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My solution to the lack of aux jack on the car dock.

I agree that having an aux jack on the Nexus One car dock would be pretty sweet, but it is what it is, and I wanted to move on... Here is what I did:
Nexus One (duh)
Nexus One car dock (...)
Kensington LiquidAuxbluetooth car kit: us.kensington.com/html/14484.html
Micro USB cable
Plug the Kensington L.A. into the accessory outlet, and connect the audio output plug to your AUX on your stereo. The L.A. provides a USB port to use for the Micro USB cable. (for charging)
Plug the micro USB cable in this port and route to your car dock.
Once you pair your phone with the L.A. place it in the car dock and setup the audio to be whatever combination you would like. I personally use the dock for calls (because the mic is better) and the L.A. for audio.
One accessory outlet, (no splitters) one wire coming from it to the dock, audio routed through the AUX in your stereo, and (IMO) really great call audio thanks to the dock and noise canceling, which still works with the phone in the dock...
Just sharing my experience, YMMV, IANAL, OMG, WTF, BBQ...
Pics - Add http to them to view (I can't post links yet apparently...)
yfrog.com/2r20100415073238j -LiquidAUX Device
yfrog.com/1420100415073316j - Plugged into AUX and has Micro USB connected.
yfrog.com/2m20100415073324j - Cable Routing 1
yfrog.com/j120100415073338j - Cable Routing 2
yfrog.com/4720100415073414j - Wheel wireless remote, media functions work, I couldn't get phone button to do anything, but that may be a settings thing.
yfrog.com/0b20100415073331j - Dock on the windscreen, the stock MicroUSB cable that comes with the phone is pretty 'stiff' and stays in place very well.

Pics please...

Awesome Find.
30 bucks with free shipping on Amazon
http://www.amazon.com/Kensington-LiquidAUX-Bluetooth-Remote-Phones/dp/B0011UIX2K
I'm about to order mine

+ 1. That looks like a really good solution. Another benefit you did not mention is that by powering the Car Dock with the Micro USB cable, you do away with the spiral lead that is on the Car Dock power supply. So easier to route and hide.
Any issues with charging the phone and powering the car dock? Isn't the car doc charger higher output than regular chargers and perhaps the one on the LiquidAux?

how's the music sound quality?
Sent from my Nexus One using the XDA mobile application powered by Tapatalk

logger said:
+ 1. That looks like a really good solution. Another benefit you did not mention is that by powering the Car Dock with the Micro USB cable, you do away with the spiral lead that is on the Car Dock power supply. So easier to route and hide.
Any issues with charging the phone and powering the car dock? Isn't the car doc charger higher output than regular chargers and perhaps the one on the LiquidAux?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No issues I have noticed so far, there is no additional <warmth> on the LiquidAux I have been able to detect, and the phone charges just as quickly as it would when plugged in using OEM adapter. And yes, losing the spiral lead is a nice bonus...

yellowy0y0 said:
how's the music sound quality?
Sent from my Nexus One using the XDA mobile application powered by Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sound quality for me is great, there is no interruptions, etc I have noticed. But I suspect that this would be a YMMV kind of thing based on the car stereo used and the distance / path (if that even matters with the relatively short distance) between the LiquidAux device and the phone...

uansari1 said:
Pics please...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I added some pics above (imageshack) but couldn't post links (yet) so just add the http part and you can see them...

um, do you realize you can still use the headphone jack when the phone is plugged into the dock?
http://www.google.com/support/android/bin/answer.py?answer=178184

MonkySlap said:
um, do you realize you can still use the headphone jack when the phone is plugged into the dock?
http://www.google.com/support/android/bin/answer.py?answer=178184
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Why yes, but some people in this particular forum were voicing their displeasure of having a mass of wires dangling all over their car / phone etc...
I was offering an alternative, and it worked well for me, nobody said or implied that you need to do it too...
<Sheesh/>

How long is that cable(the 3.5mm one from the liquid aux). Looks pretty short..

tokyomonster said:
How long is that cable(the 3.5mm one from the liquid aux). Looks pretty short..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It is in fact short (4") while this works fine for my use, YMMV...

