csun2004

Is this what I need in order to connect my nano ipod to my TSX?
http://cgi.ebay.com/US-Car-AUX-Audio...QQcmdZViewItem

US Car AUX Audio Cable Lead Connector to 3.5mm for iPod.

Thanks

FBPaCCord

actually all you need is the cable that has a 3.5 mm plug on both ends

dlee74

Thanks correct. Get it at your friendly neighborhood Radioshack. It works well with my Ipod nano.

csun2004

So the cable in the link below is the wrong connector?
http://cgi.ebay.com/US-Car-AUX-Audio...QQcmdZViewItem

thx all

michelc

Please don't spend $80 for a gold plated 3.5 MonsterCable, the BestBuy seller are instructed to show you the most expensive cables,
just remove the 0 from 80 and you'll be just fine with the cheapest ones

michelc

the difference between the double 3.5mm male cable and the one you are suggesting, is that one will plug on bottom and the other one on top they perform the same

FBPaCCord

see the one you are wanting to buy has one end with a 3.5mm plug and another plug with an ipod data connection plug. this is of course useless since the tsx has no way to accept a data connection from the ipod. in fact im not even sure it would work

csun2004

^ Thanks everyone
I will get the 3.5 mm plug on both ends

rmjames007

Belkin makes a nice kit that has a 12VDC plug that goes into the Acc Power in the arm rest. it has a 3.5mm that you use that male male cable and you have one clean jack into your stereo. the whole setup cost about 30-40 bucks

davidspalding

Check Amazon for anything Belkin or Monster that you consider buying locally. The Monster parts are very tough and reliable, but overpriced at MSRP. Just my .

BackToStock

I GOT MINE FROM BEST BUY FOR $3.50, INCLUDING TAX.

hunterk1

That sounds like a nice thing (power + 3.5mm plug), but $30-$40 is too much for it. Do you have a link to this product online?
If you can find a 3.5mm-to-3.5mm cable for $1, go for it. No reason to pay more.

davidspalding

Think you're talk about this. Or this (F8V7058-APL)

Neither appear to come with a 3.5mm male-male cord, but most any will work. (I got a 3" pigtail cord with something that'd be perfect. Sorry, I'm using it.).

See above.

Abrams

This is by far the best way to connect iPods, the bottom jack where the charger connects to has much better sound than just plugging it into the headphone jack. Like he said the male to male goes right into the charger not the headpone jack, and then the volume is completely controlled by the stereo and not the iPOD. DEF WORTH the extra 40 or 50 it makes a huge difference

Abrams

http://www.griffintechnology.com/products/autopilot

davidspalding

^ Cool. You'll have trouble controlling your iPod in the console with that. So ... I guess the "not an ashtray" is your iPod hutch.

Sounds like the audio out of the iPod's lower connection is "line level," that is, unamplified.

acn684

the plugs that go into the actual data port (not the 3.5mm) produce a better sound than a straight 3.5mm to 3.5mm plug from what i've experienced.

daboi_n_boise

I have one of those Belkin Auto adapters too and I can tell you that it is great.. charges my iPhone and lets me play music. Also take a look at the iSqueeze, holds your iPod or iPhone in a convenient location.. its been discontinued but it works great if you can find one.

http://www.griffintechnology.com/products/isqueez

dlee74

Where do you put the knob when driving to make it easy to switch songs? How effective is it?

Abrams

i have the belkin one. i have the charger and wire in my glove console outlet, so only the one line to the bottom jack runs out. The buttons on that are basically worthless. Here is the belkin one it is cheaper i believe.
http://catalog.belkin.com/IWCatProdu...duct_Id=149006
they have it in black as well

Spoon2

My Car: 2004 Acura TSX w/ Nav








I found many "decent" sites that helped me with my FM Modulation install on my 2004 TSX. For starters, I'm adding this to help others and better explain my pain points.

