Not joined yet? Register for free and enjoy features such as alerts, private messaging and viewing latest posts and topics.

AUX DIY

Post Reply
User avatar
bribrolly
Member
Member
Posts: 57
Joined: Tue Apr 27, 2010 12:39 pm
Location: Newcastle

Re: AUX DIY

Post by bribrolly » Sun Jan 16, 2011 11:22 pm

fixit man wrote: Hi,

I know it's a bit late ...but I got a lead (PC7-BMW-01 AUX) from incartunes.co.uk for about £8 for my 2004 Z4 and it worked ok, they did need to send me a second one with a resistor installed to get the "aux" to come up on my radio when I scrolled through the mode switch.

Talk to Dave he's very helpfull

Regards.
fixit man
just ordered one for £12 (£8 + £2 for prewired resistors and £2 vat) free delivery
Image

ajs
Member
Member
Posts: 71
Joined: Sat Dec 18, 2010 9:50 pm
Location: Thompson Norfolk

Re: AUX DIY

Post by ajs » Mon Jan 17, 2011 12:23 am

Just fitted my aux lead in rear compartment so i can keep ipod out of view and no leads are visible.
Purchased form ebay, mod18 username. Excellent quality and the guy will make the lead to your required length so you can fit it like mine into rear compartment.
APPLE IPOD connector, but he can supply lead with jack plugs if required.
Sound is great.
Basic controls of volume on steering wheel and rest on ipod. No charging but this is no problem as i charge from cig lighter when needed.

User avatar
ElchTest
Newbie
Newbie
Posts: 49
Joined: Sun Mar 20, 2011 4:16 pm
Location: Gothenburg

Re: AUX DIY

Post by ElchTest » Fri Mar 25, 2011 10:43 pm

XGE wrote:I did it this week end...almost impossible to take the central vents out as they previously had been teared off and back with glue :thumbsdown:
So I have the AUX but I have lost the SatNav guidance voice :headbang:
Wonder if that is what has happened here too.

I can't find either clip, but the vents are impossible to get out.

Image

So far I have destroyed my fingers, probably scratched my interior in lots of places and in the process managed to revoke my Mensa membership and engineering degree. Also, that is one nightclub I will never be able to use the VIP card at again, but I guess I can't afford to drink after buying this car anyhow.

Image

jjewett
Newbie
Newbie
Posts: 1
Joined: Fri Apr 15, 2011 1:17 am

Re: AUX DIY

Post by jjewett » Fri Apr 15, 2011 1:23 am

Hi all, just joined the board and purchased my 2005 Z4 3.0i last week. Based on the immensely helpful info I found here, I managed to self-install the Aux Input cable I picked up from my local Mini dealership (the one terminating into an 1/8" jack). Running my iPhone through the input, I too noticed the weak bass response noted by others compared to CD playback. I need to enable the "Jazz Club" DSP setting to even come close to approximating the bass definition I get from the CD player, and I truly despise using any DSP presets by nature, as they sound exaggerated and over processed (as does the Z4's).

In looking through this thread, it seems some of you may have found an alternate cable which alleviates this problem (likely through a different capacitor/resistor combination)???

Can anyone confirm if this is the case, hopefully someone who has done an A/B comparison between the BMW/Mini cable and a 3rd party version?

Many thanks!
Jeff

planetibo
Newbie
Newbie
Posts: 13
Joined: Thu Jan 28, 2010 4:34 pm

Re: AUX DIY

Post by planetibo » Mon May 09, 2011 6:32 pm

planetibo wrote:I installed a cable to DIY with 330kohms resistance and capacitors 220nF.
I have NAV PRO HIFI DSP PRO 10 speakers.
At this outlet, I plug the iphone with a dock cable.
Image

I compared a music on CD, and auxiliary input: Sound through the AUX lack of bass...

