Database Info

Car dock = Desktop dock; so audio out possible?

I amazed I'm the first one to notice this, so I'm probably not. I took apart my car dock and found the PCB inside is almost identical to the desktop dock (see photos). The upshot here is that I would strongly guess that you could easily solder on parts to either one and add things like:
- An audio out jack to the car dock (!)
- Volume up/down switches to the desktop dock
- Speakers (small ones!) to the desktop dock
- An external mic to the desktop dock
Most of that doesn't seem so great, but adding an audio jack to the car dock would be fantastic.
Pictures 1 & 2 are the desktop dock, 3 & 4 are the car dock.
Notice the unused pads on the car dock PCB (pic #4) for a headphone jack at bottom left.
Notice the pads for the speakers in pic #2 (desktop dock) at the top.
Also in in pic #2 you can see where the volume rocker would connect at bottom left and mic at bottom center.
Finally the tiny circle near my thumb in pic #4 looks to be a micro antenna jack, hard to tell for sure.
JB

That's incredibly lame of google to not put the audio out when it's the same pcb.

James Bell said:
I amazed I'm the first one to notice this, so I'm probably not.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Good find.
Along a vaguely similar vain, I suggested over here a method of using a Desk Dock as Car AUX input. It has certain benefits over non OEM accessories that do similar. I am in the process if fitting a USB power supply to my car. Once that is done I will fit the Desk Dock semi permanent out of site as a BT AUX in feed.
Of course getting an AUX jack in the Car Dock would be much better.

next thing would be prying off the metal cover and see if they have the same circuitry inside. Then if yes all you have to do is solder a 3.5 female jack on it and voila'...

fan or heatsink?
cool beans!
i wonder if you could install a copper backing plate connected to a heatsink (like ones you can buy for ram) instead of the plastic piece to help with the high heat issues some are having...hmm...
seems like there's enough room

Dude, love how you tore the desktop dock apart on your desk and the car dock in your car.

Since the pcb's are the same size, couldn't you swap them out, cut a hole in the case and then you'd have audio out on the car dock?
=D

@muncheese
Yah I think so. Problem is it'd recognize it as the desktop dock...errr and you'd lose the speakers and volume rocker from the car dock.
My motivation to solder on an old headphone jack is low - my '01 325 doesn't have an aux in to plug into it! Maybe I'll do it anyway if I can find the right jack.
@SPAS79
I started to pry off the metal top but ran out of time to fool with it. I want to look up the chips and see if any of their outputs can be used to trigger the mute line on my stereo.

Well the speaker wouldnt matter since it'll be going through the car audio system, same for the volume, just control the car stereo volume. =)

I took off the metal cover on the desktop dock, picture below.
There's a daughtercard called an NF2301. Made by nFore and (poorly) described here:
http://www.nforetek.com/products.htm

Adding an Aux out on the Car Dock will place it on the Dock itself.
Ideally for neatness, it would be on the base near the suction cup. I suppose you could run a short cable along the chrome arm and situate the jack on the base near the USB outlet.

Chrome arm should be hollow as it already has power running through it. Might be enough room to run a small cable through it.

This is very exciting
Keep us updated on what happens with you!
Bump!

this is fantastic news. I actually have an audio socket left over from my desk dock audio switch project. If someone wants to buy me another car dock or can prove that soldering on a jack will work then i'd be willing to rip it apart and do what google SHOULD have done in the first place!

