Quick Q: USB vs. AUX...which for best sound quality?

Probably no difference on audio quality as the iPod connector includes both analog audio pins as well as the actual USB pins. The USB interface is likely used only to enumerate tracks and issue commands while the actual audio signal is still analog.

 

You can control your ipod through your stereo. It is sort of a hassle though. When you go to switch tracks you scroll through the tracks and it changes the songs as you scroll, so you switch to a new song, it switches and starts to play, and then you switch again to find what song you want and it plays. Unless you really want the titles to show up on your stereo or need to charge your ipod, I usually just use the aux to play my ipod. Then control remains in the ipod and you can change your songs just as you were listening to it with head phones.

 

Theoretically, the USB is probably the best option, as the data is transmitted digitally, not in analog form. As digital data, there is no noise introduced, while an analog transmission (like Aux) will pick up noise from RF interference.
Practically, it depends on a lot of things; the quality of the MP3 decoder in the iPod versus that in the car, the amount of RF energy to be picked up, etc. If you're really concerned about it, get in the car with your friend, and have somebody else in the back seat switch the iPod between Aux and USB without telling you which you're listening to. Pick whichever sounds better. Or do an ABX comparison - listen to Aux, then to USB, then to an unknown one, and see if you can correctly identify which source it's coming from. Most likely, you won't be able to tell a difference.

As an aside, if you do use the Aux port, the best signal to noise ratio will be obtained if you have the iPod volume turned up all the way (or as high as you can without getting any clipping or other distortion in the sound), and the stereo's volume turned down to give an acceptable volume. That makes the signal strength on the analog path to the stereo much greater than the noise. The other way around (low volume on the iPod, high on the stereo) means that you end up amplifying the noise rather than attenuating it.

 

Might I suggest a third option? Depending upon which model you have, and the audio system capabilities. In my case, I have a Prius V with Navi, and I use the bluetooth streaming from my iPhone, my kids iPod Touch, or the iPad. In all cases, they stream beautifully in digital sound via this, and I have never had an issue with the sound quality.

Otherwise, I agree that USB should carry the signal better, and be less susceptible to interference than the 3.5mm audio plug.

 

While I did not pay for the 'iPod' controller which is available, my understanding with the USB is that it is only a portal to play sound, and does not control the iPods. If this is not the case, I would love to know more. My car was shipped before the USB became part of the 2010 vehicles.

Otherwise, you are correct that until Toyota upgrades the Bluetooth software in the vehicle, it will only allow you to 'play and pause' tunes via the screen.

 

You can skip tracks forward and back with USB.
The person has an iPod Classic, so bluetooth streaming is not an option for them unless they get some kind of add-on dongle.
Apple is the one that needs to upgrade their software on iPhones and iPod Touches to allow skipping tracks over bluetooth, not Toyota.

 

I was unaware of the skipping via the USB, as I've mentioned, I do not have that.

As for the OP, he did not state that he had an iPod Classic, only that he was "... considering an IPOD Classic with 160gb..." which is one of the reasons I went there. If he already had it, I would not have mentioned it. Although I stand by the fact that I feel that the streaming may be the best sounding option available, even if it's not available for every vehicle/device combination.

 

Bluetooth stereo streaming commonly has lower quality sound than either AUX or USB. It depends on how good the bluetooth implementation is on both the car and the phone, but A2DP streaming often has more limited fidelity than AUX or USB.

Often best to worse is CD, USB, headphone jack, A2DP streaming, Satellite, FM, AM.

 

If only there was an audio & electronics sub-forum for posts like this, so they wouldn't clog up the main Gen III forum.

Oh...wait...there is...

 

The USB interface allows you to charge and control your ipod. There are some problems with the toyota interface and you may prefer to navigate through your ipod directly. In this case you would use aux. Try it with the usb first and see if you like it, if you have problems I would go to aux and direct control on the ipod. The best sound on aux will come through a connector on the bottom with line out, not the headphone jack. I would expect both to sound good, and would choose depending on the way you want to control your music.

Only the ipod and iphone come with bt streaming and it doesn't give you as much control as usb. The sound quality is surprisingly good, but not as good as plugging the ipod directly into the car.

I have a nano which holds plenty of music, and is good for running and taking on trips. The classic can hold all of your music, but I find I have better luck paring it down to a huge but managable subset. With the classic you have enough room that you can decide on the fly. The other good choice is the 32gb touch which gives you wifi connectivity, blue tooth, and voice control (you can tell it to play an artist or album without looking at the screen). Don't get the 8gb touch it doesn't have voice control.

If you use losssless compression when ripping you get the full cd sound quality. I've moved most of my music at 320bit aac, but my classical music is ripped losslessly. The 256bit that your can buy at itunes store and amazon sounds good but I can notice the difference on some songs.

Have fun with your new toy. Having all the music at your fingertips without changing cds really will change the way you listen.