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I'm looking for a cable that connects from my iPhone to my car

I

IMAC!

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Nov 26, 2013
8
0
Hi, I'm looking for a way to be able to play my iPhone and iPad music out of my car speakers. Is this possible with the help of a cable that i can connect from my device to my cigarette holder? If so what is this mysterious cable called?

Thank you
 
IMAC! said:
Hi, I'm looking for a way to be able to play my iPhone and iPad music out of my car speakers. Is this possible with the help of a cable that i can connect from my device to my cigarette holder? If so what is this mysterious cable called?

Thank you
Click to expand...

Aux cable?!
 
The cigarette lighter provides power, you can't transfer audio through it. In order to play your iPod/iPhone through your car speakers it would either have to support bluetooth audio, or have an aux port that you can plug into.
 
swiftaw said:
The cigarette lighter provides power, you can't transfer audio through it. In order to play your iPod/iPhone through your car speakers it would either have to support bluetooth audio, or have an aux port that you can plug into.
Click to expand...

I dont have a aux port on my car, this is what i was afraid of :(
 
IMAC! said:
I dont have a aux port on my car, this is what i was afraid of :(
Click to expand...

You can install aux ports in many vehicles. I did it to my wife's Toyota Corolla a couple of weeks ago. Involved ordering a cable that plugs into the back the stock radio, pulling some of the dash out, pulling the radio out, plugging it in, running the wires through the dash, putting everything back into place. I then drilled a hole into her console and installed an Aux port I ordered so it looks pretty close to a factory install.
 
Basically, if the car is older than say 5 years, the chances of it having an AUX input seems remote at best.

PLUS! Friend just got a Subaru, and it has a USB port in the center console, and it doesn't do anything... No charging, no radio, nothing... Kind of a surprise...

You *can* usually get a decent headend unit to replace the factory radio and get the nice things like Bluetooth, USB, and AUX ports. Check Crutchfield.com for the units that fit, and the size that you need, and then check ebay.
 
Fm transmitters

I am not sure if you may want this
$_12.JPG


http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Car-Mini...ortable_Audio_Accessories&hash=item19f316183e
 
swiftaw said:
Your other options would be an FM transmitter(http://www.bestbuy.com/site/car-ipo...m-transmitters/abcat0307012.c?id=abcat0307012), although those don't work great if you live in a place with lots of radio stations, or if your car has a tape deck you can use an aux out to tape adapter (http://www.walmart.com/ip/RCA-Cassette-Adapter/16553075)
Click to expand...

You get the strangest reception using one of those. I was tooling down the road, and got BLASTED over by someone with a Sirius/XM radio on the same vacant freq I was using. It was Howard Stern. As the cars sped up at the intersection, the signal kept constant. I figured out it was a business suited dude in a gold package Cadillac. It kind of surprised me. I'll bet he's got skeletons...

Perhaps too, I was to conservative in my estimation of car age and AUX ports. Possibly 8 to ten years old, potentially.

ALSO some OEM head units DO have USB and/or AUX ports. You just have to be able to read the stock wiring diagrams from the dealer service manual. And occasionally the head unit manufacturer add-ons work, although that's rare I've been told.
 
Does your stereo support an additional CD changer (that you don't have installed)? There are CD changer emulators (also SAT radio type too) which allow you to connect your phone audio. Try GROM Audio www.gromaudio.com
 
PinkyMacGodess said:
PLUS! Friend just got a Subaru, and it has a USB port in the center console, and it doesn't do anything... No charging, no radio, nothing... Kind of a surprise...
Click to expand...

Seriously?! What does the owner's manual say about it? Or the dealer? That's just bizarre.

RE: FM transmitters...
PinkyMacGodess said:
You get the strangest reception using one of those. I was tooling down the road, and got BLASTED over by someone with a Sirius/XM radio on the same vacant freq I was using.
Click to expand...

