Bundus Posted July 8, 2009 Share Posted July 8, 2009 I have the Alpine IVA W200Ri double din touch screen in my car at the moment which has a dedicated ipod connection. Unfortunately it doesnt play video. Ive seen a ipod video adapter for the alpine units coming in at around £75. Im just wondering how this works. Most sites ive seen say that the video and audio connections are seperate - does that mean that I have to use two different connections when changing from movies to songs or does the video connection do both? Also Im thinking about changing head units anyway and was looking for one that is ipod video ready. I found the JVC KW AVX720 which looks nice and says it plays ipod audio and video but then on a seperate site it said this iPod Video Playback (KS-U30 Cable Required) iPod Audio Playback (USB/J-BUS) Does that mean that if I buy the JVC unit I still have to buy an additional cable for video? And does it also mean that the video and audio are two seperate connections? How does that work? Cheers guys Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
H5 Posted July 10, 2009 Share Posted July 10, 2009 I know little about the JVC units and I have spent little time looking into iPod connectivity due to the poor sound quality. The only thing I do know is that Alpine units use their own software to play the files rather than the Apple stuff which is meant to be much better. The question I would have is around what the two cables connect to? Video iPods just have the one standard iPod socket so where would these two connections go?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob_Quads Posted July 10, 2009 Share Posted July 10, 2009 OK I will have a stab at answering this one. First off personally I would go for a Alpine over JVC any day of the year, specially if your after a good quality sounding unit. Keep an eye out for the new Alpine W407 which is just about to be released which looks good) Ignoring that i think what the confusion here is the 'normal' ipod cables do not have video capability in them (Because these need special apple stuff and they need to pay Apple royalities on them) but if you get one of the cables for iPod Video you would still get the audio part i.e. For certain Alpine For iPod Audio Playback you can use the standard iPod interface - KCE-433iV. For iPod Video & Audio Playback you need the KCE-435iV For JVC For iPod Audio Playback you can use the standard USB interface on the unit. For iPod Video & Audio Playback you need the KS-U30 Cable Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bundus Posted July 10, 2009 Author Share Posted July 10, 2009 Thanks a lot guys. I found out that the cable for the JVC (and I guess the Alpine) has one connection to the ipod but then has two outputs on the cable - one being video input and the other being a usb. You plug both of them into the head unit and that takes care of video and audio. Im tempted to buy the cable for the Alpine and see how it goes but Ive been advised that my unit may not handle ipod video efficiently - I cant see why not though as the DVD quality on it is awesome. I agree that Alpine is a better stereo but if Im honest the control of the ipod is appauling - they have such a poor user interface and you cant use the ipod itself either. Sometimes its quicker to disconnect the ipod, find the tune i want on the pod, pause it, reconnect then play it rather then use Alpines shocking search system. If I do change units Ill keep an eye on whats available but I just looked at the JVC as I thought it was video compatible without the need for the extra cable. Thanks again!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
H5 Posted July 12, 2009 Share Posted July 12, 2009 You do know that the Alpine search allows you to use the number buttons like text buttons to fast search for tracks etc? The other bonus with the Alpine is you can't be done for using a handheld device with the plod as the headunit is a fixed unit Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bundus Posted July 12, 2009 Author Share Posted July 12, 2009 What do you mean H5? I dont have any number buttons on mine - the whole screen is touch screen. Only buttons I have are volume up and down, source and eject along the bottom of the unit. When browsing the folders screen no buttons are displayed other then an absolutely shocking scroll bar. Any info that would make this unit quicker to use would be much appreciated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
H5 Posted July 13, 2009 Share Posted July 13, 2009 Doh, sorry, Mine is a single DIN and if I hit the preset numbers then it jumps through the listings making it very easy to find tracks and I can search by artist, album, genre etc. Not used the touch screen interface for a while but would be surprised if there isn't a range of search options. The destruction manual shed any light?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bundus Posted July 13, 2009 Author Share Posted July 13, 2009 To be honest I think its just accepted that the touch screen interface is pretty poor (from what I can find on AVforums and the like). Its just a really slow scroll. You go through 100 pages to get to the song you like, then next time you go to the folders it starts from the beginning again so you have to do the same thing. Im getting a new one anyway now I think. Just bought an ipod touch and im after a double din touch screen unit that will play both audio and video using the head unit user interface (not the ipod itself). Any ideas!!??! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bundus Posted July 13, 2009 Author Share Posted July 13, 2009 To be honest I think its just accepted that the touch screen interface is pretty poor (from what I can find on AVforums and the like). Its just a really slow scroll. You go through 100 pages to get to the song you like, then next time you go to the folders it starts from the beginning again so you have to do the same thing. Im getting a new one anyway now I think. Just bought an ipod touch and im after a double din touch screen unit that will play both audio and video using the head unit user interface (not the ipod itself). Any ideas!!??! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob_Quads Posted July 13, 2009 Share Posted July 13, 2009 If you are getting a new one some of the newer Alpines might be worth a look. The W404 looks quite good although the W407 looks very interesting. It does not suffer of the same problems you have described from what I have seen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bundus Posted July 14, 2009 Author Share Posted July 14, 2009 yeah Ill take a look. Ive found a few of the new head units that look nice but when you read into them they cant handle the ipod touch very well. Some of the ones that play video say they can only do it if its organised in playlists and it actually uses the DVD player rather then the ipod to do it. Some say it will play video but not run the audio. Others say it will work fine but you have to use the ipod itself to control things and not the head unit. Its becoming a pain in my ar$e to be honest. Surely there is a double din unit designed for ipod audio and video!?! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.