What you'll need:
1. Audiovox FMM100A FM Modulator (Fry's - 39.00)
2. Flat head screw driver
3. Wire snips
4. Phillips screw driver
5. Electrical Tape/wire nuts
6. Heat Shrink (Optional)

=========================
Install Time - 3 hrs (Noobs)
Install Time - 30min (Exper. Installer)
=========================

Unhook your batter's ground

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! IMPORTANT !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
You will need the NAV and CD codes after you hook the batter back up. The top code will get the Nav working and the bottom code(use the right radio knob to "Spell" out Code with the 4 digits.



Start
__________________
1. Center console above ("This is not an ashtray") needs to be removed. First, open the lid, then I was able to stick my fist inside (loosely), then "inflate" my fist (like I was going to punch someone). This provided a nice pulling mechanism. The key here is to slightly pull UP while you're pulling OUT. If you pull up while pulling out it should pop out with ease. Remember, everything should be a steady amount of "pull". Don't YANK or twist, you will break it!!!


Passenger's Seat
===========

<-- Front of car
------------------
| ___|
|-----------| <-- E-Brake location

===========
Driver's Seat


2. Ok, this is the real PAIN... You need to remove everything around the "shifter". If you have a 6-speed like I do, you'll find that it is EASYEST to stick your fingers into the shifter-boot towards the radio and pull up. Don't just pull from the front of the panel, pull from the area inside the boot. If you don't have a 6-Speed then just pull from the front. There are two clips in the front and they are by far the EASYEST two to release. You'll find a grove in the front that will HELP you while pulling up. Start from front and work your way around the edge ENDING with the back closest to the center arm rest.

You'll need to remove the seat heater plugs. These are snapped in and the clips have to be pushed in in order to release the plug. If you squezze on the inside part (closest to the center) of the plug you'll feel the part that releases the plug and it should pop right out. The BACK of the panel is BY far the hardest to release ( this back panel is the reason why I'm writting this). You'll want to LIFT up on the area where the E-Brake is located to pop the two clips in the back. Just remember that you CAN break this console, but if you don't BEND or TWIST the console (ONLY PULL UP) you'll be fine.

Also, do not reset or reinsert the rear of the panel unless you are ABSOLUTELY SURE you are 100% done with it. I dropped a screw and had to pull this console 4 times (but then again I have butter fingers).

3. Now you'll see the 4 screws holding the "This is not an ash try". Remove them. You can remove any lights or cigarette lighter attachments at anytime.

4. You should have 3 parts laying somewhere: The "This is not an ashtray", center panel guard/cup holders and the CD holder tray.

5. Locate the FM plug, this is easy to find (IT IS NOT IN THE RADIO). Look directly to the right and down a little (Use a flash light). You're looking for something that resembles a LARGE PHONO jack plug. You'll see the male end is hanging down, grab the top and the bottom and release the two. It is held down by a clip that is SNAPPED down to the right hand side of the radio insides. Don't try to pop this clip, just rotate the plug 45 degress or so so that you can get a better angle. If you break the clip you're going to have a hard time snapping it back down.

6. Once you plug the FM plug in, you'll want to find a cigarette lighter to tap into. Don't use a light, you'll need 12v to power the FM Mod (read the manual for power requirements). I choose the lighter in the center arm rest. I poped all the pins holding the 12v wires starting from the back of the lighter and working my way to the front of the car until I had enough slack. Either snip the wires and make your 12v splice or find yourself some snap on wire inserts to aviod have to "cut" anything. This is where you'll want to heat shrink or wire nut/electrical tape everything.

7. I was able to run my RCA's inside the arm rest beside the arm rest's cigarette lighter housing. Take the mat out of the bottom of the arm rest, you'll see a small screw holding the Cig Lighter in place. Start at the bottom of the Lighter housing and pull upwards to the top. There are two LARGE hooks that "hinge" this thing down at the top of the lighter housing. The bottom has ONE smaller hook (not a HINGE).


