me? Or just an Sik din.

Chris Shaw · « **Reply #10 on:** May 30, 2005, 06:26:58 pm »

I had a play with the new Alpine IVA-D310R + navigation + iPod adapter over the weekend. Very nice. Had to order one on the spot. My only concern is that it's a bit slow to browse the iPod. Might be a pain with lots of artists

bvm · « **Reply #11 on:** June 09, 2005, 09:51:06 pm »

I've used the Alpine KCA-420i since it first came out last fall. It has some unfortunate quirks (see this iPodLounge thread for example), but it's pretty slick. The sound quality is excellent, your iPod gets charged, and you can see track information in the head unit's display.

It's true that it's slow to browse the iPod, an apparent limitation in the interface the iPod developers offered. I just ignore that limitation by preparing a small number of playlists for car use. Or I pick in advance on the iPod itself what I want to play, and the Alpine takes it from there.

The biggest downside, of course, is that you need a modern Alpine head unit (with AI-net connector). In my case, I needed to replace my car's aging head unit anyway, so it was an easy choice.

Fex · « **Reply #12 on:** June 23, 2005, 03:29:36 pm »

Three years ago I bought a car radio with a back and (there we go) a front (AUX) input for my iPod. Choose your playlist, plug and go.

My car audio:
http://www.jvc.com/product.jsp?modelId=MODL026816&page=2

P.S.: Ok, it's not very funny to set this up (to easy). But it works very well for your daily use.

Bill Kearney · « **Reply #13 on:** June 26, 2005, 10:34:23 pm »

I got a metra axxess iwire and it sucked. It didn't allow any use of the ipod when it was connected. Not just no use of the scroll wheel, but no display of the track names either! I returned it to Circuit City. I bought a Neo Ion adapter and it allows FULL use of the ipod while it's connected. I'll be testing how well the ff/rwd button features work later this week.

MarSies · « **Reply #14 on:** July 01, 2005, 04:31:06 am »

I have my new audio and navigation system from Kenwood. It's the Kenwood KVT-725DVD and the iPod interface and the seperate navigation unit. Because of it's 7 inch display I thought it would be a good interface/connection.

To say it simple, the interface sucks. The biggest advantage of the iPod is the use of operation. My iRiver iHP-140 is better in sound and packed with features but it's a pain to use when having 3000+ songs on the device.

Using playlists from the Kenwood work reasonably fine, but selecting songs is a real pain. Takes very long and the 7" screen is unlogical. There is no good view of what is on the iPod nor a fast selection. The iPod database is accessed everytime you select a song. No commands to look at foto's.

The reason I bought the IPod for is justified. You don't have to carry CD's with you. There are thousnads of songs within reach. if it only could take less time to select them. $:-\$

Marsies .....

Bill Kearney · « **Reply #15 on:** July 01, 2005, 07:20:34 am »

Yeah, it's really pathetic how poorly thought out some of these devices are.

MarSies · « **Reply #16 on:** July 01, 2005, 07:47:29 am »

Just spoke with a friend of mine who has the most expensive Pioneer unit (audio and navigation) at the moment. He has the same problem as I have. Just heard that the next Pioneer models will truly support the iPod. Now I have to wait for an answer from mister Kenwood.

At this moment the artistlist only shows the first 8 characters of the name. Suppose you have a lot of artist with the same first name. Then you don't know who is who.

Why don't they just think before they make something. Or is this a matter of legal rights and stuff. I doubt that. MC is able to control the device. Isn't this an opportunity for a company like iRiver to deliver the correct software.

Marsies .....

Chris Shaw · « **Reply #17 on:** July 02, 2005, 02:00:40 pm »

I've got the Pioneer IVA-D310R which is the 2005 model. It understands the iPod much more fully. It has "iPod" listed as a source, rather than pretending it's a CD changer. I haven't come across any limits to the length of an artist's name. The interface still sucks - very slow to find a specific song - but it's much better than the 2004 models. I'll just set a playlist going, or everything on random, and it can tell me what's playing perfectly well.