I cant wait for some chinese company to make this for the nexus:
http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.19747
I have one currently that I used with my iphone and while it felt cheap.. It did everything:
held my iphone in place in the car
charged and did audio out with single sync cable
audio out can be routed either to the 3.5mm aux line AND the built in FM transmitter
remote (which stopped working after 1 week)
Mostly I like the fact that it mounted/charged/audio-out my iphone all at once with 1 cable and was only $12 shipped.. I would love something similar for my nexus

If all the talk about the 2.2 update enabling the FM transmitter is true. It would explain why the car dock has no audio out.
And if Google keeps the Nexus One updates on the same track it should be arriving next Tuesday.
First Tuesday of every month has had a blog update and the second of update of each month has been on or around the last Wednesday.

sweltzin said:
If all the talk about the 2.2 update enabling the FM transmitter is true. It would explain why the car dock has no audio out.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have seen no talk of enabling an FM TRANSMITTER. Just rumours of them enabling an FM receiver, which would be no solution for the car dock.

Even if it did have an FM transmitter, I would prefer the audio out on the dock. Less hassle, better sound.

logger said:
I have seen no talk of enabling an FM TRANSMITTER. Just rumours of them enabling an FM receiver, which would be no solution for the car dock.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's both.

muncheese said:
It's both.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thats a fairly vague comment.
Yeah the radio is a transceiver. Thats fairly obvious. It is after all a cellphone.
But are you saying Google will be activating the FM transmitter in such a way as it will transmit audio to a car FM radio? Or are you just saying the FM radio fitted to the phone is a transceiver.

Car Dock disassembly - adding a LINE OUT

So I got my car dock, I knew it didn't come with a line out, but figured I could add one. You all know how aewsome it would be to have a line out jack on this thing rather than the stock "speakers". Well good news, I am going to make myself a line out and will post pictures about how I am doing it.
I have the thing taken apart right now, and just need to go buy a 3.5mm audio jack.
So, my plan will be to still use the cardock for phone and stereo profiles, just using my car stereo's aux in rather than the dock's weak speakers. I'll leave the microphones on the dock intact, just not the speakers. The good news is the speakers are removable, making room for a 3.5mm audio jack. the bad news? the jack will have to be on the dock body, not base. I'm sure if you try hard enough, one of yoiu will find a place in the base for a jack, but for now, I'm going to add one to the body, on the bottom (in portrait mode).
There you have it, I'll be able to make the dock a semi-permanent fixture in my car and never have to plug in an audio cable to get my music through my car speakers.
Pictures to follow soon, I just couldn't wait to start this project, and get some reactions / moral support.

Someone else looked at doing the same thing a while back. I seem to recall they came up against several hurdles. It is not as clear cut as it seems.
On the face of it- it would seem the approach you are taking will necessitate you having your car stereo ON and AUX selected any time you need to take a phone call. Might be a bit of a pain when you are for example, listening to the car radio and your phone rings. Or if the phone rings and your stereo happens to be turned off.
I find the inbuilt speakers totally adequate for Phone Audio. This arrangement has the benefit it being standalone and means N1 Phone Audio works regardless of current car stereo state. I send the Media Audio to my car stereo via BT though, as it sure benefits from the better speakers quality and auto pauses the Media when the phone is in use.
Good luck with it and do a search for the other thread as there is some good info info in there.
PS take a look through this thread http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=6427057&postcount=39
Might save you some heart ache

I only found that thread, after i had my dock quite disassembled and did a google search for the chipset under the RF shield. :/
I don't use my car's head unit for anything but aux audio, radio is dead to me, so I shouldn't have any problems. The hurdle is the audio being fed to the speakers do NOT share a common ground. They utilize an active-balanced system. both leads are hot, common to themselves.
Now it seems as I will have to choose which channel gets full audio and just bum 'common' from the dominant channel. or i come up with some way to convert two independent balanced audio feeds to a common ground.
I have had no luck looking up the NF2301 daughter board. I was hoping to find a schematic detailing the line level outputs, but no go. I did think it was interesting that the car dock and desktop dock share the same PCB, too bad there is no detailed schematic yet...

