Speaker/stereo Upgrade?

[Lister2020]

A lot of my CDs and songs on my ipod are at a very low volume for some reason,

so I have to play them at about volume level 50 to get anything decent out of it.

I'm going to be getting in an under seat sub, but I was wondering is it the Stereo that can't handle going louder, the Speakers, or both?

(Aygo Slate Blue BTW).

I wouldn't mind upgrading it overall, but I like the look of the Standard Stereo and If i was to replace it, I'd want one which suits the look of the car, also,

if the stereo is replaced how does the bluetooth module work then? Can it still be interfaced with the new stereo?

[Paul Gi]

As long as the headunit you are purchasing supports bluetooth and the relevant muting of the music when a call comes in...

I know Alpine headunits are good for this - especially when used in conjunction with a bluetooth-installed TomTom and TomTom Dock fitted...

[Lister2020]

As long as the headunit you are purchasing supports bluetooth and the relevant muting of the music when a call comes in...

I know Alpine headunits are good for this - especially when used in conjunction with a bluetooth-installed TomTom and TomTom Dock fitted...

I don't use a standalone GPS. My N95 has Garmin Mobile XT on it and it works perfectly. If I get a new stereo, is there no way that the current bluetooth module can be interfaced with it?

[Paul Gi]

Well judging by the AIM, you're biggest challenge will be finding a socket on the aftermarket headunit that will have a separate dedicated plug on it like the OE stereo does as seen below: -

Either that or you can fanny around crimping/soldering wires to get it to work however that would end up messy and ultimately a pointless exercise...

So it's either utilize the existing OE headunit and just uprate the Speakers if you're intent on using the OE Toyota bluetooth System OR purchase a bluetooth headunit that will do all the above for you and sell off the Toyota bluetooth kit

In my personal opinion of course

[gordonh]

A lot of my CDs and songs on my ipod are at a very low volume for some reason,

so I have to play them at about volume level 50 to get anything decent out of it.

How are you feeding the iPod into the current stereo ?

If via the 3.5mm jack on the standard Toyota radio, just turn the iPod volume up on the unit a bit and that'll solve the problem.

If you are going to look for a new head unit there are some that have bluetooth ready built in. I will be installing one at the weekend and will post how well it works afterwards.

[Jan van de Wouw]

If you're connecting your iPod through the headphone jack the volume IS low. This has something to do with impedances

not matching up. Get yourself a cable from the dock-connector to a 3,5mm jack and you'll notice instant improvement...

As for the bluetooth; the OEM unit from Toyota interfaces in between the Power- and Speaker-leads at the big ISO plugs.

The only reason they ALSO plug into the mini-ISO C-block is to acces the mute-input, so the radio mutes during a call.

If you get an aftermarket radio you can keep the Blutooth installed, all you have to do is look for

a "Tel.Mute" wire in the harness for the new radio to connect the yellow wire from the blutooth to.

On Kenwood systems this wire is separate from the ISO-plus and is usually brown.

Sound from your phone is fed into the Speakers OUTSIDE of your radio, no matter what radio

you have; you could even pull out the radio and still have handsfree over the front Speakers...

[Lister2020]

A lot of my CDs and songs on my ipod are at a very low volume for some reason,

so I have to play them at about volume level 50 to get anything decent out of it.

How are you feeding the iPod into the current stereo ?

If via the 3.5mm jack on the standard Toyota radio, just turn the iPod volume up on the unit a bit and that'll solve the problem.

If you are going to look for a new head unit there are some that have bluetooth ready built in. I will be installing one at the weekend and will post how well it works afterwards.

It's actually an iPhone. It's on max volume and it sucks. Badly.

What cable do you mean Jan from the dock connector???? I don't have a doc in the car, just an audio jack going into the headphone port on the iPhone.

[Jan van de Wouw]

The dock connector is the 30-pin connector on the bottom of your iPhone/iPod.

It's where you plug in the USB cable to sync or charge your iPhone/Ipod.

This plug has 30 pins since it supports a whole range of signals, including audio-out.

If you get a cable that has a dock connector on one side and a jack plug on the other side

you can use that cable to connect to your factory radio.

The signal on the dock connector is cleaner and louder than the one

on the headphone jack AND it's independant of your volume settings.

Just do a search on eBay for "ipod dock connector" and you'll find a bunch,

most of them even with some auto-rollup-thingie in the middle.

Picture borrowed from eBay

I DO have to note that I doe NOT have such a cable myself, since I put in a Kenwood with Ipod Direct Drive,

but at a meeting we had a couple of weeks ago we did some testing with my iPod nano connected through

either the headphone jack or through a spare dock I had (so using the signal from the dock connector)

and the difference in sound was even more that I'd expected...

[grumpythedwarff]

The dock connector is the 30-pin connector on the bottom of your iPhone/iPod.

It's where you plug in the USB cable to sync or charge your iPhone/Ipod.

This plug has 30 pins since it supports a whole range of signals, including audio-out.

If you get a cable that has a dock connector on one side and a jack plug on the other side

you can use that cable to connect to your factory radio.

The signal on the dock connector is cleaner and louder than the one

on the headphone jack AND it's independant of your volume settings.

Just do a search on ebay for "ipod dock connector" and you'll find a bunch,

most of them even with some auto-rollup-thingie in the middle.

Picture borrowed from ebay

I DO have to note that I doe NOT have such a cable myself, since I put in a Kenwood with Ipod Direct Drive,

but at a meeting we had a couple of weeks ago we did some testing with my iPod nano connected through

either the headphone jack or through a spare dock I had (so using the signal from the dock connector)

and the difference in sound was even more that I'd expected...

Did you manage to get this to work? I purchased a dock connector to 3.5mm jack cable and my iPhone ignored it and continued to play music out of its Speakers! Does anyone have a reliable way to connect an iPhone to a car, or more importantly my Aygo Blue!

[Jan van de Wouw]

As I said, I do NOT have this setup myself.

However it is a known fact that the iPhone behaves different from

regular iPods and does not support some accesories for older iPods.

You have to remember that before the iPhone there was NO iPod

with its own internal speaker(s) and what MIGHT be your problem

is that the iPhone only switches over to the dock connector if it

actually "detects" the dock (or cable).

If you're comfortable with soldering and feel you're able to open

the dock connector without breaking it, you might want to try to

open up the dock connector to solder in a resistor between two pins,

which should tell the iPhone to send sound to the dock connector.

I DO have to be honest and say that I do not know for sure if this will work,

but that is what I picked up readin the internet here and there...

[Devon Aygo]

I found this listed here: http://www.techdoc.toyota-europe.com/Aim.aspx?menuitem=3

It appears Toyota have a kit which allows contol / integration of your IPOD directly through your head unit whilst the IPOD is shut away in your glove box. I have not seen or heard of anyone with it fitted nor can I find any price.

Fitting instructions: i_POD_PZ473_00261_A0_AIM_001_108_0.pdf

This instructions are for LHD however the only difference is where the lead to connect your ipod actually ends up.

LOOKS INTERESTING !!!

[aygo_uk]

I found this listed here: http://www.techdoc.toyota-europe.com/Aim.aspx?menuitem=3

It appears Toyota have a kit which allows contol / integration of your IPOD directly through your head unit whilst the IPOD is shut away in your glove box. I have not seen or heard of anyone with it fitted nor can I find any price.

Fitting instructions: i_POD_PZ473_00261_A0_AIM_001_108_0.pdf

This instructions are for LHD however the only difference is where the lead to connect your ipod actually ends up.

LOOKS INTERESTING !!!

I've also seen this online but i cannot find any price and my local dealer can't get a price!

James