<-- Front of car
<-- RCA's
____________
| |
| Lighter | <-- Cigarette Lighter in Arm Rest
|___________|

Back of car-->


8. If you want you can go buy an RCA plate and drill small holes in the center arm rest to "Professionally" install the RCA's inside the center console.

9. My FM Mod came with an OFF/ON switch that I ran right at the bottom of the E-Brake. It fits very nice but at the same time I can hide it or just push the thing inside and no one would ever see it.

10. I zip tied everything!! You'll see a little "nook" right in front of the shifter where the FM Mod's BOX can slide right in front of the radio's amp side ways. Zip tie the FM Mod's Box to the support bar (turning all zip tie ends down) If you run your wires under everything you'll have plenty of room.

davidspalding

Um ... nice, but unnecessary for cars with the AUX input.

sane

this belkin device sounds promising. and with everything in the tsx armrest (cigarette lighter/aux port), it's a clean setup.

however, when an ipod is connected to this belkin device, is it possible to use the ipod to control what's playing? i.e. next/previous track, play another album, etc.?

or are you stuck listening to whatever's now playing???

Spoon2

I posted the install - Aux RCA thread, just to get more info out there for those that might need to remove the CD-Tray/Shifter Console/etc... Even if you have AUX ports, there are those that might still want to use or install a FM/Aux port.

subdued

Sorry to say that the some of the info responding to the OP is not accurate regarding the use of the two different cables used with the AUX in:

A) iPod dock connector male -to- 3.5mm male cable
B) 3.5mm male -to- 3.5mm male cable

They are not equals.

First lets make sure the disclaimers are in place:

While I am not an electrical engineer or electronics hobbyist, I have used both types and there are fundamental differences. I am an huge music fan.

Most have their iPod/mp3 player loaded with songs that are compressed to 128kbps and less. These 128k and less files already have less sound data than the original CD version. Given that it is a very good idea not to further compromise the transfer of the songs to the stereo.

So the difference....

Using the iPod's round 3.5mm jack:
The music is sent through the iPod's basic internal headphone amplifier, so that your headphones/earbuds reach the proper sound level.

Using the iPod's long dock connector (30pins):
The music bypasses the basic internal amplifier, so it is unamplified line level. This is ideal since the sound is being sent to your car's amplifier. You will not be able to use the iPod's volume control.

Sure you can use the 3.5mm headphone jack and a basic Radio Shack 3.5mm cable (aka Stereo Mini Plug) and you will get your tunes. Since sound distortion is likely using this method, set the iPod volume to no more than 3/4s--probably about 1/2 way is best. Compared to using the iPod dock connector, my opinion is that the headphone jack quality is about a 4 of 10 vs. the dock connector's 8 of 10.

The cool thing is that now there are cables with the dock connector on one side and the 3.5mm on the other for a very reasonable price. Previously a dock base or power charger adapter with connector was needed.

What do I use? A older Monster Cable charger/adapter combo + basic Radio Shack gold 3.5mm male to 3.5mm male cable.

So I would have recommended that csun2004 buy the ebay AUX Audio Cable Lead Connector to 3.5mm for iPod for $6 that he originally asked about!

Hope this helps. ...I hate distorted music.

ed

davidspalding

Abso-friggin-lutely, good point. Line level is always better than "headphone jack." Seems like the ones I found easily were iPOd dock <-> FM modulator, so one that does iPod dock <-> 3.5mm male miniphone would be ideal, n'est-ce pas?

sane

thanks for the info!

where do i find that cable?! the ipod connector <-> 3.5mm jack one.

that sounds like it'd fit the bill PERFECTLY!!

davidspalding

Google is a good place to start.

sane

err... my bad, ya i see it on ebay. not sure i trust the HK postings tho

do any reputable ipod accessory mfgrs make this item, in black???

davidspalding

Sane, I found such things in 2 minutes on Amazon. Paypal me $20, and I'll send you one.

davidspalding

Okay, Sane, I'm taking pity on you. Order this, I'll get a few cents referral fee, and you'd get what you need.

