Hey there, I have a 06' Prius and my brother just got an 07' Camry. We both have JBL with the AUX input jack. Our radio and CD's same perfect! When we use the iPod (so the AUX jack) on any of our cars, many songs (although I'd say 60% of them have quite a bit of bass) will what I call "crack" not the whole song but certain parts... That same song, cranked up on CD or radio sounds just fine. Any thoughts? I asked the Toyota Customer Experience Center number and she said that the dealer would be a better person to ask because they could listen to it. I don't know if that's just how it is (kinda lame to me), a defect or whatever. Any help or recommendations would be greatly appreciated!
For me, three things helped: The first was a ground loop isolator. But if you don't hear a hum over the speakers when you have your iPod plugged in, then you don't need this. The second thing that helped (I discovered last night) was to make sure the volume on your iPod is not up all the way. Turning it down a bit (to maybe 3/4), and then adjusting the volume on the stereo eliminated practically all the distortion I was hearing. Lastly, check the built-in EQ on your iPod--I remember when I bought a Bose powered speaker unit I was not impressed with the sound until I boosted the bass and adjusted the iPod's EQ. There's also a setting in iTunes that adjusts the volume of all your songs so they are all around the same volume; that may make a difference as well. Hope this helps!
Thanks for the reply! I will tell my brother and see if that helps. (Did you have any "cracking"?) If not, I guess I will have dealer look at it? But because it's both cars and only on AUX, then I bet it is something like you described... Thanks again.
Well I guess you could call it cracking--the bass sounded really fuzzy and everything sounded distorted during louder parts of songs. Now it all sounds quite good, even at high volume, and I only have the standard issue 5-speaker (non-JBL) sound system. Post back whether or not any of this helped if you get the chance! I just noticed you're from Fresno--I lived there for a couple of years back in 1989. Corner of Olive and Peach, by the airport. I miss your weather!
If you crank up the volume too high on your iPod, it will overdrive the input on the stereo. Adjust the volume on the iPod down until it sounds the same as when played with a CD. Tom
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Warwind @ Nov 22 2006, 05:47 PM) [snapback]353253[/snapback]</div> Where did you get your ground loop isolator? RICK #4 2006
You can also try direct output, rather than going through the headphone jack on your i-pod. I found that this improved the sound 100% not only louder but much better quality. I found a great little devise from a company called Sendstation.com Cheers
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Jmadison @ Nov 24 2006, 07:45 PM) [snapback]353833[/snapback]</div> That's right. The iPod puts out "higher definition" sound through the docking port than through the headphone jack. You can access this port in your car through either the Sendstation device mentioned above, or through the DICE integration package.
