AUX Cable Problem - Learn From This!

[El Pollo Diablo]

This has been written many times before, but clearly not obviously enough; hence I am writing this topic.

I have recently decided to do the AUX cable upgrade for my car. I read the relevant forum topics (not in enough detail ) and decided to order this: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/262197928965?_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT



Only £1.45. So I said why not. The cable arrived from China within a week. Got the radio out and connected the cable to the necessary place:


....and nothing happened (although the pins were installed in the correct slots). No AUX option. Nothing. Later I decided to search for "AUX cable problem" within the forum, to find what was wrong. Apparently, you need a cable with some kind of capacitor & resistor combination for the radio to go into AUX mode. :headbang:

So the cheap cable from China looks the part, but doesn't do what it's supposed to do... :x :x
Now, I know that soldering these capacitor resistor combo is not something difficult for the electronically inclined, but I really couldn't be bothered.

So I ordered this one insted, from a British chap colled Rory: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/301066788151?_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT



This one worked immediately. You can see the bits whe soldered on to the cable under a bulge in shrink tube. I drilled the hole in the access panel and the job was done within minutes.


So the moral of the story is, think twice before buying cheap parts off of Ebay. Also read the forum thread properly to avid annoying delays.

 

[kammy1975]

Great post and thanks for the heads up. Nearly made the mistake of buying cheap and twice !

Had read about the fruity car cables on another post, so know where my money is going.

Is there any interference/poor earth on the cable at high volume levels ?

Kam

 

[El Pollo Diablo]

Hi Kam,

I installed the cable today and didn't have a chance to try it at very high volumes. It sounded okay to me. I will try it with higher volume during my commute tomorrow and let you know!

 

[El Pollo Diablo]

Great post and thanks for the heads up. Nearly made the mistake of buying cheap and twice !

Had read about the fruity car cables on another post, so know where my money is going.

Is there any interference/poor earth on the cable at high volume levels ?

Kam

Hi Kam,
I tried it during my commute this morning. It sounds good to me even at higher volumes. I only have the standard sound system. I don't know what the effect would be if you have sub-woofers.
The socket is a bit on the flimsy side. Don't expect a tight fit of the 3.5mm jack, like you would have on an iphone or any other professionally built device.
Also the one sold by Fruity Cables doesn't come with the clip on the socket end. The Chinese one clipped into place, whereas this one just stays there by a tight fit, which is fine.

 

[kammy1975]

Great post and thanks for the heads up. Nearly made the mistake of buying cheap and twice !

Had read about the fruity car cables on another post, so know where my money is going.

Is there any interference/poor earth on the cable at high volume levels ?

Kam

Hi Kam,
I tried it during my commute this morning. It sounds good to me even at higher volumes. I only have the standard sound system. I don't know what the effect would be if you have sub-woofers.
The socket is a bit on the flimsy side. Don't expect a tight fit of the 3.5mm jack, like you would have on an iphone or any other professionally built device.
Also the one sold by Fruity Cables doesn't come with the clip on the socket end. The Chinese one clipped into place, whereas this one just stays there by a tight fit, which is fine.

Appreciate you doing that. I have the 10 speaker Non Carver setup, so will get one ordered and feedback on the sound quality with my setup.

Have a bluetooth receiver which can be used via an Aux port and moved from car to car. Ideal to get Audio streaming from your phone, but also handsfree calling for a little over £20 !

Cheers
Kam

 

[archieuk84]

I installed this exact cable myself a week or so ago, despite not being the least bit technically minded and having no idea about car electronics.

YouTube is your friend here and drilling a 3.5mm hole into the panel under the climate controls (with a bit of reaming to fit the female jack socket) was simple enough to plug in the iPhone.

For what it's worth I think the sound quality is very, very good indeed - there is a slight bit of extra white noise at very high volumes but you really have to crank it up to hear that and I would say that's more to do with playback (i.e. input) quality from the iPhone than the cable. Any playback from an MP3 file is limited in sound quality through a 'proper' sound system.

I would say you wouldn't notice it at normal driving speeds and certainly not on the motorway with cabin noise (or with the roof down).

Don't hesitate to do it, well worth it.

 

[El Pollo Diablo]

One more point to note. As you have the bluetooth, you will find that the spot for the aux in will already be occupied by your bluetooth socket. However, there will still be empty slots within the socket (slots 3,4 & 10) for the aux in. These two functions will have to share the same socket an therefore, I think you will have to insert the pins to the relative slots on the existing socket (I am not entirely sure).
What I know is, Rory from Fruity Car Cables, asks you if you have the bluetooth or the Satnav, before he even sends you the item. I am guessing he will guide you through the steps to keep both functions. He was really helpful and replies within minutes.