Interesting solution, I like it
Here are clickable links for the lazy
http://yfrog.com/2r20100415073238j -LiquidAUX Device
http://yfrog.com/1420100415073316j - Plugged into AUX and has Micro USB connected.
http://yfrog.com/2m20100415073324j - Cable Routing 1
http://yfrog.com/j120100415073338j - Cable Routing 2
http://yfrog.com/4720100415073414j - Wheel wireless remote, media functions work, I couldn't get phone button to do anything, but that may be a settings thing.
http://yfrog.com/0b20100415073331j - Dock on the windscreen, the stock MicroUSB cable that comes with the phone is pretty 'stiff' and stays in place very well.

furbyslayer said:
It is in fact short (4") while this works fine for my use, YMMV...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hmm. I guess, worst case scenario, I can just buy a short extender.

Another question for you... Does the remote work with the phone? I'm waiting for mine to get here but I had read from many reviews that the control did not work properly with the iphone, just wondering if the nexus one had the same problem.
Sent from my Nexus One using the XDA mobile application powered by Tapatalk

awesome writeup... Even if this thing doesn't work to pickup calls I don't care, I always have a bluetooth headset for the car anyhow. I think I'll get an extra socket and mount it all under the dash out of sight.
Even thought you can plug in a wire to the headphone jack I want a solution where I can stick the phone in the holder when I get in, and pull it right out without messing with cables every fricken time... Most the time I don't plug my phone in right now just because of that very reason.
With a nice setup like this I'd plug my phone in every time I get in the car... awesome, Thanks!
Just ordered mine off amazon.. seems like a great price for the product.

Nevermind, reread your first post, missed the info I wanted the first read through. Well, since I'm stuck with this post existing, may as well clarify, you said you can choose to have the phone calls go through the dock with this, right?

furbyslayer said:
It is in fact short (4") while this works fine for my use, YMMV...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
4 inches, is that all you've got? - that is short
I think perhaps you meant 4' or four feet.

yellowy0y0 said:
Another question for you... Does the remote work with the phone? I'm waiting for mine to get here but I had read from many reviews that the control did not work properly with the iphone, just wondering if the nexus one had the same problem.
Sent from my Nexus One using the XDA mobile application powered by Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The media functions work fantastic with the Nexus, the iPhone does not support track skip, where the Nexus does. I have not been able to get the phone button to start voice dialing like the iPhone does. I have not actually had a call while driving to pickup yet, so I can't say for certain whether that (pickup incoming) works or not...

kitsunisan said:
Nevermind, reread your first post, missed the info I wanted the first read through. Well, since I'm stuck with this post existing, may as well clarify, you said you can choose to have the phone calls go through the dock with this, right?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have call audio go through the dock, yes. The LiquidAux has a microphone, but it is quite far away from the the speaker's mouth IMO. Additionally, the dock still uses the extra Michael for active noise cancelling and is quite crisp and clear for calls. (I have so far made several outbound calls with great results.) The music pauses, audio routes up to the dock for the duration of the call, then the music resumed on the car speakers automatically...

Vehicle Mount

I just received my vehicle mount for the epic. Got it mounted and everything good except I get no audio when I plug in my aux cable from the radio. It says it should automatically play but it doesnt. I have 2.2.1 and am running syndicate frozen 1.2 rom. Could there be a setting I need to change? My phone does instantly go into driving mode once the charger is on.

You need to download the car app from the market that is made for the epic 4g. Search on your computer though because it will not show on your phone market, I believe it only shows up under the web browser version. Once you install the app there is a speaker icon you press to turn audio on and off. enjoy.
Sent from my SPH-D700 using xda premium

Got it, thanks

Be sure to press the speaker button in the upper right corner of car home (the car app) or you won't have the sound come through your speakers either.