I have use this capacitors:
Image

This capacitor is better?
Image

I have test without resitors and without capacitors: No AUX...
I have test with resitors and without capacitors: Aux appears, but, when i plug the iphone, I hear the sound half a second and AUX disappears.
I'm surprised because this person does not use capacitors. The sound is better without capacitors.
http://www.m5board.com/vbulletin/attach ... arness.pdf


What capacitor should I use so it does not have a high pass filter ?

Am I alone in finding that the sound is less good with the AUX that CD?

planetibo
Newbie
Newbie
Posts: 13
Joined: Thu Jan 28, 2010 4:34 pm

Re: AUX DIY

Post by planetibo » Fri May 13, 2011 1:31 pm

jjewett wrote:Hi all, just joined the board and purchased my 2005 Z4 3.0i last week. Based on the immensely helpful info I found here, I managed to self-install the Aux Input cable I picked up from my local Mini dealership (the one terminating into an 1/8" jack). Running my iPhone through the input, I too noticed the weak bass response noted by others compared to CD playback. I need to enable the "Jazz Club" DSP setting to even come close to approximating the bass definition I get from the CD player, and I truly despise using any DSP presets by nature, as they sound exaggerated and over processed (as does the Z4's).

In looking through this thread, it seems some of you may have found an alternate cable which alleviates this problem (likely through a different capacitor/resistor combination)???

Can anyone confirm if this is the case, hopefully someone who has done an A/B comparison between the BMW/Mini cable and a 3rd party version?

Many thanks!
Jeff
Have you find a solution for the "weak bass problem"?

User avatar
GCB
Member
Member
Posts: 50
Joined: Thu Oct 28, 2010 4:58 am

Re: AUX DIY

Post by GCB » Sat May 21, 2011 5:37 pm

A couple of people have mentioned the 3.5mm jack offers inferior sound quality. This connection can offer superb sound quality to your earphones so why does it suddenly become inadequate when connecting it to a car stereo?
2003 Z4 3.0i SE, Steel Grey, Black/Aluminium Interior, 108's, Xenons, Prof. Carver Stereo, Heated Seats, C/Control, Electric Fold Mirrors

GNH
Newbie
Newbie
Posts: 29
Joined: Thu Jan 27, 2011 10:52 pm

Re: AUX DIY

Post by GNH » Tue Jun 14, 2011 7:19 pm

Trying to forget that I had a piano black fascia and armed with the pearls of wisdom from this forum + two screwdrivers and a couple of credit cards I got those vents out in about 10 minutes, no scratches...phew!

Instead of BMW's handsomely priced offering I used this aux cable which is about half price

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/BMW-Aux-Input-Cab ... 5163265708 If the link doesn't work I just Googled the BMW part number and the page soon came up.

I figured the seller knew his stuff because he mentions the Z4 Bluetooth plug conundrum and even sends out a special instruction document for it.

Anyay it turned up nice and quick and I'm pleased to say it's all in and everything sounds great using a cable to the aux socket that has the Ipod dock connector to a USB (for charging) and 3.5mm jack. No problems with weedy bass or low volume like I get in my Merc so the cable must be a good one.

One weird thing is my car (reg Sept 06) definitely has functioning Bluetoth but the famous plug was not where I expected it to be on the back of the head unit so in the end I didn't need to faff with the wires.

Anyhow thanks to all previous posters for making this such an easy job. Off to Spain in the Zed next month so just got the ipod full of the right stuff, can you imagine how many CDs I would have needed?

muslcemanpham
Newbie
Newbie
Posts: 1
Joined: Tue Jul 20, 2010 10:22 pm

Re: AUX DIY

Post by muslcemanpham » Sat Aug 27, 2011 9:42 pm

i've had no problems with the install, just saying thank you for all of this information you guys posted on this thread

EDIT: and be being a tech geek i noticed you guys liking clear sound... you should use gold plated aux cables, such as the monster icable which is around 15 dollars
it helps dealing with humidity, corrosion and wear and tear

p4cks
Member
Member
Posts: 111
Joined: Wed Jun 01, 2011 7:20 pm
Location: Newcastle-ish

Re: AUX DIY

Post by p4cks » Thu Sep 15, 2011 7:49 pm

I fitted the cable, have the AUX option on the headunit but can no hear anything through the headunit. Seems strange.

