Has anyone or does anyone know how to add an IPOD to my 04 TL Auto w/o Nav. besides the cassette adater? thanks

 

you could also use an fm modulator, but people say the sound quality is worse than the tape adapter.

 

sound is shitty.

 

well are you talking about a broadcast fm modulator or a wired fm modulator? The broadcast ones really suck, but if you get a good install on a wired one, it can sound better then anything...

There is also an adapter that if you unplug your XM, you can use a direct RCA, but the first versions of these are buggy, and not really recomended.

When my TL comes in, it is heading straight for the Audio shop to get one installed for My iPOD

 

Has anyone tried an A/B switch with the XM? or something like that.
Those FM mod. really to suck.


04 / abyss Blue
5 spd auto/ no navi

 

I have a hardwired FM modulator and it sounds excellent. I just need to play with the ipod settings a bit because I get a little buzzing between the sound tweaking in the ipod and the treble/woofer/bass settings in the car.

 

Are you using the line-out from an iPod cradle (a la g35ipod.com
or you're using the iPod's top headphone plug?

I'm using the cradle line-out which I've screwed down in one of the cup-holders. The
cradle has been spray painted in black so the looks is pretty good (matches the ebony
car interior). It also charges my iPod whenever it is plugged in. I'll try to have some
photos if anyone is interested?

The problem I'm having now is that I have no control over the volume level of the
iPod (since this is a line-out port the volume on the iPod has no effect). Therefore, the
volume level which gets into the car's headunit is too high and causes some buzzing
even at very low volume levels (the car volume level that is).

Has anyone got any ideas for this? What setup/adapter are you using?

CradleLineOut-to-HardWiredFM,
CradleLineOut-to-TapeAdaptor,
CradleLineOut-to-Belkin-to-HardWiredFM,
CradleLineOut-to-Belkin-to-TapeAdaptor,
other?

Thanks,

 

hmm that buzzing may be the cause of a ground looping problem.

This is my setup. iPOD line out (have an adapter where the charging cable has a line out on it) -> Ground loop Isolator -> Clarion FM Mod = kickin sound

 

NeoGeek:

So you use an ipod cradle to get to a line-out right? or do you use the ipod
directly without a cradle?

Does your charger's line-out have a volume level adjustment? to what level have you
set it to?

I've tried using the charger's line out but I get no sound from there. I have a 40gig 4thGen
IPOD and the charger is the Belkin. I must say that I go thru a cradle. Maybe the cradle's
line-out disables the charger's line-out. I will try not using the cradle to see if the charger
outputs any audio when hooked up directly. That would suck since the cradle is really
neet!

I dont think I have a groundloop problem because those normally get heard when the
engine's RPM goes higher. I have my problems even when the engine is turned off. When
I say buzzing, it is more of a distortion issue with some low frequencies ...

Anyone's input is welcome ...
Thanks everyone!

 

well this is the reason why i got a ground loop and it seemed to solve the buzzing that i was getting in my car. http://www.xitel.com/product_gli.htm

anywho as distortion goes, with my fm mod, the line out does give me some distortion because the signal is so strong. I dont mind it though.

anywho like i said I have a line out on my charging cable http://www.sik.com/ . I dont use the cradle because it is too bulky. I just put it in my center arm rest and use my RF remote http://www.engineeredaudio.com/products/remote2.html with the black remote and just use that. The setup works very well.

 

why not just get the ITrip that just came out making no installation needed at all?

 

do you have the itrip? do you live in the countryside? itrip is a major piece of :shit: impo. you have to keep on switching to a station that is too weak and the quality sucks.

 

Wow, you guys are iPod guru here...

 

Hey,

my install is now complete using a wired/powered FM modulator. Works great!

Here's my detailed setup:

1) Apple Ipod connected to Apple cradle which I spay painted black and screwed
down into one of the cup-holders from the center console. Makes the Ipod
visible/accessible when I drive and easy to dock/undock ... The center console can
still be closed to hide the cradle anyways. Unfortunately, it can't be closed while
the Ipod is connected. I wouldn't leave it in the car unatended anyways ...

2) The cradle has 2 wires coming in:
1st: the power which comes thru a Belkin DC adapter connected in the center console
outlet
2nd: the fm modulator which I installed between the steering column and the radio
goes into the cradle's line-out (this is the where you get the best audio output quality
without any alteration/amplification/etc) If you take your source from the Belkin's DC
adapter you will have lesser quality as the Belkin does amplify/modify the Ipod's
audio signal.

3) I've chosen the Clarion FM200 modulator which I got at Future Shop for 49$ Canadian
dollars. I believe it is very low priced as I saw it on Crutchfield's site for 54$ US dollars!

I've done all the install myself and it was quite easy actually ...

It's great! I'll probably try adding a ground loop isolator from Radio Shack to see if I can
get even better sound qualify, but it is already pretty decent at the moment!

Thanks all!

 

I have done this many times so far with 2 double pole relays. I tap into the XM at the brain in the trunk.

JT


jtaudioacc.com

 

The Canadian version of the TL '04 doesn't have XM (not available up here yet, at
least not in any legitimate way that I know of) ...

I was wondering if that would mean there's a LINE-IN available on our head-units ?

I noticed a connector on the back of the head-unit (white if I recall corectly) that
had nothing connected to it. Anyone know anything about all this?

Thanks!

 

so basically you installed a DC converter and used the FM Mod. to connect through the radio. sounds easy but costly. I actually have itrip and it seems to work fine in the states. I've been from NY to NJ, Vermont, Florida and it seems to work fine for me. but hey im a newbie... just my .02's

nice job on the install, might actually try that when i have the time.

 

did you have to pull the radio to get to the antenna??? what side is the antenna input on..

 

Yes, I had to pull-out the head unit (not hard at all). If I recall, it was on the bottom
right side when looking at the head unit from the front (sitting position).