MarSies · « **Reply #18 on:** July 07, 2005, 06:56:20 pm »

cjdshaw,

The device your referring to is an Alpine. That is what my dealer told me. If the Kenwood will not work as I want I might just wanna give this device back and get myself an Alpine.

That is if it's as functional and good as the Kenwood.

Marsies .....

lambert282 · « **Reply #19 on:** July 08, 2005, 02:49:06 am »

Pioneer do an iPod adapter called the CD-IB100 but the only Pioneer unit that properly supports it is the AVH-P5700DVD. Does anyone have this combination because I'd be interested to know how well it works?

MarSies · « **Reply #20 on:** July 08, 2005, 03:41:20 am »

My friend has the AVH-P7500DVD. He faces the same sort of problems as I have. He can also see only 8 characters and can't choose numbers itself.

I heard from him that it depends on how things are arranged with iTunes. I asked Steve if MC is fully compatible with iTunes. I can only choose from artist and playlists, no albums are songs individually. He can use genres and artists but also no individual song.

Yes you can play music from the iPod but the interface sucks. Maybe remote control to an iPod is not fully supported by mister Apple.

Marsies .....

lambert282 · « **Reply #21 on:** July 08, 2005, 02:19:09 pm »

AVH-P7500DVD?

I was referring to the AVH-P5700DVD (notice the subtle difference) and I know for sure that you can see more than 8 char with that unit. After a lot of browsing and investigation it appears that this is the only Pioneer unit that supports the iPod proper. I Think it's a 7" touch screen.

MarSies · « **Reply #22 on:** July 08, 2005, 06:51:28 pm »

I know there's a difference. I checked out both unit's. Only the one from my friend is the topmodel (7500). From the Kenwood site it indeed appears that the 5700 is fully compatible with the iPod

I hope that it's indeed possible to have a full remote control for the iPod. Maybe someone else has this system up and running.

Marsies .....

lambert282 · « **Reply #23 on:** July 09, 2005, 03:21:42 am »

Quote

From the Kenwood site it indeed appears that the 5700 is fully compatible with the iPod

I take it you mean the Pioneer site.

I've been looking for someone with this unit for quite some time in the ipod lounge but not found anyone yet.

Chris Shaw · « **Reply #24 on:** July 10, 2005, 09:25:10 pm »

Quote from: MarSies on July 07, 2005, 06:56:20 pm

cjdshaw,
The device your referring to is an Alpine. That is what my dealer told me. If the Kenwood will not work as I want I might just wanna give this device back and get myself an Alpine.

You're absolutely right of course. My brain must have been in power-saving mode that day. Many apologies

ian54 · « **Reply #25 on:** July 15, 2005, 10:59:16 am »

Quote from: pank2002 on May 21, 2005, 07:23:19 am

Does anybody have experience with iTrip? Does is use the line out? I.e. is the volume affected by the volume of the iPod. I have replay gain hence using Shure in-ear 'phones.

I use the iTrip, but I'm not sure what you mean by "line out", the iTrip sends an FM signal and you use the car radio to pick it up. The iPod/iTrip volume (and EQ) does affect the output volume and you need to get a fine balance between the iPod and the Radio to avoid distortion.

The iTrip is quite good, but I often get interference when driving in urban zones, this is caused by local radio stations close to my selected frequency. It can take a while to get a frequency that suits you wherever you go. When it does work without distortion and interference it rocks !

I put the iPod into a mobile phone dashboard mount and let it run through a suitable playlist, you only need it for skipping tracks or pausing, you use the Radio volume control otherwise.

soren · « **Reply #26 on:** September 12, 2005, 09:15:54 am »

just to inform you about this iPod tool

http://www.dension.com/icelink.htm

Supposed to be the best one.

INTERACT FORUM

Author Topic: iPod in your car (Read 5065 times)