FAILURE - giving up
So, after creatively placing some resistors and whatnot, I got a decent line level with common ground, that won't blow up the built-in amp. However, as pointed out in that other thread, there is some BS DSP that notches the lower frequencies out of the signal to the speakers. I got it all setup in my car, plugged in to my aux-out, and it sounded like i was using the voice profile. I took the aux cable and plugged into my headphone jack on the phone, and all the bass came through just fine.
So, for now? The audio out on the car dock is meant for the crappy on-board speakers. not real ones. Sad...
Now, it seems the only way to get an aux out of the cardock would be to swap the board with a desktop dock, and cut a hole for the aux jack, or just do some more soldering to not modify the casing of the cardock.
Too bad, I had it working, but the damn DSP chip/amp puts out ****ty audio quality

Alternatively, at the point you have a desktop dock.... Instead of butchering it for the board, Just install it somewhere out of site in your car and connect it to your cars Aux-in with a 3.5mm lead. Thats what I have done. Works well. Only downside is I still have to manually connect the desktop. It does not autoconnect to deskdock when N1 is placed in cardock obviously.
Too bad your set up did not work for now.

kajer said:
So, after creatively placing some resistors and whatnot, I got a decent line level with common ground, that won't blow up the built-in amp. However, as pointed out in that other thread, there is some BS DSP that notches the lower frequencies out of the signal to the speakers. I got it all setup in my car, plugged in to my aux-out, and it sounded like i was using the voice profile. I took the aux cable and plugged into my headphone jack on the phone, and all the bass came through just fine.
So, for now? The audio out on the car dock is meant for the crappy on-board speakers. not real ones. Sad...
Now, it seems the only way to get an aux out of the cardock would be to swap the board with a desktop dock, and cut a hole for the aux jack, or just do some more soldering to not modify the casing of the cardock.
Too bad, I had it working, but the damn DSP chip/amp puts out ****ty audio quality
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Maybe it's using a low bitrate A2DP bluetooth transfer. Either way, bluetooth will be lower quality than a direct plug.

khaytsus said:
Either way, bluetooth will be lower quality than a direct plug.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I believe this is the likely reason why Google didn't include an audio out port on the dock. Yes, it's on the desktop dock, but that's really all the desktop dock handles, whereas the car dock has a mic as well, etc.

I would be interested in detailed disassembly instructions if you wouldn't mind.

wonkotron said:
I would be interested in detailed disassembly instructions if you wouldn't mind.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
detail isn't really necessary, it's pretty straightforward.
-get a knife and use it to peel off the black rectangular sticker on the front of the dock. it's right where the battery on the phone is when it's docked.
-undo the 4 screws behind the sticker
-pop the two halves of the phone-holder part of the dock apart. if you can't get them apart with a bit of pulling get your thumb nail or a knife in between the two halves.
that's about as far as you need to go to get to the useful bits.

jamezracer said:
Stuff
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks! I'll see if I can figure anything out.

I had this same idea when I first got my car dock, but I couldn't convince myself to hack my new dock. Instead I hacked an old stereo Bluetooth headset with the same mod and it works perfectly.

Don't ignore this post...
Ok So I took a dive in to it. I disassembled my dock (yes even after reading all that I could find on the internet, including this thread), but in disbelief I wanted to find out for my self. I soldered a head phone jack to the speaker wires, and thought I had something good when connected to my computer speakers. (it worked and I was surprised). But after hooking it all up in the car and actually hearing the quality, I was sorrily disappointed.
Major failure, the sound is terrible. Not tolerable at all. Comparable to scratching fingernails across a chalk board and trying to listen to some good tunes at the same time from an FM radio with very poor reception.
Heed my warning, do not attempt to mod the dock for an FM out, it will not work.

Headset problems + recommendations??

