ipod interface to car stereo
 

I bought a VW Vanagon recently and it has a nice Alpine head unit in it.

But it is very old - a cassette unit.

I have an ipod FM tuner type interface and that works. I will be using it in rural areas mostly - way rural - i.e. Oregon outback areas.

Would one of those interfaces that plugs into the cassette well (works via the tape player head) be better than the tuner type unit?

I'll jerk it out of there for a more modern unit eventually - maybe later this year or next. Need something now. Alpine says there is no way to interface an ipod directly into this ancient unit...

I have heard decent stuff about those. They are only like 15 bucks. Worth a try. The fm tuner can be a pain because of having to change stations.

tape deck adaptors work just fine. will get some noise of the spindles turning but the audio wont be effected. the head unit will still get warm since the motor is runing.

that is what i used in my 914 since the radio reception sucked with the antenna mounted under the engine mount bar????

The cassette deck to ipod hookup will likely be much more reliable from an interference standpoint and have a cleaner sound than the FM transmitter. I use one in the 525 and it outperforms my FM tuner that I use in cars with only cd players significantly.

However, it will still fall well short of the sound quality of a newer head unit with a direct connection. The sound quality is simply better when it is transmitted through the dock connector as opposed to the headphone jack. I like the cassette deck though as a cheap solution.

It should work better than the FM transmitter. The only problem I had with the one I used years ago (portable CD player velcroed to the dash of my Dodge Omni) was that the cassette made a lot of noise at times. I imagine they should have fixed that problem by now.

In a pinch, the cassette adapter works well enough and better than the FM transmitter.

The Alpine might have either an RCA (for a CD Changer) or M-Bus connector. If so, you can get a cheap cable from www.ipodcarparts.com/

I just installed the DICE interface - great for factory radios for late 90's to current cars. Works amazing.

Alpine says it does not have the ability to switch from the radio to an ipod or aux input except in softwarfe - their cd player unit sends a signal to the head unit but other things cannot.

I use one of the tape deck adaptors in my jag with my iPhone, works great and it was $4 at walmart.

I use a cassette adapter and it works fine. The only drawback is that the ipod battery dissipates. If this is not an issue and you can recharge the ipod, the $5 adapter is perfect.

Really, you get less battery life out of the cassette adapter? I have not noticed a difference between the cassette and the headphones; I am still able to manage about 6-8 hours of battery from a 4 year old iPod. However, when I use the iTrip (fm transmitter), I fall to 3-5 hours of battery life.

I used a tape deck adapter in my 911, and it worked fine. Had to get the volumes and EQ sorted out, but that was painless. Why futz around with the vagaries of an FM signal?

I used a iPod tape adapter in my wife's '03 Land Rover. I lasted about 2 hours before I tossed it out the window somewhere East of Victorville on EB I-15. Feel free to pick it up and give it try...

ohh that's what that is... :p

can't you hard wire a adapter for an ipod?

I used the cassette adapter in my '95 993 just fine. I still have it...the adapter, not the '95. ;)

Randy, you want it...then its yours my friend. PM me your contact info.

How do you do that? Anyone? What would you attach to?

I have an ipod plug attached to the kick panel but the single wire just dead-ends up behind the radio.

will do!

I have a Alpine CD stereo with a ipod interface via a cable.
Something similar to this:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ALPINE-CDA-9835-and-KCA-420i-car-stereo-with-CD-XM-iPOD_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQ_trkparmsZ72Q3a570Q7c66Q3a2 Q7c65Q3a12Q7c39Q3a1Q7c240Q3a1318Q7c301Q3a0Q7c293Q3 a1Q7c294Q3a50QQ_trksidZp3286Q2ec0Q2em14QQhashZitem 140311530557QQitemZ140311530557QQptZCarQ5fAudioQ5f InQ5fDashQ5fReceivers

Randy - I know from your posts that you hardly have a tin ear. I'm glad you will be getting a freebie, because you will probably find that the cassette adapter is just OK. (that was my experience, for the one I use in my DD, a toyota pickup)

(I mostly listen to NPR in town, I only use the ipod when I am out of radio range, so charge that baby up before you go!)

I put the Alpine EZ500 head unit in my 911 with an dedicated Alpine ipod adapter and it is a little better, the interface is nice, but lets face it, it's an ipod. In a Carrera. 'nuff said.

If your head unit has RCA inputs, you can use this type of iPod adapter cable. The charger interface connector at the bottom of the iPod produces a cleaner signal than the headphone output jack. This adapter also has a separate circuit to power/recharge the iPod battery.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/NEW-IPOD-TO-RCA-ADAPTOR-ADAPTER-CAR-RADIO-CABLE-PLUG_W0QQitemZ370170481394QQcmdZViewItemQQptZCar_A udio_Video?hash=item370170481394&_trksid=p4506.c0. m245&_trkparms=72%3A1171|65%3A12|39%3A1|240%3A1318

Sherwood

I have a similar set up in my 944. I routed the iPod cable through the glove compartment. The Alpine HU has the controls for the iPod, so I just leave the iPod in the glove compartment. It even charges the iPod while it is hooked up.