GMJAP and Jahntassa--or any other "Sound Gurus"--please help!

rebbierae · Post by **rebbierae** » Thu Aug 31, 2006 1:37 am

I have the Peripheral iPod2car installed in my '04 Vibe, and for what I want to be able to do (listen to my iPod in my car), it works just fine. My only issue is, I like to listen to my music fairly loud, and there really isn't much volume with the iPod2car. I practically have to have my stock stereo volume maxed out to get any volume at all through the aux. Is there anything I can do/buy/add to the system to give me a little more volume?

northvibe · Post by **northvibe** » Thu Aug 31, 2006 1:45 am

you have your ipod all the way up i assume then?

rebbierae · Post by **rebbierae** » Thu Aug 31, 2006 1:53 am

yeah, I do, but that doesn't really seem to help in the car. I know I'm probably not going to get the FULL volume that I would otherwise, but it seems really bad.

northvibe · Post by **northvibe** » Thu Aug 31, 2006 1:56 am

before any hardware modification you can "raise" the volume on the mp3's on the pc. That would make them louder so you wouldnt have to crank up the volume.On the hardware side I think there would be a way to hardwire a volume in but not sure if it would be recommended or not.

rebbierae · Post by **rebbierae** » Thu Aug 31, 2006 1:59 am

Well, I tried that on my iPod preferences, but only on some of my older cds where the sound isn't as great as on newer cds. Think that would help at all? I don't mean I need it to be ear-splitting, seat-thumping loud....I just like to be able to have it loud enough that I can sing without hearing myself since I can't sing.

northvibe · Post by **northvibe** » Thu Aug 31, 2006 2:01 am

do you have windows or mac? Yeah you can bump up the volume on the pc side with some software. My roommate used to do it in Nero. hahhahha so you could just not sing so loud???

rebbierae · Post by **rebbierae** » Thu Aug 31, 2006 2:02 am

Windows.

northvibe · Post by **northvibe** » Thu Aug 31, 2006 2:14 am

try mp3gain and let me know how that works. it will allow you to "normalize" the volume aka raise or lower the volume of a mp3 so the normal play volume is higher or lower.http://prdownloads.sourceforge...nload

GMJAP · Post by **GMJAP** » Thu Aug 31, 2006 2:18 am

rebbierae - try setting DIP switch #6 to "ON" on the iPod2Car. This should increase the gain (volume) of the unit.Other than that northvibe's suggestion is a good one, though it will be harder to find a program that works with the iTunes' format (as opposed to generic MP3s).EDIT - if you use MP3Gain, you should note that the author says AAC support is still experimental, and you should back up your music files first before running it on them.Try the DIP setting, though.

rebbierae · Post by **rebbierae** » Thu Aug 31, 2006 2:21 am

Ok, I'll give that a try. Is that something I can do myself--don't laugh--but considering I had a local place install the unit for me--I don't even know how to get to the back of the unit. But I'll have my b/f check it out for me and turn that on.

GMJAP · Post by **GMJAP** » Thu Aug 31, 2006 2:25 am

Quote, originally posted by rebbierae Â»Ok, I'll give that a try. Is that something I can do myself--don't laugh--but considering I had a local place install the unit for me--I don't even know how to get to the back of the unit. But I'll have my b/f check it out for me and turn that on. Hopefully, they just installed it in the space above the radio - so you would be able to get to it just by removing the silver trim around the radio. Course, getting at stuff inside the dash is always a PITA.You should be able to it yourself, maybe with some help taking the radio trim off (see the first part of raging's excellent how-to http://forums.genvibe.com/zerothread?id=5940). The iPod2Car will be about a 3" x 3" x 1" white box with cables attached. The DIP switches are accessible on one side.

rebbierae · Post by **rebbierae** » Thu Aug 31, 2006 2:39 am

Ha ha ha ha ha you don't know me very well! I will probably make Jim take the car all apart--I just don't trust myself! Thanks for the advice and I'll see what I can do. If that switch is already ON, then I'll just cry for a little while and get over it, but we'll see what happens first!

northvibe · Post by **northvibe** » Thu Aug 31, 2006 3:23 am

ah theres a DIP setting to raise up the roof...hope that works, it would be much easier. rebbierae we belive in you...now go do it! might want to disconnect the batter just incase....

rebbierae · Post by **rebbierae** » Thu Aug 31, 2006 4:36 am

Thanks for your confidence and support, NV--I hope you don't feel the explosion up there!

Jahntassa · Post by **Jahntassa** » Thu Aug 31, 2006 11:04 pm

As I notice the thread obviously a day late.. I'd try GMJAP's Dipswitch setting first. Going through and making your MP3's louder, while possibly helpful for the car, may end up making them sound worse and unlistenable in other environments. If the MP3's were ripped straight from CDs, generally they're as loud as you want them to get.

rebbierae · Post by **rebbierae** » Thu Aug 31, 2006 11:26 pm

I'm going to try and get Jim to help me do the DIP switch thing tonight--I hope it's something as easy as that, but I had it installed by professionals, so I would like to hope that they were smart enough to turn that on already. If that's the case I will be really bummed out if that's ALL the volume I can get. But we'll give it a try!

rebbierae · Post by **rebbierae** » Mon Sep 04, 2006 12:44 am

OK--do you want me to tell you that the DIP switch fixed it? Or.....do you want the truth? I feel like World's Biggest Blonde Idiot here! Jim and I met at Starbucks the other day before I left town for the weekend, so he was going to try and fix it for me. When they installed the iPod2Car, then must have put it behind the a/c and we didn't have the tools to take the dash apart, so Jim was going to wait until I got home. So he starts messing with my iPod itself just to see...and in the "settings" he found a 'sound check' that was turned -on- so he turned it OFF, and voila! I had lots-o-sound again! I must have been messing around one day and turned that setting and had no idea. So now my sound issue is fixed, and I feel like a heel for not figuring THAT one out on my own! Thanks for all the help guys!

northvibe · Post by **northvibe** » Mon Sep 04, 2006 1:37 am

well hey thats awesome now that it works with just a flick of a digital ipod switch!

GMJAP · Post by **GMJAP** » Mon Sep 04, 2006 2:44 am

Glad to hear you got the volume, and much more easily than messing with the adapter!

ColonelPanic · Post by **ColonelPanic** » Mon Sep 04, 2006 4:58 am

Oh yeah, sound check... It basically does what northvibe was talking about, "normalizes" the volume. When you add new songs into your iTunes library and you see "determining song volume" it's scannling through the songs to figure out how loud (or not loud) that song is... Then, changes are made to the volume accordingly so that everything seems about the same volume. Works great to keep you from cranking the volumes on softer songs and then you turn around and get your ear drums blown on the next. But a side effect of that is what you just found, where the max volume overall is reduced.I usually keep it on, with the iTrip, it seems to help cut back on distortion although I do have to crank the radio waaay up. It really comes in handy for podcasts where I'll listen to them one after anohter after another - those things are never done at the same level. Works great there to even it out. Glad you found the fix!

rebbierae · Post by **rebbierae** » Mon Sep 04, 2006 11:21 pm

Yes, I'm having issues after importing some of my way old cds--the quality and volume just isn't the same as newer discs, or those purchased on iTunes. So I think that one day I turned that on thinking it would turn UP the music that wasn't very loud, but it had the opposite effect. I sure hope that the 'professionals' who installed the Peripheral were smarft enough to turn on that DIP switch, but one never knows. Instead it's just me who's the idiot!

GMJAP and Jahntassa--or any other "Sound Gurus"--please help!

GMJAP and Jahntassa--or any other "Sound Gurus"--please help!

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