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July 10, 2012 12:40 PM Subscribe
I have a car with a tape deck and a CD player. I want to play my iDevice on it. I am thinking about going to a mechanic and having them install a radio with that component in it, or just adding a line out to plug into my device.
I'm in New York City.
1. Do you know how much this costs?
2. Do you know of a mechanic I should take my car to in order to get this done?
I'm in New York City.
1. Do you know how much this costs?
2. Do you know of a mechanic I should take my car to in order to get this done?
If you want a cheap and inelegant solution, these things work great for iPods. I used one for years.
posted by something something at 12:42 PM on July 10, 2012
posted by something something at 12:42 PM on July 10, 2012
I also used the cassette adapter (till the day my tape deck also died). They work like a charm
and are as cheap as it gets.
If you do decide to get a radio installed I recommend the usb port instead of just a line in. It allows for data transmission(such as song/album control from the radio itself) as well as charging your device usually.
posted by Twain Device at 12:45 PM on July 10, 2012
and are as cheap as it gets.
If you do decide to get a radio installed I recommend the usb port instead of just a line in. It allows for data transmission(such as song/album control from the radio itself) as well as charging your device usually.
posted by Twain Device at 12:45 PM on July 10, 2012
As long as your tape deck works, a cassette adapter seems like the simplest way to go. If the tape deck doesn't work, an RF adapter is more finicky and requires an empty FM station to broadcast on (usable stations can be hard to come by near cities), but would still be way cheaper.
posted by Holy Zarquon's Singing Fish at 12:46 PM on July 10, 2012
posted by Holy Zarquon's Singing Fish at 12:46 PM on July 10, 2012
I used a casette adapter for several magnificent years. I was pretty bummed that my new-to-me car didn't have a tape deck, making iDevice usage difficult. Get a casette adapter!
posted by Snarl Furillo at 12:47 PM on July 10, 2012
posted by Snarl Furillo at 12:47 PM on July 10, 2012
I don't have experience with a cassette adapter, but the RF adapters (where you basically create your own little radio station with your iDevice and tune in with your car radio) are uniformly awful.
posted by Blazecock Pileon at 12:50 PM on July 10, 2012
posted by Blazecock Pileon at 12:50 PM on July 10, 2012
I got my new radio installed by Best Buy. The install, kit, and radio itself was around 130 dollars or so I believe.
I have never had ANY luck with those RF transmitters. I live in an area where there are radio stations on nearly every frequency and its hard to find a "quiet" spot. I tried 4 or so different models and none of them worked. I probably spent about as much on those as I ended up paying for the radio but YMMV
posted by Twain Device at 12:52 PM on July 10, 2012
I have never had ANY luck with those RF transmitters. I live in an area where there are radio stations on nearly every frequency and its hard to find a "quiet" spot. I tried 4 or so different models and none of them worked. I probably spent about as much on those as I ended up paying for the radio but YMMV
posted by Twain Device at 12:52 PM on July 10, 2012
I settled for cassette adapters for too long - after a month or two, the rubber parts on the cogs start jamming and so it'll flip sides regularly for no reason, making it unlistenable. You can then either purchase a new one or remove the rubber bits, which makes it sound super creaky. You can get very cheap radios with aux inputs these days and you can probably negotiate to have it installed for free/cheap, around $100 for the radio + installation.
posted by one_bean at 12:53 PM on July 10, 2012 [1 favorite]
posted by one_bean at 12:53 PM on July 10, 2012 [1 favorite]
I bought a stereo for $120 from Crutchfield and installed it in my Honda Civic in about 30 minutes in my apartment parking lot with a basic set of tools.
I would just use the cassette adapter if you're inclined not to spend $85/hr for a mechanic to install a stereo that cost that much to begin with.
posted by vkxmai at 12:59 PM on July 10, 2012
I would just use the cassette adapter if you're inclined not to spend $85/hr for a mechanic to install a stereo that cost that much to begin with.
posted by vkxmai at 12:59 PM on July 10, 2012
I installed head unit in my car a couple years ago, after messing around with those cassette adapters and being very dissatisfied. The head unit I installed had a USB jack, which is preferable to an audio line in. There was a little soldering involved, but nothing too crazy.
