pprewett

So I recently purchased my AM 2006 TL 5AT w/ Nav. I'm kind of an audiophile (I'm not a freak, but I'm probably pickier than most) so I made part of the deal with the dealership to get an IPod adapter installed by a local radio shop. I didn't do any research on this particular part of the ownership experience before I made my purchase because I assumed that since this is a higher end car that appeals directly to my demographic (30 something geeks), among others, that surely this must be a problem that's already been solved.

As you all know, I was mistaken. So now after 8 weeks of suffering through no IPod integration, bad IPod integration, and now acceptable IPod integration, I wanted to share my experience so the next guy can skip the $200 trial.

So first things first; what's important to me? Because there's no perfect IPod solution for the car, you have to prioritize the things that are important to you in your installation. For me, the list goes like this (separated into the major categories of importance by line breaks):


1) Sound quality. I will tear my dash apart (or pay someone else to) as many times as it takes to get this one right.

2) Form factor. I don't want anything hanging out of my dash, thank-you-very-much. And when I'm not in the car, I don't want anyone getting any bright ideas about stealing my IPod - it needs to be out of sight.
3) IPod control. Apple spent alot of money perfecting this. I want to be able to control the IPod with the IPod.

4) Not nerfing XM.
5) IPod pausing. Two different events here - HFL and Radio-off. They're separate and it would be nice if both events caused a pause (and a subsequent resume OnFinish) on the IPod.
6) Charge the IPod. Why not, as long as we're wishing?

7) IPod control w/ the nav and steering wheel controls. Nice to have.
8) IPod text on the nav screen and/or the smaller display above. Nice to have.

9) Price. Within reason, price is the last on the list. Most units are between $100-$300. I'd be willing to pay anywhere in that range to get quality sound.


After having both units installed, here's the bottom line as I see it.

Peripheral Electronics overrall has so-so integration w/ the car but ultimately wins out because of excellent sound quality.

USA-Spec has good integration with the car, but has sound quality issues that resulted in its uninstallation and replacement.

Both Units have:Peripheral Electronics has:USA-Spec has:The full story:
I initially had the USA-Spec installed after reading through the recommendations here. Overall, the unit operates well, but I kept having this nagging white noise issue where after the IPod backlight went out, this very quiet hissing white noise would start. Some of my friends couldn't even hear it, but I could. I also had those "skipping" issues that have been described here on the forums. I would describe it as a reboot issue. The display would turn off and then reset itself to Track 0 when it happened, but it only lasted about 2-3 seconds and then everything was fine for a few more days. This is really just an occasional annoyance rather than a real deal-breaker. I could have lived with it if that was the only problem, but the white noise was driving me bat shit crazy. On top of music, I listen to alot of audio books and podcasts, so much of my content is rather quiet in nature, which makes the white noise issue even more pronounced than when listening to music. If I touched the IPod and made the backlight turn on, the noise would stop. I would find myself fingering the thing as I'm driving down the highway to keep the noise from coming back. Not cool.

So I take it back in to the radio shop and they replace the brain and the wiring. The problem persists, so I come back to the forums to search for another solution.

I settled on the Peripheral unit after reading lots of discussion around it. There are some issues w/ the later model TL's (>= 2007), but nothing of any real substance w/ 2004-2006, so I decide on this one.

First, one of the things that everyone is in love w/ this unit about is the ability to control the IPod w/ your nav screen and see the text, etc... Let's dispense w/ that right now. The control w/ the nav sucks. It has a 1 second lag between clicks + you only see a tiny amount of information at once (as opposed to the IPod where you always have context) + you have to use these non-intuitive re-purposed buttons to navigate your content. It's only a matter of time before aggravation sets in... not to mention you would probably wreck if driving in traffic and trying to find a song by a different artist - or heaven forbid decide to listen to a podcast or audiobook.

The only upshot is that you get full HFL/Radio-off pausing integration. Someone calls and your IPod pauses. You finish the phone call and hang up - IPod starts back up again. Same thing if you turn the radio off or turn the car off. It resumes right where you left it. A very nice feature (but one I've already learned to live without in previous vehicles).

And to be clear, I don't think I could have designed it better. The nav system wasn't designed to navigate music. It was designed to navigate city streets. It does a good job navigating city streets and a terrible job navigating your IPod. I got exactly what I expected... squat.

Luckily, using the AUX2 setting on the Peripheral unit, you can use the IPod to control the IPod. Unfortunately, when in this mode, you lose all integration w/ the car. No text, no time, no pause, no nothing. Your PE unit essentially becomes an aux jack that can charge your IPod. Because, however, sound quality and form factor are both excellent, I'm good. No need to pull the dash apart again.

