AUX in Possible iPod solution?

YorkshirePud · 7th November 2006, 14:21

I notice from this thread that the head unit in the Civics has now been sourced from Matsushita (Panasonic). I used to work for a Panasonic dealership long ago, and remembered there being an iPod connector for their car audio units when the earlier iPods were kicking around. I've done some research, and sure enough there's an updated version, the Panasonic CA-DC300U Direct Cable:

from Panasonic's site
"The Direct Cable for iPod® is all you need to connect your iPod player to your head unit. The head unit will display iPod information, including artist name and album, and you can select iPod tracks and playlists directly from the head unit. Power is supplied to the iPod player from the head unit, so you can enjoy the vast amount of music on your iPod player while charging at the same time."

Another link on Amazon US

The first question is, would these suit the American Civics or the European ones? I've yet to find a link to a UK dealer that sells them, but if someone can confirm that they'd be suitable I'll pop into my local Panasonic dealer and order one to be the guinea pig, or have someone in the US send one over.

The second question is, when did the head units become Matsushita ones? My Civic was first registered in Feb '06.

Apologies if I'm wondering off the beaten track and getting people's hopes up falsely; just thought it would be a beautifully simple solution that was worth exploring!

richierich · 7th November 2006, 14:35

Can't quite see from the photo on that thread where the connection is for the cable, theres a better photo somewhere. (Anyone recall where)

karlak · 7th November 2006, 14:40

http://www.caraudiocentre.co.uk/prod...?product=21628

YorkshirePud · 7th November 2006, 14:40

Were the better images in this thread?

Good find karlak -- now to confirm when the units became Matsushita, and whether that cable will be the right fit. I'm certainly willing to spend £40 to find out if someone with more experience in car audio can confirm that the two are likely to link...

Colin Jolly · 7th November 2006, 15:52

I see a lot of discussion about ipod, but I have an MP3 player 20Gb IAudio X5 to be precise and all I want to do is plug the cable in and listen to Music........is that really so difficult?

generationgav · 7th November 2006, 16:05

Quote:

Originally Posted by Colin Jolly

is that really so difficult?

Yes....
I just want to get it set up for under £100 to be honest; then I'd go for it whatever the solution, even fitting it myself.

Bungle · 7th November 2006, 16:33

I am really dissapointed that the official Honda one is for iPods only. I have a 20Gig Sony walkman with all my music on. What is wrong with a 3.5mm jack to plug it into?? It wold be far easier and cheaper than this solution Honda have come up with. It would also work with anything that has a headphone jack. Come on Honda! Wake up!

For now I will stick with my FM transmitter to listen to it on the radio. Not perfect, but it works well enough...

Colin Jolly · 7th November 2006, 16:40

I am using the same Bungle and the quality is not good.

COME ON HONDA HELP US OUT

YorkshirePud · 7th November 2006, 16:44

I think the appeal for manufacturers and users alike with an iPod integration kit is that they have the potential to display track info on the car's display system, and change track using the car's controls, rather than the mp3 player's screen and buttons. (This isn't possible with a simple line input.)

I think that operating a phone or mp3 player whilst driving is illegal in the UK, and since the iPod is the main mass-market player that offers more than just a stereo output manufacturers are probably right in concentrating their efforts on it. Adding a line in on the front of the unit is encouraging people to plug their mp3 units in and operate them whilst driving; convenient, yes, but certainly not as safe.

Back to the thread topic -- does anyone know the model number of the 06 Civic's Panasonic head unit? I can't quite make it out from the pics I've seen so far...

generationgav · 7th November 2006, 16:54

Quote:

Originally Posted by YorkshirePud

I think the appeal for manufacturers and users alike with an iPod integration kit is that they have the potential to display track info on the car's display system

Potential maybe, but the ipod kit doesn't do this...I don't think it even controls tracks!

basegreen · 7th November 2006, 17:00

You can skip up albums and tracks, but it's blind (at least on the non EX/GT versions)

Civic Engineer · 7th November 2006, 17:06

mmmmm, I have been studying these posts about ipod connections for a while as I have an almost full 30gig ipod. In the end I sat down at my pc and burnt copies of my favourite playlists to CD, 20 CD's took me about 45 minutes and a cost of about £1, job done. One cd has about 10 hours of music on it, itunes puts them in folders the Civic can read (and display) and just noticed this morning that if you scroll through either the tracks or the folders and computer voice reads out the name (I thought that was pretty cool) never thought i could do without my ipod, but this works and got me putting together new playlists for the first time in a year!
BTW I do have an FM transmitter which I used connected to the cig lighter and that worked pretty well aswell but wanted the display and control from the car.

richierich · 7th November 2006, 17:17

Quote:

Originally Posted by Civic Engineer

mmmmm, I have been studying these posts about ipod connections for a while as I have an almost full 30gig ipod. In the end I sat down at my pc and burnt copies of my favourite playlists to CD, 20 CD's took me about 45 minutes and a cost of about £1, job done. One cd has about 10 hours of music on it, itunes puts them in folders the Civic can read (and display) and just noticed this morning that if you scroll through either the tracks or the folders and computer voice reads out the name (I thought that was pretty cool) never thought i could do without my ipod, but this works and got me putting together new playlists for the first time in a year!
BTW I do have an FM transmitter which I used connected to the cig lighter and that worked pretty well aswell but wanted the display and control from the car.