I use my phone as a music player. So I use a headset to listen to music and to answer calls. I spend maybe a total of 1-2 hours on the headset when I'm out.
So far, I've used HTC stock headset, and a $20 Maximo headset (http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=370510988729)
For both, I have the same problem. After a few weeks of use, the headset 'breaks'. When plugged in, sound only comes out of one ear. If you wiggle the connector part (see pic) around, then sound will start coming out of both ears. But you need to hold the wire in a particular orientation and it'll work, let go and sound will go back to coming out of one ear.
https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-JXuC-w7ijNA/Tj3v49sPpyI/AAAAAAAAAKo/53fIbQRYK_A/IMAG0004.jpg
I know the problem is not with the phone socket breaking. I can plug in a new headset (I've got a new unused HTC stock headset) and sound comes out of both ears perfectly.
I'm 90% sure I know what causes the problem. I keep my phone in my jeans pocket, with the headset plug in. Because of the way the phone lies in my pocket, and the way my leg moves when I walk, the connector part of the headset gets 'squashed' a bit in my pocket, i.e. it's not sticking up perfectly straight out of the headphone socket of my phone.
So my questions are:
1. Is this problem common or have I just been very unlucky? Other people here who keep their phones in their pocket, and plug in a headset for music, do you get problems like this with your headsets?
2. Do people think this is a problem with cheap headsets? I mean the headset's I've used ARE cheap and ARE from ebay. If so, can people recommend a decent headset? I'm looking at spending around $100 at most, preferably less than that. It has to be a headset, not a headphone. Preferably with a button. I'm using an android phone, but most headsets that are not explicitly for iphone/ipod/ipad only will work.
3. Or is this a problem with the way I'm using it? Is keeping my phone in my pants pocket a bad idea when a headset is plugged in? I have a holster + case for the phone, but I don't like using it cause it's bulky. Is there anything else I can do to keep the connector part from 'bending' while it's plugged in?

I have the same issue. A couple of things I found worked:
- Turn the phone around in your pocket so the headphone jack faces out of the pocket (if possible). Stops bends in the wire just after the plug, which seems to be the cause fo the problem (in my case). I use a Sensation so the jack is on top, but sometimes it's on the bottom as well.
- If you can't do the above, find a cheap male/female 3.5mm adapter and use that between the headset and the plug. Try and find the heaviest gauge (thickest) one available. Better to stuff a cheap adapter than a headset.
- If that's not possible, wrap six or seven winds of duct tape around the cord of the headset just after the plug. Will toughen it up a bit.
- Spring for some Bluetooth headphones, like these (which are excellent), or a headset adapter, like this (also very good, but much more expensive)
You really want to do all you can to keep the plug and majority of cord out of your pocket, especially if it's a tight pocket. Something like a jacket is good; it doesn't move so much when you walk.
Good luck!

Dension Car Dock for smartphone + video

Hi
I have recently purchased this - http://www.dension.com/product/car-dock-for-smartphone
"Dension's NEW Car Dock for Smartphone is a multipurpose sound transmitter with a generic design to fit all smartphones. Dension Car Dock for Smartphone works with the majority of car headunits
Features:
HPST
Mounts on windscreen or dash
Portrait and landscape position to support navigation and videos
AUX & FM audio output via bluetooth
Phone charging
App audio (entertainment, navigation, online calls) via your car’s audio system
Music
Handsfree calling
Built-in microphone
"
I wanted to show anyone who was interested a short video
Link to a short video - showing it installed in my car. You can hear the sound it coming out of the car stereo via the Bluetooth cradle dock.
https://docs.google.com/folder/d/0B...ring&pli=1&docId=0B97kApWh4s4SRS1GSC1qQ3hyQzA
Really clear sound (if FM signal is not already taken).
It fits my nexus 4 with the case on - however I did remove the foam protectors as it was too tight if I didn't.
Enjoy!

EDIT: Nvm saw the answer already lol. Looks neat! 100 usd is kinda steep but you get an aux cable and fm capability for non AUX headunits, which is good though. You said you removed the cushions to use the mount with a case on. Did you remove it by peeling or cutting?