On another side note in case anyone is interested, the dock connector on the USA-Spec unit is wider than the standard IPod USB/Firewire dock connector, which means that you may need to modify your IPod jacket to get it to fit easily. The PE dock connector is normal size - no modification needed.

Price:
The PE unit can be purchased on Ebay for $130 + shipping including the wiring harness.

The USA-Spec unit can be purchased on Ebay for $125 + shipping including the wiring harness.

Then, you can either install it yourself (instructions in the 3G garage), or you can pay someone ~$50 to do it.


A quick thanks to everyone here in the forums. This place is great and I'm glad to have found it.

erick3

cliffnotes? lol

DeltaCTU24

does the peripheral work with non navi screens? i have an 04

zeppelin77

very well written review.
I have the peripheral. Started with a Dice, but never installed it because I heard so much crap about it.
Only complaint is that the artist text field (all other fields are fine) doesn't come up on the display consistently in my 06 TL w/ Navi -- it will either be stuck on a previous artist or just say 'IPOD'. Sometimes it will refresh with the current song, sometimes it won't. I thought maybe it was my ID3 tags, but the same song will refresh and other times won't. I have to press the XM button to refresh the text fields. Not a major issue and it's something I can live with.

SR-71TL

I have the peripheral with my 04 non-navi and it works very well. From time to time there can be a bit of a lag issue, but it is rare and resolves itself quickly.

jimsta

iTrader: (1)

I also have the peripheral with Navi, no major issues...There is some lag in the audio screen on my navi where the artist name doesn't change with the next song, but it fixes it self after a few songs... i mean its buggy but nothing to piss me off.. Agreed with OP, the search menu isn't that great to try and find specific songs, but its fricking great if you just want to leave your ipod on and not bother searching for a specific song.

blkaspec

does the peripheral system have another aux input, like is on the USA Spec?

pprewett

Yes, there is an additional AUX that you can use for a separate input if desired. RCA input directly to the box.

The inputs are:
SAT (original XM)
IPOD (control w/ nav)
AUX1 (separate input if desired)
AUX2 (control IPod w/ IPod)

99vtecaccord

iTrader: (8)

I'm using peripheral in my 04 TL Navi. The only dislike I have is the constant disconnect problems with the itouch. I'm planning on switching to USA Spec, hoping this problem doesnt occur.

xen-cuts

The ONLY problem i have with Peripheral is that it sometimes makes the radio laggy at startup. This only happens sometimes and it is supposedly fixed by the newest firmware update that I have not had time to do yet.

mmade22

Great write up and now I know from your trial and error which is the best for my needs.

whatjones911

For the PXAMG, if you want to control from the ipod, does it still connect to the ipod via ipod cable connector?

cwinterrowd

I currently have a Dice Silverline in my '08 TSX w/Nav and have been reading up on the PGAMX because it offers album shuffle, would let me reconnect XM, and displays track time for the current song.. things the Dice unit can't currently offer. Before I give the PGAMX a try, I had a few questions about it I'm hoping someone can answer-

When you choose a filter, such as Artist, then select Album, will it remember you selected artist and only show albums by that artist, or does it forget your artist selection and show all albums on the ipod? (i.e., nested filters)

Does the PGAMX remember which Artist/Album/Playlist/Genre filter that you had selected when you turn the ignition off and back on, or does it forget the filter you had selected? (While the Dice unit will resume playing what you last selected, if you try to modify the search criteria, you get to start from scratch.)

Does the PGAMX charge a 5.5 gen iPod (80gb video ipod) ? I've seen mention it doesn't charge certain new iPods but wasn't sure if that was limited to the new "Classic" models or not.

jason723

Thanks for the information everyone, i have been looking at the USA Spec and the peripheral system for myself. Just curious though, i just purchased a 05 TL w/navi no xm, and the dealership mentioned that they have the Ilink for the ipod available for the car. Does anyone know about that unit? I was thinking of getting the peripheral unit until the dealership mentioned the ilink to me and now i am torn between getting something factory or aftermarket. Any help would be appreciated.

Fred99x

Jason, check the FAQ section for information and related threads to the Ilink.
https://acurazine.com/forums/3g-tl-audio-bluetooth-electronics-navigation-94/3g-tl-audio-electronics-faq-605299/

tonester

iTrader: (1)

i'm getting ready to pull the trigger on an IPOD integration unit for my 06 non-navi TL. I'm deciding between the peripheral or the DICE. Does anyone know if the peripheral will charge the 2gen IPOD Touch? if not, what are my options if I want to charge the IPOD?

thanks

PeterUbers

iTrader: (1)

I'm pretty sure it will charge your iPod, but if not, for $30 you can buy a passthru that'll attach onto the peripheral plug (before plugging into the ipod) and this will provide power to charge your iTouch .. it's a no brainer.