For another $5 I'll paint it black for you (and hum the Stones' song while I do so).

sane

LOL thanks davidspalding - much appreciated!

DenverTSXer

The cable davidspalding (and others) are recommending would certainly work well since it's providing line-level signal to the TSX's aux jack in the console. But this Belkin item (or similar) provides the added functionality of charging the iPod. I used one like it for years til the dock plug fell apart recently.

I just purchased a few days ago this product from Griffin and have it plugged in to the TSX's not-a-cigarette-lighter next to the not-an-ashtray. So the iPod's front and center; easy to access to pause or skip a song (or do anything else with -- I just try to avoid runnin' through the menus while I'm driving.)

And it's easy to pop the pod out of the mount and hide it when ya park. So far I'm diggin' it. It includes the needed 3.5mm male/male audio cable to plug in to the aux jack in the console, but I found it to be just a bit too short. So I used a longer one I already had. I haven't even made any effort to hide the audio cable -- my ebony interior makes the black cable pretty much disappear down between the seat and console.

(The above links are not referrals and do not benefit me in any way. Just lettin' ya know what's out there.)

davidspalding

^ +1. The Belkin unit, you need to get a 3.5mm male-to-male cord (or do you?) for the audio, but yes, that's an all-in-one solution. I couldn't find it again when I was looking for Sane.

"Thank you, Acura." I like the AUX + charging socket being in the armrest, where the "break into me" appealing iPod or iPhone can be hidden from opportunistic thieves. YMMV.

sane

Looks like you do need a 3.5mm male-to-male cable to get this to work, and indeed it's all clean, install-wise. i believe i found this on ebay, item 230231573578.

LOL i'd never leave my ipod in the car - i've had my car stereo ripped off in another car, years ago. DO NOT want to go thru that ordeal again!!!

DuckDodgers

Spoon, looks like you got the same Sansa as me. Are you unhappy with the volume? I found a solution that allows you to get the most out of our crappy stock system.

http://www.penguinamp.com/The-Caffei...mp:::2008.html

This little sucker (I have last years model) will give your output a nice boost and allow you to deafen yourself with even only the stock system. Not that this configuration is VERY susceptible to interference from the TSX's poorly located audio equipment. Keep the amp away from the center console and interference shouldn't rear it's ugly head...believe me, I know.

kreg37

If you'd like to have a line level out and still be able to use the 3.5mm jack for non-ipod devices, the SiK imp might work even better. it has a line out and also charges the ipod. just plug in your 3.5mm jack for a high quality, unamplified signal. don't mean to hijack this thread with an ad, but I happen to be selling one:

http://cgi.ebay.com/SiK-imp-iPod-car...QQcmdZViewItem

davidspalding

Ooops. Appears the links were blocked. But I found that Belkin has a black version, F8V7058-APB. This is a simple DC charge plug that connects to the iPod, and has a 3.5mm female plug that you can run a cord from to the TSX AUX input, fed off the iPod's dock connector line-level out. Nice thing is you can keep the charge plug and the 3.5mm audio cable in the lower armrest area, and only the cord leading to your iPod's dock port need extend through the armrest pass-through to the cupholder or center console ("not an ashtray" holding your iPod?).

(click the link)

If the link doesn't look, just look on Froogle or elsewhere for F8V7058-APB.

sane

this thread been stale a while... but man i'm gonna grab one of these SOON! was thinking about the whole aux port thing that'd connect up to the main head unit... but i'm not ready to be tearing my tsx apart just yet

so this belkin auto kit + the belkin tunedok are the order of the day:

http://www.amazon.com/Belkin-TuneDok...A1IBW2HULNJLEY

sane

AH - one additional question: to those that own this belkin auto kit: if you leave the belkin device plugged into the 12v socket, does it continuously drain the car battery, even if the car is off??????

it would be a supreme hassle to have to unplug this device from the 12v socket everytime you exit the car.