Just to be clear, this is primarily for those cars without Bluetooth right?
And I've used FM transmitters with phones/mp3 players before. Sadly they are not very useful in large city areas/major suburbs where all the FM channels are basically taken.

locutusx said:
Just to be clear, this is primarily for those cars without Bluetooth right?
And I've used FM transmitters with phones/mp3 players before. Sadly they are not very useful in large city areas/major suburbs where all the FM channels are basically taken.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No it has an AUX cable to connect to if you have an AUX port in your head unit. If not, then yes bt via FM is your only choice at that point. Well unless you have an old tape deck of a head unit and get a cassette aux port creator lol. Man those where the days hookin up cd players to your head unit .
Anyways, it seems a bit steep but a combo unit like that isn't that bad IMO. But you are right, if your area is a large metro, the FM frequencies will be too crowded to get a quiet streaming signal to use.

kpjimmy said:
EDIT: Nvm saw the answer already lol. Looks neat! 100 usd is kinda steep but you get an aux cable and fm capability for non AUX headunits, which is good though. You said you removed the cushions to use the mount with a case on. Did you remove it by peeling or cutting?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I paid £59.80 inc delivery as I asked if I could have a discount other wise the best i could find was direct via their site. There are cradle with FM transmitters that are cheaper (around £25) however a) there is an extra lead to connect as there is no bluetooth b) the quality is not as good as (so I am told).
You are paying for a Cradle, charger, good bluetooth to FM transmitter, and the extra Aux cable. I selected to mount on dash but you could mount on the window. Yes - if you car does not have bluetooth then yes this is solves the problem. Beware - if you have bluetooth already then it needs to support media profile to stream navigation audio via the car stereo.
I also forgot to say with bluetooth streaming on and GPS on - it charger about 15% in about 15 mins.

kpjimmy said:
EDIT: Nvm saw the answer already lol. Looks neat! 100 usd is kinda steep but you get an aux cable and fm capability for non AUX headunits, which is good though. You said you removed the cushions to use the mount with a case on. Did you remove it by peeling or cutting?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I just peeled the cushions off with my finger, was OK, and just kept rubbing the glue until it was all gone. I do plan to add a smaller / thinnner rubber pads at some point to replace what I removed - however not really needed at the moment.

Seems you would be better off spending the extra cash having a good Bluetooth stereo installed. I just went to best buy got a really nice Pioneer BT stereo for around 130. After installation, adapters and such the grand total was 240 us. Even with a 20-30 dollar car mount for your phone you're under 3bills and it sounds awesome. Hands free calling music navigation all through my stereo with zero interference.
I have also used all kinds of FM transmitters and from experience I can tell you they NEVER work as advertised. Sure maybe if you live 100 miles or more outside any big city you might get it to work but it will NEVER sound good. I travel from Indiana to Chicago a lot for work and rite about the state line they always cut out no matter what channel I was using. The loudness of the sound you get from them is always about half of what a normal radio station is and even less than that of a CD.
Sent from my Nexus 4 using xda premium

Beaird said:
Seems you would be better off spending the extra cash having a good Bluetooth stereo installed. I just went to best buy got a really nice Pioneer BT stereo for around 130. After installation, adapters and such the grand total was 240 us. Even with a 20-30 dollar car mount for your phone you're under 3bills and it sounds awesome. Hands free calling music navigation all through my stereo with zero interference.
I have also used all kinds of FM transmitters and from experience I can tell you they NEVER work as advertised. Sure maybe if you live 100 miles or more outside any big city you might get it to work but it will NEVER sound good. I travel from Indiana to Chicago a lot for work and rite about the state line they always cut out no matter what channel I was using. The loudness of the sound you get from them is always about half of what a normal radio station is and even less than that of a CD.
Sent from my Nexus 4 using xda premium
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
In reply - I have since driven around to test this and agree trying to find a FREE FM signal is quite hard.
I have since connected the cradle to the stereo via the removable but supplied aux lead and this is much much better. I still Bluetooth enabled - so can connect any Bluetooth device however I now do not get the FM interference.
Hope that help.
It is a good car kit and for me better than replacing my car stereo - as you would also need to get a cradle and method to charge with out!

