TSX_Tim

Hi guys,
Have any of you tried the IPOD FM transmitter in your TSX to play MP3s? Do you like it? It's about $40, so I am debating whether to buy $40 blank CDs and burn my mp3s in them or just play mp3s through the IPOD. Thanks!

vkewalra

Well if you're referring to the iTrip, I can give a mixed review.
Pros:
It's easy to use
no batteries
you can change stations (once you download the audio files that send the iTrip a code to change station)
No installation necessary
Cons:
Sound quality is lacking (play the same track off a cd and your iPod and the sound diff is really noticeable)
Volume (you have to keep the volume on the ipod halfway and crank up the stereo) it's sufficient, but some people may want to have a higher max volume
Living in LA almost every radio station is taken up with the 50,000 Spanish-language stations so it's hard to find a relatively empty band to transmit over
The antenna in the car is on the back window, i've found if you're having a tough time getting reception and you have your playlist pretty well set you get better reception putting it by the rear window

On a side note it's nice to have on roadtrips in friends' cars because it's not likely they're going to have an aux cable.

I've been thinking about getting this: http://www.logjamelectronics.com/blitzhonsnyitiv2.html
I live in LA too, so if you want to try installing it together, I'd be up for it.

Whiskers

FM Modulated = Easy but not great sound. Only limited by the space of the MP3 player
The stock stereo will not play MP3's unless they are in audio (WAV) format, so you are looking at about 15 songs per CD.

iamhomin

I just bought the one designed specifically for the iPod, but it isn't great. The convenience is great, however you have to sacrifice sound quality.

Overall I'm not satisfied...

Godwhacker

In my CR-V, with wind noise and all, its a little more difficult to tell the quality is lacking, but in the TSX, it's quite apparent.

I'm considering forking over the money and get a port hardwired in for my ipod.

fatcat

Definitely get the adapter from Soundgate. The iTrip is good enough to fill the void for now I guess, but $100 for the adapter + $20 for RCA wires and GLI is well worth the money. Easy install, great quality.

Power1Pete

Soundgate all the way.

IMHO, FM transmitters are useless in mid to big sized cities. I bought one from the Apple Store 2 years ago and I used it only once. So don't waste your money on it.

elduderino

FM modulation sucks ass.

Wireless FM Modulation sucks more ass.

I've helped "validate" these things. You finally find a freq that sounds good, and you drive into a new station's area. Looks great on papaer...

rekor

wouldn't the icelink device be a better alternative?

fatcat

I personally would not get the icelink because:

1. high cost
2. works only with ipod, if and when the ipod goes out of style and you want to upgrade a new portable mp3 player, you're going to want to remove the icelink...

acuratsx03

...or you can buy a new HU and purchase the PAC SWI-X steerwing wheel controls keeper unit, and convert the ai-net port into a regular AUX port with rca outs . more power, waay better sound quality, easier to expand your system in the future etc etc

A-Q-R

I am using the Monster iCarPlay....very clear sound..can;t differentiate it with my CDs unless the current stations was taken by the stronger FM freq

A-Q-R

WORD....I won't spend over 200 just for that thing....who cares about controlling it using the steering wheel...not that my hand can't reach few inches further to operate my ipod

Plus..i don't think this thing even charges the ipod....

elduderino

Unfortunately, many places have more FM stations generating interfrence than you do... and if you can't tell the diff between FM Rdio and CD, that's something to notice right there.

acuratsx03

actually it does, one of the pros of this unit.

elduderino

It's only money...whaddya gonna do, take it with you?

tsass

When using a fm modulator you limit your self to a bandwidth of 15 kHz. Most people believe that the human threshold of hearing is about 20 kHz. CD quality is always higher then 20 kHz so if you listen you will be able to hear the difference when you use the FM modulator.

On the other hand many people do not care about this loss and think is sounds good enough. So when people do not care and are on a budget I always use this
http://www.mp3playerstore.com/stuff_...ries/FM-02.htm
I have had good success with it and it already has a ground loop isolator built in with is also a +

elduderino

FR is only part of it. (BTW, many think it's 16 Hz to 16K, and FM's FR cuts off at 50 Hz).

The noise floor and dynamic range are also limited. DR is not a big deal with pop music, but the noise floor is often irritating.

tsass

You missed my point

I was talking about bandwidth not frequency response

16 hz to 16 Khz is the hearable range or frequency which the ear can hear. Some people can hear more some less

FM is capable of producing 20Hz to 15 KHz so you are losing that frequency responce of what you might be able to hear

But what i was talking about was Bandwidth or the quality of that sound or how many samples of the sound we are hearing in a second.

elduderino

? ? ?

You referred to the human hearing range, as did I. Then you equate bandwidth to sound quality/fidelity. Not sure what you mean here. Fidelity is made up of many factors, and signal to noise ratio is a huge one, as is dynamic range.

The bandwidth of audibility does not directly correspond to the bandwidth required to transmit a signal. That's why I use the term frequency response... bandwidth is best reserved for tuners, not our ears, in acoustic discussions.

<Background: A CD can store a signal up to 22kHz. Anything higher was ignored due to technical issues at the time of the CD spec being created in the 70's and early 80's. While many folks can't hear near 22k, it seems that we can hear the absence of some of these HF sounds... when they are filtered out, various audibility tests indicate that the music signal is degraded.>

The acoustic frequency response of an FM tuner may be capable down to 20 Hz theoretically, but I have never found an FM Tuner IC in an auto application that worked below 50 Hz, and most commercial FM transmitters have high-pass filters above 50 Hz in place in front of them, dating back to the rumble days - in fact, many radio engineers state the spec to start at 50 Hz for this reason - so there's no incentive for the FM tuner IC makers to change that limit. Basically, FM can't play below 50 Hz in a car over an FMM. So the HF difference is much less than the projected LF difference.

Try this: record pink noise from a test CD onto your iPod. Measure the response with the iPod/FMM and the CD on a real-time analyzer. Watch how much bass the iPod FMM leaves out...

Your statement about how many samples of the sound we are hearing seems to indicate a digital approach to an analog area. We hear waves, not packets.