I use this: Galaxy Dock Sound Redirector

dewey1973 said:
I use this: Galaxy Dock Sound Redirector
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is for sure the way to go. It also maxes out your media volume when you plug it in.
-Roger

Anyone else using the car dock find that the audio output for the left channel is much louder than the audio output for the right channel?

The problem your describing sounds like it's potentially a problem with your connection to your car stereo, or your car stereo. I haven't noticed any balance issues with mine.
You should double check
0. That the epic sounds the same in and out of the mount.
1. That another mp3/cd/cassette player sounds fine being played through your car's stereo.
2. The balance setting on your car stereo.
3. The cable you connect Epic to the car with is good. If the wiggling the cable produces static or volume changes, get a new one.
4. That you've pushed the connecting cable in all the way on both ends. It can take a little more force than you might expect. I think I had to push a little harder on the car mount end initially.
I haven't noticed any way to change the balance on the epic, but I suppose that's a possibility too.
Hope this helps.

My wife left my car at the airport for a few days, so I just got around to troubleshooting this. I think you are correct that the problem actually lies in the casette adapter that I replaced shortly before adding the car dock.
Sent from my SPH-D700 using Tapatalk

It's too bad they don't have a dock for us like they showed off a long time ago with the original nexus.

Those of you using the car dock, when you remove your Epic from the car dock, do you put it into a case? Is there any case that can take the abuse of constantly putting the phone in/out ? The tabs on mine broke pretty quickly as a result. Also, what case is the lease hassle to get the phone in/out?

Need help getting a perfect audio recording on my SGS4G

Im asking all you guys to help me find best methods, settings, and tweaks to get the best possible audio recordings on my SGS4G. Im asking this not only from the devs here but from all the audiophiles as well.
The reason im starting this thread is that my partners iphone 4 just with the built in mic and camera has produced video and audio recordings 10x better then what this phone has. With great dynamic quality and no distortion or anything. I need broadcast quality recordings for this project to succeed. If i am not able to do so im either going to have to try to clone the SIM card and get a used iphone 3GS just for field work, or give up this phone and switch to an iphone 4. Either of which i really dont want to do. If part of the solution is to dump GB and go back to Froyo, then so be it.
Heres what i got:
1. Highly modded SGS4G with Valhalla 1.3.2, Launcher Pro Plus
2. 32GB class 4 Sandisk card
3. UV using the settings in the ICBINB therad (i tried some lower ones dsexton posted, but they made the phone very unstable)
4. Voodoo Plus sound app
5. i-Microphone (sound was horrible, more on this later) http://www.amazon.com/o/ASIN/B004XC6KHS/ref=nosim/betteraddons-20
6. Sennheiser E835 with XLR to 3.5 mono minijack adapter
7. Rec Forge and Hi-Q MP3 recorder (trying both, if you know of any with more features please share)
First off, im concerned that the custom ROM, kernal, and UV settings may be affecting quality. Any input on this would be appreciated. Ive tried OC, but 1.2ghz was never stable and 1.3ghz drained the battery too much.
I first off was looking for a good solution for face to face interviews, i found the i-mic (link above) to have good reviews, but when i bought it and tried it out, the recordings were horrible! Like someone was rubbing their fingers over the mic when talking. I tried gain adjustments in Voodoo and the recording apps im trying out, but nothing helped.
I plugged in my new Sennheiser using a XLR to RCA cable, with a RCA to mini jack adapter. The sound is A LOT better, but still there is a humming over the recordings, and they just do not have the dynamic quality that im hearing with the iphone recordings.
Are there any equalizer and sound processing apps for commercial or professional audio work out there?
Im at a wall here, any help to these issues would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.

