http://www.mp3load.ws/mp3-car-stereo-usb/
Choosing a Car Stereo
With the huge choice of car audio equipment available today it is often difficult to decide what car stereo would best suit your needs. This article will hopefully help you negotiate the technical minefield and make the best choice for your requirements.
There are two main contributing factors to the quality of the audio that is produced by any audio equipment which are the frequency response and signal-to-noise ratio (SNR). The frequency response of the ear is around 20Hz to 20KHz although this often diminishes with age. A ‘loud’ facility is sometimes provide to boost the frequencies that become degraded with age. The SNR is important as it is what constitutes the background hiss that is often associated with cheaper audio equipment.
The car stereo or head unit today can play audio from a wide variety of sources which we will now discuss below.
Cassette Deck
If the reason for replacing your car stereo is to allow you to play your CD’s or music from your iPod then please be aware that it is possible to purchase equipment that allows you to play music from an external source. These specialised adapters look like a cassette with a flying lead that plugs into your alternate music source ie iPod, CD player etc. This is often a very cheap and easy alternative if funds are tight!
Audio Cassettes in general do not give as good an audio experience as CD players as their frequency response and SNR is often inferior to that of modern digital equipment.
Although cassette tape sales have declined extensively it is still possible to purchase due to the amount of tapes that are still out there however as a long term investment a CD or MP3 player would probably be a better choice.
CD player
The CD has been around for many years now and is well established in the market-place. A CD can store its information in a multitude of formats but the most popular at the moment is usually just referred to as an Audio CD in the specifications. These are the CD’s that you can buy of the shelf from any major music retail shop.
As with all technology the the common audio format is under threat by a relatively new format referred to as MP3. MP3 is a digital audio compression technique that allows much more audio to be squeezed onto a single CD. A typical compressed song will be roughly 4-6MB depending upon the quality of the audio and a typical CD can store around 700MB of data. So you can see that you can store many more songs using MP3 technology than with the conventional music CD’s.
It is also possible to purchase a head unit that has a remote CD player or CD changer. A CD changer is like a mini duke box that can be located in your boot, glove compartment etc. They typically have between 6 and 12 CD’s within them and often support the ability to play songs randomly between all the CD’s.
USB/Memory Card
With the rapid adoption of MP3 format and the availability of cheap USB memory sticks car audio manufacturers have started to adopt USB ports on their equipment as standard. A USB stick or memory card can be thought of as a very small CD usually about a couple of inches long and about half an inch wide but capable of storing vastly more information than a conventional CD. Something to check when buying a head unit supporting this feature is the upper memory limit of the USB stick or memory card. Typical memory cards today are around 2-4GB which would store many albums however these sizes may not be supported by the head unit.
If you purchase a head unit supporting this type of media then you’ll need to make sure that you have a method of getting the music from you CD collection onto the memory stick. This will involve ‘ripping’ the audio and copying it onto the memory. There are many programs available for doing this such as Windows Media Player.
Radio
Most people are familiar with car radio’s and understand what to look for when purchasing one. However something to keep in mind when looking is the uptake of DAB radio which is the new digital transmission method.
DAB radio uses modern digital compression techniques to offer a greater variety of music and programmes as well as short messages etc that often appear of the display. Since this is a new format and isn’t widely adopted as the mainstream format most DAB radios also still support FM transmissions.
The DIN form factor
Finally something which should be overlooked is the form factor and connections for the head-unit. With early cars there wasn’t really a standard which led to all sorts of problems when replacing the factor standard unit. However there is now a standard size referred to as the DIN which is 2 1/8″ (50mm) tall and 7 1/8″ (180mm) wide and double-DIN which is twice as tall as the standard DIN size.
The connectors used to plug the stereo in are fairly common but there is no one standard connector. Luckily due to the size of the problem there are many different types of adaptor readily available in most car audio shops.
One problem often experience with fitting new audio equipment is with the memory ‘forgetting’ its settings. This is often due to the power supply wires to the head unit being switched over. To over come this problem the manufacturers of the cabling adapters easily enable the yellow and red wire to be interchanged which will fix the problem.
It is always worth checking out many retailers before making a selection on a head unit and I would recommend searching a car audio directory for the best choice.
About the Author
The author is part of the Just Customz website where you can find news, pictures and reviews relating to lowriders and modified cars. You can also fine great resources in the automotive directory.
