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Looking for an AUX cable that will let me control my iPhone with my car's controls

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underwaterboy10

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Oct 13, 2010
25
0
I have an iPhone 4 and have recently bought an AUX cable. It works fine but it's inconvenient to have to use my iPhone to change the songs, rewind, etc., especially while driving.

Is there such an AUX cable that will let me control (play/pause, REW, FF, next/previous tracks, etc) my iPhone's music with my car's built-in stereo controls? It would also be a plus to be able to see the current song's info (title, artist, album, etc) in the car stereo display as well as turn shuffle (aka random) and repeat on and off with my car stereo controls but it is not absolutely necessary.

If such a cable does not exist, please give me some suggestions/advice. I've already done some research and do not want any external remote or any type of dock with its own controls. I want to be able to use my car's BUILT-IN STEREO CONTROLS to control my iPhone's music.
 
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varun14

macrumors 6502
Aug 9, 2010
378
300
As far as I am aware a cable for the AUX port won't let you control the iPod from the car. You would need a USB connection for that. What I would recommend is one of those cables that go from the headphones to the ipod (cables these days are detachable from the headphones). These cables have the remote on them. You can use the remote to skip tracks, edit volume etc. I use my cable that I got with the Beats by Dr Dre headphones as the AUX cable since it has a remote and I can do the basic jobs without needing to pick up the iPhone and doing it the longer way.
 
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JM2

macrumors member
Oct 8, 2010
42
10
South Florida
As noted above an AUX cable will not do that, you need an adapter that is specific to your particular car model that plugs into the dock connector. Even with this it might not do everything you want. Check out Crutchfield.com they specialize in car audio integration.

Now if you ditch your current radio and buy an aftermarket unit (I like Pioneer) you can control the iPhone and (on some models) even display the album artwork on the radio.
 
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Scuby

macrumors regular
May 16, 2010
206
0
Not strictly an aux cable, but you can get things which connect to your car's CD changer port in the back of your radio that can control an iPod. I've had one from Connects2.com for years. Worth a look, not too expensive either - about £50 ($75) - though be careful to check the charging capability, Connects2 have been extremely slow in updating from 12v to 5v charging, and if they still haven't you'll need an additional adapter.

David
 
wesg

wesg

macrumors regular
Jan 2, 2008
211
0
Toronto, ON
While it probably doesn't do exactly what you're asking, I've been using the Griffin AutoPilot with great success. It allows you to control the iPhone/iPod from the 12V outlet instead of the device itself. iPhone 4 compatibility needs to be improved a little, but all other devices work fine.
 
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underwaterboy10

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Oct 13, 2010
25
0
Thank you all for your insightful replies. I ended up buying an auxiliary cable with an in-line remote, like my Apple earbuds with remote without the earbuds. I didn't know until this forum that such an auxiliary cable existed but that basically solved my dilemma. :D I didn't want to install anything extra, especially anything involving taking out my car's stereo for installation. Thanks again.
 
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ego1

macrumors newbie
Oct 25, 2010
2
0
Underwaterboy, what did you end up getting? I've been trying to find the same thing, with little luck.

I've found a lot of adaptor cables and auxilary cables (i.e. one male end one female end) but no straight 1/8" cables with a microphone on it. I had one on my Beats by Dre but one of the buttons broke.

Any help would be appreciated.
 
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varun14

macrumors 6502
Aug 9, 2010
378
300
ego1 said:
Underwaterboy, what did you end up getting? I've been trying to find the same thing, with little luck.

I've found a lot of adaptor cables and auxilary cables (i.e. one male end one female end) but no straight 1/8" cables with a microphone on it. I had one on my Beats by Dre but one of the buttons broke.

Any help would be appreciated.
Click to expand...

This will get the job done:

http://www.amazon.com/Auxiliary-Audio-Inline-Remote-Control/dp/B001UGXC8K

AUX cable with a remote control with buttons large enough for you to be able to change tracks/pause/play without having to look at it (such as when you're driving).
 
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underwaterboy10

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Oct 13, 2010
25
0
ego1 said:
Underwaterboy, what did you end up getting? I've been trying to find the same thing, with little luck.

I've found a lot of adaptor cables and auxilary cables (i.e. one male end one female end) but no straight 1/8" cables with a microphone on it. I had one on my Beats by Dre but one of the buttons broke.

Any help would be appreciated.
Click to expand...

hey ego1. I ended up buying the iLuv iEA15BLK iPod Remote with Third-party Headphones Adapter for VoiceOver (Black) from Amazon.com. Here's the link:

http://www.amazon.com/iLuv-iEA15BLK-Third-party-Headphones-VoiceOver/dp/B002RL9WDQ/ref=pd_bxgy_e_img_c

I also looked at the one mentioned above but after reading the reviews, I believe this one was better rated and had actual (as per the reviews) iPhone 4 compatibility. It comes with a female end so you have to insert your own regular AUX cable but it gives you the freedom to plug in your own earbuds and add a remote functionality to them if you want to. Hope this helps. ;)
 
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ego1

macrumors newbie
Oct 25, 2010
2
0
Thanks for your help guys. I'll probably go with the iLuv since it also has a volume control.

Funny there are no great solutions. After googling this topic for a while yesterday I found a ton of people asking the same question and no one seems to have a really satisfying answer. The monster cable that came with the Beats by Dre headphones was good, but it broke after about two months of regular use. (Or rather, the DOWN button for the volume broke -- the rest still works.) I spoke to customer service today and I'm going to get it replaced for free (it's still under warranty). But I want another one because I got a different pair of headphones I like better, and they sell the cable for $35 a piece, which is really expensive to me, and they only have the red color cable, which I don't really like.

Oh well.
 
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