There are also head units with Bluetooth, which might be preferable (if your iDevice also has Bluetooth). With the USB, you get to charge the iDevice while you're playing; with the Bluetooth, no wires to mess with. Make sure the head unit supports the A2DP profile, as some only support hands-free calling.
There are a few head units that let you dock an iDevice directly to them. These intrigue me, but with rumors that Apple is going to be changing the port on the iPhone, I'm a little hesitant to invest in one.
posted by adamrice at 12:59 PM on July 10, 2012
There are also head units with Bluetooth, which might be preferable (if your iDevice also has Bluetooth). With the USB, you get to charge the iDevice while you're playing; with the Bluetooth, no wires to mess with. Make sure the head unit supports the A2DP profile, as some only support hands-free calling.
There are a few head units that let you dock an iDevice directly to them. These intrigue me, but with rumors that Apple is going to be changing the port on the iPhone, I'm a little hesitant to invest in one.
posted by adamrice at 12:59 PM on July 10, 2012
I installed my own line adapter by taking out the radio and plugging it directly into the wiring behind the radio using a "harness" thing with a bunch of pins. I can select it on my radio because it's set at 88.3FM, but it's got near-perfect sound, as opposed to EVERY SINGLE stupid wireless adapter I have ever used.
This is basically the same as getting a new radio, but cheaper.
posted by Madamina at 1:29 PM on July 10, 2012
This is basically the same as getting a new radio, but cheaper.
posted by Madamina at 1:29 PM on July 10, 2012
Response by poster: I didn't ask about the cassette adapter because I don't particularly want to use the cassette adapter. I used one in my old car and it sounded like crap and only got worse over time.
posted by to sir with millipedes at 1:57 PM on July 10, 2012
posted by to sir with millipedes at 1:57 PM on July 10, 2012
In that case I have no specific recommendation for a new deck, but if you go the USB route make sure you can try the interface out before you get it installed. My new car plays MP3s through a USB connection, but it only goes folder by folder and has no function to put everything into a single playlist that can be reshuffled at will. Since that's how I like to listen to my music, I never use the feature.
posted by Holy Zarquon's Singing Fish at 2:03 PM on July 10, 2012
posted by Holy Zarquon's Singing Fish at 2:03 PM on July 10, 2012
I used to have a toyota with a tape deck and the option for a CD multichanger. Unusual, but if you happen to have the same, then this may be of interest.
I fitted one to my current car. Took about half an hour, and the only tools needed were the metal prongs to pull the radio out of the dashboard.
posted by sodium lights the horizon at 2:27 PM on July 10, 2012
I fitted one to my current car. Took about half an hour, and the only tools needed were the metal prongs to pull the radio out of the dashboard.
posted by sodium lights the horizon at 2:27 PM on July 10, 2012
Best advice is to go check out Crutchfield. They can help you figure out what will fit, show you a wide variety of prices, if there's some sort of factory adapter, all of that. It really depends on the type of car and all, but a basic stereo with a line-in can be had for not a lot, and in many cars can be installed with the factory speakers and all in less time than it would take to get to a stereo shop and back. Crutchfield also offers prepaid 'install cards' that hook you up with a local installer.
posted by pupdog at 2:31 PM on July 10, 2012
posted by pupdog at 2:31 PM on July 10, 2012
Yeah, I know nothing about cars and was able to install a head unit in mine (bearing in mind that my car was so cheap and basic it didn't come with one, so there was no old one to rip out). It was fussy and persnickety and took me a lot longer than a half an hour, but it wasn't really difficult.
Unless you have like a Beamer or some other kind of expensive car with a lot of built in electronics, I'd recommend just shopping around for a stereo which has the features you want and installing it yourself.
posted by Diablevert at 2:33 PM on July 10, 2012
Unless you have like a Beamer or some other kind of expensive car with a lot of built in electronics, I'd recommend just shopping around for a stereo which has the features you want and installing it yourself.
posted by Diablevert at 2:33 PM on July 10, 2012
The RF adaptor may work, but you need one that has an undocumented feature that allows it to go into international mode, so you can use the stations below 88.1, which are not used in the USA. However, given your location I'd be concerned about bleed over for the lower end of the FM dial.