 

[kammy1975]

One more point to note. As you have the bluetooth, you will find that the spot for the aux in will already be occupied by your bluetooth socket. However, there will still be empty slots within the socket (slots 3,4 & 10) for the aux in. These two functions will have to share the same socket an therefore, I think you will have to insert the pins to the relative slots on the existing socket (I am not entirely sure).
What I know is, Rory from Fruity Car Cables, asks you if you have the bluetooth or the Satnav, before he even sends you the item. I am guessing he will guide you through the steps to keep both functions. He was really helpful and replies within minutes.

Thanks for the heads up. But to clarify, I wasnt referring to the OEM Factory Bluetooth, I use a small bluetooth receiver which plugs into a Aux receiver, and takes power from a USB charger plugged into the cigarette lighter ( has internal battery so can be charged and used without external power supply) so I shouldnt have the problem you mention. However, I do have Sat Nav, so will make Rory aware before ordering.

Was planning to order sooner, but realised that my CD changer isnt behaving, which got me thinking that maybe a previous owner has already messed around with the system, so will pull the headunit this weekend if time allows, to see what is wired and what isnt.

Thanks
Kam

 

[IamMurdock]

had the same issue with the cheap Chinese wire. just ordered the one you suggested, could have soldered the resistors and caps but to be perfectly honest, i cant be arsed.

 

[RayM]

This has been written many times before, but clearly not obviously enough; hence I am writing this topic.

I have recently decided to do the AUX cable upgrade for my car. I read the relevant forum topics (not in enough detail ) and decided to order this: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/262197928965?_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT



Only £1.45. So I said why not. The cable arrived from China within a week. Got the radio out and connected the cable to the necessary place:


....and nothing happened (although the pins were installed in the correct slots). No AUX option. Nothing. Later I decided to search for "AUX cable problem" within the forum, to find what was wrong. Apparently, you need a cable with some kind of capacitor & resistor combination for the radio to go into AUX mode. :headbang:

So the cheap cable from China looks the part, but doesn't do what it's supposed to do... :x :x
Now, I know that soldering these capacitor resistor combo is not something difficult for the electronically inclined, but I really couldn't be bothered.

So I ordered this one insted, from a British chap colled Rory: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/301066788151?_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT



This one worked immediately. You can see the bits whe soldered on to the cable under a bulge in shrink tube. I drilled the hole in the access panel and the job was done within minutes.


So the moral of the story is, think twice before buying cheap parts off of Ebay. Also read the forum thread properly to avid annoying delays.

Sorry to hijack your thread a little but by luck rather than judgement and with the help of a kind soul on here, I too have ordered one of the cables from Rory. How easy a job is it to fit? Do you just plug it in? I'm not very technically minded I'm afraid. Do the vents come out easily too?

Cheers

 

[russ67]

If anyone else is after one of these cables I have a spare (bought one when I first bought the car before realising the previous owner had already installed)

Can have it for a tenner

 

[El Pollo Diablo]

How easy a job is it to fit? Do you just plug it in? I'm not very technically minded I'm afraid. Do the vents come out easily too?

Hi Ray,

It is very easy once you remove the vents. Removing Vents was the only annoying bit. But if you read the tutorials on the forum it is not that difficult.

Have a look at this one: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QURjgGNsxLs

Once you remove the vents, you just need to undo two philips screws to release the radio. Then you just plug the cable into the empty socket (if you have bluetooth or satnav, you may need to do a bit more. Ask Rory for this).

Cheers

 

[RayM]

Ok thanks buddy ill take a look at that.

 

[IamMurdock]

Got the cable, installed as instructed, still doesn't work. 15 quid wasted.

 

[mr.tourette]

Got the cable, installed as instructed, still doesn't work. 15 quid wasted.

Get in touch with rory... he will send you a replacement

 

[IamMurdock]

Fixed it!!

 

[IamMurdock]

Got the cable, installed as instructed, still doesn't work. 15 quid wasted.

Get in touch with rory... he will send you a replacement

disregard my last, plugged it in but somehow missed a row of pins so the bottom row of pins where the only ones plugged in1 my bad, great help from Rory in sorting it out!

 

[RoryW]

Hello all!

I tend to every so often have a quick google on myself, very vain you may think

It's not, i like to see what people think or indeed how we/I can improve our product and service. Its nice to see people realising what you get for a couple of £. I know we may be a little more expensive but service and components do unfortunately mean i cannot get down to £3 like the HK specials you get from eBay and Amazon. One of the reasons we have made the website shop live and started to make an attempt to separate ourselves from eBay.

Anyone wishing to order, and i hope this is ok with Admin! Ive added a small discount section for forums and groups to order from. A small discount BUT still if i save on eBay fee's its only fair thats past onto the buyers.

The Z4 cable has an option for you Bluetooth/Nav users, we will supply crimped (OEM) or plugged depending on your spec.

link : https://goo.gl/engzBe

Thanks to all who have mentioned me, our product and indeed service including after support if required