It's hard to tell exactly without seeing your set-up but it sounds like you have the following issue.
The XLR is a balanced connector. When you go to an RCA you are dropping down to an unbalanced connector and losing your ground. That is where the hum would stem from.
To eliminate the hum you would need a cable that converts directly from your balanced XLR to a balanced T/R/S (Tip, Ring Sleeve) mini jack. This mini jack has 3 separate contact points, separated by two plastic bands on the plug instead of one.
Ideally for broadcast quality you would need to run your Sennheiser E835 into some sort of mixer with a mic preamp. Then run the line level out from the mixer to the SGS4G. Your recordings would be crystal clear at this point.
I don't believe your issue is with the SGS4G hardware. I use the camcorder with the built in mic all the time and the audio quality is fine.
Hope this helps.

you don't need a balanced connection unless you are talking about long mic cables like over 5 feet long and equipment that is plugged into AC current. Balanced connections are for getting rid of the 60 cycle AC hum, basically.
If I was trying to record using a 4g I would think about using the usb input and some kind of analog to digital converter box. Here is a cheap one -- $25 behringer UCA 202 providing 2 RCA inputs-- it's about the size of a phone. and supposed to work on linux without drivers so maybe it will work on android. I have three of them and use them for laptops. They're pretty good at eliminating noise. I just don't know if the phone has enough power to operate the unit. You need a female to female standard usb adapter to connect the data cable to the converter and something to adapt a (short) mic cable to an RCA port. if it works you can use a dynamic mic like a AKG or Shure or some smaller dynamic mic and will get better recordings than anything built into any phone. It will be a little bit bulky but you'll still be able to fit the whole thing in your pocket. I should try it with my phone and see if it works but I need to get the female to female adapter. if the phone recognizes the UCA202 it should work just fine with a Sennheiser E835. My girlfriend uses a Sennheiser MD-431 for recording songs with her laptop and one of those units.
They also have usb mic adapters at places like guitar center. If you have the female to female USB connector you can take your 4g to guitar center or wherever and try their mics out before you buy anything.

@Nazcalito....great advice, I guess spending all my time on a control room board I hear the word 'hum' and immediately think 'where's the dirty gear, who's missing a direct box.' Haven't used a cable under 10ft in as many years. I'd be very interested to know if someone could get the USB audio/phone rig cooking on or s4g, that would be sweet.
Sent from my SGH-T959V

Thanks for all the responses, ive been playing around with this and i do think the hardware is the biggest issue. I noticed the issue im having is that the built in mic is not turning off when using an external one. When using the external mic, i can tap over the back mic and get the feedback from it as well as the audio from the external mic.
Now the built in 3.5mm jack is a four contact TRRS plug, the RCA to minijack adapter is only two contacts. This would explain why the little plug in mic was getting all the feedback. Though even that mini i-mic was a TRRS plug like the headset thats included with the SGS4G. Why is the built in mic not turning off?
Nazcalito, your suggestion of the USB audio interface may work, i did consider a microphone with a USB connection, though i could not find any accounts of this working by simply plugging the mic in to the phone with a USB to microUSB adapter, and didnt want to take the chance. Though i like the converter box you showed a pic of, i could just velcro it to the back of the phone to make a mobile unit. I'll probably buy one if youre able to confirm it works. Again would i have the same issue with the internal mic not turning off when using this?
One thing i ordered was something called the headset buddy, its a TRRS male plug that splits into two separate minijacks for headphone and microphone. Im hoping this will solve the problem.
http://www.amazon.com/o/ASIN/B002SK66OY/ref=nosim/betteraddons-20
Another concern is the pinout of the SGS4G. Ive found diagrams for the i9000 that shows the mic and ground contacts swapped, and others with the regular mic as the last pin that claim they are for the Galaxy S2 and SGS4G. Anyone can confirm? This might explain the internal mic staying on.
http://pinoutsguide.com/CellularPhones-P-W/samsung_galaxy_headset_pinout.shtml
http://pinoutsguide.com/HeadsetsHeadphones/samsung_i9100_headset_pinout.shtml
As well should i have all the options in Voodoo turned on for this?