This is the one I have. Works great around DC.
posted by COD at 3:28 PM on July 10, 2012
This is the one I have. Works great around DC.
posted by COD at 3:28 PM on July 10, 2012
Car stereos are extremely inexpensive. Get one that has a line-in, USB and maybe also bluetooth. Chances are it'll also have HD radio support, which gives you access to many more stations than standard FM (despite the "HD" name, the advantage isn't really sound quality).
Crutchfield is great if you're up for installing it yourself.
posted by The Lamplighter at 3:58 PM on July 10, 2012 [1 favorite]
Crutchfield is great if you're up for installing it yourself.
posted by The Lamplighter at 3:58 PM on July 10, 2012 [1 favorite]
i nth not using the RF adapter, they universally suck.
my first aux-input experience was with a sony head that had inputs for a cd changer. i had to buy an older version of this source selector, which had auxiliary inputs and a usb input. though the usb input did precisely squat.
anyway, unless your receiver is a sony from the early aughts i doubt this will be a solution, and nowadays receivers are just as cheap as this doodad anyway. go with the tape adapter, and if you decide to switch out your receiver it can usually be done very easily with standard tools.
posted by camdan at 4:54 PM on July 10, 2012
my first aux-input experience was with a sony head that had inputs for a cd changer. i had to buy an older version of this source selector, which had auxiliary inputs and a usb input. though the usb input did precisely squat.
anyway, unless your receiver is a sony from the early aughts i doubt this will be a solution, and nowadays receivers are just as cheap as this doodad anyway. go with the tape adapter, and if you decide to switch out your receiver it can usually be done very easily with standard tools.
posted by camdan at 4:54 PM on July 10, 2012
I bought the cheapest car stereo I could find with a USB port. This one, and installed it myself in about an hour - minus 30 minutes for running up and down stairs for tools (Philips-head screwdriver, wire cutters/strippers, flashlight). My 11 year old car doesn't have the same screw holes (heh) as the modern stereo, so it's just sitting in the old stereo hole and doesn't cause any problem. I have an old 16GB 3G iPhone that I've just loaded with mp3s - that's my car music.
For non-iPod devices you can also use up to a 4gb flash drive with this stereo. A regular 16GB flash drive won't work.
posted by bendy at 11:15 PM on July 10, 2012
For non-iPod devices you can also use up to a 4gb flash drive with this stereo. A regular 16GB flash drive won't work.
posted by bendy at 11:15 PM on July 10, 2012
Very variable. If it is just a basic stereo that will plug into your dash and you don't need any amplifier or speaker work, say in the vicinity of 50 bucks. Best Buy/Geek Squad does a deck install for $60. Pep Boys does it (I'm not sure what all you've got in NYC), a lot of alarm/stereo places and even like auto glass places will do this kind of thing.
A mechanic's time is probably going to be more expensive than having some sort of technician like that, but who knows, I guess. It is a thing you can figure out to do yourself but then if that kind of money is not such a big thing to you, there are a ton of places that will swap out the deck for you. Googling Car Stereo Installation plus your zip code or city/neighborhood should yield many relevant results. The stereo of course you can pay just about as much as you like. Obviously one thing to check anywhere is if you have to purchase the stereo with them to have it installed or not.
posted by nanojath at 11:34 PM on July 10, 2012
A mechanic's time is probably going to be more expensive than having some sort of technician like that, but who knows, I guess. It is a thing you can figure out to do yourself but then if that kind of money is not such a big thing to you, there are a ton of places that will swap out the deck for you. Googling Car Stereo Installation plus your zip code or city/neighborhood should yield many relevant results. The stereo of course you can pay just about as much as you like. Obviously one thing to check anywhere is if you have to purchase the stereo with them to have it installed or not.
posted by nanojath at 11:34 PM on July 10, 2012
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posted by stopgap at 12:42 PM on July 10, 2012 [2 favorites]