IPOD in the Beast

[TaTaPiRaTa]

Hi!

I'm considering Ipod to be playing MP3s in my Beast.

Did anybody connect it to NAVi input as video? I mean using signal conection instead of FM modulator...

Any suggestions for the holder/mount so the power & audio cables stay all time connected to the holder while you just plug in and out the Ipod itself for quick operation?

thx for sharing your experience.

[half-sick]

I just put the ipod in today, but I just laid it down in front of the shifter. I'm looking for a better solution also. Not as much empty space in the central dash area as I would like for this purpose.

[TaTaPiRaTa]

Originally posted by half-sick
I just put the ipod in today, but I just laid it down in front of the shifter. I'm looking for a better solution also. Not as much empty space in the central dash area as I would like for this purpose.

fine, how did you connect it to the Beast? What accesory did you use: Belkin, MonsterCable other? (FM or line in)?

[bilbozilla]

I've got the US spec car and just run a cassette adapter into the cassette player. I keep the iPod in the 'container' underneath the armrest (not in the armrest' and control it with the wire remote which I clip to the piping.

I'm looking for a better way. There has got to be somebody out there working on a solution that will let you wire up and control control your ipod from the factory stereo (without having to buy a phatnoise).

[half-sick]

belkin power cable from the cigarette lighter, audio line into the cassette player. I want quick access to the face of the ipod if I want to get to the next tune, etc., so under the armrest doesn't seem like a good option. And I don't want a wire running to there either. That's just me though...

[nene]

You guys need ICE-Link. You can find information on it at:
ICE-Link USA

Installation Ideas:
1) The cables that run from the ICE-Link to the I-Pod can be longer. Run it tucked in the center console (gear location) towards the center console.
Once there, if you look under the center console armrest (flip it so you can see under), there is a rubber oval piece which comes off. Run the wires up that hole (remove rubber piece, or just make small hole in the rubber with hole puncher/belt hole maker) and put your I-Pod neatly inside the center armrest.
2) One other idea is the make a cool little holder for your I-Pod, and put it in place of where your coffee holder is above the radio.
You can leave the coffee holder opened and the I-Pod visible, or you can lay the I-Pod inside of it and close the coffee holder. Some good knowledge of electronics and manufacturing would be helpful too, or if you have friends with this knowledge.
3) Just simply use some sort of pro-clip thing that can be held at various locations throughout your car.

Notes:
1) It states that this setup is compatible with A6/S6 1998-2004. It does not mention RS6 anywhere, so I think we're okay. However, it's not compatible with 2004 A8, but I think that is a new system, which the RS6 does not have.
2) This car adapter will DISABLE the factory installed Satellite Radio.


Pix:

[bilbozilla]

The ICE-Link solution isn't bad, provided you are willing to give up your satellite radio. I am not going to give up my XM. Any other solutions out there?

[nene]

Here's someone's successful installation with pix.

D Tepper IPod installation

[App]

Finally Denison shipped the ICELink for the Audi and I installed one last night in my RS6. I ran the wires back around the gearstick to the phone location under the arm rest - they are *just* long enough to reach there without modification and you can *just* fit the connector through the various holes and under the A/C unit without having to remove anything apart from a few pieces of carbon fibre. Hint: push a scrap piece of wire through first, duct tape the connector to it and then pull it through using the wire.

Space behind the head unit was a problem - there isn't any! I had to remove the silver box off the CD Changer adapter that Denison supplies so I could cram it in around the large bar that runs across inside this space.

Wiring was very easy - unplug a connector, plug in the splice connector, attach a ground wire to the ground wire on the radio using a supplied crimp splice. Done! Didn't need to cut or solder a single wire.

Plugged it all in and got music immediately but none of the controls worked. Then I read the ICELink newsgroup and saw that you need to upgrade the iPOD firmware to the latest version. That fixed the problem.

So now, I have a no-visible-wires, no-holes, no-screws installation of the iPOD, and I'm happy!

Nice features:
iPOD comes on and goes off when you select the CDC changer on the head unit as appropriate. Listening to a song on the iPOD, press FM, press CD and the song resumes playing right where it was.
You can skip tracks using the headunit and even fast forward within a song.
By selecting CD number 6 you can also adjust the levels on the iPOD using the headunit allowing you to get the same volume across your various sources.

Features that could be improved:
Well, I'd really like to see the song metadata on the Audi display - if a nav system can do it, why can't someone build an MP3 player that can do it?
The display shows Track 1->2->3->1->2->3, just so you know that your next track button press has been accepted. Would be nice if it could show you position within the current playlist (modulo 100, of course).
The display shows 00:00 counting up to 00:09 and then goes back to 00:00 just to show you a song it playing - would be nice if it could show actual position in the song instead.
Apple should support WMA then I wouldn't have to convert all my music from WMA to AAC.

Biggest concern:
The iPOD appears to charge from the car even when the ignition is off. I worry that left for a long time in an airport parking lot this could drain the battery - though I guess the iPOD would probably get stolen before then since it's in plain view

Back at home, iTunes has been working its way through my WMA collection for about 12 hours now creating an AAC version of it, maybe in another 12 hours it will have finished and I can get all my music in the car. I'll soon have more songs in the car than miles on the car!