T2FFN
Senior Member
Senior Member
Posts: 1855
Joined: Sun May 03, 2009 9:04 pm
Location: East Yorkshire

Re: AUX DIY

Post by T2FFN » Sun Mar 24, 2013 12:36 am

Does anyone know if the original CD Changer Aux in carries the video signal also? I have added an AV input which is passed through the Aux function, but it doesn't work so I'm thinking I'll need to remove the headphone aux in cable to let me use the AV input.
3.0i

ATPDK
Member
Member
Posts: 164
Joined: Mon Oct 29, 2012 7:59 pm
Location: Midtjylland

Re: AUX DIY

Post by ATPDK » Sat May 11, 2013 4:04 pm

Would this work?
It would be even more nice with the USB slot. :wink:
http://www.ebay.de/itm/BMW-AUX-IN-USB-B ... 2ec7f19e67


Or... Where else can I get the AUX cable? Some of the links in this thread is being old and dead.
Image

ST Nathan
Newbie
Newbie
Posts: 3
Joined: Wed Aug 04, 2010 6:29 am

Re: AUX DIY

Post by ST Nathan » Sun Jul 07, 2013 2:43 am

I just did the aux input install using the mini cable, and am finding that if I turn the volume up more than about halfway I can hear a noticeable hiss; if I turn it up all the way, I can clearly hear the FM station that the radio is tuned to! Note that this happens even without anything even plugged into the aux cable, so there's certainly no ground loop. (Also happens if I plus my phone in though; again, not charging, so no ground loop.) It seems like there's crosstalk going on between the AUX input and the FM receiver right inside the deck.

I... have no idea how to go about solving this. I can't imagine how the cable could be at fault since it happens even when it's not connected to anything. Have others experienced this? Is my stereo itself faulty? I mean, I can still use the aux input at low volume, but it kind of sucks not being able to turn it up without it sounding like a bad FM receiver...

Guh, after almost two hours fighting with the vents (I'm convinced that some people's metal clips are more recessed than others, but that's another story...) I was hoping it would just work!

AlexB
Newbie
Newbie
Posts: 31
Joined: Mon Sep 16, 2013 4:06 pm

Re: AUX DIY

Post by AlexB » Mon Sep 30, 2013 7:37 pm

HI Guys,


just to chuck another posibility in the mix i just installed this usb/aux input from ebay as i needed both Aux and usb for dice media bridge, did toy with installing it in the ashtray but this was an easy solution.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/200956965313? ... 1439.l2649 "Car Dash Mount Installation USB/Aux"

Image

Image

Sorry for the shocking picuture

budfox
Member
Member
Posts: 358
Joined: Sun Dec 01, 2013 12:31 pm
Location: Somerset

Re: AUX DIY

Post by budfox » Thu Mar 06, 2014 9:58 pm

Just did this job without too much difficulty.

Used this cable from eBay:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/301066788151? ... 1497.l2649

Getting the air vents out was fairly easy, I recommend a nice bright light so that the catches can be seen. Once you've got the idea a couple of flat bladed screwdrivers are all that's needed. Disconnecting the aeriel lead was a bit tricky because it was very tight. The connector looks like it has something to release but it doesn't.

Once that was out it was plain sailing to put the new cable in. I had no autochanger fitted so the lead went into an empty socket. It fits either way, but the correct way is with the two leads to the plug on top once fitted, single lead on the lower row of the two.

One final gotcha is that there needs to be an audio source connected or the radio won't allow AUX at all.

30 minutes all in, and something to protect the trim is a must. That radio has sharp edges and if I'd scratched my piano black I'd have gone bonkers.
Used to ownd a 3.0si Roadster in Some Kind of Grey with Black Leather - 28k miles on a '56 plate. Foam removed, stubby fitted, stubby removed again, AUX fitted.

Post Reply