Hi,

I had an ipod once and didn't care for the itunes software. I just bought an 2008 xb so it came with an ipod cable and the premium audio can control an ipod.

My question is, are there other brand mp3 players which support the ipod docking interface and commands? In other words, are there mp3 players out there that could plug in like they were an ipod even thought they aren't?

Thanks,

Alan

 

No.

 

Negative.

 

Hi,

Thanks guys, good to know. I guess I'll stick with making WMA CD's then. I made my wife one last night with 175 songs on it.

Thanks,

Alan

 

or you could just use any mp3 player with the aux port.

 

I think what he will miss using the aux port is that you can't control it through the HU??

 

Hi,

Yep, the aux cable/hookup won't let you control it through the radio which I would miss. I'll stick to wma cd's then.

Thanks,

Alan

 

There are aftermarket headunits that you can use USB flash drives with.

I think Kenwood has a couple out... I'm pretty sure you can access everything through the headunit as well.

 

Too bad you cant get your IPod back, Alan.. I put up with the Itunes software just long enough to load up my songs & up-date my regular Podcasts.. then it sits in the glove box all accessable thru the Sterring Wheel Controls. BUt I am interested in these WMA CD's you speak of as welll.. Mabey you can make a DIY on "How to" make these WMA's & post it here.. I'm interested. Can you make these so that the song title reads-out on the display too?? thanks... jh

 

Hi Jimmbomb,

I don't really miss the ipod, the software was just not intuitive for me at all. The WMA stuff has been real easy so far. I've been using Nero and it does almost everything for me. It rips CD's we have into WMA format and names them perfectly. I then tell it I want to make a WMA disc, create folders on it for album names and then drag the WMA's into each folder and burn. The album and song name come right up on the OEL display and it is easy to navigate from album to album (press 3 or 4) or song to song (press 1 or 2).

I did get 15 CD's packed into one this way and that was with Nero's WMA ripper set to best qualty (transparent CD conversion).

I'm going to keep ripping my wife's CD collection until we have 5 or 6 super packed WMA discs to pick from.

Good luck,

Alan

 

I thought you could use the HU controls to move back and forth between songs, but not read what the song names were.

I tried it, and the song name not showing up was a definite downer...so I switched to using MP3 files on CD.

 

maybe i misunderstood the question, but I do NOT have an ipod. I've got an mp3 player called an iRiver (I know, goofy name) and it works just fine in my xB2.

 

You can definitely read the songs titles, you just need to use the text scroll button to do so. It works exactly the same as having WMAs/MP3s on a CD. The IPOD controls are far nicer than the generic aux input, but the CD options just a step behind and usually produces good results. The decision maker for me is my dislike for physical media. CDs are too easily effected by the elements, scratches, wear, defects, etc.

 

Amen on the iTunes crashware! My kids both got ipods for xmas and I loaded iTunes on my PC just long enough to load their ipods. I had to reboot my PC about 6 times in one day due to iTunes locking my PC and Nero wouldn't even load. As soon as I uninstalled iTunes my PC was back to it's normal 24/7 stable operation.

I bet the Mac version of iTunes isn't nearly as buggy. Perhaps intentionally so...

 

ha ha....er....I was actually talking about using the AUX with any mp3 player, as opposed to iPod. I prolly shoulda mentioned that. Besides the problem with not seeing song titles with the AUX, you also need to majorly adjust the HU sound controls to make it sound the same quality...or at least that's what happened with my mp3 player.

 

IPod integration in the xB is the shizznit! However, iTunes blows small dogs. What to do????

Answer:

Get Anapod: http://www.redchairsoftware.com/

The product for iPods is Anapod Explorer. There is a demo

Open up a windows explorer inherited interface and syncs to your iPod.

 

I gotta say: I am not happy with my scion head unit's iPod interface.

I have the NAV/GPS/SNS head unit. I thought I'd like it but it's not that fantastic.

I listen to electronic music and often listen to 120 minute trance/house/d+b mixes (i.e. BBC's Essential Mixes), and when I leave the iPod attached to the vehicle, it sometimes doesn't resume where I last left the car, which drives me insane when I'm in the middle of my favorite Pendulum mix. Also, fast forwarding to the middle of a song or mix is not as quick as doing so on the iPod itself. Navigation through Playlists/Genres/Artists/etc takes FOREVER too. Might be a different story with the nice Jog Wheel on the Premium deck but for me with my head unit, I'm over the initial cool factor of having an iPod plug...

I end up ALWAYS plugging in my ipod to the Aux connector instead, so that I know for sure I will resume where I left off, I can continue playing my tracks at work when I get out of my car and bring my ipod, and I get to navigate with the exact same interface I'm used to.