Question about iPod (hooking up to car stereo vs. FM transmitter)

[Jared at Pelican Parts]

Ok, I'm finally going to buy an iPod, what I'm wondering is if they sell a peripheral that allows me to plug the iPod directly into my CD player in my car, rather than using an FM transmitter. Anyone have any info on this? I've heard the FM transmitters dont work well....

[BlueSkyJaunte]

FM transmitters suck in my experience.

My Blaupunkt has an AUX IN line. That's what my iPod plugs into in the 911. In the WRX I still use one of those tape deck things. Crappy but better than an FM transmitter by a long shot.

[Glasgow 911SC]

I have a Sony mini-disc head unit. My ipod plugs into the aux in socket via the headphone jack, but that won't work on it's own. It seems my head unit requires a signal to the bus-in to recognise the aux signal. i.e it needs my multidisc changer to be plugged in. This means I can switch to changer mode to hear my ipod.

Alpine, Pioneer and Kenwood all now do head units complete with adapters that allow the ipod to be played through your head unit. They also display the song info and allow full control without having to see the ipod.

Here's a good forum that should help IpodLounge

[jyl]

I use a Farenheit FM Modulator, which is a little box appx 3" long. It goes between the head unit and the FM antenna, and I've got it mounted under the dash. The iPod plugs into that, via a cable that comes up to my ashtray, which I've modified so the iPod will fit. I can choose among six different FM frequencies. Installation is easy since the head unit is so accessible on the older 911.

So basically this is the "wired" equivalent of the FM transmitters. But it works well. Probably because the iPod signal is being piped directly to the FM input, while the FM antenna has been blocked off. In theory, the FM part of the head unit has a limited frequency range compared to the CD part, but in my 911 I am quite sure it doesn't matter.

bell turned me on to this (thanks!). You can get the FM modulator from Crutchfields.

http://www.crutchfield.com/S-8fH2plohvpk/cgi-bin/ProdView.asp?g=234550&I=026EFM01&search=fm+modulator

[ae1969]

I use the monster FM/self charger ............and the itrip....

You can't beat the portability. If you have a large number of FM stations in your area then you may have interference problems. Otherwise if I am in an area with few FM stations transmitting the signal is surprisingly very good.

[bell]

jared......what kind of car and what radio is in it? i have a list of cars at work that can utilize the factory controls on the radio to control the ipod and run the audio in directly, the adapters aren't too expensive and they also charge the ipod when not in use.

fmods are pretty universal but you lose some sound quality with them......good to use when they're the only option

[Jared at Pelican Parts]

It's in my 911, and it's an Alpine CD player, but I know it isnt factory compatible with iPod

[Saintly]

I have the iTrip (fm transmiter) and in my car it sucks, but a friends car works fine. it all depends on the areal position.

Casset adaptors are ok but they heat up and start making noise.

An Aux in adaptor gives great sound but no control or charging.

Something like the "ice link plus" will give great sound and allow ipod control via the head unit. it is compatable with many makes and models and i think it can charge the ipod at the same time. do a googl to find it.

Some head unit makers have adaptors (like alpine) that alow full ipod control from the head unit and give top sound and recharge the battery at the same time.

[89911]

I used a Blitzsafe (www.blitzsafe.com) adaptor that goes between the interface of my changer and the line running to the head unit. I tune the cd to channel 99 and play XM or my ipod and the sound is very good, as good as my cd's. Prior to this, I used a cassette adaptor, but it was marginal. It was a bit complicated on my X5 because it has navigation, but for other cars its easier. On my wifes car, I used a direct fm interface that really work pretty good. I still think your freq response is limited compared to cd's but for XM it worked well. Fm and cassettes are last resorts in my opinion, especially with the quality of iPods.

[LeeH]

My wife uses the Monster Cable iCarPlay FM modulator. It works flawlessly. It also charges the iPod so it's topped off after her 1.5 hour commute to work.

[Neilk]

If it's an Alpine, I am sure that there some RCA jacks for that you could plug the iPod to. Take out the stereo and see what your options. Better yet, go to Alpine's website and see what the specs are for your stereo.

[bell]

there may not be rca inputs, but if there is an alpine AInet cable port you can get an adapter which will give you rca inputs.

[wludavid]

Originally posted by Jared Fenton
It's in my 911, and it's an Alpine CD player, but I know it isnt factory compatible with iPod

What's the model number? If it has an "M" in the model number, it has the M-bus and you can hook up a aux input to the CD changer plug.

I also highly recommend the Belkin Auto Kit. http://catalog.belkin.com/IWCatProductPage.process?Merchant_Id=&Section_Id=201526&pcount=&Product_Id=149006

Plug it into a 12v power outlet and then connect it to the dock connector. It has a line-level output on it and a pre-amp. Very clean sound. You can run that into the aux input on your stereo with a mini-to-RCA cable.

[BlueSkyJaunte]

Originally posted by SoCal911SC
You gotta plug it in.

To those that think the FM thingys work really well - just don't ever try plugging it in by a hardwire and you'll stay happy!

Try them back to back, and you'll toss your FM thingy.

Preach on, brother!

[FrayAdjacent911]

I'm waiting on a HiMD deck... Right now I have a Sony MP3 CD deck in my daily driver, and it works good. There is a line in, and I've tried plugging a portable MD player into it, and it just doesn't sound good at all. I've used cassette adapters with CD players, and it's better than the FM thing.

I just can't wait to get a HiMD deck... but Sony isn't making any yet.