Car MP3 Player with Bluetooth Handsfree function from Merln Digital
|
|
Bosch PB360D Deluxe Power Box Jobsite Radio $209.99 … |
|
|
DEWALT DC012 Worksite Charger/Radio $313.52 Save time and get more done on the job site with the DEWALT DC012 Work Site Charger/Radio. This dual-function tool provides quick and efficient Lithium Ion or nicad battery charging, and a radio/MP3-plug-in function. Its rugged design stands up to the rigors of the job site, while its digital controls and advanced functions make operation simple and reliable.Work Site Charger/RadioAt a Glance:Radi… |
|
|
Belkin Conserve Valet with Energy-Saving USB Charging Station $39.99 Most chargers continue to use power as long as they’re plugged into the wall, even after you unplug your device. The Conserve Valet Smart USB Charging Station lets you charge all of your mobile devices in one convenient place, and automatically shuts off power, including standby power, after devices are fully charged. It even senses when new devices are added so you always get a full charge, and h… |
|
|
Syba SD-CM-UAUD USB Stereo Audio Adapter, C-Media Chipset, RoHS $6.98 Description:Upgrade, replace, or fix desktop/laptop sound in a minute.Features: USB Stereo Audio Adapter, RoHS Compliant with USB 2.0 Full Speed (12Mbps) Specification Compliant with USB Audio Device Class Specification 1.0 Compliant with USB HID Class Specification 1.1 USB bus-powered mode, no external power required. Connectors: USB Type-A, Stereo output jack, Mono microphone-input jack LED indi… |
|
|
Virtual 5.1-surround USB 2.0 External Sound Card $0.01 Instead of struggling to reach your computer’s ports on the back, wouldn’t it be nice to connect your speakers or microphone to the front? This simple adapter adds a microphone-in and an audio-out port to your computer through a USB port. It’s a great way to connect peripherals whose cords aren’t long enough to reach around the back of your PC…. |
|
|
Logitech Mini Boombox for Smartphones, Tablets and Laptops – Black (984-000204) $75.00 You can also listen for up to 10 hours straight on the rechargeable, internal battery. The Logitech 984-000204 Mini Boombox also provides backlit, touch panel controls, handy speakerphone, and is perfect for travel…. |
|
|
DURAGADGET 3.5mm Audio Stereo Jack cable Aux plug for Motorola Droid $0.89 This high quality 1m cable is designed to allow your ipod, mp3 player, phone etc to play music via your car, speakers, TV system or any item with a 3.5mm sound port. This cable ensures an amazing connection to maximize sound quality. Be warned of other sellers offereing cheap cables with poor connections and sound quality, make sure you get the best out of your device!… |
|
|
Attractive Back Cover Case for iPod Touch 4G + Clear Screen Protector + USB Car Charger + iTouch USB Wall Charger + Black handsfree earphones “This Package includes: # Protect and personalize your 4th generation iPod touch with this soft-touch Rubberized form-fitting hard shell cover. Protects your iPod touch 4G without adding a lot of bulk. # Case snaps on to the back of the 4th generation iPod touch and allows access to all iPod functions. # Screen protector prevents your ipod screen from getting scratched. Film is totally clear – no… |
|
|
DURAGADGET Pure HQ OFC 3.5mm Stereo Jack to 2 RCA Phono Plugs Cable Gold 2m for Creative T100 TX TX FM USB 2.0 $9.99 3.5mm Jack (headphone jack) to two phonos (RCA) plugs This is a top quality cable with thick Digital Fully Shielded High Definition OFC (Oxygen Free Copper) cable suitable for home cinema and digital stereo hi-fi systems, using high quality gold plated ends. Usually used to connect a computer/personal stereo/ipod to a hi-fi or other speaker system with RCA Phono connections. The jack is a stereo c… |
|
|
Apple iPod shuffle 2 GB Silver (2nd Generation) OLD MODEL $69.99 Using either witchcraft, fairy dust or highly gifted engineers (we’re not sure which), Apple has created an iPod Shuffle of an almost impossibly small size. Only slightly bigger than a U.S. quarter, this teensy-weensy device packs 2GB of Storage space. Enough for up to 480 of your favorite songs! Apple also attached a clip to the back of the Shuffle, so you can wear it anywhere for skip-free Mus… |