Quality of these things varies more than just about any other electronic device I've bought. I have a 1997 Subaru Legacy--the longer I drive it, the more determined I am to see it reach 20 years for some damn reason. LOL And as the stereo hasn't crapped out yet, that hasn't been replaced. Consequently, I've gone through a few rounds with FM transmitters at this point. And some are definitely just garbage.

The last two I've used were a Motorola T505 and my latest, an iKross. I live outside a heavily populated city; when you look on any of the empty channel locator sites, there basically aren't any channels that rate better than "good" for use with one of these. Varied terrain and too much random weather also seem to change what is and isn't in range on any given day.

Even so, the T505 was rarely overridden by other feeds--static, yes, and radio hiss between songs, but most times, it wouldn't pick up a station or another car's audio so long as it was locked onto one of the relatively empty channels.

The iKross appears to send an even stronger signal. It hasn't been overridden at all yet, used on the same routes as the T505 was. In areas where the T505 routinely hit static, there's no interruption of music from the iKross. Quality of audio is decent--a bit better than radio when locked onto a clear station, but not quite up to CD level.

All of which is to say, *if* you find a good FM transmitter, you too can probably annoy other drivers' enjoyment of their Howard Stern show by your stronger transmission of Nine Inch Nails. :D

iKross: http://www.amazon.com/iKross-Multif.../B00I60488G/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1413143258

Channel search (US) for best stations to use: http://www.radio-locator.com
 
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IrishVixen said:
Seriously?! What does the owner's manual say about it? Or the dealer? That's just bizarre.
Click to expand...

Hasn't been an issue, but I've been curious what's up with that jack. The owner says it's a non issue. It would drive me nuts, just from the 'I Have To Carry A Plugin Charger In A New Car With A USB Jack'...

IrishVixen said:
RE: FM transmitters...

All of which is to say, *if* you find a good FM transmitter, you too can probably annoy other drivers' enjoyment of their Howard Stern show by your stronger transmission of Nine Inch Nails. :D
Click to expand...

Obviously I don't know what transmitter they were using, but I remember that the signal strength of it was HUGE! Howard Stern came in crystal clear and VERY LOUD. I figure that I could have picked it up with the fillings in my teeth with how powerful it was. DAMN!!!

For how strange radio propagation can be: There was a guy in a neighborhood that I had a jacked up CB radio and I would often hear him yacking on it in my basement. Trouble was that I don't own a CB radio! It was the harmonics and power causing something to vibrate when his truck was nearby. Freakiest damn thing I've ever had happen.

I did hear about someone who lived near the broadcast tower of an upstate public radio station who bought a new microwave and was wakened at night when the microwave started picking up the radio station!:eek: Just bizarre stuff...

Back to the regularly scheduled show...
 
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IMAC! said:
Hi, I'm looking for a way to be able to play my iPhone and iPad music out of my car speakers. Is this possible with the help of a cable that i can connect from my device to my cigarette holder? If so what is this mysterious cable called?

Thank you
Click to expand...

What kind of car do you have? I think that would help answer a lot of questions on this thread...
 
Those FM transmitters don't work too well. It would be best if your car stereo has an AUX input.
 
yezza said:
Does your stereo support an additional CD changer (that you don't have installed)? There are CD changer emulators (also SAT radio type too) which allow you to connect your phone audio. Try GROM Audio www.gromaudio.com
Click to expand...
^ I'd suggest a solution like this. Grom is just one option. USA Spec, DICE, PAC Audio, PIE and others are possibilities though I don't know if they're all still in business. They all make aftermarket interfaces for factory audio systems that work by emulating a CD changer, SAT radio, etc. Each of these companies has an Applications page where you can see if they have a solution for your car's make, model & year. All yo uhave to do is hit the site and input your car's info.

An FM modulator can work but I'd only suggest it as a last ditch option for those that don't care about audio quality. Every once in a while there's a decent one made but they're the exception rather than the norm and even decent ones have an impact on audio quality. The solutions above are wired and don't suffer from that.
 
Again, I think we all want to know what kind of car you have...there's a lot of options out there, some way more expensive than others...
 
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