Ya know, i wish i didnt order the headset buddy already, i would have tried this:
http://www.kvconnection.com/product-p/km-droid-x43.htm

Caligula36 said:
Ya know, i wish i didnt order the headset buddy already, i would have tried this:
http://www.kvconnection.com/product-p/km-droid-x43.htm
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That looks like a very handy piece of gear.

Bump
Sent from my SGH-T959V using XDA App

The adapter did not help, the internal mic is still staying on.

That's not good. I have a similar problem occasionally with headphones not muting the speaker when used...I have to wiggle the plug a little until it mutes. The contacts are definitely a little touchy.
Sent from my SGH-T959V

Can anyone with a stock froyo SGS4G try plugging in an external mic and see if that solves it?

Car bluetooth speaker

Anyone recommend a good car blue tooth speaker? My work van does not have blue tooth and so I bought a Jabra speaker for about $40 last year and it is horrible. Just looking for some help finding a new one, thanks
Sent from my XT897 using xda app-developers app

Do you have an aux in that you can plug into? If so, I have the miccus mini jack rx and love it. It's small and if you use the usb power cable, it turns on and off with the vehicle (assuming your outlet turns on and off)

vonrandy said:
Do you have an aux in that you can plug into? If so, I have the miccus mini jack rx and love it. It's small and if you use the usb power cable, it turns on and off with the vehicle (assuming your outlet turns on and off)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
nope, no aux plug-in either. Good thought though

Might want to consider just replacing the headset/deck in the van.
Nevermind, I didn't see the word "work" before van. Why not just grab one of these?
http://www.walmart.com/ip/16480663?...1=g&wl2=&wl3=21486607510&wl4=&wl5=pla&veh=sem

The JBL flip bluetooth speaker is pretty impressive. Only thing I dont like about it is theres no forward and reverse button for changing tracks.

This won't help the OP, but along with the thought Kitsune was going to interject, if anyone is looking for a new head unit for their car that has BT hands-free calling & audio streaming, I can highly recommend the relatively new Kenwood KDC-X597 model. Just had one of these installed last week and it pairs & works with the Q nicely (even though you won't find it listed on the compatibility list on Kenwood's website). Easily the best stereo overall I've had in a vehicle.

Bluetooth calling options for car?

I've read a lot about options for getting bluetooth audio in the car, and even started a thread on it. But after thinking about it more, I realized that if I was going to have bluetooth audio in the car, I might as well be able to take calls in the car, as well. I tried the Belkin adapter, and it's great for receiving music and calls, but the sound from my end on calls is disappointing. I've called people from it and also have left myself voicemails and listened to them, and it just doesn't sound very good.
Any advice on bluetooth for the car that has good call audio? Been considering maybe this GoGroove one. Also, this Kinivo doesn't look too bad.

It's a bit more expensive than those options and doesn't work with every vehicle but I just put a grom audio adapter in my honda pilot. It pretends to be a cd changer, I got the box with aux in, usb and bluetooth capability then added on the Bluetooth module and auxillary in+charging cable and it ended up being like 200 shipped. At the cheapest end you could get the box that just does bluetooth and aux for 74.99 then add on the bluetooth for 49.99 (the box comes with bluetooth capability but the actual bluetooth module is an addon). You mount the microphone where you cant it and plug the box into the back of the radio. It works well for me and everyone can hear me just fine... well everyone except my dad but he's been going deaf for years now.

flu13 said:
I've read a lot about options for getting bluetooth audio in the car, and even started a thread on it. But after thinking about it more, I realized that if I was going to have bluetooth audio in the car, I might as well be able to take calls in the car, as well. I tried the Belkin adapter, and it's great for receiving music and calls, but the sound from my end on calls is disappointing. I've called people from it and also have left myself voicemails and listened to them, and it just doesn't sound very good.
Any advice on bluetooth for the car that has good call audio? Been considering maybe this GoGroove one. Also, this Kinivo doesn't look too bad.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Gogroove is good

diljosh said:
Gogroove is good
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah? How is call quality? Do you have to turn on or pair or connect it every time you get in the car?