Definitely go Peripheral over Dice.. i read many posts regarding DICE freezing and other issues on this forum

JCL622

thanks for the info!! this was a very helpful write up. i will be looking into the peripheral unit now

kyle-wdp

I sold my 09 TSX to purchase a little old lady's 05 TL with 20k on it. The only thing i miss is the oem ipod integration. It seems everyone thinks the PXAMG is the closest to that?

Is there a vendor on the site that sells these or is a local audio shop best?

AnthraciteAspec

iTrader: (6)

I got the Peripheral on Saturday and its awesome. Sound quality is excellent. Everyone I showed it to thought it was really sweet how it displays the name on the nav screen and up top. Make sure you update to the latest firmware. I am running the .26 firmware and I have had no issues really except for it skips on one particular mp3. I'm thinkin it may be the mp3 though not peripheral, because I played through a few hundred other songs over the weekend and no skipping, but when I go back to that one song it skips. I give it a 5/5 so far, flawless. I have seen no lag in my radio startup either. I do live in los angeles though and I know some people said it might be related to the cold so I can't really say if it would run perfect in the cold but it works great for me.

I got mine from Cricuit City for $110 but that is because my friend works there. It retails for $150 and there is some online stores that sell it for like $130 or you can get it from ebay.

tonester

iTrader: (1)

AnthraciteAspec: thanks for your feedback. i'm too in Los Angeles. I think i'll pick up the Peripheral too.

way-acura

AnthraciteAspec: Which circuit city did you go to? I am in Los Angeles also, and want to use the same installer.

PeterUbers

iTrader: (1)

The Peripheral is about as OEM as you can get -- the only way it would be MORE OEM is if the TL had an "IPOD" button on the center console that would switch over to peripheral, rather that using the sequence "FM-XM-iPOD" ..

I'm still besides myself at times when I'm playing my ipod ... seeing the txt on the screen .. hearing the pure digital audio... for only $150, and the install took my 15 minutes.

PeterUbers

iTrader: (1)

heard mixed opinions on the iLink.. reliablility issues..

AnthraciteAspec

iTrader: (6)

I live on the westside (405 &10) but I had it done at the one in Northridge that is right by the mall because my firend works there. Wherever you go, make sure you tell them to update it to firmware .26 before installing it because the units are .25 firmware.

AnthraciteAspec

iTrader: (6)

Just to clarify on my post earlier, the mp3 was in fact bad. When I tested it on my computer it skipped as well so it was not a fault of the Peripheral.

jason723

Does the Peripheral PXAMG PGHHD1 work on a 2005 acura tl with navi(canadian model)? I emaild the company and he said he couldn't comment because he is not familiar with canadian models.

Fred99x

From the Peripheral website:
PXAMG
Vehicle Compatibility Notes

All Vehicles

Radio must be satellite capable or satellite ready
Requires vehicle specific harness (sold separately)

For this reason, I did not consider the Peripheral for my Canadian TL. They are not satellite capable.

jason723

I thought the only reason why they mentioned that the car had to be satellite ready was because it needs that feature to display the ipod's song information.

Fred99x

The details from this website, http://www.discountcarstereo.com/detail.aspx?ID=1116, indicate: 1. All Honda/Acura Radio must have an "XM" button (except Civic) to be compatible. If you have a newer TL, then this will work. If you do not have the XM button, I wouldn't advice purchasing this item.

930

it took me 15 minutes to install...

and 90 minutes to get the ipod connector into the arm rest compartment

alexSU

iTrader: (3)

Peripheral Electronics PXAMG looks like the winner for me! so for ~$50 a shop can install this for me?

mmade22

I just put this in the car today. Get it and come over this weekend and we can put it in. It is so simple! I didn't even take the radio out. PM me if your interested. Later.

twopu

Is this it http://www.circuitcity.com/ssm/Perip...ilar+Items+Mod
If it only takes 15 minutes to install and no removal of the radio I'll pick it up tomorrow

twopu

I don't know if the link is working but here is the one I found on circuit city's website "Peripheral Electronics ISIM71 iPod Integration for Select Acura, Honda, Scion, Toyota and Lexus Vehicles"

PeterUbers

iTrader: (1)

read my install thread on the first page of the Audio/Electronics section and review my install tips for the "15 minute install" of this unit. Crook (senior member of this Azine forum) initially wrote up with pics how to install this WITHOUT removing the stereo headunit or any panels... it works well, but you need to have the right tools (or adjustment to tools you already own)...