Technical MP3 Player, can it be attached to stereo

[robertk2003]

Sorry if this has been covered before. Got my missus, an MP£ (NOT A BLEEDIN IPOD!!!!), for xmas, and she wants to play it in the car (?????), I;ve a Stilo Multiwagon 1.9Jtd Dyn with CD player (single). Is there any connection on the back of the player to connect it to other devices????

The MP3 player has a "line in" and the earphone holes.


I look forward to your suggestions, ( and before anyone suggests it, buying an IPOD is not my solution, i hate the things)
thanks

Happy new year

 

[wolfracepunto]

Why the hatred towards IPods

Does the Stilo's stereo have an auxillary? Thats the only easy way you'll be able to connect it up. Most aftermarket units have this, but the sound quality once connected up is usually a bit naff. (Compared to connecting up an IPod with proper adaptor ) All you need is a phono lead (2 plugs going into 1), with the two plugs going in the back of the stereo and the other plug into the headphone socket of the MP3 player. But im guessing there is no AUX

I know IPods have that FM Transmitter thing, not sure if there are any available for other MP3 players??

 

[hmallett]

Why the hatred towards IPods

I'm sure he's trying to express disappointment that it's not an iPod..
H

 

[wolfracepunto]

Ha, good point!

 

[StiloBoy]

Why buy an iPod when there are so many more superior products on the market? Or for that mater, a cheap MP3 player does exactly the same job!

I'd be interested in any outcome in this question, would be interesting in knowing if you can connect an MP3 player to Stilo.

 

[custard]

only benifit of the ipod is the range of add ons available eg the unit for the car that allows you to tune in to it over fm.

nb custard owns no mp3 player

 

[bozzy]

Why buy an iPod when there are so many more superior products on the market? Or for that mater, a cheap MP3 player does exactly the same job!

I agree that many other players do the same as the the i-pod in that they play music well. However, the key players in the electronics world are future proofing their products specifically for the i-pod. I know of no other player that can be connected to an Alpine/Sony/Kenwood/Pioneer head unit with full integration and control. That includes the Sony players afaik. I have a few players including an i-pod and I know which one I reach for when I need some tunes.

 

[custard]

mind you im sure that may change soon since sony have moved back into the walkman market proper

 

[robertk2003]

I got a 20 GB Samsung MP3 player with full colour display. (Saved about £120 over an IPOD and its better looking and performing)

I am assuming there will be an input/AUX in type connection at the back of the head unit.
And to keep it car themed, Ford make 00000's of cars every year and sell 00000's of cars every year. Doesn;t mean they're the best cars just cause they sell alot - Its the same with the IPOD.
They were just first to jump on the band wagon by flowering up the MP3 player making it look pretty and stuff. (Do you think i dont like IPODS by any chance????:devil: )

All the best

 

[richyx24]

hey guys new to the forum, got a fiat stilo 1.2 active. Anyone got any ideas on what cd changer i can get that will play mp3 cd's. thanks

 

[Stilo_ste]

FM modulators are available. These simply transmit the input signal onto a FM carrier frequency, you then place it in the car and tune the stereo to that frequency.

The Ipod one is illegal in UK, as it transmits over too large distance. Some are legal and have to be situated close to the stereo / aerial. Reception quality is Radio quality, but MP3 ain't that good anyway.

The cassette head unit definitely has inputs, as you can plug the CD multichanger from the upper glovebox directly into it, but which are the music signal pins I don't know. There are several plug sockets in the back.

I don't know about the single CD though. Must be achievable though, as you can get the phone through it.

 

[Stu DemonD]

hey guys new to the forum, got a fiat stilo 1.2 active. Anyone got any ideas on what cd changer i can get that will play mp3 cd's. thanks

If you want to keep the Stilo HU, then no - the Blaupunkt A09 that is specifically for the Stilo doesn't play MP3s, and no other changer can be connected as far as I know.

I haven't got an MP3 player either

 

[bozzy]

MP3 ain't that good anyway.

On what evidence do you base that? what bitrate are you talking about?

 

[bozzy]

Why the hatred towards IPods

I would wager that most of the people who hate the i-pod have never even tried one. It's not a competition, be happy with what you got.

 

[Stilo_ste]

I meant in relation to CD, if you want a reasonable number of tracks.

Quality / space question.

 

[wolfracepunto]

I can't even tell that CDs have higher quality than MP3....Its probably Only the fussiest audio wizards who can. In fact I think my MP3 CDs (with 8 albums on) sound better than normal CDs

 

[alexGS]

I can't even tell that CDs have higher quality than MP3....Its probably Only the fussiest audio wizards who can. In fact I think my MP3 CDs (with 8 albums on) sound better than normal CDs

Yeah, there is a small difference. And quite a noticeable difference with 128kbps MP3s compared with audio CD. But all these things are relative and MP3s sound a lot better than not having the music 'cause it's all on the PC at home.