The car reads the folder names to you off the MP3 CD, how do you turn that on. Or have I missed the point.

Civic Engineer · 7th November 2006, 17:22

No idea, it was doing it this morning, freaked me out to start with. Had a whole CD of MP3 burnt from Itunes, and as I was scrolling through the various folders to find an album to listen to, a computer type voice was reading them out for me!!!! I cant say I had heard this before.

Bungle · 7th November 2006, 17:26

I wonder if that's an EX only feature. My ES has cetrainly never done that for me. Please let us know how you got your car to read!

Civic Engineer · 7th November 2006, 17:26

BUT how cool it that!!!! you dont have to take your eyes off the road

richierich · 7th November 2006, 17:28

*Runs outside to play with the car*

Civic Engineer · 7th November 2006, 17:31

I burnt that CD at the same time as the others but not heard this on the one or two I have played, however this was maybe the first time i had let it read the whole disk before playing, maybe its part of the EX's thang but when your half awake and a mystery voice says....Megadeth.....metallica... etc, it wakes you up

richierich · 7th November 2006, 17:34

You sure you weren't listening to the Top40 read by Stephen Hawkings??

Mine is quiet......

Civic Engineer · 7th November 2006, 17:57

Look at the music I listen to, maybe it has something to do with a pact i made with the devil at a crossroads a long time ago!

7th November 2006, 14:21	#1 (permalink)
YorkshirePud Valve Cap Join Date: 3rd November 2006 Location: West Yorkshire Posts: 21 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Possible iPod solution? I notice from this thread that the head unit in the Civics has now been sourced from Matsushita (Panasonic). I used to work for a Panasonic dealership long ago, and remembered there being an iPod connector for their car audio units when the earlier iPods were kicking around. I've done some research, and sure enough there's an updated version, the Panasonic CA-DC300U Direct Cable: from Panasonic's site "The Direct Cable for iPod® is all you need to connect your iPod player to your head unit. The head unit will display iPod information, including artist name and album, and you can select iPod tracks and playlists directly from the head unit. Power is supplied to the iPod player from the head unit, so you can enjoy the vast amount of music on your iPod player while charging at the same time." Another link on Amazon US The first question is, would these suit the American Civics or the European ones? I've yet to find a link to a UK dealer that sells them, but if someone can confirm that they'd be suitable I'll pop into my local Panasonic dealer and order one to be the guinea pig, or have someone in the US send one over. The second question is, when did the head units become Matsushita ones? My Civic was first registered in Feb '06. Apologies if I'm wondering off the beaten track and getting people's hopes up falsely; just thought it would be a beautifully simple solution that was worth exploring!

7th November 2006, 14:40	#4 (permalink)
YorkshirePud Valve Cap Join Date: 3rd November 2006 Location: West Yorkshire Posts: 21 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Were the better images in this thread? Good find karlak -- now to confirm when the units became Matsushita, and whether that cable will be the right fit. I'm certainly willing to spend £40 to find out if someone with more experience in car audio can confirm that the two are likely to link... Last edited by YorkshirePud; 7th November 2006 at 14:43.

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This thread is about: Possible iPod solution?, it's in Ipods, MP3 Players and ICE at the Honda Civic forum Civinfo; I notice from this thread that the head unit in the Civics has now been sourced from Matsushita (Panasonic). I used to work for a ...

7th November 2006, 14:35	#2 (permalink)
richierich Smell My Cheese! Rocketship door handle Join Date: 17th May 2006 Location: Bicester, Oxfordshire Posts: 1,844 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Can't quite see from the photo on that thread where the connection is for the cable, theres a better photo somewhere. (Anyone recall where)

7th November 2006, 14:40	#3 (permalink)
karlak Triangular Exhaust Join Date: 3rd June 2006 Posts: 432 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	http://www.caraudiocentre.co.uk/prod...?product=21628

7th November 2006, 15:52	#5 (permalink)
Colin Jolly Supporter Valve Cap Join Date: 31st October 2006 Location: Witham St Hughs, Lincoln Posts: 40 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	I see a lot of discussion about ipod, but I have an MP3 player 20Gb IAudio X5 to be precise and all I want to do is plug the cable in and listen to Music........is that really so difficult?