Anker Bluetooth 4.0 Headset Review

I was provided with this Anker Bluetooth Headset free of charge in exchange for my open and honest feedback.
The Anker Wireless Bluetooth 4.0 Stereo Headset is by far the best Bluetooth Headset that I have ever used or owned. Here are a few reasons why:
1. The Anker Headset uses Bluetooth 4.0 providing higher quality sound (if you have a Bluetooth 4.0 device, as I do) than previous versions of Bluetooth.
2. Speaking of sound, this puppy pumps out enough volume to give you one ringing ear after listening to loud music for an extended period of time. You can of course adjust the volume from the device or the volume rocker on the headset itself.
3. The battery life is quite acceptable, giving the 4-5 hours advertised by Anker. This is something that I've noticed about Anker thus far...they don't advertise 10+ hours of battery life just to get you to buy their product...they advertise real specs and give you a quality product!
4. As with most Bluetooth Headsets, Anker includes multiple ear gels (4 total - 2 small, 2 large) and also 2 detachable ear hooks. I have not needed to use the ear hooks at all in my testing. The Anker Bluetooth Headset fits securely and is more comfortable than any previous headset I've used!
5. The dock that comes with the headset is actually quite spectacular! It's so cool that Anker thought of a storage location for your Bluetooth Headset that can also be used as a charging dock! It comes with 2 mounts; 1 to mount it to your vent in your vehicle (GENIUS idea) and 1 to mount it just about anywhere else (using 3M tape). The coolest thing about this dock is that it puts your Headset into sleep mode and wakes it up automatically, whether a charger is hooked up or not! If your phone starts ringing, you pickup the Headset from the dock and by the time you get it in your ear it has turned on, connected to your phone, and automatically answered your call for you! How SWEET is that??? I was initially skeptical about the practical use of a Bluetooth Headset charging dock, but man oh man, that was a GREAT idea Anker! VERY pleased with this feature!!!
6. You also received a micro USB charging cable that can be hooked to any USB power source (car charger, wall charger, computer). The cable can be plugged into the charging dock or directly into the Headset...the dock is NOT required to charge the Headset. Thanks to Anker for that as well!
There was very little I didn't like about the Anker Wireless Bluetooth Headset. Here are a couple of things that didn't quite measure up:
1. The manual included with the Headset had one mistake about the color of the LED on the charging dock, with it listed as Yellow (page 6 of the manual), when it is in fact Blue. This was a welcome mistake, as I love Blue LEDs...however, I wondered momentarily if my dock was defective and not charging the Headset...as if the LED was supposed to change from Yellow to Blue after the charge had completed. This was not the case and the dock was working just fine!
2. The Answer/End button on the Headset is a little loose. While this does not impede the functionality of the Headset in any way whatsoever, I noticed it almost immediately, and it took away ever so slightly from the otherwise impeccable build quality that I've come to expect from Anker.
3. Much of the finish on the headset and dock is a polish black plastic. I found this to be a fingerprint magnet and somewhat detrimental to my OCD tendencies to have my devices fingerprint free! LOL! I would have liked those areas to have had a brushed aluminum look or a rubberized coating. This is, of course, completely subjective to me and my preferences.
Overall, I can't help but give this Anker Bluetooth Headset 5 stars! The functionality, features, and quality of this Headset are superb! I would happily buy this headset at it's current price and believe it will be one that you can enjoy for years to come! Plus, with Anker's 18 month warranty, you can rest easy knowing that any problems you were to have would be remedied quickly and efficiently! Buy this headset today! You won't regret it!
Get it here: http://www.amazon.com/Wireless-Blue...g-Microphone/dp/B00CIRGHQO/ref=cm_rdp_product