I believe that 'radio quality' is much, much worse and wouldn't bother with trying to play MP3s through one of those radio-transmitter things (I have tried a number of them, for the shop where I used to work). You can get a wired FM modulator (connects to the aerial socket) and this eliminates the loss-of-signal/static, but still doesn't improve the quality of course.

As for iPod vs. other brands, let's just say that Apple has always spent $$$$ on hardware design, and to me it shows. To each their own.

My question is:
- doesn't the standard Stilo stereo (the Connect Nav+ or whatever it's called) play MP3 CDs? I was under the impression that it did (say, in the 2002 Abarth model).

If it DOES play MP3 CDs, then I think this is the solution. Make up a variety of MP3 CDs with folders in logical order. Writable CDs are very cheap.

The big advantage is that you don't need to have your iPod (or MP3 player...) in the car. Why, you ask? Well, what happens every time you stop in town? You have to unplug the iPod and hide it somewhere (or take it with you). After a little while you just don't bother taking it into the car in the first place and thus you end up back at square one. I know this because two of my cars have (well 'had', I sold one yesterday) stereos with line-in connections. Also it's very fiddly to use the iPod while driving, scrolling through hundreds of artists etc. The third car (my Uno Turbo), I have fitted with an MP3-CD player. One CD lives in it (I haven't got around to making any more yet). Only slight disadvantage is that the CD skips due to the incredibly rough ride of my (lowered) Uno Turbo (and the flimsy dashboard).

It HAS to be less hassle than this elusive Denison ICE-Link thing which I certainly wouldn't want to spend a hundred pounds on given what I have found (or not found) during searching on this forum...

So please someone confirm that the Stilo Abarth standard stereo plays MP3 CDs? I plan to buy a Stilo Abarth sometime soon.

Thanks,
-Alex

 

[mikeh]

The Connect Nav+ does play mp3s but then of course you can't have your nav-disk in. It's also a bit character fussy so if any of the file names have brackets in it won't recognise the disc

I have a wired in FM modulator in mine. It's just one of the cheap(ish) ones from Maplins but it works OK. Even though it's hard wired into the aerial, there is some hiss but you only really notice it at low speed on quiet tracks. The iPod sits happily in the 'chiller cabinet' and I just stick it on shuffle unless there's a particular album I want to hear. I like the randomness, it's like having the best (for me) radio station in the world with no idiotic DJs

<EDIT> As regards the CD vs mp3 quality issue it really does depend on the bitrate. A high bitrate mp3 (or similar compressed audio file) is virtually identical in sound quality to CD particularly when heard through less than perfect equipment. All my mp3s are encoded at 192kbps or higher and on my home system (or through decent headphones) you can occasionally hear digital artifacts on a few tracks but they sound fine in the car.

A car is not an ideal listening environment even with high end kit due to various factors such as speaker placement, background noise etc. I am normally quite fussy on sound quality but am quite happy to view music in the car as just entertainment to help the journey along

 

[matronslovepuppy]

I have a wired in FM modulator in mine. It's just one of the cheap(ish) ones from Maplins but it works OK. Even though it's hard wired into the aerial, there is some hiss but you only really notice it at low speed on quiet tracks. The iPod sits happily in the 'chiller cabinet' and I just stick it on shuffle unless there's a particular album I want to hear. I like the randomness, it's like having the best (for me) radio station in the world with no idiotic DJs

Can you post a bit more info on how you hard wired it into the aerial, model of the modulator used and where you got the wires you needed.

I assume that the hiss you hear is from the quality of the modulator? thanks

 

[mikeh]

Can you post a bit more info on how you hard wired it into the aerial, model of the modulator used and where you got the wires you needed.

I assume that the hiss you hear is from the quality of the modulator? thanks

This is the bit of kit> http://www.maplin.co.uk/Home.aspx?AID=10297371&PID=1413184&SID=ukmaplin3q

Really easy to install, needs a 12v feed and earth, unplug aerial from back of head unit and attach to input side of modulator, plug output side of modulator into back of head unit, connect mp3 player, tune radio to correct frequency, listen, drive, sing along like a crazy fool :slayer:

You'll probably also need a pair of adapters for the aerial leads (sorry couldn't find these on the website but found them OK in the car bit of the shop) and a 3.5mm stereo jack to 2 x phono connecting cable (http://www.maplin.co.uk/module.aspx?ModuleNo=31700&doy=13m7) from the mp3 player to the modulator.

I did have a Dension Icelink modulator but build quality was shocking and it stopped working even before the output lead fell off!! The one from Maplins seems much sturdier - and no, I don't work for them or anything