7th November 2006, 16:33	#7 (permalink)
Bungle Rocketship door handle Join Date: 3rd July 2006 Location: SE London/Kent Posts: 1,217 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	I am *really* dissapointed that the official Honda one is for iPods only. I have a 20Gig Sony walkman with all my music on. What is wrong with a 3.5mm jack to plug it into?? It wold be far easier and cheaper than this solution Honda have come up with. It would also work with anything that has a headphone jack. Come on Honda! Wake up! For now I will stick with my FM transmitter to listen to it on the radio. Not perfect, but it works well enough...

7th November 2006, 16:40	#8 (permalink)
Colin Jolly Supporter Valve Cap Join Date: 31st October 2006 Location: Witham St Hughs, Lincoln Posts: 40 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	I am using the same Bungle and the quality is not good. COME ON HONDA HELP US OUT

7th November 2006, 16:44	#9 (permalink)
YorkshirePud Valve Cap Join Date: 3rd November 2006 Location: West Yorkshire Posts: 21 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	I think the appeal for manufacturers and users alike with an iPod integration kit is that they have the potential to display track info on the car's display system, and change track using the car's controls, rather than the mp3 player's screen and buttons. (This isn't possible with a simple line input.) I think that operating a phone or mp3 player whilst driving is illegal in the UK, and since the iPod is the main mass-market player that offers more than just a stereo output manufacturers are probably right in concentrating their efforts on it. Adding a line in on the front of the unit is encouraging people to plug their mp3 units in and operate them whilst driving; convenient, yes, but certainly not as safe. Back to the thread topic -- does anyone know the model number of the 06 Civic's Panasonic head unit? I can't quite make it out from the pics I've seen so far...

7th November 2006, 17:00	#11 (permalink)
basegreen Super Moderator Civinfo guru Join Date: 15th April 2006 Location: noitacoL Posts: 2,865 Thanks: 0 Thanked 2 Times in 2 Posts	You can skip up albums and tracks, but it's blind (at least on the non EX/GT versions)

7th November 2006, 17:06	#12 (permalink)
Civic Engineer Valve Cap Join Date: 18th October 2006 Location: Hertfordshire Posts: 23 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	mmmmm, I have been studying these posts about ipod connections for a while as I have an almost full 30gig ipod. In the end I sat down at my pc and burnt copies of my favourite playlists to CD, 20 CD's took me about 45 minutes and a cost of about £1, job done. One cd has about 10 hours of music on it, itunes puts them in folders the Civic can read (and display) and just noticed this morning that if you scroll through either the tracks or the folders and computer voice reads out the name (I thought that was pretty cool) never thought i could do without my ipod, but this works and got me putting together new playlists for the first time in a year! BTW I do have an FM transmitter which I used connected to the cig lighter and that worked pretty well aswell but wanted the display and control from the car.

7th November 2006, 17:22	#14 (permalink)
Civic Engineer Valve Cap Join Date: 18th October 2006 Location: Hertfordshire Posts: 23 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	No idea, it was doing it this morning, freaked me out to start with. Had a whole CD of MP3 burnt from Itunes, and as I was scrolling through the various folders to find an album to listen to, a computer type voice was reading them out for me!!!! I cant say I had heard this before.

7th November 2006, 17:26	#15 (permalink)
Bungle Rocketship door handle Join Date: 3rd July 2006 Location: SE London/Kent Posts: 1,217 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	I wonder if that's an EX only feature. My ES has cetrainly never done that for me. Please let us know how you got your car to read!

7th November 2006, 17:26	#16 (permalink)
Civic Engineer Valve Cap Join Date: 18th October 2006 Location: Hertfordshire Posts: 23 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	BUT how cool it that!!!! you dont have to take your eyes off the road

7th November 2006, 17:28	#17 (permalink)
richierich Smell My Cheese! Rocketship door handle Join Date: 17th May 2006 Location: Bicester, Oxfordshire Posts: 1,844 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Runs outside to play with the car

7th November 2006, 17:31	#18 (permalink)
Civic Engineer Valve Cap Join Date: 18th October 2006 Location: Hertfordshire Posts: 23 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	I burnt that CD at the same time as the others but not heard this on the one or two I have played, however this was maybe the first time i had let it read the whole disk before playing, maybe its part of the EX's thang but when your half awake and a mystery voice says....Megadeth.....metallica... etc, it wakes you up

7th November 2006, 17:34	#19 (permalink)
richierich Smell My Cheese! Rocketship door handle Join Date: 17th May 2006 Location: Bicester, Oxfordshire Posts: 1,844 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	You sure you weren't listening to the Top40 read by Stephen Hawkings?? Mine is quiet......

7th November 2006, 17:57	#20 (permalink)
Civic Engineer Valve Cap Join Date: 18th October 2006 Location: Hertfordshire Posts: 23 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Look at the music I listen to, maybe it has something to do with a pact i made with the devil at a crossroads a long time ago!