I would post pictures but there really isn't anything to show - headunit looks just like it did before and there's an iPOD sitting in the phone space! All I need to do now is to modify the plastic holder that was supplied so that it fits into the Audi phone space (it's too wide right now as it's designed to go on a mount attached to the dashboard).

[App]

Here's the iPOD sitting in the phone holder - needs some more work to get it in without the circular holder:



Here's what you see when it's playing - looks just like a CD Changer:


And here's the mess behind the scenes with the splice harness and the silver box that's too big to fit past the metal bar that runs across behind the head unit. You can also see the small ICELink unit itself towards the back:

[TaTaPiRaTa]

I just got the Monster FM modulator.

It is a cheap alternative to connect Ipod, but the quality is not satisfactory.

I consider it a beter than none solution so far.

The Icelink 1.1 is not quite a nice solution:
- I don't like to put Ipod back in trunk.
- for the "at console" install - why do I need to control the Ipod from the radio if it is sitting next to radio dials, so I can control from Ipod itself - even better.
With our RS6 no audio-button steering wheel there is nosense for contolling form raio buttons at all.

Best, at least for European Navi stuff, would be to connect just audio out of the Ipod sitting on the console to the radio AUX input.

Did anybody connect DVD/ PS2 or anything to the AUX input (I just need audio)? What are the plugs there.....

[App]

Using ICELink does not mean you need to put the iPod in the trunk; you can mount the iPod anywhere you like. Supplied cables are long enough to mount on dash in a holder or on the center console like I did.

If you want to control your music selection using the iPod, you should mount it on the dashboard to make it easier to reach.

The advantage of the radio controls is that it's a lot easier and safer to switch tracks with them than it is to use the smaller iPod controls while driving, and you get clear visual feedback on the radio and on the dash so you know you've pressed the skip track button.

But you aren't locked into controlling the iPod solely with the radio controls; if you want to use the iPod you can. In fact, to select a playlist you have to use the iPod. I think you'll find after using it for a while that for skipping tracks the Audi controls are the way to go - much larger and much easier to find in the dark.

The other advantages over just-an-audio-connection are that it turns on and off with the car, resuming playback right where it was, and it charges from the car. So if all you want is an audio connection with iPod doing all the control it's still a good solution.

If you want to connect other audio sources instead of the iPod you could probably do that too using this kit since it includes a Connect2 box that provides two RCA/phono jacks that then connect to the ICELink itself. Essentially then all you'd be using it for was to spoof the Audi head unit into thinking it had a CD changer attached. You'd need to find some way to switch the audio between the ICELink and your other sources but that shouldn't be hard to do.

[GoFastKindaGuy]

I simply use iTrip atop my iPod -- tuned to 88.3 on my FM dial (where we have no station here). I put the combination in the center arm of my S6 or in the glove box or door pocket on the RS6. If you turn the iPod volume about half way up and use the radio volume for level control, it works well. And it goes from car to car to night stand with equal results. Slick.

Still prefer XM radio for the variety and new tunes.

[Aronis]

I'm looking for updates on this tread!

The ICE thing has to connect to the back of the radio???

What about the Factory Installed CHANGER wires that are in the trunk?????

Found interface at Crutchfield that is supposed to plug into that wire? They say it does not work with RS6, but I think that is simply a data base inadequacy based on rare car!!! Etc...

Heading to FM modulator method for max portibility!

Only want to play Rush Limbaugh MP3s in the car LOL..

Mike

[TaTaPiRaTa]

I'm just installing the Icelink plus to my Beast. I got wrong cable so now I have connected it in the trunk instead of the CD-changer. Works very good except I have minimum control of it as I don't see the Ipod's display and the "on radio text display from Ipod" is not working due to the wrong cable.

I'm expecting proper cable in a week so I'll update you all.

I'm going to connect it directly to the end of radio unit and have it mounted on special holder at my left air exhaust in the centre console to easily reach, see display and remove Ipod unit when parking car.

It looks very promising and the sound quality is outstanding.

Monster FM modulator recognized as best quality is piece of s**t comparing to direct connection.

[papadoc]

I use a Dell DJ 30 to take advantage of Napster-to-Go, and use the Belkin cupholder. The only problem with the cassette adapter is not the sound quality, which is really pretty good, but the clicking of the mechanism as the player trys to "play" the adapter. I am pretty cool on trying that ICE modification...

Try this link for iPod and Belkin:
http://catalog.belkin.com/IWCatProdu...duct_Id=153999

[kolfiber]

A solution for the problem could be if you are good with tools you could splitt the cable to the CD-changer and plug your iPOD in that way, then your iPOD will use the buttons on your stereo and if you have, your buttons on the steeringwheel.(before you do this read the manual )

[Aronis]

I found the ICE link at Best Buy, but they only have the one that is listed on the website as direct to the back of the radio.

Dension's site shows one which plugs into the CD changer cable in the trunk! Vs. the other version that plugs into the back of the radio.

Any one know if the Sat Radio still works if you plug the ICE Link into the CD changer cable?

Mike

by the way I tried the FM modulator, Monster brand, and it works great! A little high frequency hiss, but acceptable for a quick plug in.