BOOM:
http://www.amazon.com/Kinivo-BTC450...Input/dp/B009NLTW60/ref=pd_rhf_dp_s_cp_1_2JMS

wavrunrx said:
BOOM:
http://www.amazon.com/Kinivo-BTC450...Input/dp/B009NLTW60/ref=pd_rhf_dp_s_cp_1_2JMS
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can you elaborate? You have this one? It is one of the two I was considering. How is call quality?

i dont own it yet but am probabally going to order it on monday.
my car already has bluetooth built in, but i like the fact this adapter supports aptX, and has a built in USB port.
so anyway, i cant elaborate :/
**edit
what is the other one you were considering ?
can you share with us ?

wavrunrx said:
i dont own it yet but am probabally going to order it on monday.
my car already has bluetooth built in, but i like the fact this adapter supports aptX, and has a built in USB port.
so anyway, i cant elaborate :/
**edit
what is the other one you were considering ?
can you share with us ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I can speak for it, I own it (bought it last week)
Syncs up quick, Unlike the similar Belkin (looks better, has issues) the buttons are useful, the big center area is a giant play/pause button, it also has a foward\back button on one side. Call quality is great, have had no complaints when using it, streams music well. Very simple setup.
The only thing I don't like is the cable is permanently attached and very thin/fragile. This isn't an issue if you properly mount/set it up (IE hide it behind plastic panels)
The charger doesn't put out much, I believe around 700mA, and it does take up my one and only 12v jack meaning I can't easily use a better phone charger without hardwiring something.

wavrunrx said:
**edit
what is the other one you were considering ?
can you share with us ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Links are in the OP.

Cast|el said:
The charger doesn't put out much, I believe around 700mA, and it does take up my one and only 12v jack meaning I can't easily use a better phone charger without hardwiring something.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There's always this.

Just bought a new car 2 months ago. It has no bluetooth and I was tired of my fm adapter so I was looking for a new solution. Considered everything from 600$ full CD player replacements that had bluetooth enabled to some of the more internal installation ones around 150. Ended up going with the Kinvio off Amazon just to try it and see how well it works.
Here is what makes it 10x better then the Belkin: Autoconnect. When you turn your car on it turns on and your phone automatically connects. With the Belkin apparently you have to hit the button every time you want to connect.
I've been told the audio quality is good and while people know im on speakerphone they can hear me clearly. The audio quality for me is great, I'm not an audiophile but it certainly seems clear to me. Would definitely recommend it for the price.

I put a bluefusion unit in my truck and loved it. It plugged in behind the radio, install took about thirty minutes. It still allowed use of my steering wheel controls. It tricked the radio into thinking the Bluetooth was xm..... retails for over $200 but are for sale all over the net for $40-60.
Sent from my SCH-I545 using xda app-developers app

dzags said:
Just bought a new car 2 months ago. It has no bluetooth and I was tired of my fm adapter so I was looking for a new solution. Considered everything from 600$ full CD player replacements that had bluetooth enabled to some of the more internal installation ones around 150. Ended up going with the Kinvio off Amazon just to try it and see how well it works.
Here is what makes it 10x better then the Belkin: Autoconnect. When you turn your car on it turns on and your phone automatically connects. With the Belkin apparently you have to hit the button every time you want to connect.
I've been told the audio quality is good and while people know im on speakerphone they can hear me clearly. The audio quality for me is great, I'm not an audiophile but it certainly seems clear to me. Would definitely recommend it for the price.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
so am i correct in my thinking:
1) pair my phone with the Kinovo
2) Music (from google music) will go out TO my microsoft SYNC system VIA Line OUT FROM the Kinovo
3) Phone calls, incoming/outgoing, will go TO my microsoft SYNC system VIA bluetooth FROM the Kinovo ((instead of LINE out! so i can still take advantage of answering calls from my steering wheel and seeing names on the cars LCD etc ...)

Alright, I'm giving the Kinivo a try.