Tag: ipod tips and tricks

How To IPod Your Car

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If you like to ipod your car – pump music on your ipod through your car stereo system – apart from changing to a brand new car that has ipod integration such as BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Nissan and Volvo – there are other options available to you.

If your car does not have the ipod connectivity, the solution to ipod your car is to install an ipod adaptor.

An ipod adaptor retailed by companies such as Peripheral and Monster can be installed within the cavern of wires behind your car dashboard, with one prong from adaptor going to the back of your stereo while another prong goes to a ipod holder near the front seats of the car.

The ipod adaptor works like an emulator and tricks the stereo to think it is a CD changer, so that you can use the track buttons on the stereo faceplate to select songs of your choice.

Installing an ipod changer might be difficult for the non-mechanical inclined, and the services of a trained mechanic might be easier.

If your car is too old, the factory installed stereo might not be suitable for ipod integration. For such cars, it is advisable to install a new player from manufacturers such as Alpine, Kenwood and Pioneer.

If sound quality is important to you, the use of ipod cassete adaptors is not recommended as the sound quality is not good enough, and more importantly they do not recharge the ipod’s battery.

Yet another solution is to use a FM modulator that can produce better sound, and can recharge the batteries, but cannot be directly controlled from the radio.

With these drawbacks, the ipod cassete adaptor and the FM modulator are not the best options, and it is still the ipod adaptor that is recommended.

To facilitate your personal research and to find out what ipod integration is necessary for the model of your car, there are online catalogues from car audio online websites such as that from Crutchfield.com

So your first step is to determine the ipod integration requirements for your car and get the suitable adaptor. Before long, you can be pumping your ipod tracks through your car stereo and enjoying your favorite songs.

Go Digital!

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It seems like yesterday when I made my first attempt at finding an affordable digital multi-track recorder for my small home recording studio. Needing to replace my outdated 4 track analog recorder, I searched quite awhile for a reasonably priced recorder. Finally, I was able to find a digital recorder with most of the features I was looking for.

I was amazed at the capabilities of this machine; the clarity of sound it duplicated and the ease of operation were fantastic. My music mixes never sounded better.

Every month or so, some new technological invention, especially in the digital realm, appears on the market. For today’s young people, it is common place to have at their disposal anything they find appealing.

For some of us “older folks” to say the least, we are amazed, at times, even overwhelmed by all the “techno” gizmos on the market. I feel like a kid in a candy store when I research all the new devices out there, but I am a rare bird for my age and sex. I’m one of the very few women who pine over “electronics” instead of the latest fashion craze.

I constantly search the internet for information on all the new products. I want them all, but can only afford a few of these new devices. But, when narrowing down my choices, I usually opt to keep up with all the music related products for enjoyable listening and more efficient and advanced ways to take my music and recording to the next level.

There is no better way to find out all the tricks and tips about a new device than to read about it. Oftentimes the manufacturer’s supplied user’s manual, to say the least, is in another language. Yes, I am one of those people who prefer to learn by doing, but sometimes this is the slow way and does more harm than good. I have lost many good demos because of my hasty button pushing. My eyes often play tricks on me because part of using digital devices is getting used to the tiny menu screens.

E-books are great for reading in your spare time. I like to download them and read at my leisure. When my eyes are not working properly, I use the “zoom in”, sit back and read all about my new device.

Just bought an iPod or still trying to figure out how to use one? Check out my latest e-book about your favorite “device”, The Incredible iPod at http://www.the-incredible-ipod.com