- Piecing the Digital Audio Car Playback Puzzle Together
- Use an Auxiliary Audio Input
- Picking the Right Approach
- Tips for the Road
Like this article? We recommend
Like this article? We recommend
Like this article? We recommend
Use an Auxiliary Audio Input
Most vehicles already have some kind of sound system installed; some of these systems include an auxiliary audio input. If your vehicle's sound system is so equipped, you need to purchase only an RCA-to-mini-DIN adapter to grab audio output from most portable digital audio players. This probably provides the best tradeoffs between cost and complexity and overall sound quality.
The rub here is that not all factory-installed audio systems support auxiliary audio inputs. Unless there's a jack of some kind, there's no way to use this approach to pipe a signal from your digital players into your vehicle's sound system directly. Installer.com is a great car audio Web site that lists adapters for many aftermarket car stereos, and also lists part numbers for adapters for factory-installed stereos for numerous makes and models of foreign and domestic vehicles. Your best bet here is if you've installed a medium- to upper-level quality aftermarket car stereo (such as Alpine, Eclipse, JVC, Kenwood, or Pioneer, for example). In that case, odds are good that you've got RCA jacks on your car stereo already waiting for input from something like your personal digital audio player.
But wait! There's one more potential gotcha that my friendly car audio salesman friend Andy told me about: The vast majority of auxiliary audio inputs are on the back of your car stereo unit. This means taking the time and expending the effort to install the adapter yourself (not a good idea for those without a well-equipped toolbox, or who don't have the patience and manual dexterity necessary to handle delicate equipment in small, cramped spaces) or paying somebody else to do the job (my recommendation unless you're prepared to replace your stereo if things go wrong).
TIP
If you use a personal player in your car, see whether you can get a power adapter to use while driving. Your vehicle won't mind, and it will save battery life (both for rechargeables and throwaways alike)!
Pros: Best overall sound quality; easy digital audio player hookup.
Cons: Requires professional installation or genuine installation skills, time, and effort.
Cost: Adapters cost from $20 to $100, depending on the car stereo. Adapter installation costs from $50 to $100, depending on location and type of car stereo.
Use an FM Modulator
An FM modulator basically plugs in where your headphones would ordinarily go. Instead of conducting sounds to a teeny pair of loudspeakers (my crude but accurate technical description of a pair of headphones or earbuds), it broadcasts signals at low power to an FM station in the 88.1 frequency range or thereabouts. By tuning your vehicle's FM radio into this frequency, you can listen to what's playing on your personal digital audio player.
This is probably the easiest technical solution to the problem of bringing a digital audio player and your vehicle's sound system together. But alas, Andy (my friendly car audio salesman friend, whose employer does offer this kind of unit to its customers) tells me that "low power" all too often results in "low fidelity" or "no fidelity" when it comes to auditioning digital tunes through the FM dial. Take this as a warning that results will vary and might sometimes be unacceptable. So don't take this route unless the modulator is dirt cheap or you can talk your way into a money-back guarantee (or at least a substantial refund—many mail-order or discount outlets will charge a 15%–20% restocking fee if you want to return merchandise). The best FM modulators cut the car's FM antenna out of the circuit while in operation, thereby greatly reducing potential interference effects and provide the best promise of good sound quality (check Installer.com for pointers to a modestly priced Audiovox FM modulator that they claim works pretty well).
Pros: Easy to install (sometimes) and use; works in any vehicle with an FM radio.
Cons: Beware of bad sound; requires power; some models require professional installation.
Cost: $40–$100, plus installation (where applicable) of $50 to $100.
Buy a New Car Stereo
Lots of car stereo manufacturers now offer CD players that can play MP3- or WMA-formatted CDs, as well as conventional audio CDs. This approach requires you to rip your own digital CDs, but after that effort is expended, offers the best sound you can get from a digital CD (which depends on compression ratios and your choice of digital audio format, as much or more than the capabilities of your vehicle's sound system). Outside MP3 and WMA, however, I didn't find much support for other digital audio formats (such as AAC, AIFF, or the increasingly popular open source Ogg Vorbis format—just to name a few).
In my opinion, this approach makes sense for somebody who's already into burning digital audio CDs or who hasn't yet invested in a personal digital audio player of some kind. Be prepared to spend anywhere from $150 and up (the sky's the limit here) to buy such a player—my friend Andy's recommended models cost $229 for an Eclipse unit and $259 for an Alpine unit, just for example.
Pros: Easy to use, great sound quality.
Cons: requires digital audio CDs, supports only MP3 & WMA, requires professional installation
Cost: $150 and up for a suitable player; $100 and up for installation.